Hiroki Kuroda

Cafardo On Kuroda, Zduriencik, Choo, Arroyo

By Zachary Links | August 25, 2013 at 8:51am CDT

The waiver trade deadline is one week away, meaning that teams have to work fast if they want to make an out-of-house upgrade for their playoff roster. Will there be a flurry of moves to close out August? “I doubt it,” one National League General Manager told Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe. “There’s a lot more blocking going on this year.” Here's more from today's column..

The Yankees increased Hiroki Kuroda’s salary from $10MM in 2011 to $15MM in 2012 and Cafardo wonders aloud if they'll have to tack on another $5MM to keep him in 2014. One Yankees official said they need to do whatever they can to make that happen, as the right-hander, even at 39, would still be the best starting pitcher on the open market. Kuroda has pondered retirement but a sizable deal like that could keep him in place.
Baseball people would be surprised if the Mariners replace Jack Zduriencik with one year remaining on his contract. The feeling is the M's have some good young talent on the way and if Zduriencik can retain Kendrys Morales, Raul Ibanez, and Mike Morse, he has a chance to really make some progress. Zduriencik raised some eyebrows when he held on to that trio this summer, but he believes he can re-sign a couple or all three.
It doesn’t appear that the Reds will have the finances to sign Shin-Soo Choo for the long term and the Mets, Yankees, Phillies, Cubs, and Red Sox could all have interest. Industry sources told Patrick Mooney of CSNChicago.com last week that the Cubs are expected to make a run at Choo. The outfielder ranks No. 5 on Tim Dierkes' 2014 Free Agent Power Rankings.
Speaking of the Reds, Bronson Arroyo probably won't be back with the club and a National League team like the Cardinals, Mets, or Braves would probably suit him. Cafardo also notes that Cubs president Theo Epstein has an affinity for Arroyo.
Agent Scott Boras would like to see clients Stephen Drew and Jacoby Ellsbury re-sign with the Red Sox long term. Naturally, he expects a vibrant market for both players.
A.J. Burnett could be a candidate to stay in with the Pirates, even though he's hinted about retirement. If he goes elsewhere, it's hard to see him getting a long-term deal, but the Blue Jays could try to bring him back for the short term.

West Notes: Affeldt, Wilson, Dodgers, Gonzalez, M’s

By edcreech | July 21, 2013 at 5:00pm CDT

The Giants have lost left-handed reliever Jeremy Affeldt for four-to-six weeks after a MRI revealed a moderate strain of muscle and tendon in his left groin, reports Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle. Jose Mijares will absorb most of Affeldt's innings, but CSNBayArea.com's Andrew Baggarly writes the Giants could, if history is any guide, look to acquire another lefty reliever. Baggarly notes it was nearly three years ago to the day Affeldt injured his oblique and GM Brian Sabean acquired Javier Lopez, an under-the-radar move which paid dividends as the Giants won the World Series. In other news and notes from MLB's West divisions:

While Affeldt's injury may change the calculus slightly, Baggarly, within that same article, sees the Giants continuing their quest for starting pitching. Manager Bruce Bochy loves Jake Peavy, but the two teams have not discussed a deal and the Giants don’t have the quantity or quality of trade chips to get a seat at the table, according to Baggarly.
Ex-Giants closer Brian Wilson is expected to begin showcasing his arm for teams within the next few weeks and the Giants have asked Wilson's representative to include them in the process, reports Schulman. Wilson underwent his second Tommy John surgery 15 month ago.
Dodgers GM Ned Colletti doesn't expect to make any franchise-altering deals prior to the Trade Deadline, according to Dylan Hernandez of the Los Angeles Times. "I don't know that that player is out there," Colletti said. "When I call around teams, there's not a lot of names of position players being discussed. I'm not sure if there's a market out there on the sell side."
Earlier today, we learned the Dodgers are prepared to offer Miguel Alfredo Gonzalez something in the neighborhood of $50MM over five years. Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports.com, however, tweets sources have told him the Dodgers' interest in the Cuban right-hander is not as fervent as has been portrayed.
Manager Eric Wedge doesn't think the fourth-place Mariners, winners of six straight, will be active at the Trade Deadline, writes MLB.com's Greg Johns. "Unless it's something that raises the bar, I don't think we're going to do anything," said Wedge. "We're not going to move somebody just to move somebody." The Mariners have several veterans on one-year deals, who could be appealing to contenders, including left-handed reliever Oliver Perez, left-handed starter Joe Saunders, outfielder Raul Ibanez, first baseman Kendrys Morales, and shortstop Brendan Ryan.
Two years ago, the Dodgers had agreed to deals with both the Tigers and Red Sox for Hiroki Kuroda, but the right-hander invoked his no-trade clause to veto each trade. Through his interpreter, Kuroda provided FOXSports.com's Ken Rosenthal his rationale for refusing to join a team in the playoff hunt: if you only play for a team in August and September, it is not as meaningful as being with a club from Spring Training until the end of the season.

AL East Notes: Granderson, Kuroda, Blue Jays, Carp

By Mark Polishuk | February 19, 2013 at 8:51pm CDT

The Yankees and the then-Kansas City Athletics swung a 13-player trade on this day in 1957, a deal that brought future Yankee regulars Clete Boyer, Bobby Shantz and Art Ditmar to the Bronx. This was one of many lopsided trades between the Yankees and A's during the 50's, as Kansas City owner Arnold Johnson's past business ties to the Yankees seemingly paved the way for several deals that saw the Yankees acquire promising young talents from the A's for virtually nothing of note in return. Boyer's case was especially controversial since the A's admitted they originally signed him in 1955 on the Yankees' behalf and dealt him to New York as soon as he gained minor league eligibility.

Here's the latest from around the AL East…

Curtis Granderson says he wants to stay with the Yankees past 2013 but "all indications are the Yankees are inclined to bid farewell" to the outfielder, ESPN New York's Wallace Matthews writes. The Yankees aren't impressed by Granderson's declining non-power numbers and defensive value, plus the team wants to put its money towards re-signing Robinson Cano. MLBTR's Tim Dierkes didn't include Granderson as one of the top 10 available free agents next winter but noted that Granderson's stock could rise with a big season.
Hiroki Kuroda said it was a "hard" decision to re-sign with the Yankees but he feels he made the right one since he enjoys the Yankees' veteran clubhouse, MLB.com's Bryan Hoch reports. Kuroda said he weighed offers from other teams, including the Dodgers, but noted that he didn't consider pitching in Japan. "Actually, I have never said that I want to play in Japan at this stage of my career," Kuroda said. "I don't know; maybe it's the Japanese media that's talking about it. What I have said is that if I'm going back, I'm going to play for my former team, the Hiroshima Toyo Carp. I haven't thought about that at this stage. Who knows? I may end my career at the end of this year."
The Blue Jays have taken several out of options players on the Opening Day roster in recent years to see what value these players had left, but the team says they won't employ that tactic this year, MLB.com's Gregor Chisholm reports. The Jays have six out of options players in camp, and Chisholm doubts Toronto would let Brett Cecil hit the waiver wire.
Fangraphs' J.D. Sussman breaks down the comparisons between Blue Jays pitching prospect Aaron Sanchez to Mets prospect Noah Syndergaard, who was traded by Toronto to New York as part of the R.A. Dickey deal.
The Red Sox could possibly obtain Mike Carp from the Mariners in exchange for Alfredo Aceves, Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe opines. The Sox are one of several teams interested in Carp, though Aceves' trade value may be minimal thanks to his off-the-field behavior.

SoCal Links: Walden, Angels, Fujikawa, Field, Kuroda

By Mike Axisa | November 28, 2012 at 7:18pm CDT

The Angels finalized their contract with Ryan Madson today, but here's some more out of Southern California…

In the wake of the Madson signing, the Angels are letting teams know Jordan Walden is "very available" according to ESPN's Jayson Stark (on Twitter). The 25-year-old right-hander pitched to a 3.46 ERA with 11.1 K/9 and 4.2 BB/9 in 39 innings this year.
Angels GM Jerry Dipoto would not say whether he was still pursuing Japanese free agent reliever Kyuji Fujikawa, reports Mike DiGiovanna of The Los Angeles Times (on Twitter).
The Angels will tender contracts to all four arbitration-eligible players according to DiGiovanna (on Twitter). Kendrys Morales, Alberto Callaspo, Jerome Williams, and Kevin Jepsen represent the team's class of arb-eligibles.
The Angels have claimed shortstop Thomas Field off waivers from the Twins, the team announced. The 25-year-old has hit .260/.315/.260 in 54 plate appearances with the Rockies over the last two years.
The Padres offered Hiroki Kuroda a one-year deal worth $17-18MM, reports George A. King III of The New York Post. The right-hander instead took a one-year, $15MM deal to return to the Yankees.
Tim Brown of Yahoo! Sports hears Brian Wilson's first choice (aside from the Giants) would be to pitch for the Dodgers next year (Twitter links). Wilson lives in Los Angeles during the offseason and will likely be non-tendered later this week.

AL East Notes: Hale, Swisher, Kuroda, Orioles

By Mark Polishuk | November 23, 2012 at 8:21pm CDT

It was on this day in 1977 that Rich "Goose" Gossage signed a six-year, $2.75MM free agent contract with the Yankees. The Goose lived up to that then-exorbitant deal, posting a 2.10 ERA and saving 150 games over those six seasons, notching three top-five finishes in Cy Young Award voting and helping New York win the 1978 World Series. Gossage went into the Hall Of Fame as a Yankee in 2008.

Here's the latest from New York and elsewhere in the AL East…

DeMarlo Hale is "likely" going to be the Blue Jays' next bench coach, a source tells MLB.com's Brittany Ghiroli (Twitter link). Hale served as the Orioles' third base coach in 2012 and was interviewed as a managerial candidate by the Jays two years ago before Toronto hired John Farrell. Hale's contract may be for three years, reports MASNsports.com's Roch Kubatko.
The Red Sox have Nick Swisher "on their radar," a source tells George A. King III of the New York Post. At least seven teams are known to be interested in Swisher, whose ability to switch-hit and play both first base and right field is a boon to many clubs. King hears from an industry source who believes Swisher could find a four-year, $60MM contract, though with that many teams and big markets in the running, it wouldn't surprise me to see that number jump to between $65-$70MM in guaranteed money.
Other teams were offering Hiroki Kuroda more expensive and longer-term deals with player options than the one-year, $15MM contract he signed with the Yankees, reports Wallace Matthews of ESPN New York. Kuroda took the relatively smaller deal with New York due to his familiarity with the city and his desire to keep his options open next winter for a possible return to Japan. Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (Twitter link) notes that Kuroda has left money on the table for each of the four contracts he's signed in his Major League career.
The Orioles were interested in Jonny Gomes but are "not too heartbroken" that Gomes has signed with Boston, reports Eduardo A. Encina of the Baltimore Sun. The O's prefer to use the money earmarked for Gomes to re-sign Nate McLouth instead.
In AL East news from earlier today, Josh Johnson's agent Matt Sosnick discussed the possibility of his client signing an extension with the Blue Jays.

Quick Hits: Figgins, Lohse, Hamilton, Kuroda

By Mark Polishuk | November 20, 2012 at 11:48pm CDT

It was on this day in 1995 that Joe Girardi first became a Yankee, as the Bronx Bombers acquired the catcher from the Rockies in exchange for right-hander Mike DeJean. Girardi won three World Series titles in his four seasons with the team as a player and won another championship as the team's manager in 2009. Here are some items from around the majors…

Chone Figgins is "not likely to be a fit" for the Angels, a team source tells MLB.com's Alden Gonzalez. Figgins spent the first eight seasons of his career with the Angels before signing with the Mariners as a free agent and badly struggling for the last three seasons. Seattle designated Figgins for assignment earlier today.
The Red Sox have called about Kyle Lohse, reports Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe as part of a reader mailbag. Cafardo says Boston is trying to sign a first baseman or starting pitcher in free agency, and is looking to add a starter, shortstop or outfielder on the trade market.
The Red Sox are still interested in Josh Hamilton, with GM Ben Cherington calling the outfielder "a terrific talent" in an interview with Jim Bowden on MLB Network Radio on SiriusXM (via Bowden's Twitter page).
The Red Sox "made a really strong push" to sign Hiroki Kuroda before the right-hander re-signed with the Yankees, reports WEEI.com's Rob Bradford (Twitter link).
Brandon McCarthy is a singular free agent case and it's hard to predict his next contract given the unique circumstances of his season-ending brain injury, writes Jeff Sullivan for Fangraphs.
The price tags for free agent outfielders are rising, so ESPN's Buster Olney (ESPN Insider subscription required) lists a few outfield options that could provide better value in trades: Shin-Soo Choo, Dexter Fowler, Curtis Granderson, Alfonso Soriano and Justin Upton.

Yankees Sign Hiroki Kuroda

By Mark Polishuk | November 20, 2012 at 7:12pm CDT

The Yankees have retained their most consistent starter from 2012 as the club has announced that it has re-signed Hiroki Kuroda to a one-year contract. ESPN's Buster Olney reports that Kuroda's contract is worth $15MM (plus incentives worth less than $1MM) and was the first to break the news that Kuroda had agreed to terms with New York (Twitter links). Kuroda is represented by the Octagon agency.

“I am very happy and excited to re-sign with the Yankees,” said Kuroda. “I am very grateful for all of the interest and all of the offers that I received from the various teams that courted me. It was a tough decision for me to make, but at the end of the day, I wanted to try to win a championship with the teammates that I went to battle with last season.”

Kuroda was seen as fairly likely to re-sign with New York entering the offseason, and indeed, it was reported earlier today that the Yankees were "very confident" about their chances of retaining the Japanese veteran. MLBTR's Tim Dierkes ranked Kuroda as the ninth-best free agent on the market this winter and correctly predicted that he would re-sign with the Yankees.

The righty did turn down a one-year, $13.3MM qualifying offer from the Yanks a few weeks ago, assuming (correctly) that he could find a richer deal on the open market. Kuroda's list of suitors included such MLB teams as the Red Sox, Angels and Dodgers, plus Japanese teams, as Kuroda has said that he would like to eventually finish his career by returning to pitch in his native country.

After four years with the Dodgers, Kuroda signed a one-year, $10MM free agent contract with the Yankees last January and made a strong transition to the AL East, posting a 3.32 ERA and 3.27 K/BB ratio in 33 starts. Kuroda turns 38 years old in February but seems to be as durable as ever, pitching a career-best 219 2/3 innings in 2012. His return will bring some stability to a Yankee rotation that has a lot of question marks given CC Sabathia's recent injury problems, Phil Hughes and Ivan Nova's up-and-down performances and Andy Pettitte again considering retirement.

Photo courtesy of Anthony Gruppuso/US Presswire

Yankees Agree To Terms With Hiroki Kuroda

By Mark Polishuk | November 20, 2012 at 5:31pm CDT

The Yankees have retained their most consistent starter from 2012 as the club has agreed to terms on a one-year, $15MM contract with Hiroki Kuroda, reports ESPN's Buster Olney (Twitter links). Kuroda is represented by the Octagon agency.

Kuroda was seen as fairly likely to re-sign with New York entering the offseason, and indeed, it was reported earlier today that the Yankees were "very confident" about their chances of retaining the Japanese veteran. The righty did turn down a one-year, $13.3MM qualifying offer from the Yanks a few weeks ago, assuming (correctly) that he could find a richer deal on the open market. Kuroda's list of suitors included such MLB teams as the Red Sox, Angels and Dodgers, plus Japanese teams, as Kuroda has said that he would like to eventually finish his career by returning to pitch in his native country.

MLBTR's Tim Dierkes ranked Kuroda as the ninth-best free agent on the market this winter and correctly predicted that he would re-sign with the Yankees.

Photo courtesy of Anthony Gruppuso/US Presswire

Yankees Favored To Sign Kuroda; L.A. Teams Out

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | November 20, 2012 at 5:12pm CDT

5:12pm: The Dodgers "are not in" on Kuroda, an industry source tells Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News (Twitter link). Feinsand adds that the Angels appear to be out of the running for Kuroda as well.

4:00pm: The Yankees are seen as the favorites to sign free agent starter Hiroki Kuroda, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com reports. In fact the Yankees are "very confident" they'll sign Kuroda, according to ESPN.com's Jayson Stark. Stark suggests Kuroda will pitch for the Yankees if he's pitching in MLB next year. However, Heyman reports that the Yankees sense a threat from Japan, where Kuroda pitched before joining MLB.

The Dodgers, Angels and Red Sox have also expressed interest in Kuroda, who is linked to draft pick compensation after declining a qualifying offer from the Yankees. It appears the Dodgers and Angels are shifting their focus elsewhere, Stark writes. The Dodgers are now pursuing Zack Greinke, Anibal Sanchez, Ryan Dempster and others, according to Stark. The Angels are also targeting Greinke.

The Yankees feel good about talks with Mariano Rivera so far, Heyman reports (on Twitter). They still haven't officially heard whether Andy Pettitte intends to return for another season in 2013.

Quick Hits: Kuroda, Pagan, Reyes, Buehrle

By Mark Polishuk | November 16, 2012 at 10:52pm CDT

Here's the latest from around baseball as we head into the weekend…

Hiroki Kuroda has told friends that his preference is to pitch in southern California to be near his daughters' grade school, reports Mark Saxon of ESPN Los Angeles. Saxon speculates this could make the Dodgers and Angels the favorites for Kuroda's services, with the Dodgers having the "presumptive edge" with Kuroda due to their past history.
Angel Pagan could sign before the start of the Winter Meetings on December 3, reports FOX Sports' Ken Rosenthal. Pagan's suitors include "many of the same clubs" who are interested in fellow free agent B.J. Upton, a market that includes the Phillies, Braves and Nationals. The Giants are also in the mix to bring Pagan back to San Francisco.
Also from Rosenthal, the Marlins made verbal promises to Jose Reyes and Mark Buehrle that neither would be traded when Miami was courting the two as free agents last winter. The promises were made in place of formal no-trade clauses, which the Marlins don't hand out as a matter of club policy. Reyes and Buehrle, of course, were traded to the Blue Jays on Tuesday as part of the big 12-player deal that has yet to be officially confirmed by the league.
Right-hander Ramon Ramirez will no longer be represented by the ACES agency, tweets Jon Heyman of CBS Sports. Ramirez is the latest of several players to recently switch from ACES, which may be due to MLB's ongoing investigation of the agency for its alleged role in the Melky Cabrera fake website scandal, though the players' union cleared ACES earlier this month.
Dodgers president Stan Kasten discussed such topics as his plans for the club's minor league system, his career history and MLB labor issues with Ken Davidoff of the New York Post.
Rangers GM Jon Daniels talked with Michael Moye (Josh Hamilton's agent) earlier this week, reports Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, though it seems as if both sides were just checking in on the other.
The Blue Jays have generated the most headlines of any team this offseason, but FOX Sports' Jon Paul Morosi notes some of the holes the Jays still have to fill.

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