Quick Hits: Phillips, Kinsler, Podsednik, Moyer
Links for Thursday, as the first full day of the regular season wraps up…
- The Reds and Rangers are working towards contract extensions with Brandon Phillips and Ian Kinsler, respectively, and ESPN's Jim Bowden says (on Twitter) there's some work left to be done on each. Phillips is expected to get $12.5-13MM annually, Kinsler $13.5-14MM.
- Scott Podsednik will report to the Phillies' Triple-A affiliate, his agent confirmed to David Murphy of The Philadelphia Daily News. Podsednik was not technically a Major League free agent this offseason since he spent all of last year in the minors, so he was unable to opt-out of his contract at the end of Spring Training.
- Jamie Moyer's can make $2MM in incentives op top of his $1.1MM base salary, Troy Renck of the Denver Post reports (on Twitter). The 49-year-old left-hander will open the season in the Rockies’ rotation.
- Cardinals right-hander Adam Wainwright took note when Matt Cain of the Giants signed earlier in the week, Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch writes. "Obviously, you have to pay attention to it,"Wainwright said. "It's a tremendous deal for him." Cain obtained $112.5MM in new money from the Giants, establishing a record for right-handed pitchers.
- Ivan Rodriguez is working out and says he's in shape, according to Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com (Twitter link). Heyman suggests the Rays could be a fit for the veteran free agent.
Mike Axisa contributed to this post.
Royals Offer Ivan Rodriguez Invitation To Camp?
5:49pm: Bob Dutton of The Kansas City Star reports (on Twitter) that no offer has been made to Rodriguez, be it a contract or invitation to camp.
3:36pm: Royals GM Dayton Moore was told that Rodriguez still wants to play "at some point,'' but is not ready to join the club now, tweets Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com.
1:14pm: The Royals are interested in bringing Ivan Rodriguez into camp following the injury to starting catcher Salvador Perez, writes Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com. Rodriguez is currently thinking about the opportunity and hasn't decided whether he will accept the offer.
The 40-year-old has said that he wants to keep playing and has been waiting for an opportunity. Both the Rays and Mets have appeared as possibilities this offseason but neither club seems interested at this juncture.
Pudge was limited by injuries in 2011, hitting .218/.281/.323 in just 44 games for the Nationals.
Mike Axisa contributed to this post.
Rays Not Considering Ivan Rodriguez
The Rays are not considering free agent Ivan Rodriguez as an option at catcher, tweets Buster Olney of ESPN.com. Tampa Bay is in need of a backup to Jose Molina but it doesn’t appear that the Scott Boras client will be the answer.
The Mets were once linked to the 40-year-old but two team sources shut the door on that possibility late last month. Pudge has reportedly fielded a few inquiries, including one from the Diamondbacks, but is in search of a job that will give him a decent amount of playing time.
Cafardo On Jones, Nationals, Floyd, Indians, Red Sox
Agent Scott Boras told Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe that he expects trade deadline activity to decrease because the superpowers in baseball are going to save money on the luxury tax and can’t spend it in the draft. Boras was in attendance for the Sloan Sports Analytics Conference in Boston and our own Tim Dierkes sat down for an interview with the super agent. Here's more from Cafardo's Sunday column..
- The Orioles' Adam Jones keeps popping up in trade discussions with the Nationals, but O's sources indicate that there’s very little chance he'll be dealt. The Nats are trying to figure out center field, and for the moment they’re content with using Jayson Werth, Roger Bernadina, and Rick Ankiel. However, they will be scouting Michael Bourn, B.J. Upton, Gerardo Parra, and Peter Bourjos in spring training.
- White Sox right-hander Gavin Floyd could be in play for the Blue Jays or Red Sox. The White Sox don’t appear eager to move Floyd, but GM Kenny Williams wouldn’t be shy if it brought him a decent bounty in return.
- The Indians will try to fill in for Grady Sizemore with Michael Brantley, but their scouts are looking for a center field option in the trade market.
- Free agent Adonis Garcia is drawing interest from several teams, but the Red Sox aren’t overly enamored, according to a team source.
- Roy Oswalt is still in play and later in camp the Red Sox could put on a full-court press for him.
- The Rays are looking for a catcher to back up Jose Molina and Boras may look to put Ivan Rodriguez in that spot.
- There seems to be concern that the Astros are shooting themselves in the foot by moving starter Brett Myers into the closer role as he is one of the veterans they have been trying to deal. Teams typically need innings-eaters over late-inning relievers.
- Cafardo wonders aloud if Terry Francona will land with the Mets when he resumes his managerial career.
NL East Notes: Marlins, Mets, Swisher
Juan Carlos Oviedo isn’t the only member of the Marlins with a different name for the 2012 season. The slugger known as Mike Stanton said today that he prefers Giancarlo, according to the Associated Press (via ESPN.com). MLBTR will now refer to him as Giancarlo Stanton and our archives reflect the change. On to the latest links from the NL East…
- Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports says Josh Johnson looms above his teammates as the key figure for the Marlins’ chances in 2012. Rosenthal says the Marlins should contend if Johnson makes 30 starts.
- A Mets official said the team doesn’t see free agent catcher Ivan Rodriguez as a fit, David Lennon of Newsday tweets. Rodriguez called the Mets about an opportunity, but the club appears to have minimal interest.
- The Mets remain in touch with free agent right-hander Chris Young, according to Newsday’s Ken Davidoff (on Twitter). Young still seeks a Major League deal.
- The Braves will make Nick Swisher their top free agent target next offseason, according to ESPN's Jim Bowden. Bowden suggests the Yankees could make an all-out push for Andre Ethier if Swisher does head to Atlanta.
Mike Axisa contributed to this post.
Mets Unlikely To Sign Ivan Rodriguez
6:47pm: ESPN New York's Adam Rubin hears that it is "very unlikely" the Mets will add Rodriguez because they think Rob Johnson or Mike Nickeas will hit enough as Josh Thole's backup (all Twitter links). A second source said definitively: "We are not bringing Ivan here."
5:48pm: The Mets haven’t ruled out signing free agent catcher Ivan Rodriguez, Mike Puma of the New York Post tweets. However, they want to be sure Johan Santana is healthy before spending the $2MM or so remaining in their budget. If the left-hander gets injured, the Mets would allocate their remaining funds toward a starting pitcher.
A Mets official spoke with Rodriguez as recently as ten days ago, telling the veteran backstop to “stay in shape” in case anything happens. The 21-year veteran has fielded a few inquiries this offseason, including one from the Diamondbacks, but he says it’s been a tough market for veteran players such as himself. Rodriguez, 40, posted a .218/.281/.323 line in 137 plate appearances last year, preventing 13 of the 25 stolen base attempts against him.
West Links: Giants, Pudge, Abreu, Leach
Here's the latest from baseball's two West divisions…
- The Giants are not in the market for outfielders such as Johnny Damon, Hideki Matsui, and Bobby Abreu according to Hank Schulman of The San Francisco Chronicle (on Twitter). They feel the lineup is too lefty-heavy as it is, and defense is a concern as well.
- Ivan Rodriguez has fielded a few inquiries according to Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com (on Twitter), including one from the Diamondbacks. Pudge seeks a job with "real playing time," however.
- Angels manager Mike Scioscia told MLB.com that he believes he can find regular playing time for Abreu, and that the veteran hitter won't be a distraction after saying he wanted to be traded.
- The Dodgers have signed left-hander Brent Leach, reports Kevin Goldstein of Baseball Prospectus (on Twitter). The 29-year-old reliever appeared in 38 games for the Dodgers in 2009 (5.75 ERA), but spent last season in Japan.
Quick Hits: Draft Pools, Young, Jurrjens, Prado, Pudge
The city of Montreal will pay tribute to former Expos great Gary Carter by naming a street or other public place in his honor, reports Linda Gyulai of the Montreal Gazette. City officials will consult with the Carter family to find an "appropriate" location to bear the Hall of Famer catcher's name. Carter passed away last Thursday after a lengthy battle with brain cancer.
Some news from around the majors….
- Jim Callis of Baseball America breaks down how much each team will have to spend in the first 10 rounds of the 2012 draft. The Twins top the list, able to spend as much as $12.37MM to sign their 13 picks over the initial 10 rounds, while the Angels ($1.645MM) have the least to spend on their eight picks over the same stretch.
- The draft pool totals will shift if Derrek Lee — the last free agent with compensation attached to him — signs a Major League deal with a new team. As Callis notes, however, it's pretty unlikely that Lee will find such a deal at this point.
- The Pirates and Phillies both passed on signing Dmitri Young after working him out in Florida this months, reports MLB.com's Matthew Leach. Even if Young's baseball comeback falls short, he says the real victory is his improved health, having lost over 70 pounds.
- Jair Jurrjens and Martin Prado are both pleased to still be Braves after a long winter of trade rumors surrounding both men, reports MLB.com's Mark Bowman.
- Ivan Rodriguez isn't prepared to retire and is keeping in shape for a possible job this season, he tells the Associated Press. "It has been a tough market for veterans," Rodriguez said. "There are a lot of guys who have won championships and have playoff experience to offer teams with no jobs. It's hard to believe.''
Marlins Links: Gaby, Anibal, Reyes, Cespedes, Pudge
Here's the latest from South Beach…
- Once Albert Pujols was off the market, the Marlins told Gaby Sanchez and his agent that rumors about Miami pursuing Prince Fielder were false and that the club wasn't looking for another first baseman, reports MLB.com's Joe Frisaro. Sanchez said he wasn't offended that the Marlins were pursuing Pujols: "He's proven what he can do for 10 straight years. I still have so much time to go."
- Anibal Sanchez told reporters (including MLB.com's David Villavicencio) says the Marlins haven't approached him about a contract extension but he'd be open to signing such a deal. MLBTR's Ben Nicholson-Smith recently examined Sanchez as an extension candidate.
- Sanchez also didn't mind his recent arbitration hearing with the Marlins, where he won his case and earned an $8MM salary for 2012. "I think everybody thought they were going to say a lot of things that were bad about me. But I didn't think they said anything bad or that I didn't know. It's part of the business," Sanchez said.
- Jose Reyes understands that the Mets didn't have the finances to re-sign him, but he wished his former team would've at least made some kind of offer, reports Dan Martin of the New York Post.
- The Marlins offered Yoenis Cespedes a six-year, $36MM contract, reports Frisaro. The team wanted a six-year deal since they felt Cespedes would need minor league seasoning and didn't want to pay him a large salary if he'd be spending time in the minors. Cespedes instead agreed to sign with the A's for $36MM over four years.
- With Cespedes gone, Frisaro says the Fish aren't expected to add any more players before Spring Training, though they could look for veteran starting pitching later in camp. The Marlins aren't interested in Ivan Rodriguez for the backup catching job.
NL East Notes: Hamels, Bonifacio, Jurrjens
The two biggest free agent contracts handed out by NL East teams this offseason went to Jose Reyes and Mark Buehrle of the Marlins. They signed deals worth $106MM and $58MM, respectively, in December. Here are the latest links from the division…
- Bob Nightengale of USA Today previews the 2012-13 free agent market and explains that Cole Hamels and B.J. Upton project as two of the top available players. Nightengale suggests Johan Santana’s $137.5MM contract could be a target for Hamels, who has had some talks with the Phillies about a long-term extension. The Phillies aren’t expected to offer the left-hander more than five years, Nightengale writes.
- Now that the Marlins have officially missed out on Yoenis Cespedes, Joe Frisaro of MLB.com examines the team's center field options. Emilio Bonifacio figures to start in center with Aaron Rowand, Chris Coghlan and other players in the mix for reserve roles.
- Frisaro doubts the Marlins will make a last-minute push for Ivan Rodriguez.
- Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com suggests Braves right-hander Jair Jurrjens could draw trade interest this spring if he appears to be healthy.