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Arbitration Offer Feedback

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24 free agents were offered arbitration yesterday; several notable names were not.  The deadline for those 24 to accept or decline is Sunday at 11pm CST.  If a player accepts, he’s under contract on a one-year deal for ’09 and his salary cannot be reduced by more than 20% (most players get raises). 

Anyway, let’s round up feedback on yesterday’s decisions.

  • Plenty of good insight from Yahoo’s Jeff Passan.  How about the idea that the D’Backs didn’t offer arbitration to Dunn because they didn’t want to shell out too much money on draft picks next year?
  • River Ave. Blues says yesterday’s arb decisions were the first clear indicator of the U.S. economy affecting MLB. I agree.  The decisions not to offer arb to Bobby Abreu, Pat Burrell, Adam Dunn, Kerry Wood, and others serves as proof that teams are exercising extra caution.
  • Buster Olney agrees, suggesting that teams are scared of overpaying free agents.  He says some execs believe Abreu will be fortunate to make $8MM a year on his next deal.
  • Joel Sherman finds the Abreu decision fascinating.  He suggests Abreu would’ve gotten a $17.5MM arbitration award.  While the right fielder would’ve forfeited no-trade rights by accepting, the Yankees would’ve had to eat a significant amount to move him.
  • Ken Rosenthal says even the Yankees are cutting back, and their ’09 payroll will "almost certainly be below their $209 million figure at the start of ’08."
  • Tony Massarotti gives five possible reasons for the slow market.
  • Ken Davidoff feels Jason Varitek is a good candidate to accept Boston’s offer of arbitration.

Red Sox Offer Arb To Varitek, Byrd

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According to WEEI’s Alex Speier, the Red Sox offered arbitration to Jason Varitek (Type A) and Paul Byrd (Type B).  They were both borderline cases, and it seems that either player could go either way on deciding whether to accept.  Amalie Benjamin, though, finds both unlikely to accept.  What do you think – can Varitek and Byrd find multiyear deals elsewhere?

Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Varitek, Burnett, Teixeira

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Let’s take a look at what is being written around the Blogosphere…

  • River Ave. Blues debates Ben Sheets versus A.J. Burnett and wonders if Sheets will be the better bargain in the end.
  • Detroit Tiger Thoughts shows that Jason Varitek is not a good fit with the Tigers, even in a platoon situation.
  • Fire Brand of the American League lays down several reasons why the Red Sox should avoid signing Teixeira.
  • Where have you gone, Andy Van Slyke? sees no downside to the Pirates’ signing of Indian imports Dinesh Patel and Rinku Singh.
  • The ’Burgh Blues feels Eric Hinske is an economical fit for the Bucs.
  • Amazin’ Avenue does not see Raul Ibanez as an upgrade for the Mets, suggesting he may not be any better than Fernando Tatis.
  • The Baseball Opinion breaks down what the acquisition of Tyler Lumsden means for the Royals and Astros.
  • Batter’s Box takes a look a recent J.P. Ricciardi quote and the current state of the economy and wonders if the Jays are going to reduce their payroll.
  • Royals Review lists the ten best free agent signings in Royals history, topped by David Cone. Amazingly, four of the signings occurred in the last five seasons.

Cork Gaines writes for RaysIndex.com. If you have a suggestion for this feature, Cork can be reached here.

Red Sox Rumors: Lugo, Varitek

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According to Sean McAdam of the Boston Herald, the Tigers’ talks for Julio Lugo have stalled and a deal is unlikely.  It seemed simple on the surface: Lugo for Dontrelle Willis or Nate Robertson.

Also, the Red Sox plan to offer arbitration to Type A free agent Jason Varitek.  McAdam says Tek "almost certainly won’t accept the offer."  In a recent poll, about 40% of MLBTR readers surveyed expected the Red Sox to offer arbitration to Varitek.

Rosenthal On Boras’ Scheme

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Ken Rosenthal has a theory on Scott Boras’ goals in the free agent game:

  • Mark Teixeira and Jason Varitek to the Red Sox
  • C.C. Sabathia and Manny Ramirez to the Angels
  • Derek Lowe to the Yankees

The crux of the theory seems to be that Boras would want Manny near his Newport Beach headquarters to better babysit him.  Personally I have a hard time seeing any team sign two of the big three free agents, and it’s difficult to picture Manny as an Angel.

Rosenthal doesn’t see the Dodgers as major players, partially based on recent comments made by the McCourts.

Looking Beyond Varitek

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According to Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald, a slew of catchers are being shopped to the Red Sox.  Among them: Jeff Mathis, Mike Napoli, Brian Schneider, Miguel Montero, John Buck, Ramon Hernandez, Bengie Molina, Carlos Santana, Kelly Shoppach, Victor Martinez, Jesus Flores, Kenji Johjima, Jeff Clement, Yorvit Torrealba, and the Rangers’ guys.  Silverman says the Braves, Cardinals, and Rays also have catchers available.  It seems that teams are asking for players like Justin Masterson, Clay Buchholz, or Lars Anderson in some cases.

On the Jason Varitek front, Scott Boras told the AP yesterday that he’s had no financial discussions with the Red Sox.  He expects the matter to be discussed after Thanksgiving.  Curt Schilling commented last week about Varitek possibly playing fewer games in 2009, but Boras shot down the idea of a reduced role.

No Varitek Talks Yet For Red Sox

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TUESDAY, 9:45am: Gammons emailed to explain that the ESPN Rumor Central report was erroneous, and he did not say the Red Sox made a one-year offer to Varitek.

TUESDAY, 8:48am: ESPN’s Peter Gammons sides with Bradford, confirming the Red Sox made a one-year offer to Varitek.  Boras denied it after Bradford’s initial report surfaced.

MONDAY, 12:41pm:  A day of denials.  The Boston Globe’s Nick Cafardo contacted Scott Boras, who said the Red Sox have not begun negotiations with Varitek.

8:43am: According to Rob Bradford of WEEI, the Red Sox made an initial offer to free agent catcher Jason Varitek.  It’s one year, and the salary does not approach Jorge Posada’s $13.1MM average.

Olney’s Latest: Sabathia, Varitek

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Olney’s latest from his blog:

  • He puts out a one liner: "The Red Sox are preparing, full-steam ahead, to play 2009 without Jason Varitek." This may in part be posturing to counter Boras seeking Posada money.
  • Olney suggests that if the Knicks are making a move for Lebron James, then further incentive would exist for CC Sabathia to accept the Yankees $140MM offer. Take this with a huge grain of salt of course. The two are friends from their days in Cleveland. More realistically, he cuts to the point: if no California teams make a nine-figure offer, "folks involved" say he’ll be in pinstripes.

Stark’s Latest: Putz, Manny, Lackey, Ibanez

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Let’s take a look at the latest column from ESPN’s Jayson Stark.

  • Stark does the math and finds 15 potentially available closers versus six clubs in the market for one.  Should result in a few bargains or teams holding on to their surpluses.
  • The Mets don’t seem willing to extend to four years for Francisco Rodriguez.  Stark says J.J. Putz would become the Mets’ top closer target if he’s made available.  MetsBlog’s Matthew Cerrone wrote a few days ago that the Mets are likely to trade for a reliever with closing experience before attempting to sign one.
  • J.P. Ricciardi quote: "We won’t be involved with Manny."  Ricciardi last month: "He’s on our radar, but maybe not on our radar like some people will report."
  • Despite reports to the contrary, Stark talked to a rival executive who says Jake Peavy made it "onto [the Angels’] radar pretty hard."  Stark speculates that Peavy could fit if the Halos sign Mark Teixeira.
  • It seems likely that the Angels will put out an offer to Teixeira with a deadline, and then either sign him or move on.
  • John Lackey’s been telling friends he expects to have an extension with the Angels by Opening Day.  Lackey indicated last month he’d wait to see the Halos’ offensive plans before re-signing.
  • Stark suspects the Players Union might be OK with C.C. Sabathia turning down a larger offer from the Yankees if he still signed for more than Johan Santana’s $23MM per year.  I don’t really see why Sabathia would worry about the union in any regard.
  • The Dodgers inquired on the asking price of Jason Varitek, with the idea of moving Russell Martin to third base in mind.  They balked at Scott Boras’ demand for Tek, however.
  • Curt Schilling is "more likely than ever" to attempt a late June or early July comeback.
  • Tons of teams have expressed some degree of interest in Raul Ibanez: the Mets, Phillies, Cubs, Cardinals, Nationals, Braves, Royals, Rays, Blue Jays, Rangers, Angels, and Mariners.  Some interesting new ones in there.
  • The Phillies never made a two-year, $21MM offer to Pat Burrell.  Will the Phils at least offer him arbitration?  The rumored offer was questionable from Day 1, as Paul Hagen said Burrell "reportedly turned down a two-year, $22MM offer" but didn’t reference a specific report.
  • Stark believes that the Brewers were not thrilled with the Yankees’ "overbid" for C.C. Sabathia, and therefore would prefer not to trade Mike Cameron to them.  Dan Graziano wrote yesterday about the Yanks’ conversations for Cameron.
  • Roy Oswalt wants the Astros to sign Ben Sheets, but the price tag may be too high.  Stark has the following names on their radar: Randy Wolf, Mike Hampton, Freddy Garcia, Paul Byrd, and maybe Pedro Martinez.  Is Drayton McLane willing to bring Andy Pettitte back?  GM Ed Wade seemed interested in his chat yesterday, saying, "We’ll have to see what develops down the road."

Rosenthal’s Latest: Griffey, Peavy, Dempster

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A look at the latest column from FOX Sports’ Ken Rosenthal:

  • Rosenthal wonders if Jason Varitek’s viral sickness and divorce last year contributed to his poor performance at the plate.
  • Ken Griffey Jr.’s wife gave him her blessing to play anywhere he’d like.  If he’s focused on getting a ring, Seattle might not make sense.  Griffey’s doctor believes his knee will be in better shape in 2009.
  • Padres GM Kevin Towers wonders if Jake Peavy would’ve accepted a trade to the Braves, given Atlanta’s club policy against no-trade clauses.  Towers isn’t talking to the Braves, Dodgers, or Yankees about Peavy, and Rosenthal says he’s "not making much headway" with the Cubs.  ESPN’s Peter Gammons says the Cubs’ loss of Jose Ceda lessens their chances, while Frank Wren still believes Peavy will end up a Brave.
  • The Cubs hope to resolve the Ryan Dempster situation this week.  The team wants to do a four-year deal.
  • The Giants are still in on Juan Cruz after their Jeremy Affeldt signing.
  • The Phillies gave Pat Burrell "parameters" for a new deal, while Rosenthal speculates on the Giants and Dodgers as other possible fits.
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