Jeff Francis

Rockies May Not Have Budget Space For Millwood

By Tim Dierkes | January 9, 2012 at 7:50am CDT

The Rockies offered Kevin Millwood a guaranteed $1MM prior to acquiring Kevin Slowey at the Winter Meetings, reports Troy E. Renck of the Denver Post. The Millwood offer included approximately $1MM more in incentives, but the 37-year-old righty sought $3MM guaranteed. With Slowey having agreed to a $2.75MM salary, Renck says the Rockies have little room in the budget for Millwood.

The Rockies have not ruled out Millwood, but their budget for veteran starting pitching depth doesn't seem to have much flexibility. It'd be surprising to see Millwood score $3MM guaranteed on the strength of nine big league starts, but he does have baseball's toughest agent in Scott Boras.

The Rockies are not currently pursuing a reunion with free agent lefty Jeff Francis, writes Renck. As of right now, all projected members of the Rockies' 2012 rotation are under 30.

Quick Hits: Beltran, Wren, Padres, Marshall

By Mark Polishuk | December 22, 2011 at 11:46pm CDT

Cornelius Alexander "Connie" Mack was born on this day in 1862. After an 11-year playing career, Mack went on to become the manager and co-owner of the Philadelphia Athletics in 1901 and was a fixture in the A's dugout for the next half-century. Between his 50 years with the A's (and three years managing the Pirates from 1894-96), Mack won five World Series titles and compiled a 3731-3948 record. Needless to say, Mack's records for managerial wins and losses will never be broken.

Some news from around the majors…

The Indians made "an aggressive" two-year contract offer to Carlos Beltran worth "very close" to the $26MM Beltran received from the Cardinals, a source tells Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer.
The Braves have been rather quiet this offseason but "the fact is we like our team," GM Frank Wren tells David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. "We continue to have some conversations,” Wren said. “We’d have liked to have gotten something done in November in some areas, but just weren’t the matches….We’re continuing to work different options. This was not a good free-agent year, not a lot of players that impacted teams, especially in the areas we would like to get better in.” Wren said the Braves may wait to see how their players perform during Spring Training before deciding if they need to bring in some new acquisitions.
The Padres still have around $7-$9MM to spend this winter, observes Bill Center of the San Diego Union-Tribune as part of his weekly chat with fans.
Center also discusses Anthony Rizzo trade rumors, citing the Rays and Cubs as the most interested parties. Center thinks teams who miss out on Prince Fielder (such as possibly the Mariners and Orioles) could look at Rizzo as well.
The Reds will use Sean Marshall as a setup man, not as a closer, once their deal with the Cubs is finalized, writes John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer. Fay also wonders if the Reds are working out a contract extension with Marshall, as the price of Travis Wood plus two prospects seems high for a reliever who is only under control through 2012.
The Mariners are still interested in Jeff Francis, reports Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports (via Twitter). Seattle wants a veteran like Francis for the rotation to serve as a bridge for the team's young pitchers. We heard about the Mariners' interest in Francis earlier this month, and the Twins, Pirates, Cubs and Rockies have also been linked to the Canadian left-hander.
Patrick Ebert of Perfect Game runs down the 10 biggest stories that emerged from this year's amateur draft.
Former Marlins manager Edwin Rodriguez told Todd Hollandsworth and Jim Memolo of MLB Network Radio (as reported by MLB.com's Joe Frisaro) that he didn't agree with Miami's signing of Jose Reyes. "You already have an All-Star shortstop, why spend money on another All-Star shortstop?" Rodriguez asked. "Why not put the money into another player, like Albert Pujols or a front-line pitcher?” Rodriguez also wondered how "a very proud player" like Hanley Ramirez would handle switching positions and having Reyes be the center of media attention in Miami.
The Giants haven't spent much to address their lack of hitting this winter, writes Fangraphs' Wendy Thurm.

Cubs Have Had Talks With Jeff Francis

By Luke Adams 2 | December 21, 2011 at 11:25am CDT

The Cubs have talked to Jeff Francis about filling a spot in the back end of their rotation, tweets ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick. Crasnick says the team has also had discussions with Paul Maholm, which we heard last week from Bruce Levine of ESPNChicago.

Multiple reports last night suggested that the Cubs and Reds were close to working out a trade involving Travis Wood and Sean Marshall. If the two sides were to reach an agreement, the Cubs' acquisition of Wood would likely take them out of the running for arms like Francis and Maholm. However, John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer hears from a source that no trade is imminent yet.

The Twins, Pirates, Mariners, and Rockies are among the clubs who have been reported to have interest in Francis.

Central Notes: Twins, Pineiro, Garland, Wood

By Mike Axisa | December 17, 2011 at 11:42pm CDT

The NL Central got a little tougher when the Reds acquired Mat Latos on Saturday, but they're still looking to upgrade their pitching further. Here's the latest from baseball's two central divisions…

The Twins are considering Jeff Francis and Joel Pineiro, reports Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports (on Twitter). Morosi says Jon Garland is an option as well if he checks out medically after missing most of last season due to shoulder surgery.
Paul Sullivan of The Chicago Tribune says Kerry Wood's return to the Cubs is "considered inevitable." Wood wants a market value contract after taking a discount last year, and Sullivan says Octavio Dotel's one-year, $3.5MM deal with the Tigers could serve as a decent comparable.
Earlier today we learned that the Reds have some interest in Jason Kubel, and that the Royals discussed Joakim Soria with the Red Sox before deciding they weren't a trade match.

Pirates, Mariners, Twins Interested In Jeff Francis

By Tim Dierkes | December 6, 2011 at 1:06pm CDT

1:06pm: Francis' agent will also meet with the Pirates and Twins this week, tweets Morosi.

TUESDAY, 11:04am: The Mariners will meet today with Francis' agent, tweets Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times. Francis is represented by Frontline, as our agency database shows.

MONDAY, 12:09pm: The Mariners are also interested in Francis, tweets Morosi. Additionally, the Ms have interest in old favorite Jamie Moyer.

11:19am: The Pirates are among the teams with interest in free agent lefty Jeff Francis, tweets Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. The Bucs were in on Francis a year ago, but with a healthy season in the books he'll certainly require more than a one-year, $2MM guarantee this time.

The Pirates also reportedly have interest in free agent pitchers Wei-Yin Chen, Tsuyoshi Wada, and Aaron Cook.

Rockies Rumors: Oswalt, Millwood, Francis, Tanaka

By Mike Axisa | December 2, 2011 at 8:53pm CDT

The Rockies revamped their catching situation by signing Ramon Hernandez and trading Chris Iannetta, but now let's see what else is cooking in Colorado…

The Rockies are out of the running for Roy Oswalt, reports Troy Renck of The Denver Post. They remain aggressive in their pursuit of a starting pitcher though, and have interest in Kevin Millwood and former Rockie Jeff Francis. The Twins are in on Francis as well.
Japanese second baseman Kensuke Tanaka will remain in Japan, reports Jon Paul Morosi of Fox Sports (on Twitter). The Rockies had expressed initial interest in the free agent according to Morosi.
The Braves want good prospects along with Seth Smith in return for Martin Prado, reports SI.com's Jon Heyman (on Twitter), so the two clubs have some work to do if they're going to make a trade.

Twins Interested In Jeff Francis And Edwin Jackson

By Mike Axisa | December 2, 2011 at 6:15pm CDT

The Twins were among the finalists for Chris Capuano before the left-hander signed with the Dodgers, and now they're turning their attention to Jeff Francis and Edwin Jackson according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. They've had preliminary discussions with Francis' agent and are likely to continue talks at the winter meetings next week.

Jackson, a Scott Boras client, would not a cost draft to sign as a Type-B free agent, but Minnesota is wary of his price tag according to Morosi. At the moment, the Twinkies have Carl Pavano, Scott Baker, Nick Blackburn, Francisco Liriano, Kevin Slowey, and Brian Duensing as potential starters, but Baker, Liriano, and Blackburn have injury concerns and Slowey is a non-tender candidate.

Los Angeles Notes: Kuroda, Wilson, Dipoto, Colletti

By Mark Polishuk | November 18, 2011 at 7:50pm CDT

Here's the latest from the City Of Angels (And Dodgers)….

Ned Colletti wants to bring back Hiroki Kuroda next season, but isn't sure if the Dodgers can afford him or if Kuroda will return to Japan, reports Ramona Shelburne of ESPN Los Angeles.
The Dodgers' major offseason moves could be wrapping up but Jerry Dipoto's first offseason as Angels GM is just beginning, writes Mike DiGiovanna of the L.A. Times.
From that same piece, DiGiovanna notes the club will look at "second-tier starters" like Kuroda, Aaron Harang, Jeff Francis, Bruce Chen and Roy Oswalt. Kuroda, Harang and Francis are also known to be on the Dodgers' list of pitching options.
Of bigger-name starters, the Angels have been connected to C.J. Wilson this winter, but Mark Saxon of ESPN Los Angeles wonders if the Angels' courtship of Wilson just a "smokescreen" intended to drive up Wilson's price for the Rangers. I'm not sure this tactic would specifically work on the Rangers given how they seem prepared to let Wilson leave if his price gets too high, but it could force one of Wilson's several other suitors to up their offer.

Dodgers Prefer Kuroda, Harang, Capuano, Francis

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | November 17, 2011 at 1:26pm CDT

The Dodgers have narrowed their search for starting pitching, according to Mike DiGiovanna of the LA Times (on Twitter). Free agents Hiroki Kuroda, Aaron Harang, Chris Capuano and Jeff Francis top the Dodgers' list, according to DiGiovanna.

Jon Heyman of SI.com lists the same four pitchers as possible targets and says on Twitter that the Dodgers have less than $10MM to spend (MLB.com's Ken Gurnick listed the four possibilities yesterday). It's looking less likely that GM Ned Colletti will obtain a big bat from outside of the organization.

Dodgers starter Clayton Kershaw won the 2011 NL Cy Young Award today.

Big Bat Looking Less Realistic For Dodgers

By Tim Dierkes | November 15, 2011 at 2:05pm CDT

Asked about adding a big bat this winter, Dodgers GM Ned Colletti told reporters including Dylan Hernandez of the L.A. Times, "As of today, it looks less realistic." Colletti has no meetings scheduled with Prince Fielder's agent, Scott Boras. I wouldn't consider the Matt Kemp extension to be adding a big bat for 2012, since he was under team control regardless.

The Dodgers' 2012 payroll will come down from this year's $110MM mark, reports Hernandez. So far the Dodgers have committed $6.5MM in 2012 salaries to Juan Rivera and Mark Ellis, perhaps with another $1MM or so on the way for Matt Treanor. The Dodgers' new eight-year deal with Kemp could actually reduce their expected commitment to the center fielder for 2012. Colletti still hopes to add a backup infielder capable of playing shortstop. He's also looking for a starting pitcher, with Hiroki Kuroda currently undecided. Chris Capuano, Jeff Francis, and Aaron Harang are on Colletti's radar if Kuroda does not return, reports MLB.com's Ken Gurnick.

Including Rivera, Ellis, Treanor, and the $11.5MM owed to Manny Ramirez and Andruw Jones next year, the Dodgers have $52.45MM in contractual commitments over seven roster spots. If we estimate $13MM for Kemp and $19MM combined for Andre Ethier and Clayton Kershaw, that's about $84MM over ten roster spots. Retaining James Loney would require another $6MM or so, pushing the Dodgers to $90MM. Kuroda or an equivalent veteran starter would likely eat up most of the remaining surplus.

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