Odds and Ends: Glavine, Kent, Kuroda
Picking up some rumors and tidbits that haven’t been otherwise posted during this busy day…
- An Atlanta TV station states that Tom Glavine would take a lot less money to play for the Braves. Also, the Astros have reportedly been in touch with him.
- Joe Torre senses that Jeff Kent will return in 2008. The Dodgers certainly hope so; he led the team with 20 home runs in ’07.
- Trey Hillman took a parting shot at Japanese reporters (hat tip to JapanBall).
- Reliever Masafumi Hirai might come over to MLB. I’ll have to learn more about him.
- Hiroki Kuroda prefers to play on the West Coast because he doesn’t like cold weather. Hmmm, Chicago might not work for him. Kuroda has declared free agency, and the Mariners are interested. There is word here that the Rangers have scouted him as well.
- The Braves are interested in Masahide Kobayashi to close, while the Mariners like him as a middle reliever (link in Japanese).
- There will be no Mike Lowell + A-Rod combo in Boston.
- Luis Gonzalez would like to return to the Tigers, while the team is interested in Cliff Floyd and Shannon Stewart for left field. Ben Broussard may also be on the radar.
- The Rangers also like Broussard, and they’ve contacted Mike Lamb as well regarding their first base vacancy. Lamb could play third if they trade Hank Blalock. Jon Daniels also has Kerry Wood in his sights.
- The Rockies like Shawn Chacon, but only as a reliever.
- Derrick Goold breaks down the options for the Cardinals at shortstop.
- Don’t forget to make an entry in our Hot Stove Hysteria contest. The deadline is November 12th. If you feel the need to edit your entry, just post a new one. They’re time-stamped; your latest entry will be used. A new prize has been added: a fantasy draft kit from Big Dawg Baseball.
Buzz Around The Game
Let’s see what we’ve got going on today in a potpourri-style format.
As predicted, Eric Byrnes was non-tendered last night. I can’t possibly think of a better way for the Cubs to turn the Jacque Jones signing into a positive. If you sum up Byrnes and Jones’ salaries, you’ll be getting solid stats from RF for the price. Assuming Dusty Baker understands what a platoon is and how all that works.
Of course, it’s probably one more roster spot than the Cubs wanted to use on this type of thing since they already have John Mabry. But Mabry can back up Aramis Ramirez, and the Cubs can carry one less pitcher and make it work. I put a word in to a Cubs source of mine, and he agreed that the idea makes sense (who wouldn’t agree) and mentioned that the Cubs have liked Byrnes in the past.
UPDATE: Just talked to a second Cubs source, and he echoed the sentiment held by many readers of the site: Hendry didn’t give Jones $16MM to platoon him. He’s a full-timer for the most part.
Kirby Arnold reports that the Mariners offered Gil Meche to the Cubs for Corey Patterson. At first, I said, "Sure, why not." But then I looked at Meche’s numbers, and I realized there’s no way he can help the ballclub. When a pitcher loses his ability to strike batters out, as Meche may have, he has to counter the increased hits he’s surrendering with good control. Or the ability to keep the ball in the park. Meche appears to have none of these traits, and would be a frustrating spot starter who would allow tons of baserunners. I might rather have Josh Fogg at this point. There’s got to be something slightly better out there for the Cubs.
Alfonso Soriano won’t move off second base for the Nationals and is pretty much raising a stink about being dealt to Washington. Let’s see here, are there any teams with GMs dumber than Jim Bowden who might make a trade for Sori? Dan O’Brien’s club doesn’t have a need for a 2B; Placido Polanco is firmly entrenched in Detroit…maybe Littlefield is interested?
Is Millwood really getting a five year deal from someone? Insane. Incredible timing to have your 2.86 ERA season. Best timing award for the NL: Todd Jones.
My Mets guy is saying the club is still talking to the Dodgers about Jeff Kent, but right now it’s a "pipe dream." Doesn’t seem like the two teams will agree on anything. The Mets still have some faith in Victor Zambrano (or maybe they’re just trying to save face), but Omar feels that after adding Julian Tavarez his bullpen will be pretty much set.
The Mariners seem desperate to get rid of Jeremy Reed after pushing hard to obtain him for Freddy Garcia. I guess they don’t understand that center fielders are hard to find and Reed will get better. After the masterstroke that was the Johjima signing, Bill Bavasi has taken a step backward with Jarrod Washburn.
Mets Renew Interest In Jeff Kent?
The Jeff Kent to the Mets rumor first surfaced in early December. Now it’s rearing its ugly head again, this time courtesy of Gotham Baseball. According to author Mark Healey, Anderson Hernandez would be involved and the deal could happen soon. I asked my Mets source for his take on the Kent possibility.
He told me the deal isn’t nearly as close as the article might imply. He said the Mets are willing to part with Anderson Hernandez, but the catch is that the Dodgers have to take Kaz Matsui too. No money would be exchanged. My source thinks this is simply a proposal the Mets put out there to get the ball rolling; Ned Colletti would never make the trade as described.
My source puts the ultimate chances of a deal at 50/50, and mentioned that ditching Matsui and adding one more 100 RBI bat at the same time would definitely be a feather in Omar’s cap. However, even as a cash-saving move, this doesn’t make a lot of sense for the Dodgers. I’ll keep you posted as further permutations leak out.
Jeff Kent To The Mets?
Just got a tip I thought was worth mentioning. A frequent poster over at NY Fan Sites named Monte offered this rumor:
"The Mets are reportedly close on a deal that would bring Jeff Kent into the fold. Might be on hold until the winter meetings but very close to finished. No details on what they are dealing but it is something that has been worked on and actually got the Mets to back out of the Furcal chase so LA could finish the deal."
Now, I haven’t been able to establish Monte’s credibility; I haven’t been in touch with him. He is a very frequent poster over at NY Fan Sites, and supposedly was the first to name Ian Bladergroen as the prospect dealt for Doug Mientkiewicz back in January of this year.
My gut feeling is that Monte has a legitimate source and is not fabricating rumors for attention. While my Mets source didn’t have any such deal on his radar, it sounds plausible for the club. Kent certainly fits the win now mentality the Mets have been pushing all offseason. He’ll make $9MM in 2006 and will be a free agent after the season.
Monte and my own Mets sources are confident that Kaz Matsui will be moved somehow and that the Mets have no intention of starting the year with him at second. Given that the Dodgers plan on playing Cesar Izturis at second base with Rafael Furcal in the fold, Kent is either due for a trade or a move to first. Kent has played 105 games in his career at first base, but never more than 30 in a season.
It remains to be seen how the next Dodger manager will feel about first baseman Hee Seop Choi. Choi is only 26, and has too much potential to be relegated to a bench role. While Choi has struggled against southpaws, he’s had very little opportunity to hit against them regularly. If Kent does stay put, look for DePodesta favorite Choi to be on the move. Choi could certainly be a step towards a younger Giants club.
Thanks to T.J.