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Brewers Targeting Free Agent Shortstops

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The Brewers are looking for an upgrade over shortstop Yuniesky Betancourt and are combing the open market for a solution.  While it remains a longshot, the team sources make it sound as though they are more likely to land Jose Reyes or Jimmy Rollins than re-sign Prince Fielder, tweets Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com.

Meanwhile, GM Doug Melvin is doing his due diligence by talking with Rollins' agent Dan Lozano, according to Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel (via Twitter).  The club is also set to meet with the agent for Clint Barmes today and the shortstop has quite a bit of buzz around him at the Milwaukee meetings.  The Astros and Brewers are among the many teams after him and the Dodgers were also in the mix before signing Mark Ellis, tweets Jon Heyman of SI.

Heyman On Rollins, Yankees, Nolasco, Jurrjens

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As usual, Jon Heyman is tweeting up a storm.  His latest from Day 2 of the GM Meetings…

 

Phillies Rumors: Schneider, Hamels, Cuddyer

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The latest on the Phillies…

Quick Hits: Astros, Sizemore, A’s, Phillies, CBA

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On a day when Jonathan Papelbon switched teams and the Miami Marlins were officially born, the biggest and best news was unquestionably Wilson Ramos' rescue from kidnappers in his native Venezuela.  Here are a few other items as we head into the weekend…

  • The Astros' potential sale to Jim Crane is on the agenda at next week's owners meetings, reports The Associated Press.  Two sources say Crane, Drayton McLane and Major League Baseball have "reached an understanding" on how the Astros could move to the American League in 2013.
  • Crane could be getting as much as an $80MM discount off his original price for the team by agreeing to move the Astros to the AL, tweets Sports Illustrated's Jon Heyman.
  • Grady Sizemore is looking for a one-year contract so he can re-establish his value for a longer-term deal next winter, reports Jon Heyman (Twitter link).  Heyman makes the comparison to the one-year deal Adrian Beltre signed with the Red Sox before the 2010 season, which saw Beltre have a big season and earn a multiyear deal with the Rangers last winter.  Sizemore won't match the $10MM Beltre got from Boston, but a $6-7MM deal with incentives seems reasonable.
  • Heyman says the Athletics are interested in Sizemore but are worried about his health and his asking price.
  • With the Phillies reportedly interested in both Sizemore and Jason Kubel, Fangraphs' Eric Seidman argues that Sizemore is the better choice for the Phils.
  • The Phillies want to sign Michael Cuddyer and re-sign Jimmy Rollins but the club finds both players' asking prices to be too high, tweets Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com.
  • Major League Baseball and the Players' Association are expected to "continue to negotiate amicably" about the new collective bargaining agreement over the weekend, reports Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports.
  • Also from Rosenthal, he thinks teams take a major risk by hiring managers with little or no Major League managing or coaching experience.
  • The Pirates' offseason moves will be influenced by the number of players on the roster who are out of options, writes MLB.com's Jenifer Langosch.

Stark On Pujols, Fielder, Manny, Royals

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MLB executives expect Albert Pujols to re-sign in St. Louis, but predicting Prince Fielder’s next team is considerably more challenging. ESPN.com’s Jayson Stark surveyed a dozen MLB executives about likely landing spots for the two free agent first basemen and the details are worth examining. Here they are, along with more notes from Stark:

  • The average prediction for Pujols’ next contract was more than $28MM per season for 8.5 years. All but one respondent expect Pujols to re-sign with the Cardinals, though there’s buzz that the Cubs, Marlins and Rangers are “gearing up” for him.
  • Executives expect Fielder to sign a seven-year deal in the $22-23MM range. Some doubt NL teams would commit more than five years to Fielder because of concerns that he’ll be incapable of playing passable defense once he hits his mid-thirties.
  • Manny Ramirez tried out for the Fukuoka Softbank Hawks, but it didn’t go well, possibly because Japanese teams prefer to avoid players with baggage.
  • The players and owners are considering significant changes to the schedule in talks for a new collective bargaining agreement. The sides are considering a proposal that would split MLB teams into six divisions of five teams, ensure identical schedules for teams within the same division and boost inter-league play considerably.
  • Stark hears that the Nationals are focused on finding veteran starting pitching and a center fielder. One executive believes the team prefers Mark Buehrle to C.J. Wilson or Roy Oswalt.
  • The Phillies have interest in Jason Kubel and have checked in on Grady Sizemore. 
  • More than six teams have expressed interest in Jimmy Rollins.
  • The Braves seem interested in shedding salary and they continue to float Jair Jurrjens’ name. It appears that they’d move Martin Prado after his disappointing 2011 season.
  • Rival teams say the Royals are no longer looking to trade for a top-of-the-rotation starter, according to Stark. They acquired Jonathan Sanchez earlier in the week and now prefer to hold their prospects and spend on back-of-the-rotation arms.
  • The Red Sox are less likely to spend on a right fielder if they re-sign free agent DH David Ortiz.

Quick Hits: CBA, Fielder, Francis, Rollins

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Ryan Madson appeared to have a deal with the Phillies this time last night, but the sides haven't completed anything to date. Here are the details and here are your links for Wednesday night…

Wren Talks Payroll, Shortstop

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GM Frank Wren told Jim Bowden on MLB Network Radio on SiriusXM that the Braves will increase their payroll in 2012, but that doesn’t mean they’ll pursue top free agent shortstops (all Twitter links). Wren indirectly ruled free agents Jimmy Rollins and Jose Reyes out by expressing a strong preference for one-year deals.

Though the Braves remain open-minded regarding possible trades, Wren explained that a free agent signing is more likely. Shortstop prospect Tyler Pastornicky is not ready for full-time MLB duty, according to Wren. Alex Gonzalez, Atlanta's shortstop since July 2010, hits free agency with a Type B ranking (Reyes and Rollins are Type As).

Heading into the offseason, it appeared Wren would have as little as $7MM to work with. The Braves spent $91MM on payroll in 2011, when they won 89 games and narrowly missed the playoffs. I recently examined the trade and free agent market for shortstops.

Quick Hits: Moyer, Darvish, Yankees, Tigers

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Congratulations to the 2011 Gold Glove winners. Here are some notes from around MLB…

  • Brandon Phillips ($250K), Adrian Beltre ($100K) and Adrian Gonzalez ($100K) were among the winners to obtain bonuses for their fielding excellence, according to the AP (via SI.com).
  • Jamie Moyer threw for scouts last Thursday, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (on Twitter). Reports on the left-hander, who’s nearly a year removed from Tommy John surgery, are excellent.
  • Patrick Newman of FanGraphs explains what you need to know about Yu Darvish, the Japanese starter who could be posted this offseason.
  • Dave Cameron of FanGraphs makes the case that teams should treat Darvish as a super two player by guaranteeing him two or three years at an average annual value of approximately $10MM.
  • Jim Margalus of South Side Sox isn't thrilled that the White Sox exercised Jason Frasor’s 3.75MM option and explains what the decision means for Chicago. 
  • The Yankees expect to be heavily involved in trade talks this offseason because they have prospects to trade and are willing to deal pitching, according to ESPN.com's Buster Olney (on Twitter). 
  • Tigers GM Dave Dombrowski told reporters, including MLB.com's Jason Beck, that he'd like to re-sign free agent infielder Ramon Santiago. Though the Tigers like Santiago, they don't see him as an everyday solution.
  • Phillies GM Ruben Amaro Jr. says he’d like to re-sign free agents Ryan Madson and Jimmy Rollins if possible, according to Bob Brookover of the Philadelphia Inquirer. "We've had discussions with the agents of both players," Amaro said.
  • Marlins president of baseball operations Larry Beinfest repeated that he can consider major expenditures this offseason, according to Joe Frisaro of MLB.com.

NL East Notes: Rollins, Nats, Nathan, Marlins

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On this day three years ago, the Phillies sewed up a World Series title by finishing off the Rays in the resumption of a rain-suspended Game 5. Here's an item regarding that Philly team's shortstop, and a few others from around the NL East …

  • Phillies shortstop Jimmy Rollins tells CSNPhilly.com that he expects the Phils to make him an offer before he officially hits free agency (video link), though he's not sure what the terms of that offer might be.
  • Nationals GM Mike Rizzo thinks his club can contend for the NL East title in 2012 with the addition of an outfield bat and a starting pitcher, according to Bill Ladson of MLB.com. Washington might also pursue Albert Pujols or Prince Fielder, opines Ladson, as the Nats have made "no promises" to Adam LaRoche.
  • Closer Joe Nathan, whose $12MM 2012 option was declined this week by the Twins, said the Mets will be on his radar during his foray into free agency, according to Greg Logan of Newsday. Nathan is a New York native and attended Stony Brook University on Long Island.
  • Marlins president David Samson said Florida plans to have a busy but prudent offseason and raise its payroll in 2012, according to Joe Frisaro of MLB.com. "We're going to be very aggressive, but we're not going to be foolish. That's the key. When you raise your payroll, you've got to do it smartly, because if you don't, you are losing 90 games at a higher payroll." Frisaro speculates the Marlins' payroll will be roughly $85MM in 2012, which would be a $27MM increase from 2011's $58MM.

Cafardo On Farrell, Red Sox, Rollins, Oswalt

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When the Red Sox and manager Terry Francona parted ways, Blue Jays skipper John Farrell was the preferred candidate to manage the team, a major league source told Nick Cafardo of The Boston Globe.  There's conflicting information on how much the Red Sox have explored this possibility but they've internally considered a few managers and the one who would fit best would be Farrell.  One source said the BoSox wouldn't want to give compensation to a division rival while another thought the issue already had been brought up and the discussions didn't get very far. 

The Red Sox have been hesitant to turn to bench coach DeMarlo Hale for the job because of a feeling that he’s too close and tied into Francona, but Cafardo notes that Farrell also learned his managerial style from him.  Farrell took the Toronto job because it appeared that Francona was deeply entrenched in Boston.  Had he known that Francona and the team would part ways, Cafardo wonders if he would have stayed.  Here's more from Cafardo..

  • Free agent shortstop Jimmy Rollins will have to back off from his desire for a five-year deal for the Phillies to seriously consider re-signing him.  They probably won’t be interested in free agent Jose Reyes because of his price tag.  If they don't retain Rollins, the club may find a cheaper stopgap to replace him such as Marco Scutaro if the Red Sox don’t pick up his option ($6MM club/$3MM player, $1.5MM buyout).
  • Phillies right-hander Roy Oswalt could become available in free agency as he is due $16MM on a mutual option and the team will likely either buy him out for $2MM or try to negotiate a lesser deal.  If he becomes a free agent, one major league talent evaluator said that he would be a great acquisition for anyone on a two-year deal, but obviously not at a $16MM rate.
  • In the event that the Red Sox decide on Farrell and reach agreement with the Blue Jays, there are an endless number of candidates the team could hire to replace him.  Those options include current bench coach Don Wakamatsu and third base coach Brian Butterfield.
  • Since the Padres have allowed Jed Hoyer and Jason McLeod out of their respective contracts, Cafardo wonders if they'd let Bud Black walk to become the Red Sox's next manager.  Black could straighten out the pitching staff and got the most out of John Lackey as pitching coach for the Angels. 
  • Francona probably needs to sit out a half-year before taking on another managerial job sometime next season.  In the meantime, it wouldn’t be a surprise if he took on a job as a special assistant.  An American League GM said that the former Red Sox skipper would have "an endless number of opportunities" along those lines.
  • DeMarlo Hale has a year remaining on his contract and eventually he'll meet with new GM Ben Cherington to determine his fate.  Hale hopes to interview for the Sox managerial job and could also could be a candidate with the Cubs under Theo Epstein.  Davey Johnson is still expected to return to the Nationals job but there may be an interview process and Hale will likely be a candidate given the strong backing he’ll receive from Nats special adviser Bob Schaefer.
  • Don't be surprised if Brewers hitting coach Dale Sveum emerges as a top candidate for the Boston job.
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