Twins Notes: Ramos, Capps, Mauer
Some news from the Twins, as they wrap up a four-game series in Baltimore tonight…
- The Twins may eventually regret dealing Wilson Ramos to the Nationals for Matt Capps last summer, but Dave Sheinin of the Washington Post writes that Minnesota appreciates the depth that Capps has provided at closer with Joe Nathan struggling.
- Should the Twins consider moving Joe Mauer to another position? MLB.com's Anthony Castrovince argues no, since Mauer's full value comes from the fact that he can deliver MVP-caliber numbers from the premium position of catcher. Jim Souhan of the Minneapolis Star Tribune argues yes, since the rigors of catching every day may already be taking a toll on Mauer's hitting. "Would you rather have Mauer serving as a pretty-good-hitting catcher who needs plenty of days off and occasional trips to the disabled list, or a great-hitting corner position player who plays 160 games a year? I'll take the latter," Souhan says.
Stark On Mauer, Indians, Myers
The latest from ESPN's Jayson Stark…
- Stark tackles the topic of whether Joe Mauer can and should pursue his goal of staying at catcher for the life of his eight-year contract. Manager Ron Gardenhire was realistic about it, admitting that a position change is worth thinking about if Mauer continues to have leg and knee issues.
- Indians GM Chris Antonetti explained that if the team remains a contender at the trade deadline, "we'll be looking to acquire guys," rather than trade players like Grady Sizemore.
- Rooting for the Yankees to acquire Brett Myers this summer? One NL scout told Stark, "If he's in the AL East, he's a fifth starter." For more on the Astros' trade chips, check out my post from this morning.
Twins Notes: Mauer, Young, Thome
The Twins' 4-8 start might be easier to handle if their starting second baseman hadn't broken his leg and their MVP catcher wasn't on the disabled list. Here's the latest on the Twins, with a heavy focus on Joe Mauer, who went on the DL yesterday with bilateral leg weakness:
- Tom Verducci of SI.com runs through the list of ailments Mauer has suffered as a big leaguer and suggests the Twins may have to consider moving Mauer to a new position to keep his bat in the lineup.
- So when would the position switch occur and where would Mauer go? Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports suggests it could happen next offseason and argues that the outfield is the most logical alternative to catching for Mauer. Michael Cuddyer and Jason Kubel will become free agents after the season, so the Twins' outfield will likely have a different look next year. Delmon Young could cost $7.5MM or more through arbitration, so the Twins could consider trading him or Denard Span. Alternatively, the Twins could try Mauer in center field, a position scouts believe he could handle, according to Rosenthal. I don't see that happening if the Twins want to reduce the wear and tear on Mauer's body.
- Dave Cameron of FanGraphs points out that learning a new position midseason won't be easy for Mauer and suggests that he may have to DH when he comes back this year, even if that means Jim Thome gets pushed from the everyday lineup.
Quick Hits: Fielder, Braves, Mauer, Astros, Albers
Links for Wednesday as the MLBPA announces that the jerseys for three rookies – Jason Heyward, Stephen Strasburg and Buster Posey – were among the top 20 sellers in 2010…
- Prince Fielder tells Yahoo's Tim Brown that he has "eliminated" distractions about his upcoming free agency, since he realizes it's just baseball and nothing he needs to get nervous about.
- Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez said he would like to add a right-handed hitting backup to complement Eric Hinske, according to David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution (on Twitter). Back in December, I considered some options that fit that description.
- Joe Christensen of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune wonders what might have happened if the Twins hadn’t signed Joe Mauer to a $184MM extension last spring and MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes helps identify some teams that would have been bidding on Mauer as a free agent.
- When the Astros front office constructs its Opening Day roster, options are a factor, GM Ed Wade told MLB.com's Brian McTaggart. For a complete list of out of options players, click here.
- Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald suggests we should "check back often" on Matt Albers (Twitter link). Earlier tonight, the Red Sox shot down a report suggesting that the right-hander is Japan-bound.
Regular Season Award Winners Cashing In
Players take a lot of pride in individual awards. While most will say that team success outweighs winning a Cy Young, Gold Glove, Silver Slugger, or MVP, there's no question that these achievements still serve as highlights in any player's career. There's more to it than just that, though. Many players have clauses in their contracts which award them extra cash for taking home these individual marks of excellence. As we're in the midst of award season currently, let's take a look at who's cashed in so far:
- Mark Buehrle: The Chicago lefty took home his second Gold Glove and was rewarded with an extra $25K on top of his $14MM salary.
- Joe Mauer: Minnesota's catcher earned his third Gold Glove and his fourth All Star nod, each netting him another $25K on top of his $12.5MM salary.
- Evan Longoria: Longo grabbed his second Gold Glove and his third All Star appearance, bringing in $25K and $50K, respectively, for an additional $75K on top of his ridiculously affordable $950K salary.
- Franklin Gutierrez: Seattle's standout center fielder finally took home a Gold Glove after missing out last season despite a terrific performance, and he'll bring home $50K to go along with his $2MM salary.
- Yadier Molina: Both Molina's second straight All Star selection and third straight Gold Glove will earn him $50K, for a total of $100K, pushing his 2010 earnings to $4.35MM.
- Albert Pujols: The NL's best player took home $25K for his All Star selection, $50K for his second Gold Glove, and $50K for his sixth Silver Slugger. Depending on where he finishes in the MVP voting, he'll take home $50K (third), $100K (second), or $200K (first).
- Brandon Phillips: His second Gold Glove earned him a whopping $250K, as it caused his 2011 salary to increase from $11MM to $11.25MM.
- Scott Rolen: Gold Gloves are nothing new for Rolen. He earned his eighth this season, and took home an additional $50K as a result. He also earned $25K for his sixth career All Star selection, for a total of $75K on top of his $6.5MM payday.
- Troy Tulowitzki: It was a big year for Tulo, who earned his first All Star selection ($25K), Gold Glove ($25K), and Silver Slugger ($50K) to go along with his $3.5MM salary.
- Michael Bourn: Bourn's second Gold Glove was good for $25K on top of his $2.4MM salary.
- Shane Victorino: The Flyin' Hawaiian's third consecutive Gold Glove gave him a $50K bonus on top of his $5MM salary.
- Matt Holliday: His fifth NL Silver Slugger brought in $50K, as did his All Star Selection, netting him $100K in addition to the $17MM he had already earned.
- Felix Hernandez: King Felix's 2010 Cy Young earned him a cool million dollars, as his 2011 salary will now increase from $10MM to $11MM.
- David Price: The sensational lefty's second-place Cy Young finish earned him $80K on top of his $1MM salary.
- Jered Weaver: The AL strikeout king's fifth place finish in the Cy Young voting earned him $50K.
- Adam Wainwright: A second place finish in the 2010 Cy Young voting earned Wainwright an additional $100K on top of his meager $4.65MM salary.
- Ubaldo Jimenez: His third-place finish in the Cy Young voting added $50K to his dirt cheap $1.25MM salary.
Obviously, this isn't a complete list, as not all players' award clauses are available to the public. Still, that's a total of over $2MM in award bonuses, with the MVPs still to come this week.
Thanks to Cot's Baseball Contracts for the info.
Largest Contracts In Team History
We've already looked at the largest contracts by service time and position, so let's now dig up the largest contracts ever given out by each of the 30 teams. These are in terms of guaranteed money only, but some could end up being even larger because of incentives and option years.
- Angels: Torii Hunter, five years, $90MM
- Astros: Carlos Lee, six years, $100MM
- Athletics: Eric Chavez, six years, $66MM
- Blue Jays: Vernon Wells, seven years, $126MM
- Braves: Chipper Jones, six years, $90MM
- Brewers: Ryan Braun, eight years, $45MM
- Cardinals: Matt Holliday, seven years, $120MM
- Cubs: Alfonso Soriano, eight years, $136MM
- Diamondbacks: Randy Johnson, four years, $53.4MM
- Dodgers: Kevin Brown, seven years, $105MM
- Giants: Barry Zito, seven years, $126MM
- Indians: Travis Hafner, four years, $57MM
- Mariners: Ichiro Suzuki, five years, $90MM
- Marlins: Hanley Ramirez, six years, $70MM
- Mets: Johan Santana, six years, $137.5MM
- Nationals: Ryan Zimmerman, five years, $45MM
- Orioles: Miguel Tejada, six years, $72MM
- Padres: Jake Peavy, three years, $52MM
- Phillies: Chase Utley, seven years, $85MM
- Pirates: Jason Kendall, six years, $60MM
- Rangers: Alex Rodriguez, ten years, $252MM
- Rays: Wilson Alvarez, five years, $35MM
- Reds: Ken Griffey Jr., nine years, $116.5MM
- Red Sox: Manny Ramirez, eight years, $160MM
- Rockies: Todd Helton, nine years, $141.5MM
- Royals: Gil Meche & Mike Sweeney, both five years, $55MM
- Tigers: Miguel Cabrera, eight years, $152.3MM
- Twins: Joe Mauer, eight years, $184MM
- White Sox: Frank Thomas, seven years, $64.4MM
- Yankees: Alex Rodriguez, ten years, $275MM
Thanks to Cot's Baseball Contracts for the info.
Largest Contracts By Position
We've already looked at the largest contracts by service time, so now let's break it down by position…
Catcher
Joe Mauer: Eight years, $184MM
First Base
Mark Teixeira: Eight years, $180MM
Second Base
Chase Utley: Seven years, $85MM
Shortstop
Alex Rodriguez: Ten years, $252MM
Third Base
Alex Rodriguez: Ten years, $275MM
Outfield
Alfonso Soriano: Eight years, $136MM
Vernon Wells: Seven years, $126MM
Matt Holliday: Seven years, $120MM
Starting Pitcher
CC Sabathia: Seven years, $161MM
Johan Santana: Six years, $137.5MM
Barry Zito: Seven years, $126MM
Mike Hampton: Eight years, $121MM
Kevin Brown: Seven years, $105MM
Relief Pitcher
Joe Nathan: Four years, $47MM
Mariano Rivera: Three years, $45MM
Some thoughts…
- If you want to count DH as a position, which I guess it technically is, then Travis Hafner's four year, $57MM deal would top the list.
- Joe Mauer's contract is more than three and a half times larger than Jorge Posada's four year, $52.4MM deal, the second largest among active catchers. Mike Piazza's seven year, $91MM deal is the second largest for a catcher all-time.
- A-Rod only spent three years of his $252MM at the shortstop position before sliding over to third. The next largest contract ever given to a shortstop belongs to his teammate, Derek Jeter, who signed a ten year, $189MM deal in 2001.
- The Twins are the only team besides the Yankees to employ two of the largest contracts at their respective positions.
- The Soriano, Wells, Zito, and Hampton deals are all ones ownership wish they could take back. Brown spent a lot of time on the disabled list, but he did post a 3.23 ERA in close to 1,100 innings during the life of his deal.
- The Utley and Rivera deals are ones the teams would happily do again, but the jury is still out on the rest.
Thanks to Cot's Baseball Contracts for the info.
Odds & Ends: Gaudin, Jones, Stauffer, Oliver, Lowell
Links for Saturday…
- The Phillies considered Chad Gaudin according to Ken Rosenthal of FoxSports.com, but they decided he wasn't enough of an upgrade over what they already have in-house.
- The Twins have informed Jacque Jones that he will not make the team, reports MLB.com's Kelly Thesier. Minnesota brought the long time Twin back on a minor league deal in February.
- On the heels of another strong outing from Tim Stauffer, MLB.com's Corey Brock speculates (via Twitter) that the Padres could receive a mid-level prospect from a team in need of pitching if they opted to trade him. Stauffer's four shutout innings today lowered his spring ERA to a tidy 2.57 with an 11:3 K:BB ratio through 14 innings.
- Jon Paul Morosi tells the great story of Darren Oliver's resurgence after nearly retiring in 2005 and wonders who the next veteran will be to make a similar run.
- Doug Mientkiewicz was told he will not make the Dodgers' Opening Day roster, according to a report from the Associated Press. Mientkiewicz was excused from camp today so he can weigh his options in regards to his future in baseball.
- Nick Cafardo of The Boston Globe says Mike Lowell's injury "almost kills his trade value, which was already low to begin with." Lowell suffered a knee contusion when he fouled a ball off his left knee Friday.
- Blue Jays' team president and CEO Paul Beeston chatted with fans on the team's official site yesterday. He discussed the latest on Adeiny Hechevarria and the club's policy on long-term contracts, among other topics.
- ESPN's Buster Olney says that some general managers believe the reason there's so little movement on the trade front is because there are still viable alternatives on the free agent market.
- As Joe Christensen of The Star Tribune notes, Joe Mauer's new deal may have turned one of the team's top prospects in a prime piece of trade bait.
- New Padres' GM Jed Hoyer isn't as brash as Kevin Towers used to be, writes Nick Canepa of The San Diego Union-Tribune.
Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Mauer, McCutchen, Guzman
On this date back in 1974, the Red Sox released Orlando Cepeda and Luis Aparicio, both future Hall of Famers. Cepeda, then 36, signed with Kansas City and retired after the season as a .297/.350/.499 career hitter with 379 home runs. Aparicio, 39 at the time, never played again following his release, and finished his career as a .262/.311/.343 hitter and with a reputation as one of the best defensive shortstops in baseball history.
Here are some links from around the baseball blogosphere…
- Josh's Thoughts acknowledges the possibility that it may not have been the best move for the Twins to sign Joe Mauer to such a huge deal since it will eat up a large chunk of their payroll.
- Pittsburgh Lumber Co. compares a theoretical Andrew McCutchen extension to Justin Upton's deal.
- The Daily Something calls Cristian Guzman and Adam Kennedy the two most redundant players in baseball.
- Camden Crazies wonders if Chin-Lung Hu makes sense for the Orioles.
- Gear Up For Sports asks if you could only keep one, who would it be: Andre Ethier or Matt Kemp?
- Mets Paradise tries to figure out the Mets' Opening Day roster.
If you have a suggestion for this feature, Mike can be reached here.
Odds & Ends: Kim, Dukes, Adrian
Links for Thursday…
- The Giants' Byung-Hyun Kim experiment is over, as the pitcher asked the Giants for his release according to Baseball America's Matt Eddy.
- Multiple teams are interested in free agent outfielder Elijah Dukes, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.
- Murray Chass chatted with agent Ron Shapiro about the Joe Mauer deal. Speaking of Mauer, 620 WTMJ's Dan O'Donnell spoke to MLBTR's Mike Axisa about how the catcher's deal might impact Prince Fielder.
- The Marlins' interest in Mike Lowell is "barely above zero," learned MLB.com's Joe Frisaro. Lowell told Manny Navarro of the Miami Herald today that he's not sure if a move back to the NL would work.
- The Diamondbacks don't expect to sign Dominican outfielder Wagner Mateo, reports Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic.
- Nick Canepa of the San Diego Union-Tribune spoke to Padres CEO Jeff Moorad, who wouldn't be surprised to see Adrian Gonzalez play two more seasons for his team.
- In reference to Mets rookie Jenrry Mejia, ESPN's Keith Law notes that "promoting prospects who aren't ready is a hallmark of GMs in fear for their jobs."
- Tracy Ringolsby is now on Twitter, give him a follow.
- Joel Sherman of the New York Post examines the Mets' reconfiguration of Hisanori Takahashi's contract.
- I'll be participating in an NFBC fantasy league Sunday evening. They've got all kinds of events and prizes, check it out.