Stark’s Latest: Burnett, Cantu, Lowe, Furcal
Jayson Stark’s got a heaping helping of hot stove updates in his most recent blog post at ESPN.com.
- The Braves’ most recent offer makes them the frontrunners for A.J. Burnett, says Stark.
- We’re still waiting for another team to come close to the Yankees’ offer for C.C. Sabathia. Stark suggests Sabathia may make up his mind by next week. He also says there’s "increasing buzz about the Yankees’ interest in Ben Sheets."
- The White Sox appear to have expressed some interest in Jorge Cantu.
- Stark doesn’t think the Phillies stand a very good chance of signing Derek Lowe.
- Only the Dodgers and A’s, and perhaps the Orioles, remain interested in Rafael Furcal.
- If the Dodgers end up missing on Furcal and Casey Blake, their focus might shift to names like Ty Wigginton and Adrian Beltre.
Sabean On Manny, Sabathia, Sanchez
Andrew Baggarly offers some quick points following a discussion with Giants GM Brian Sabean.
- Manny Ramirez is not on the Giants’ radar. Sabean says the team does not need another outfielder. Most would likely agree, with Fred Lewis, Aaron Rowand and Randy Winn all on the roster already.
- Offers for CC Sabathia and Mark Teixeira seem unlikely, but Sabean refuses to rule them out. However, Sabean also says: “We’re not out there swimming with the sharks. There are too many teams with more seemingly to offer financially than where we’re at right now.”
- Jonathan Sanchez isn’t going to be traded for, as Baggarly calls it, "any old player." This comment appears to be referring to recent rumors surrounding a Sanchez-for-Jorge Cantu swap.
Giants Sign Renteria?
11:24pm: Henry Schulman says Renteria took a physical for the Giants today and "a deal appears to be done."
9:26pm: Renteria’s (other?) agent Jeff Lane told MLB.com’s Chris Haft, "We’re very close to a deal."
7:51pm: Jon Paul Morosi also talked to Meister, who said the Giants are making "substantial progress" toward signing Renteria. Henry Schulman gets the vibe the Giants might announce a deal with him tomorrow.
4:49pm: SI.com’s Jon Heyman says the Giants asked the Brewers about J.J. Hardy, but Milwaukee doesn’t want to move him. So Brian Sabean moved on to Cantu.
4:12pm: Brian Sabean told reporters he hopes to sign a free agent infielder later this week.
3:42pm: Jon Heyman chimes in; he also thinks a two-year deal could be completed soon. Heyman says the Giants have yet to decide whether to target C.C. Sabathia, Mark Teixeira, or Manny Ramirez. Are we seeing a shift back to the win-now plan in San Francisco?
1:53pm: ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick talked to Renteria’s agent Barry Meister, who said they’re "much, much closer" to a deal with the Giants but "nothing is done." Crasnick’s source says it could be in the two-year, $18MM range.
12:58pm: According to Yahoo’s Tim Brown, the Giants "believe they are closing in on signing shortstop Edgar Renteria." Brown also says the Giants have discussed trading Jonathan Sanchez to the Marlins for Jorge Cantu. That’d be a steal for the Marlins, who plucked Cantu off the scrap heap in January for a half-million bucks.
Brown adds that the Cubs remain in the mix for Jake Peavy, and they have two possible matches for a third team in the deal (the Orioles being one).
Perrotto’s Latest: La Russa, Offseason Moves
John Perrotto at Baseball Prospectus has his Every Given Sunday column up. Here’s the highlights from the Rumors and Rumblings section (with some added speculation here and there from yours truly):
- There’s a growing rumor that Cardinals manager Tony La Russa could step down after this season and pursue a job as a general manager. We all know Seattle’s looking…
- The Diamondbacks love Adam Dunn’s production so much that they are considering re-signing him and possibly having him play first base. Dunn’s racked up a .474 OBP since coming to Arizona… what’s not to like about that?
- The Padres seem willing to move Kevin Kouzmanoff once again. Perrotto doesn’t say, but it would make sense for young starting pitching to be the target for the Padres, and a move would allow Chase Headley to move back to his natural position, third base. The Giants are looking for help at third, but I doubt the Pads would trade him within the division. Minnesota, perhaps?
- The Marlins are considering playing Jorge Cantu at first next season, using Dallas McPherson at third, and trading Mike Jacobs in the offseason.
- The Royals will not re-sign Mark Grudzielanek this offseason, but will likely target both Rafael Furcal and Raul Ibanez. Given Mike Aviles‘ emergence at the plate, shifting him to second base and putting Furcal at shortstop would make for a very good middle of the infield in Kansas City. The Royals will also explore options for trading Jose Guillen. I personally didn’t like the contract they gave him at the time, and I doubt many clubs like it now either. Moving him could be difficult.
- The Rangers will try to trade Gerald Laird for pitching, given their surplus at catcher. The Yankees could use some help behind the plate if Jorge Posada is unable to catch…
- Jeff Kent, Frank Thomas, and Kent Mercker are all mentioned as possibilites for retirement this offseason, with Jeff Kent being almost a certainty, regardless of how his knee reacts to surgery.
Rosenthal’s Latest: Hendry, Burnett, Laird
Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports has a new column up.
- Rosenthal fills us in on Jim Hendry’s contract status: Hendry controls his own fate with an option for ’09. If the new Cubs ownership doesn’t want to extend him beyond that, he could elect free agency this winter. Click here to download a spreadsheet of Hendry’s trade history.
- Teams with third basemen to trade this winter are at an advantage due to the weak free agent market. Names like Garrett Atkins, Melvin Mora, and Hank Blalock could generate interest. Blalock is a huge question mark though, and the Rangers still have to decide on his $6.2MM option. Jorge Cantu, Adrian Beltre, and Kevin Kouzmanoff are other names to watch in my opinion.
- Rosenthal talked to a rival executive who sees the Red Sox making a "major push" for A.J. Burnett if he opts out. He can hindle the rigors of pitching in the AL East, and will also draw interest from the Yankees.
- The Rangers may shop Gerald Laird this winter. Laird, 29 in November, is under team control through 2010. The Reds could be a nice match.
- Marlins infielder Chris Coghlan can play second or third base, giving the Fish flexibility on whether they want to trade Cantu, Mike Jacobs, or Dan Uggla this winter.
Many Marlins Due Raises
Mike Berardino of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel discusses the Marlins’ difficult situation this winter, with as many as 18 players facing arbitration. Berardino projects salaries for these players in this chart.
As you may know, players typically reach arbitration the offseason after they cross the three-year service time mark. The resulting raise can be as much as 1000%, with Ryan Howard‘s case last year the most drastic example ($900K in ’07, $10MM in ’08). The Marlins’ biggest jump figures to be second baseman Dan Uggla – $417K in 08, perhaps $5MM or more in ’09. Most players face arbitration three times and then reach free agency. The player almost always gets a raise each year, and typically his salary cannot be cut by more than 20%. That’s why Berardino projects injured pitcher Sergio Mitre going from $1.2MM to $960K.
December 12th is the deadline for tendering contracts to arbitration-eligible players. Teams can choose to let their arbitration-eligible players go, and then those players become free agents despite having less than six years of service time. David Ortiz may be the most famous example.
The Marlins figure to be open for business this winter – Berardino names Kevin Gregg, Scott Olsen, and Mike Jacobs as top trade candidates. Jorge Cantu is another possibility, and a blockbuster for Uggla can’t be ruled out. The Marlins kept Miguel Cabrera until his second arbitration year, though.
Odds and Ends: Cameron, Inge, Bay
Here are some random rumors and links I’ve cobbled together today.
- The Fish officially signed Jorge Cantu to a minor-league deal worth $500K with $100K in incentives.
- The Cardinals re-upped Aaron Miles for $1.4 mil. This team needs some good middle infielders.
- According to Tyler Kepner, Alex Rodriguez has been "privately endorsing" Mike Cameron. Well, it’s not private anymore! The Yankees could entertain such a signing if they trade Melky Cabrera but don’t want to move Johnny Damon back to center. Kepner’s article also discusses the internal struggle between Hank and Hal Steinbrenner. Hank wants Johan Santana, Hal wants to show a little financial restraint.
- Lynn Henning digs into the Brandon Inge situation, with help from the always-insightful Keith Law. Henning believes Inge would view a shift back to catcher "with contempt."
- Scott Wuerz runs through various possible Cardinals targets. He notes that the Pirates had considered the White Sox their best possible trade partner for Jason Bay, and are disappointed by Chicago’s Nick Swisher acquisition.
- Seems that Bartolo Colon has yet to crack 90 mph in the Dominican Winter League.
- There are rumblings that the Astros are considering bringing Freddy Garcia back.
- R.J. Anderson snagged an interesting interview with Paul DePodesta.
- Minor League guru and MLB.com senior writer Jonathan Mayo has a new book coming out about what it’s like to face Roger Clemens. I’m going to do a Q&A with Jonathan next week; if you have any good question ideas leave ’em in the comments. By the way, Mayo finished his book before the Mitchell Report came out.
- Yankees fans – Ray Istorico has an illustrated history of the early Yankees coming out in a few months.
- I will be appearing on XM Radio’s MLB Home Plate show on Sunday around 2:25 CST.
Odds and Ends: Cantu, McPherson, Youkilis
Some evening odds and ends for your enjoyment…
- The Marlins are "pretty far along" on a deal with Jorge Cantu. He’d battle with Jose Castillo for playing time at third base. Dallas McPherson may be another possibility – he had talks with another club (the Giants?) recently fall through. The Fish are one of three or four clubs McPherson likes, though he’s not sure whether the interest is mutual. I hope the Marlins sign ’em both, maybe one of the three works out.
- Nick Cafardo discusses the slight possibility that the Red Sox and Kevin Youkilis discuss a long-term extension rather than go year-to-year with him. This is Youk’s first year of arbitration eligibility. I imagine his salary could jump up from $425K to $2-4MM.
Dontrelle For Josh Hamilton Was Discussed
UPDATE, 12-8-07 at 2:47am: More excitement…throw Abraham Nunez into the mix of Marlins third base targets. This team is going places.
FROM 12-7-07 at 11:27am:
MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro posted a new column last night full of good Marlins hot stove chatter.
- The most interesting note is that the Marlins talked to the Reds about swapping Dontrelle Willis for Josh Hamilton, prior to the blockbuster with Detroit.
- With Miguel Cabrera, the White Sox and Rangers were involved during the Meetings before the Tigers jumped in. The Rangers backed out when they couldn’t get an extension window for Cabrera. The Tigers wanted the same but obviously it wasn’t the dealbreaker. The Angels, Dodgers, and Giants were involved before the Meetings, with the Giants offering Noah Lowry.
- Frisaro says there are "strong indications the Marlins will sign Jorge Cantu. He’ll be in the mix at third base.
- The Fish are offering the Phils Scott Nestor for Wes Helms, who’d also compete at the hot corner.
- The Mets have some interest in Alfredo Amezaga, though the Marlins are inclined to keep him.
- Miguel Olivo will be released soon, so throw him into the catcher market with Michael Barrett.
Marlins Considering Helms, Cantu
MLB.com’s Jim Molony reports that the Marlins are considering Wes Helms and Jorge Cantu as candidates for their now-vacant third base job.
Helms had a career year in 2006 for the Marlins, hitting .329/.390/.575 while seeing a disproportionate amount of southpaws. The Phils then wishcasted him as a starter and gave him two years and $5.45MM. Helms has $2.15MM left on his contract plus a $750K buyout.
Cantu was recently cut by the Reds; his claim to fame is driving in 117 runs for the 2005 Devil Rays. He turns 26 in January; perhaps his career can be revived in Florida.