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The Week Ahead

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Now that we've taken a look at the week that was, let's anticipate what lies ahead. There aren't as many pennant races to watch as usual this year, so keep your eye on the following stories as the week progresses:

  • When Josh Beckett throws his first pitch tomorrow afternoon, his 2010 option will kick in for $12.1MM. 
  • Kevin Millwood will likely pitch against the Mariners on Friday. If he goes eight innings or more, he will have pitched 180 innings on the season and his $12MM option for 2010 will vest.
  • One final option to monitor this week: Magglio Ordonez is a mere 27 plate appearances from seeing his $18MM option kick in for next season. It could happen this week, but, depending on playing time, Maggs may have to wait longer.
  • For recaps of these options and more, check out Tim's post from earlier in the week.
  • Tony Abreu filed a grievance against the Dodgers and Glen Perkins may file one of his own against the Twins. We'll see if either player reaches a resolution with his club this week.
  • Don't rule out trades, either. Could the Rangers acquire an infielder? Could the Phils add a bench bat? 

Vesting Options To Watch

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A few vesting options to watch in September…

  • Josh Beckett needs two more starts for his $12.1MM option to vest for 2010.  It's not much of a story since the Red Sox would exercise that option anyway.
  • The Rangers lose the ability to void Kevin Millwood's $12MM option for 2010 if he pitches 13 more innings this year.  Back in March Rangers owner Tom Hicks said he wanted Millwood's option to vest, so he must be pleased with the pitcher's 3.61 ERA.
  • Since he made the All-Star team, Freddy Sanchez's 2010 option for $8MM vests if he makes 159 additional plate appearances.  That won't happen in one month.  Sanchez's shoulder strain couldn't have come at a worse time.
  • Magglio Ordonez's $18MM option for 2010 vests with 42 more plate appearances.  He had 80 PAs in August with a .961 OPS, so Scott Boras will take issue with excessive benching.

Vesting Options For 2010

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Magglio Ordonez's 2010 vesting option has created a small stir in the last week or so, but there's a group of players with less-publicized vesting options. Here are updates on a few of them, and please add anyone I missed in the comments below:

  • Freddy Sanchez will earn $8MM in 2010 if he makes 635 plate appearances this year. The option will also kicks in if he makes the All Star team and bats 600 times. With 290 plate appearance already, it looks like Sanchez will make $8MM next year.
  • Kevin Millwood has a $12MM option that kicks in after 180 innings pitched. He hasn't pitched that much since 2006, but with a league-leading 106.2 innings logged already, Millwood will likely see his option vest.
  • It's no surprise that we've heard little about Dmitri Young's $6MM option for next year. It only vests if he bats 500 times, but he hasn't hit yet in 2009. It's safe to say the Nats won't be stuck paying him that much next year.
  • Josh Beckett's $12MM 2010 option will kick in if he starts 28 games this year. He's already at 14, so that number seems attainable. 
  • Milton Bradley's 2011 option will vest if he plays 75 games in 2009. In other words, Bradley will earn $12MM in 2011 if he plays 22 more games this year.

Red Sox Rumors: Lugo, Bay, Varitek, Beckett

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The latest on the Red Sox, courtesy of WEEI’s Alex Speier.

  • Julio Lugo says he’s in the best shape of his career.  The $9MM shortstop won’t be happy if he’s on the bench this year.  Speier believes he’ll ask for a trade if he doesn’t win the competition with Jed Lowrie.  Lugo was following the Tigers trade rumors earlier this winter.
  • Jason Bay remains open to an extension, but admitted "it’s not the end-all, be-all."  Bay will be part of the 2009-10 free agent class if the Sox don’t lock him up.
  • According to the AP, catcher Jason Varitek spoke of spending the rest of his career with the Red Sox.
  • WEEI’s Rob Bradford spoke to Josh Beckett, who hopes to remain in Boston past his current contract.  The Red Sox have a $12MM club option for a $2MM buyout for 2010.
  • Bradford also reports that the Brad Wilkerson signing is official; he’s in camp on a minor league deal.

Red Sox Reach Deals With Bard, Penny

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9:59pm: Ian Browne of MLB.com weighs in on Bard. He discusses the catching situation, and in particular, how the Red Sox will use Bard if free-agent Jason Varitek returns to the franchise.

SI.com points out Penny’s Interleague numbers: 7-11 with a 5.08 ERA in 24 appearances against American League opponents. Penny has spent his entire career in the National League.

8:41pm: Rob Bradford of WEEI.com spoke with Brad Penny, who confirmed his deal with the Boston Red Sox.

From Bradford:

“There were a lot of teams involved,” said Penny in a phone conversation. “But I wanted to go somewhere where I knew we had a great chance at winning, and Boston is that place.”

Bradford adds that Penny will be in Boston on Jan. 7 to take his physical and will begin his throwing program next week.

Bradford also updates the status of Red Sox pitcher Josh Beckett, who has started exercises on his throwing shoulder, which is earlier than in years past. Bradford’s post states that the injury that plagued Beckett at the end of the 2008 season has subsided. The injury centered around the intercostal muscles near the ribs and not the oblique as previously thought.

7:33pm: Free-agent catcher Josh Bard has reached a one-year deal with the Boston Red Sox, Sean McAdam of the Boston Herald and Amalie Benjamin of the Boston Globe are reporting.

The Bard agreement is a nonguaranteed major-league deal worth $1.6MM. According to McAdam, Bard is viewed as a backup, but he could see more time depending upon what Boston decides to do at catcher.

Bard, 31 in March, spent seven games with the Red Sox in 2006 before Boston traded him to the Padres. He hit .202 in 57 games with San Diego in 2008.

McAdam has more on the Brad Penny deal, too. The agreement, a one-year deal with a base salary of $5MM, will be finalized Monday. Incentives and performance bonuses can increase the total deal another $3MM if Penny pitches more than 160 innings, McAdam reports.

Penny, 31 in May, went 6-9 with a 6.27 ERA in 17 starts and two relief appearances in 2008 with the Los Angeles Dodgers. The right-hander played 4.5 seasons for the Dodgers. He played with the Florida Marlins from 2000 until he was traded in 2004.

With the addition of Penny, the Boston rotation now consists of Penny, Josh Beckett, Tim Wakefield, Daisuke Matsuzaka and Jon Lester.

The move also allows righty Justin Masterson to remain in a setup role for closer Jonathan Papelbon.

Red Sox Close To One-Year Deal With Penny

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According to Ken Rosenthal, the Red Sox are close to signing Brad Penny to a one-year deal.  The two sides are still hammering out the agreement, and Penny would have to pass a physical.  In November, the Dodgers chose Penny’s $2MM buyout over his $9.25MM club option.

Penny, 31 in May, dealt with shoulder and forearm pain all year.  The Red Sox have a sophisticated system for dealing with pitching shoulders, so it’s an interesting match.

Ian Browne of MLB.com expands on Rosenthal’s report. Browne notes that Penny in Boston would reunite him with fellow starter Josh Beckett and third baseman Mike Lowell, both of whom Penny played with as a Florida Marlin. The three were on the 2003 World Series-winning squad.

Molony’s Latest: Red Sox, Kelly Johnson

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Here’s a look at the latest blog post from MLB.com’s Jim Molony.

  • Molony agrees with previous reports – the Red Sox are eyeing outfield help.  An inquiry on Darin Erstad fizzled, while Mark Kotsay remains on the radar.  Drew might be headed to the DL.
  • The Red Sox might also be eyeing another starter, given Josh Beckett’s injury.  Molony speculates that Kevin Millwood or Vicente Padilla could make sense (both have cleared waivers).
  • Molony expects Braves second baseman Kelly Johnson to be traded this winter.  Johnson, 26, slipped to .264/.333/.405 in 482 plate appearances this year.  He’ll be arbitration-eligible for the first time.

Red Sox Designate Snyder for Assignment

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Relief pitcher Kyle Snyder was designated for assignment by the Red Sox this afternoon to make room on the roster for Josh Beckett, who is set to come off the DL and start for Boston tomorrow. Snyder is out of options and hence cannot be sent down to Pawtucket.   

Snyder has not impressed in 2008. Today versus Toronto, he pitched a third of an inning, gave up two runs, and walked two. March 25 against Oakland, he gave up two runs on two hits, including a solo home run. He wasn’t terrible in 2007, posting a career-best 3.81 ERA, but the Red Sox still preferred Eric Gagne over the 6’8" righty for their postseason roster.

The move makes sense for Boston, since they have a better long-reliever/emergency-starter/mop-up man/Manny-Ramirez’s-stable-pony option in Julian Tavarez. (Tavarez stanched the bleeding today in Toronto, going two and one-third innings and allowing just one hit and one walk.) The Red Sox now have 10 days to release Snyder, trade him, or put him on waivers.

So where will Snyder go now? It’s hard to say—at this point in his career (he’s 30) there’s not a lot of upside anymore. I don’t see another major-league club making room for him on their roster, so a trade seems unlikely. The probable outcome, in my view, is Snyder consenting to a minor league assignment after he clears waivers.

Sarah Green writes for the Boston Metro and UmpBump.com. She can be reached here.

Red Sox To Let Beckett Walk After 2010?

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In Peter Gammons latest piece, he explores the trickle-down effect that the extension signed by Johan Santana will have on other pitchers. While the article focuses on pitchers closer to free agency (ie. C.C. Sabathia), there was one surprising quote from an unnamed Red Sox official:

We’d better enjoy Josh Beckett the next three years.  Because we won’t be able to sign him after his deal is up after 2010.

Beckett, who finished second in the Cy Young voting this past season, will be 28 on Opening Day and is scheduled to make $9.5MM this season, $10.5MM next season, and has a $12MM team option for 2010.  While Beckett will certainly command top-dollar on the open market, it is hard to imagine he would seek a deal in the same range as Santana or Barry Zito, even with inflation factored in. Both Santana ($137.5MM) and Zito ($126MM) are lefties and signed their deals prior to their age 29 season. Beckett, a righty will be 31 when he begins his next deal. Still it is interesting to note that the Red Sox may have already resigned to the idea of not retaining the services of their ace past 2010.

by Cork Gaines

Mailbag: Roberts, Teixeira, Johan, Nathan, And More

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Time for this week’s mailbag.  You can hit it up at mlbtrmailbag@gmail.com to get in your question for next week.

Do you see the Twins signing a big name middle of the order bopper or trading for one before the opening of the new stadium in 2010? – Jordan

Funny you ask this.  I recently asked LEN3 whether the Twins would have a $100MM payroll for the 2010 season, and he said, "I don’t see it."  So I’ll go with his wisdom and say business as usual for the Twins despite the stadium.

Why are the White Sox not aggressively pursuing any pitching? Do they realistically think that Gavin Floyd and John Danks can hold down the #4 and #5 spots in the rotation on a contender? I believe we need to fill the holes with some veteran pitching such as Livan Hernandez who can eat up innings and possibly add Corey Patterson at center field. – Joel

I was just discussing this with a former coworker of mine.  I can’t see the White Sox sneaking into a Wild Card berth with this rotation, but what’s the alternative?  I don’t like the Livan idea.  I would consider signing a couple of swingmen/injury risk types such as Brett Tomko or Bartolo Colon if he looks decent.  Just a few low risk/OK reward guys with good stuff who could pay off.  There’s no place for Patterson in the current Chicago outfield, I wouldn’t do that.

Were the Cubs holding off on the Brian Roberts trade until they got Lieber? – Bryant

The Cubs/Roberts thing still seems possible, and trading both Sean Marshall and Sean Gallagher is slightly easier to stomach with Lieber on board.  If I were Jim Hendry I would let the whole Roberts idea go though.

What is the likelihood of the Braves signing Mark Teixeira long-term? – Matthew

I’ll put it at a 10% chance.  This is a $100MM+ contract and he’s represented by Scott Boras.  He’ll probably want to test the open market, and there could be some ridiculous bids.

When, just when will this Santana situation be over?!  It’s just killing me! – Dan

We all feel your pain Dan.  Most folks seem sick of reading similar rehashed rumors about this.  I would be surprised if we don’t know Santana’s fate one month from now.  Of course if his fate is to start the season with the Twins, then the rumors will restart in June.

Are there any trade rumors involving Joe Nathan? – Justin

C’mon Justin, you know I’d never hold out rumors on you.  If Bill Smith is shopping Nathan around or getting inquiries, all parties are running very tight ships.  Desperation for closers seems to kick in midseason, when certain bullpens are established as clearly crappy.  So guys like Nathan and Huston Street may be more likely to be moved in June or July.

Why did the Josh Beckett/Mike Lowell for Hank Blalock/John Danks deal fall through back in November of ’05? – Oliver

The Rangers believed the deal was done, and hoped to avoid any leaks before it was official.  However, a source tipped off the Palm Beach Post.  The Post and a Texas newspaper ran with it.  It was at that point the Boston front office found out, swooped in, and beat the Rangers’ offer.  Those reporters altered history.

What do you see the Milwaukee Brewers doing with their pitching surplus?  Do you see them maybe using some of their excess pitchers like Capuano and Bush to acquire a young catcher with some upside? – Tyler

We’ve seen it a million times – these winter pitching surpluses turn into deficits by May.  There is certainly a case to be made for the Brewers to just stand pat, though all those arms would be tough to squeeze in given the bullpen acquisitions.  MLB.com’s Adam McCalvy expects some of the surplus to be traded before Spring Training.  I like the catcher idea – Jeff Clement (Mariners), Bryan Anderson (Cardinals), or Taylor Teagarden/Gerald Laird (Rangers) seem like possible matches.

Do the Yankees sign Bobby Abreu after the 2008 season? – Andrew

Andrew notes that the Yanks have some money coming off the books after the ’08 season.  The right field alternatives are weak, so Abreu could make sense.  If he’d take a two or three-year extension midseason I could see Cashman doing it.

Did you ever sell your place in Lombard? – Steve

Thankfully I did.  I tried selling by owner for a month and barely got any bites.  Then I hired an agent and she sold it in three days.

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