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Josh Willingham

Red Sox Rundown: Kelly, Bay, Dice-K

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Several Red Sox links floating around out there, let's put them all together to simplify things:

  • Amalie Benjamin at the Boston Globe reports that Sox prospect Casey Kelly has decided to focus entirely on pitching. Kelly had worked both as a pitcher and a shortstop, but has decided to take his four-pitch arsenal full-time. Red Sox brass rave about Kelly's potential, and he's been mentioned frequently in connection to Roy Halladay trades. Kelly, 19 this past season, posted a 2.08 ERA and 0.85 WHIP through 95 innings between Class-A Greenville and High-A Salem this year. He walked just 16 overall and allowed only four home runs.
  • Nick Cafardo looks at the developing market for Jason Bay, and quotes both Theo Epstein and Terry Francona as saying Bay is their priority. Epstein recognizes that there are alternatives, including Matt Holliday and Josh Willingham, should Bay land with another club.
  • Additionally, in the same piece, Cafardo adds that the Sox haven't ruled out John Lackey, and are trying to keep blockbuster windows open to explore deals for Adrian Gonzalez, Miguel Cabrera, and Halladay.
  • Peter Abraham looks at the repaired relationship between Daisuke Matsuzaka and the Red Sox organization.
  • WEEI.com's Alex Speier analyzes what the Red Sox offense would look like in 2010 without Bay orHolliday, but with Marco Scutaro in the picture.

Odds & Ends: Reed Johnson, Laynce Nix, Counsell

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Links for Monday, the first day of the Winter Meetings in Indianapolis…

Minaya: No Pressure To Make Moves

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Ben Shpigel of the New York Times writes that Omar Minaya arrived in Indianapolis for the Winter Meetings and has said that he's not under any pressure to make moves, despite having issues to address at catcher, left field, the rotation, and the bullpen.

"I don't feel like I have to do something," Minaya is quoted as saying, and that includes signing Bengie Molina, as many expect the Mets to do. Shpigel backs up his tweet that we linked to earlier, stating that the Mets are more likely to make a trade at the meetings than sign a free agent.

Minaya feels that the Mets had more focused needs than last year, according to Shpigel. He quotes Omar:

“I remember coming here last year and we were trying to get Frankie Rodriguez… We knew that and we focused on that. Coming into the meetings we had meetings with the agent and we felt that we could get things done and address that last year. This year, it’s not as clear as it was last year. Last year we needed a closer and we ended up getting two closers. This year we have more parts that we have to fill in. Are we going to be able to fill all of them in here? I don’t know that."

The Mets would like to unload Luis Castillo in an effort to lure Orlando Hudson to New York, and they're very interested in Nationals outfielder Josh Willingham to fill their need for a slugging left fielder. Shpigel says that the Nats currently have a steep asking price though, as Willingham is in high demand.

If the Mets can't land Willingham, Shpigel suggests Marlon Byrd as a possibility, though he notes that the Mets are wary of the vast disparity between Byrd's home and road splits in 2009. Byrd hit a whopping .282/.336/.538 and clubbed 14 of his 20 home runs at home, but posted a much more pedestrian line of .285/.322/.419 away from Arlington.

Odds & Ends: M’s, O’s, Closers, Molina, Willingham

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Let's take a look at some Sunday links:

  • A number of league officials have told the New York Post's Joel Sherman that they expect the Mariners and the Orioles to spend big this offseason.  The M's have already started spending big, inking Chone Figgins earlier this week. Hearing that the Orioles are ready to spend big, however, comes as a surprise.
  • Peter Gammons agrees on the Mariners; he tweets that one executive says we should watch for Seattle to be in on both Jason Bay and John Lackey. The Mariners have money, and as Gammons says, "Jack Z loves to lay low and strike." 
  • We know that there are plenty of capable closers available on the open market, but Tracy Ringolsby of FOX Sports reports that there are a handful available via trade as well.  The Reds are hoping to move Francisco Cordero and the remainder of his hefty contract – two years, $25MM.  San Diego believes that Heath Bell's value is at its absolute zenith and is looking to capitalize.  The Pirates hope to find a new home for Matt Capps, who they labeled as their closer for 2010.
  • Jon Heyman wonders aloud if Bengie Molina is seeking a three-year pact, since the Mets are willing to give him two years and there is no deal in place yet (via Twitter). 
  • Heyman also tweets that the Cubs and Rays are not close on a Milton Bradley-for-Pat Burrell swap.  The possibility of including the Mets and Luis Castillo in a three-way trade is "not helping things."
  • The Mets are interested in Josh Willingham, according to William Ladson of MLB.com (via Twitter).
  • Don't expect the Padres to move Adrian Gonzalez in Indianapolis, writes Corey Brock of MLB.com.  However, if San Diego does make any moves at all, it will likely be via trade.
  • Jon Paul Morosi offers a high-level preview of each team's thoughts going into the Winter Meetings, broken down by National League and American League.
  • A few overseas updates courtesy of Patrick from NPB Tracker: The Hansin Tigers are nearing a deal with Randy Messenger, and have interest in Jason Bulger, should he be removed from the Angels' 40-man roster. Patrick also adds that Nelson Payano is likely to return to MLB-affiliated ball. The lefty last worked with the AA affiliates for Seattle and Atlanta in 2008.
  • Ken Davidoff tweets that once the Yankees non-tender Chien-Ming Wang, the Dodgers will have interest in the right-hander, as Joe Torre and Larry Bowa are both big fans.

Rosenthal On The Braves

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Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports believes the Braves will have to trade Javier Vazquez to obtain the impact bat they're searching for. Here are the rest of Rosenthal's rumors:

  • The Braves dream of trading for someone like Michael Cuddyer.
  • Josh Willingham might be a more realistic target.
  • Derek Lowe has too much money remaining on his contract ($45MM) to bring much of a return in a trade.

Potential Braves Targets

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David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution sums up players on the Braves' radar as they attempt to augment their offense.  Most of these names have already leaked out in stray rumors: Mark DeRosa, Josh Willingham, Mike Cameron, and Jermaine Dye.  Carl Crawford is also on the Braves' wish list, as we learned yesterday from Joe Smith of the St. Petersburg Times.  In a more speculative sense, O'Brien adds that Xavier Nady and Marlon Byrd "could be possibilities." 

For the sake of argument, if it came down to these seven hitters, which would you prefer?  Using Bill James projections and the wOBA stat, Willingham comes out on top offensively for 2010.  We learned recently that the Braves face competition from the Cardinals for Willingham, though Atlanta may have concerns about the player's defense.

Elsewhere in the O'Brien article, Scott Boras extols the virtues of free agent reliever Mike Gonzalez.  To hear Boras tell it, about half the teams in baseball are eyeing his new client.  Gonzalez figures to come with a draft pick cost attached, as O'Brien expects the Braves to offer arbitration a week from now when that deadline arrives.

Cardinals: Bay Not A Priority

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Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch has some interesting information concerning the Cardinals and their winter moves.

Matt Holliday is still tops on the agenda, of course, but though many observers figured Jason Bay would be Plan 1A, St. Louis GM John Mozeliak said that wasn't the case.

"We'll see how the market develops," Mozeliak told Strauss. "Is (Jason Bay) a possibility? Sure. But right now it's fair to say he's not one of our top priorities."

According to Strauss, a greater reliance on defensive metrics has redefined St. Louis' interest in Bay, who is a far worse defensive player than Holliday by nearly any statistical measure. Therefore, it isn't a surprise that the Cardinals are reluctant to top the four years and $64MM Strauss says is likely a starting point for bidding on Bay.

In addition to free agent options, the Cardinals retain interest in both Adam Dunn and Josh Willingham of the Nationals.

On the pitching side, Mozeliak has stayed in touch with the agent for John Smoltz, but Strauss says there are other options St. Louis will pursue first.

Nationals Drawing Interest In Willingham

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Washington is drawing strong trade interest in left fielder Josh Willingham, but may not be willing to part with him, according to Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports.  Willingham turned in a slash line of .260/.367/.496 with 24 HRs in 502 plate appearances in 2009.

The post identifies the Braves as a team that likes the 30-year-old, but says that they have concerns about his back and are less than enamored with his defensive play.  Willingham, they suggest, might be a better fit in the American League where he can be a DH.  Earlier this month, Tim took a look at Willingham and other left fielders that could be dealt.

Heyman On August Trades

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Executives tell Jon Heyman of SI.com that we saw the "softest deadline ever" last week because there's still the possibility for trades this month. Here's an explanation of how trades can occur after the deadline and here are the players Heyman deems likely to clear waivers (player who clear waivers may be traded):

  • Bronson Arroyo, Adam Dunn, Jose Guillen, Aaron Harang, Adrian Beltre, Aubrey Huff, Jason Giambi, Melvin Mora, Miguel Batista, Juan Cruz, Ty Wigginton, Ron Mahay, Willie Bloomquist, Lyle Overbay, Willy Taveras.

Some players who could clear waivers:

  • Jon Garland, Doug Davis, Gil Meche, Alex Rios, Carl Pavano, Mark Hendrickson, Jhonny Peralta, Jamey Carroll, Ron Villone. 

And some players who probably won't clear waivers, but who could be dealt to a claiming team: 

  • Roy Halladay, Felix Hernandez, Heath Bell, Adrian Gonzalez, Marco Scutaro, Chad Qualls, Michael Wuertz, Brian Bannister, Josh Willingham, Gary Sheffield, David Eckstein, Jason Frasor, Mark Teahen.

Giants Done Dealing?

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7:47pm: Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports hear that the Giants still have some interest in Mark Teahen. 

7:38pm: Giants GM Brian Sabean told Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle that he doesn't expect to trade for a starter or a bat today or tomorrow. Here are the details:

  • The available starters aren't enticing, considering their cost.
  • The bats that interest the Giants aren't available now. Schulman wonders if Josh Willingham might be one of the interesting, unavailable bats Sabean hints at.
  • The Giants don't plan on trading Kevin Frandsen. They'd rather keep him in the system as a utility man.
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