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Kevin Millwood

Odds & Ends: Pudge, Millwood, Harden

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Links for Thursday…

Odds & Ends: Morneau, Nats, Pirates

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Some links for Tuesday…

  • Justin Morneau will miss the rest of the season because of a stress fracture in his lower back, according to ESPN.com's Jim Caple.
  • Ian Desmond, who could figure into the Nationals' middle infield plans next year, has taken some good-natured heat from his teammates for wearing these around, writes Chico Harlan of the Washington Post. Desmond has reached base in nine of his 14 major league plate appearances, but the Nats may look for a free agent shortstop after the season.
  • Doug Mientkiewicz tells Chuck Finder of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that the Pirates have made the right decisions this year, as difficult as some of them have been for the fans.
  • Neither Kevin Millwood nor Rangers manager Ron Washington is expressing concern over Millwood's 2010 option, according to Anthony Andro of the Dallas Morning News. Millwood, who is less than 5.0 innings away from guaranteeing himself a $12MM payday next year, could start as soon as Friday.

Maggs, Millwood Inching Toward Vesting Options

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7:07pm: For what it's worth, manager Jim Leyland said "He's going to get it," referring to Ordonez's option. "He's swinging the bat good. I need him in the lineup. I'm hoping he can be more of a force for us down the stretch. That would really be a boost to our offense." The quote comes courtesy of MLive.com's Chris Iott. Magglio is in the Tigers' lineup tonight, and has already come to the plate twice.

2:08pm: Big-money vesting options are at stake this month for a pair of Scott Boras clients.  Right fielder Magglio Ordonez's $18MM option for 2010 vests with just eight more plate appearances.  And pitcher Kevin Millwood is just 13 outs away from locking in a $12MM salary for next year.

The Ordonez situation is simple.  He's been hitting well since the beginning of August, and the Tigers are not inclined to mess around trying to avoid the vesting option.  Maggs figures to be removed from the potential 2010 free agents list Tuesday night against the Royals.

Millwood is more complicated.  Evan Grant of D Magazine questions the pitcher's health and declining velocity, and suggests benching him may be the Rangers' best chance at winning.  If so, the Rangers would have to play it off as a coincidence that the option came remarkably close to vesting.  To be fair, Millwood has been knocked around in four of his last five starts.  Perhaps Boras' grievance would point out that Millwood remained in the rotation after posting a 6.75 ERA in July, and how there hasn't been talk of him switching to a mop-up relief role for the rest of the season.

MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan grilled Rangers president Nolan Ryan and GM Jon Daniels about Millwood on Thursday (before the pitcher's Saturday stinker), and both execs insisted the vesting option is not a factor in the manager's decision-making.  Ryan went as far to say, "I would never do that to him."

Odds & Ends: Johnson, Dontrelle, Millwood

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Some links for the evening…

  • Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald hears that there's "some sentiment" within the Marlins organization toward offering Josh Johnson a long-term deal.
  • Phil Rogers of the Chicago Tribune wonders if the Tigers might decide to eat the $12MM they owe Dontrelle Willis.
  • The Rangers may skip Kevin Millwood's next start, according to MLB.com's Todd Wills. The 34-year-old is only 13 outs away from seeing his 2010 option kick in for $12MM. Millwood says he feels fine, so his option will likely vest whether he skips a start or not.
  • The Reds aren't making the playoffs this year, but, as manager Dusty Baker tells Hal McCoy of the Dayton Daily News, there's still "the personal stuff on the back of your bubblegum card" to play for.

Odds & Ends: Vazquez, Millwood, Red Sox

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Some more links to check out as you wait for America's other pastime to kick off it's season…

  • Jeff Schultz of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution writes that the Braves may be forced to trade Javier Vazquez this offseason because it might not make sense financially to keep him and Tim Hudson around next year.
  • T.R. Sullivan of MLB.com reports that the Rangers will not sit starter Kevin Millwood just to keep his 2010 option from vesting. Texas GM Jon Daniels said "We don't let clauses in contracts determine who is in the starting lineup or in the rotation." Millwood needs to throw just eight more innings this season to lock in his $12MM option for next year.
  • MLB.com's Ian Browne answered a bunch of Red Sox related questions in his mailbag today. He thinks Tim Wakefield will return next year, and said that he'd "be surprised" if the club exercised Jason Varitek's $5MM option now that Victor Martinez is on board. Varitek holds a $3MM option of his own, however.
  • Remember Ezequiel Astacio? The Cubs signed him out of San Angelo if the independent United League according to Baseball America's minor league transactions.

Odds And Ends: Lackey, Millwood, Ross

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Some more links for the morning…

  • As MLB.com's Lyle Spencer reports, John Lackey is pitching well at the perfect time for the Angels, who now have a solid rotation one through five. It doesn't hurt Lackey's position as an impending free agent, either.
  • Kevin Millwood's $12MM option for next season will kick in tonight if he pitches 8.0 innings or more. He has 172 innings on the season and the option vests once he reaches 180.
  • It looks like the Rangers will be able to surround Millwood with even more young talent next year. As Jamey Newberg shows for MLB.com, the club has more than its share of promising young players in the minors and, now, in the majors.
  • Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald reports that Cody Ross earned $25k for making 540 plate appearances on the season. He could have more money coming his way, as he makes the same amount for reaching 570 and 600 plate appearances.

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.

Odds And Ends: Chavez, Arroyo, Thome, Millwood

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More links for the morning…

  • Eric Chavez told Joe Stiglich of the Oakland Tribune that he would consider extending his career as a DH, even though he'd prefer to play defense, too.
  • Does Bronson Arroyo want to go to a contender? No, he'd rather stay in Cincinnati and pitch for the Reds next year, according to Hal McCoy of the Dayton Daily News.
  • Jim Thome wants to play next year and make a run at 600 career homers, according to Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune. Thome is just 36 homers away from reaching the milestone.
  • Kevin Millwood's $12MM option for 2010 becomes guaranteed if he pitches 19.0 more innings and reaches 180 for the season, so he's only about three starts away.

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.

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