Heyman On Kyle Lohse, Russell Martin
The latest from Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com…
- Kyle Lohse is seen as very likely to leave the Cardinals when he hits free agency this winter, Heyman reports. One general manager said C.J. Wilson is better than Lohse, implying that a five-year, $77.5MM contract will be out of reach for the Cardinals right-hander. A three-year contract in the $40MM range seems more realistic for Lohse, who turns 34 next month.
- Three general managers suggested Russell Martin will have to settle for a one-year contract this coming offseason, Heyman reports. The Yankees made Martin a three-year contract offer in the $20MM range this spring, but Martin turned it down. Instead, the general managers told Heyman, Martin will probably end up with a one-year contract, perhaps in the $7.5MM range. A multiyear deal remains possible given the lack of alternatives for teams seeking catching help.
Stark On Mariners, Felix, Sizemore, Lohse
MLB executives tell ESPN.com’s Jayson Stark that they make sure to consider the differences between baseball’s two leagues when evaluating trade candidates. “I think it's safe to say you can look a lot smarter taking a pitcher from the American League to the National League than the other way around," one executive told Stark. Here are some highlights from his latest ESPN.com column:
- Baseball people expect the Mariners to sign Felix Hernandez long-term instead of trading him, Stark reports. Hernandez is under contract through 2014.
- Two scouts said they’d recommend signing Grady Sizemore if it doesn’t require much guaranteed money. The outfielder’s season is over and he figures to obtain a one-year, incentive-based contract this winter.
- One scout said he’d be nervous about trading for Johan Santana given his health issues. The Mets recently shut the left-hander down for the remainder of the season.
- Cardinals executives have told people they’re going to let Kyle Lohse’s contract situation play itself out. Lohse, who is headed for free agency this offseason, hasn’t had recent contract talks with the team, so it’s a safe bet he’ll hit the open market.
Latest On Kyle Lohse, Cardinals
It’s unclear whether there will be room for Kyle Lohse in the Cardinals’ rotation next year following the extension signed by Jake Westbrook on Tuesday. Lohse, a free agent this offseason, told Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch that he hasn’t heard from the Cardinals about contract talks and doesn’t intend to initiate them. When agent Scott Boras asked Lohse if he wanted to talk to the Cardinals, the right-hander said he’d prefer to wait and see.
"I'm not going to them. I figure if they're interested, they'd come to me. That hasn't happened," Lohse said.
Lohse, now in the final season of a four-year, $41MM contract, has positioned himself for another multiyear deal in free agency. He's 33 years old with a 13-2 record and a 2.67 ERA with 5.5 K/9 and 1.7 BB/9 in 169 innings. He told Strauss he’s enjoyed his time in St. Louis and believes the current deal has benefitted both sides.
However, it doesn’t appear that Lohse fits in next season’s rotation. Westbrook, Adam Wainwright, Lance Lynn, Jaime Garcia and Chris Carpenter are the team’s leading rotation candidates and Joe Kelly, Shelby Miller and Trevor Rosenthal are alternatives. The Cardinals could make Lohse a one-year qualifying offer after the season if they’re prepared to spend $13MM-plus on him in 2013. St. Louis won’t obtain draft pick compensation for losing Lohse unless he obtains a qualifying offer.
Cardinals Notes: Jackson, Furcal, Lohse
The Cardinals lead the National League in runs scored even after losing their best hitter (Albert Pujols) to free agency and getting barely any offense from another one of last year's major contributors (Lance Berkman). Here are the latest Cardinals-related notes…
- The trade of Tyler Greene and the promotion of Ryan Jackson serve as reminders that Cardinals have had trouble developing shortstops, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch writes. While Cardinals officials and scouts consider Jackson a strong defender, he wasn’t expected to pass former first rounders Greene and Pete Kozma on the team’s depth chart. Rafael Furcal is under contract for 2013, but he has lingering back issues.
- Derrick Goold, Rick Hummel, Jeff Gordon and Larry Borowsky weigh in on Kyle Lohse's next contract at the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Lohse hits free agency this coming offseason and should sign for at least three years at $10MM-plus per season, the writers suggest.
- Mark Buehrle’s name comes up in the Post-Dispatch discussion, and there are some similarities between Buehrle and Lohse, but I don’t expect Lohse to obtain a $56MM contract, like Buehrle did. That said, I think Lohse could match Ted Lilly's three-year, $33MM contract from two offseasons ago. Lohse has said he’s open to midseason extension talks, so he may not even reach the open market.
- The Cardinals announced that they purchased Jackson's contract from Triple-A.
Quick Hits: Victorino, Greinke, Longoria, Nats
The Indians have lost nine games in a row, but they don’t plan on reacting to their struggles by making a managerial change. General manager Chris Antonetti said Manny Acta will return as the team's manager in 2013, Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer reports (on Twitter). The team already exercised Acta's 2013 option last September. Here are today’s links…
- Shane Victorino hasn't been with the Dodgers long, but he'd like to stay there long-term, in part because of the proximity to his parents in Hawaii and family home in Las Vegas, writes ESPN's Mark Saxon.
- The Dodgers and Angels could bid against one another for Zack Greinke when the right-hander hits free agency this coming offseason, ESPN.com’s Buster Olney writes. The Angels intend to keep Greinke, and the Dodgers are prepared to spend on elite pitching, as evidenced by their claim of Cliff Lee.
- Olney points out that Kyle Lohse is positioning himself for a solid free agent contract, and suggests he could approach Mark Buehrle’s four-year, $58MM contract. Lohse is older than Buehrle and doesn’t have the same history of durability, so I will personally be surprised if Lohse gets a four-year deal or an annual salary of $14MM.
- Matt Kemp, Carlos Gonzalez and Andrew McCutchen provide their respective teams with considerable value, relative to their contracts, but Evan Longoria has the most team-friendly contract in MLB, Yahoo's Jeff Passan writes (Passan's not considering pre-arbitration eligible players). The Rays announced that they will activate Longoria from the disabled list for tomorrow’s game.
- The Nationals announced that they agreed to sign four international free agents: right-hander Ramses Rosario and outfielders Aldrem Corredor, Darryl Florentino and Luis Guzman.
Lohse Open To Mid-Season Extension Talks
Kyle Lohse is in the midst of arguably his best season as a Major Leaguer, and the 33-year-old right-hander is open to discussing a mid-season extension to stay in St. Louis, writes MLB.com's Jenifer Langosch. The Cardinals, however, have yet to approach Lohse with such an offer, according to Langosch.
According to numerous metrics, Lohse is in the midst of a career year. His ERA (2.79), K/BB ratio (3.30), BB/9 (1.6) and FIP (3.56) are all single-season bests for Lohse. His 23 starts tie him for the most in the National League, and his 148 1/3 innings are ninth-most in all of baseball.
Lohse is in the final season of a four-year, $41MM contract extension that he signed late in the 2008 season. Then 29 years old, Lohse passed on the opportunity to test the free agent market following a season that he would finish with a 3.78 ERA in exactly 200 innings. It was a surprising move at the time, especially considering the fact that Lohse is represented by Scott Boras. It would be arguably even more surprising this time around, as this could mark Lohse's last opportunity for a significant contract.
Lohse told Langosch and other reporters that his priority, should he reach free agency, is winning:
"Every year the focus is on winning," Lohse said. "We're not trying to develop something. We're trying to win. With my situation, that's what I'm looking for. If I do go to free agency, they will still be in the mix, I'm sure. But there will be other places to look, too."
Earlier today, Buster Olney suggested that Lohse could approach Mark Buehrle's four-year, $58MM contract if he were to hit the open market. I share Ben Nicholson-Smith's skepticism that Lohse would reach such a lofty sum, given that he lacks Buehrle's durability and consistent track record. However, Boras has worked surprising free agent deals in the past.
If he were to hit free agency, Lohse would join a solid free agent class that includes Zack Greinke, Anibal Sanchez, Brandon McCarthy, Edwin Jackson and Ryan Dempster.
Olney’s Latest: Cabrera, Cardinals, Hamilton
In today's Insider-only blog post, ESPN's Buster Olney says he hasn't spoken to a single talent evaluator who believes Miguel Cabrera will be able to play third base regularly. The Tigers have already announced that Cabrera will move back to his old position to accommodate Prince Fielder. Here are the rest of Olney's rumors…
- The Cardinals did speak to teams about Kyle Lohse and Jake Westbrook at the winter meetings. Both players have full no-trade clauses, and Olney says that Lohse has no intention of moving. St. Louis is reportedly close to a deal with Roy Oswalt, which would give them six starters for five spots.
- Josh Hamilton and his representatives have "visions" of the huge free agent contracts landed by Fielder and Albert Pujols while the Rangers will aim for a much more conservative deal. Hamilton has said that he'll talk about an extension up until Spring Training. He's scheduled to become a free agent after 2012.
Morosi On Blue Jays, First Base, Starters, Cespedes
The baseball world figures to remain relatively quietly until after the New Year, but as Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports writes, there is still a lot of work to be done before the season begins. Let's round up Morosi's rumors…
- The Blue Jays are saying they will not give a hitter a contract of more than five guaranteed years, though they'll likely have to violate that policy if they want to sign Prince Fielder.
- The Brewers, Cubs, Nationals, Indians, Mariners, Orioles, Rangers, Rays, and Pirates are all considering non-Fielder upgrades at first base. Carlos Pena, Casey Kotchman, and Derrek Lee remain unsigned, among others.
- Some within the game believe that Joakim Soria and Carlos Marmol could be had at the right price. The Cubbies are said to be planning a "complete and total rebuild."
- Both Kyle Lohse and Jake Westbrook remain available, and the Rangers may be willing to trade Matt Harrison for a more established starter.
- Most believe Yoenis Cespedes will sign for more than the $30.25MM Aroldis Chapman received because as a position player, he carried less risk. A larger number of interested teams and the new collective bargaining agreement will also help his cause.
Quick Hits: Varitek, A’s, Braves, Cordero, Lee, Pujols
Some links as Tuesday turns into Wednesday…
- The Red Sox have not yet made catcher and captain Jason Varitek a contract offer, reports Rob Bradford of WEEI.com. Boston added Kelly Shoppach to Jarrod Saltalamacchia and Ryan Lavarnway on Tuesday, a move that likely spelled the end of Varitek's time with the Sox.
- There are clubs with interest in trading for both Gio Gonzalez and Andrew Bailey and others with interest in both Jair Jurrjens and Martin Prado, but Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports says the Athletics and Braves are likely to deal their players separately to maximize the return. Rosenthal and Morosi note that the Braves and Orioles have discussed a deal that included both Jurrjens and Prado.
- Interest in free agent closer Francisco Cordero has slowed down, reports Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (on Twitter). His market could hinge on how clubs fill their other roster holes.
- The Pirates still have interest in first baseman Derrek Lee even after trading for Casey McGehee, reports CBSSports.com's Jon Heyman (on Twitter). Bringing Lee back at first base would allow them to use McGehee at the hot corner with Pedro Alvarez.
- Heyman hears that the Angels put a deadline on their ten-year, $254MM offer to Albert Pujols (Twitter link). The deal did seem to come together very quickly Wednesday night into Thursday morning last week.
- The Rockies do have some money to spend according to Heyman (on Twitter). In addition to Carlos Beltran and Michael Cuddyer, they also have interest in Hiroki Kuroda, Joe Saunders, and various trade targets.
- Morosi says (on Twitter) that Andruw Jones could also be an option for the Rockies if Beltran and Cuddyer sign elsewhere.
- The Cardinals' interest in pitching upgrades is "understated," reports Joe Strauss of The St. Louis Post-Dispatch (on Twitter). Both Kyle Lohse and Jake Westbrook remain on the trade block.
- The Yokohama Bay Stars have released right-hander Hiroki Sanada so that he may pursue a deal in MLB according to a report passed along by Patrick Newman of NPB Tracker. No teams bid on Sanada when he was posted last week.
- The Astros and Rays are possibilities for Ivan Rodriguez, according to Heyman (on Twitter). Though the Mets have discussed Rodriguez, they’re leaning toward relying on Mike Nickeas as their backup to starter Josh Thole.
- MLBPA executive director Michael Weiner says the Joint Drug Agreement should provide Ryan Braun with privacy and fair proceedings. “I urge all to reserve judgment on this matter until the JDA's process has played itself out," Weiner said in a statement.
Cardinals Rumors: Beltran, Romero, Gonzalez, Punto
Derrick Goold and Tom Timmermann of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch have a round-up of what the Cardinals could be planning now that Albert Pujols has left town…
- The Cardinals "have explored what the market is" for Carlos Beltran. Beltran would see most of his playing time in center field, since Allen Craig is slated to be the everyday right fielder.
- Jimmy Rollins' desire for a five-year contract will probably keep the Cards out of the bidding unless Rollins is willing to accept a shorter-term deal. The team is still talking to Rafael Furcal and would like to bring back Nick Punto as a veteran backup, should the Cardinals decide to look within and give Tyler Greene a shot at the everyday shortstop job.
- The team is looking for a left-handed reliever and have spoken to representatives for Mike Gonzalez and J.C. Romero.
- The planned $110MM payroll for 2012 won't be lowered because Pujols is gone, said GM John Mozeliak.
- In regards to the Jake Westbrook/Kyle Lohse trade rumors, Mozeliak said no deals materialized and one of the starters would be dealt only if the Cards need to "reallocate" some money towards another move.