Perrotto’s Latest: Teixeira, Burnett, Wilson
John Perrotto of Baseball Prospectus has his Sunday article up. Let’s go through it:
- The Angels may be willing to match the Yankees $140MM offer to CC Sabathia. They won’t offer 10 years to Mark Teixeira. If they can’t land Teixeira, they will consider Pat Burrell for first base.
- A.J. Burnett is looking at the Blue Jays, Red Sox, Yankees, Braves, Orioles, and Phillies.
- The Twins want a left-side infielder for Delmon Young, so they can open a spot for Denard Span in the starting lineup.
- The Tigers are pursuing Jack Wilson from the Pirates and Matt Treanor from the Marlins. They are also putting high priority on signing Joe Beimel who’s getting interest from a number of teams.
- The Dodgers will not re-sign Rafael Furcal for health reasons so the Giants, Athletics, and Reds are his most likely destinations.
- The Cubs will need to offer more than Jason Marquis to the Royals for David DeJesus. If they can’t get it done, they’d sign Raul Ibanez over Bobby Abreu.
- The Braves are interested in Javier Vazquez and Jermaine Dye…
- The Reds need to offer more than Homer Bailey to get Dye.
- The Mets are considering Jon Garland, Vazquez, Edwin Jackson, Andy Sonnanstine. The Rays want more than Aaron Heilman for either of their starters.
- The Mets could soon become suitors for Manny Ramirez.
- The Brewers could soon become suitors for Francisco Rodriguez.
- The Astros are targeting Paul Bako and David Ross as backup catchers.
- The Rockies are trying to find lefthanders, eyeing Alan Embree, Will Ohman, Brian Shouse, and Glendon Rusch.
Odds and Ends: Maddux, Krivsky, Maroth
Links for Wednesday…
- Greg Maddux says he hasn’t officially decided about retirement yet, but he’ll "try to figure it out in the next couple of days."
- David Newhan is now a free agent.
- Marc Hulet looks at interesting names for the Rule 5 draft over at Baseball Analysts.
- Roch Kubatko reports that the Orioles hired former Reds GM Wayne Krivsky as a special assistant to Andy MacPhail.
- Lefty Mike Maroth is feeling good following May shoulder surgery and intends to pitch in 2009.
- South Side Sox believes the White Sox are trimming payroll.
- Minor league free agent shortstop Luis Hernandez signed with the Royals.
- SoxProspects.com says the Red Sox inked Billy Traber, Marcus McBeth, and Gil Velazquez to minor league deals.
- The Dodgers re-signed Luis Maza to a minor league contract. Also at that link, Dodgers owner Frank McCourt hinted that the team may be unwilling to increase its two-year, $45MM offer to Manny Ramirez.
Rosenthal On Boras’ Scheme
Ken Rosenthal has a theory on Scott Boras’ goals in the free agent game:
- Mark Teixeira and Jason Varitek to the Red Sox
- C.C. Sabathia and Manny Ramirez to the Angels
- Derek Lowe to the Yankees
The crux of the theory seems to be that Boras would want Manny near his Newport Beach headquarters to better babysit him. Personally I have a hard time seeing any team sign two of the big three free agents, and it’s difficult to picture Manny as an Angel.
Rosenthal doesn’t see the Dodgers as major players, partially based on recent comments made by the McCourts.
Mets Rumors: K-Rod, Dye, Vazquez
6:22pm: According to SI.com’s Jon Heyman, Minaya has reached out to K-Rod and Fuentes. He says the Mets prefer free agency to trading.
We also have a rumor from Joel Sherman of the New York Post. He says the Mets offered Aaron Heilman to the Rockies for Street shortly after Colorado acquired him. The Rox wanted the Mets to add Pedro Feliciano, and the Mets refused. MetsBlog has more insight into the team’s plans.
1:33pm: Rounding up today’s Mets rumors…
- On Friday, David Lennon of Newsday said the Mets had received Francisco Rodriguez‘s medical records. He also had Omar Minaya saying the club’s doctors were looking it over. However, Bart Hubbuch of the New York Post writes today that the Mets did not receive the records until yesterday afternoon. According to Hubbuch, the Mets told Paul Kinzer they’ll get back to him after Thanksgiving regarding K-Rod.
- Hubbuch names five other Mets targets: Brian Fuentes, Kerry Wood, Trevor Hoffman, J.J. Putz, and Huston Street.
- Adam Rubin of the New York Daily News talked to Minaya, who said the Mets have not made offers to any free agents yet.
- In case you missed it, Ken Rosenthal had several Mets nuggets in today’s column. He said the Mets balked at Chicago’s asking price for Jermaine Dye, and aren’t enamored with Javier Vazquez. Rosenthal believes the Rays’ Andy Sonnanstine "represents a more desirable target" for the Mets.
- SI.com’s Jon Heyman rattles off a list of the Mets’ free agent targets, which does not include Manny Ramirez.
Odds and Ends: Kawakami, Griffey, Greinke
Links for Tuesday…
- The weekly chat has been moved to Wednesday at 2pm CST this time.
- I’ll be on Seth Stohs’ radio show tonight around 8pm CST.
- From NPB Tracker: Kenshin Kawakami has switched to Dan Evans as his agent, while Koji Uehara wants a rotation spot and multiple years.
- Ken Griffey Jr.‘s agent, Brian Goldberg, has been in contact with nine teams (six AL, three NL). The Mariners were one of the AL teams.
- It’s been over a decade since the White Sox signed a free agent from another team for more than $20MM.
- Justin Morneau would like the Twins to add one more bat.
- East Windup Chronicle has scouting reports on Rinku Singh and Dinesh Patel.
- Things are quiet with the Dodgers – no recent talks for Manny Ramirez, "no real movement" on C.C. Sabathia.
- Rany Jazayerli questions the Royals’ nonchalance toward signing Zack Greinke.
- Nothing is close with the Tigers and Joe Beimel, and the team will not make an offer to Junichi Tazawa (partially to preserve their relationships in Japan).
- The Brewers signed Jason Bourgeois to a minor league deal. Bourgeois, 27 in January, hit .286/.335/.404 in Triple A this year.
- Quietly, the Indians signed reliever Greg Aquino. He pitched well in Triple A this year but missed time with a hamstring strain.
Yankees Backup Plans
Ken Davidoff of Newsday lays out the backup plans for the Yankees.
Mark Teixeira would come into play for Brian Cashman if C.C. Sabathia turns down the Yankees’ offer. Davidoff adds that Sabathia would likely turn down the Yankees if Tex turns down the Angels first. So we could have a scenario where Teixeira signs with the Yankees and Sabathia with the Angels, and neither team addresses its biggest need. The Yankees could also get in on Manny Ramirez if they fail to sign Sabathia.
There’s some hand-wringing coming out of New York as Sabathia continues to sit on the Yankees’ huge offer. I don’t think Sabathia’s silence sends a message, nor am I convinced he can’t get a larger contract. It’s sensible for Sabathia to hear the Angels out, especially with the rumor that they are considering a Johan Santana-like offer. If the Halos make that offer, the Yankees may have to come back with a seven-year contract worth more than $160MM.
Rosenthal’s Latest: Dye, Burrell, Young
Here’s a look at the latest from Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.
- Rosenthal says the Braves are interested in A.J. Burnett, but you already knew that.
- Rosenthal believes Trevor Hoffman to the Dodgers "makes sense."
- The Red Sox apparently have confidence they could trade Mike Lowell if need be, but rival execs believe he’d have to prove his health in spring first. Lowell has two years and $24MM on his deal.
- The White Sox want a young starter and additional players for right fielder Jermaine Dye. The Mets, Rays, and Phillies are "balking at such a price." Rosenthal learned that most of the six teams on Dye’s no-trade list are in the northeast. Interesting that the White Sox are still willing to trade Dye after moving Nick Swisher.
- The Mets "aren’t enamored" with Javier Vazquez.
- Rosenthal suggests the Rays will sit back and hope one of the free agent DH-types becomes a bargain for them.
- SI.com’s Jon Heyman wrote on Friday that the "Braves, Dodgers, and Mets are believed to be among teams that have inquired about Rangers starting pitchers Kevin Millwood and Vicente Padilla." However, Rosenthal says the Braves and Mets are not interested in either pitcher and the Rangers aren’t desperate to move them.
- Rosenthal has Francisco Rodriguez, Brian Fuentes, and Pat Burrell on the Angels’ radar if they fail to sign Mark Teixeira, C.C. Sabathia, or Manny Ramirez.
- A rival GM tells Rosenthal Twins outfielder Delmon Young is "very, very much out there."
Cafardo’s Latest: Teixeira, Ramirez, Baldelli, Furcal
The Boston Globe’s Nick Cafardo has a new article up with a few Red Sox rumors, and one for Oakland:
- Cafardo thinks Mark Teixeira and Manny Ramirez will not change jerseys this offseason because, while their teams might struggle to afford them, they can’t afford to lose them. Teixeira is the protection and future replacement for Vladimir Guerrero that they have been seeking for a long time. He doesn’t rule out the Yankees however.
- Rocco Baldelli could be Coco Crisp‘s replacement as Boston’s fourth outfielder. Cafardo says Baldelli met with the Red Sox last week.
- He continues to hit on the Julio Lugo for Dontrelle Willis or Nate Robertson deal, but now suggests Theo Epstein may also eat some of Lugo’s salary and deal him elsewhere.
- The A’s are looking closely at Rafael Furcal.
Heyman’s Latest: Lowe, Teixeira, Guillen
SI.com’s Jon Heyman recently published several new blog posts.
- Free agent outfielder Garret Anderson has a new agent: Scott Boras. Click here for our full list of Boras clients.
- Rangers starters Vicente Padilla and Kevin Millwood are drawing interest from the Braves, Dodgers, and Mets. Padilla is owed $12MM in 2009 with a 2010 option for the same ($1.75MM buyout). Millwood gets $23MM over the next two seasons and has a limited no-trade clause.
- Heyman says rather than battle for A.J. Burnett, the Red Sox and Yankees may duke it out for Derek Lowe. Other suitors for Lowe: the Mets, Braves, Phillies, Giants, Mariners and Dodgers. There he goes naming the Mariners again as a player for a major free agent…interesting. The Giants are a new one as well, though Heyman says Lowe may prefer to head back east.
- Heyman agrees with info from Nick Cafardo, that the Red Sox and Tigers have discussed swapping Julio Lugo for Dontrelle Willis.
- Dodgers GM Ned Colletti admitted to interest in C.C. Sabathia. Colletti said he’s waiting to hear from Scott Boras regarding Manny Ramirez, even though the Dodgers pulled their two-year, $45MM offer.
- It hasn’t happened yet, but the Angels plan to make a "very serious" offer to Mark Teixeira. A competing exec guessed eight years, $160MM. Remember, that’s a non-Angels exec making a guess. Heyman tosses a new team into the mix for Tex: the Mariners.
- The Royals are "quietly shopping" Jose Guillen. Guillen, 33 in May, hit .264/.300/.438 in 633 plate appearances this year while playing below-average defense. He’s owed $24MM for the 2009-10 seasons.
- Competing execs tell Heyman the Mets appear open to trading Ramon Castro or Brian Schneider. The Mets would then presumably sign a free agent catcher.
Rosenthal’s Latest: Teixeira, Lowe, Everett
Time to discuss Ken Rosenthal’s latest…
- Mark Teixeira is likely to sign before Manny Ramirez. The Nationals and Orioles are in the mix, but the Angels and Red Sox are more likely destinations.
- One GM predicted Raul Ibanez will receive a three-year deal worth $8-12MM per year. Not exactly going out on a limb there. ESPN’s Jayson Stark named a dozen teams that have expressed interest.
- Rosenthal says the Mets are more likely to sign Brian Fuentes or Francisco Rodriguez than to acquire a closer via trade. Doesn’t exactly fit with Stark’s statement that J.J. Putz would go to the top of the Mets’ list if available.
- Scott Boras emphatically disputed the notion that he wants a Barry Zito-like contract for Derek Lowe.
- Rosenthal wonders if Adam Everett would make sense for the Tigers.