Orioles Intend To Keep Hendrickson
The Orioles will keep lefty Mark Hendrickson, according to Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi at FOX Sports. They swapped names with the Rockies to no avail, plus the George Sherrill trade made Baltimore less inclined to move a second veteran southpaw.
Hendrickson, 35, has allowed a .253/.301/.414 line to lefties this year. He has about $565K remaining on his contract, plus incentives.
Rockies Interested In Hendrickson, Downs, Nick Johnson
4:54pm: Tracy Ringolsby of FOX Sports says the Rockies also have an eye on Washington's Nick Johnson as a bench bat. A .410 OBP bench bat.
11:00am: Troy E. Renck of the Denver Post wrote earlier today that the Rockies "increased their pursuit" of Orioles southpaw Mark Hendrickson (.253/.303/.422 against lefties this year). Renck confirms that the Rox balked at the asking price – Eric Young, Jr. – for John Grabow and Joe Beimel. By the way, in case you missed it, Renck notes that the Rockies signed 43 year-old righty Mike Timlin to a minor league deal.
Via Twitter, Bob Elliott of the Toronto Sun throws another name into the mix for Colorado: Blue Jays closer Scott Downs. Downs, signed through 2010, would certainly exact the highest price of all the relievers linked to the Rockies.
Relief Rumors: Grabow, Marlins, Yankees
Contenders are always in the hunt for relief help this time of year. Let's scope out the latest on that front:
- After refusing to deal Eric Young Jr. for John Grabow or Joe Beimel, the Rockies have lowered their aim, notably toward the Orioles' Mark Hendrickson, says Joel Sherman at the New York Post.
- The Marlins are in the mix for Grabow's services, says Joe Frisaro at MLB.com.
- CBS Sports' Danny Knobler says the Yankees have steered their focus toward middle relief help, but too many of their desired names reside in the AL East.
- The Cardinals are indeed still interested in bringing back righty Russ Springer, says Mychael Urban at MLB.com.
Odds And Ends: Red Sox, Andruw, Roberts
Links for Saturday…
- At the bottom of an interesting article about baseball’s youth movement, Peter Gammons adds that the Red Sox-Marlins Hanley Ramirez discussions "lasted all of 20 seconds" according to a Marlins official.
- Yahoo’s Tim Brown speculates that the Nationals could have interest in Andruw Jones. I can see the Blue Jays taking him on if they can make it work financially.
- Roch Kubatko cautions fans from reading too much into discussions about a Brian Roberts–Gavin Floyd trade.
- Peter Schmuck hasn’t heard much on the Roberts front, but wouldn’t mind seeing the Orioles trade him for Floyd, even if they don’t acquire anyone else in the deal.
- In another post, Schmuck argues that there’s nothing wrong with the Mark Hendrickson signing.
- Ryan Dempster has heard good things about Milton Bradley and hopes he joins the Cubs.
- The Yankees have no need for Manny Ramirez, Erik Bedard or over-the-top position swaps, in Peter Abraham’s opinion.
- Jeff Moorad- who’s leading the group poised to buy the Padres- was a record-setting agent in his day. Tom Krasovic looks back at Moorad’s earlier career.
- NPB Tracker compares Japanese teams before and after losing their stars to MLB.
Odds and Ends: Mariners, Jeter, Penny
Links for Wednesday…
- With the top three free agent closers off the market, the Brewers maintain interest in Trevor Hoffman.
- The Orioles’ Mark Hendrickson signing is official – he gets $1.5MM plus incentives.
- McCovey Chronicles evaluates some corner infield options for the Giants.
- Geoff Baker asks whether Bill Bavasi will be vindicated at all if the Mariners contend in 2009.
- Japanese pitcher Takateru Iyono is aiming to sign with an MLB club. Also, Taiwanese pitcher Fu-Te Ni has an offer from an East Coast team.
- All of Jeff Passan’s Hot Stove Daily pieces are good reads. Here’s his Marlins one.
- Murray Chass questions the oft-cited "$88.5MM coming off the books" figure for the Yankees.
- Bob Klapisch asks: how does the Mark Teixeira signing affect Derek Jeter‘s future with the Yankees?
- Buster Olney says the D’Backs "took a serious run" at Brad Penny before he signed with Boston.
Rockies Rumors: Redding, Marquis, Fogg
Troy E. Renck of the Denver Post has the latest on the Rockies’ pursuit for back-end starting pitching.
The Rox "remain firmly in the mix" for free agent Tim Redding, who also has the Mets and Orioles in pursuit. Renck suggests the Orioles’ signing of Mark Hendrickson could cause them to back off, though Jeff Zrebiec wrote today that the Orioles want to add at least two starters.
Jason Marquis is also on Colorado’s radar, but they "can’t absorb hardly any" of his $9.875MM salary. The Cubs are seemingly looking to save at least $3-4MM here. Renck adds that Josh Fogg is another possibility for the Rockies, on a minor league deal.
Hendrickson, Orioles Reach Agreement
MONDAY, 7:49am: According to Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun, the Orioles reached an agreement with Hendrickson. The O’s still want to add another starter.
SUNDAY, 10:26pm: Spencer Fordin of MLB.com adds information about how Hendrickson will help the Orioles. Fordin writes how Hendrickson’s presence will allow prospects more time to develop in the minor leagues.
Fordin also mentions that Baltimore has reportedly been in close negotiations to land Japanese free-agent pitcher Kenshin Kawakami.
8:59pm: Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com is reporting that free-agent pitcher Mark Hendrickson and the Baltimore Orioles are working on a deal to bring the starter to Baltimore.
The announcement, pending a physical, is slated for early this week.
Hendrickson has played with four different franchises since 2002, Kubatko wrote. The 6-foot-9 left-hander is 50-63 with a 5.07 ERA in 215 career games. He was 7-8 with a 5.45 ERA with the Florida Marlins in 2008.
Orioles Interested In Hendrickson, Miles
Peter Schmuck talks about two of many free agents on the Orioles’ radar, pitcher Mark Hendrickson and infielder Aaron Miles. Jeff Zrebiec named Hendrickson as an Orioles’ target back on December 6th; check out that article for many other names of interest. Baltimore could be a great opportunity for Hendrickson, as their rotation is wide open. Schmuck reminds us that the Orioles also have interest in starters Braden Looper, Tim Redding, and Kenshin Kawakami. Roch Kubatko says the O’s are not interested in Ben Sheets.
This is the first I’ve heard of the O’s being interested in Miles; the Reds are another suitor for the non-tendered infielder.
Winter Meetings Previews
We’ve added a few new Winter Meetings preview to the collection…
- Yahoo’s Tim Brown runs through plans for all of the American and National League teams.
- Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post says the Rockies are all about left-handed relief help. They’ve got several trade chips to work with.
- Jim Salisbury of the Philadelphia Inquirer has the Phillies covered. You know the plan: starting pitcher, outfielder.
- Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reminds us of the Cardinals’ wish list: starter, closer, lefthanded reliever. Arthur Rhodes would fit, but he’s leaning toward the Reds. Strauss wonders if John Mozeliak can match up with the Blue Jays to find relief help.
- The Twins still want to add a shortstop or third baseman according to La Velle E. Neal III of the Minneapolis Star Tribune, though several options have already been eliminated. Neal summarizes the players on the radar. The Twins are also looking for bullpen help.
- Tom Krasovic of the San Diego Union-Tribune discusses the Padres. Kevin Towers will keep the Jake Peavy talks going with the Cubs while also searching for a shortstop and veteran catcher.
- Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune reminds us that Peavy and a left-handed hitting outfielder are on the Cubs’ wish list. The bat comes first, says Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times.
- Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star says Dayton Moore has already accomplished his main goals, and now looks to replenish his right-handed relief. The Royals would also like to add a proven middle infielder and seem to have a glut of corner/DH types.
- Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic and Jack Magruder of the East Valley Tribune analyze the Diamondbacks. Josh Byrnes seeks a second baseman, left-handed reliever, and pitching in general. Miguel Montero is the top trade chip. They have about $10MM to spend, less if Brandon Lyon accepts arbitration.
- Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News says the Rangers could trade Gerald Laird, Hank Blalock, Kevin Millwood, or Vicente Padilla.
- Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel talked to Doug Melvin about C.C. Sabathia, who still hasn’t reacted to their offer. If Sabathia and Ben Sheets leave, Melvin could add two starters. Melvin also said it’d be too risky to trade J.J. Hardy and start Alcides Escobar at short. Rickie Weeks has drawn interest, but Melvin would require "a pretty good hitter" in return. Mike Cameron is a more likely trade chip. As for the team’s closer search, Melvin doesn’t expect to be in on the big names.
- Joe Capozzi of the Palm Beach Post says the Marlins probably won’t steal headlines at these Winter Meetings as they did in ’07. Still, Jorge Cantu, Matt Treanor, and Jeremy Hermida may be dealt. The Fish have been "actively shopping" Treanor and Hermida. The Marlins have mild interest in free agents Ivan Rodriguez and Carl Pavano.
- Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune says Ken Williams has asked the Reds about Homer Bailey. Could the Reds match up for Jermaine Dye? The White Sox hope to add more MLB-ready starting pitching and maybe a backup catcher.
- The Orioles need starting pitching, with a slew of names under consideration according to Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun: A.J. Burnett, Paul Byrd, Jon Garland, Mark Hendrickson, Braden Looper, Randy Wolf, Kenshin Kawakami, Koji Uehara, Bartolo Colon, and Matt Clement. The O’s also hope to extend Brian Roberts, trade Ramon Hernandez, and find a shortstop. They have interest in Adam Everett.
- Roch Kubatko of MASN Online explains what it’s like for a reporter at the Meetings.
Molony’s Latest: Mahay, Loretta, Erstad, Guzman
Let’s check in with MLB.com’s Jim Molony.
- The Rays are scouting lefty relievers Brian Fuentes and Ron Mahay. The issue? The price for Fuentes seems exorbitant, and Mahay may not be available. Troy E. Renck names the Yankees, Mets, Cardinals, and Marlins as the main suitors for Fuentes aside from the Rays.
- A few contenders have inquired with the Astros as to the availability of Mark Loretta and Darin Erstad.
- As you might imagine, the Rangers are open to trading Frank Catalanotto. We mentioned yesterday that his contract is a bit of a burden.
- It seems that Jim Bowden is listening to offers for Cristian Guzman while also trying to sign him to an extension. From Guzman’s point of view, it might make sense to enter a weak shortstop market this winter.
- The Matt Capps injury apparently affects Damaso Marte‘s availability.
- The Marlins may make Mark Hendrickson available. The big lefty was replaced in the rotation by top prospect Chris Volstad.