Mark Teixeira Rumors: Tuesday
12:07am: Sean McAdam of the Boston Herald does not believe the Red Sox will go beyond eight years for Teixeira.
10:32am: WEEI has a transcript of comments from Karl Ravech of ESPN regarding Tex. Ravech believes "a decision is getting closer and closer to being made." He says teams are escalating their offers and Teixeira should land in the $22-28MM salary range. You can also hear Ravech’s comments in a video at ESPN.com (upper right corner).
8:24am: According to Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald, the Red Sox made an offer to Mark Teixeira. Silverman believes it to be for eight years. Tex is believed to be seeking more than $21MM per year, closer to Alex Rodriguez‘s $27.5MM per year.
The Angels are reportedly at eight years and at least $160MM, the Orioles around seven years, $140-150MM, and the Nationals at eight years, $160MM.
Odds and Ends: Cabrera, Tejada, Teixeira
A few random notes from around the MLBiverse…
- The Cardinals signed infielder Joe Thurston and catcher Justin Knoedler to minor league deals with spring training invites. Thurston appeared in four games for the Red Sox in ’08, while Knoedler last appeared in the majors with the Giants in ’06.
- Jordan Bastian says the Blue Jays are not one of the teams that have offered a contract to Daniel Cabrera. The Jays are interested, but want to see Cabrera pitch in the Dominican Winter League before making an offer…Cabrera’s agent says eleven teams have shown interest and Cabrera has received two contract offers.
- Jon Heyman is reporting that the FBI is still investigating Miguel Tejada, which will hinder any attempts to trade the shortstop…We previously heard that the Astros were trying hard to move Tejada but had yet to find any suitors.
- Mike Bauman believes the Red Sox offer to Mark Teixeira could be a direct reaction to the recent signings of C.C. Sabathia and A.J. Burnett by the Yankees. Bauman says the Red Sox "cannot sit idly by and watch the Yanks make dramatic, if incredibly expensive, improvements."
Cork Gaines writes for RaysIndex.com and can be reached here.
Manny Ramirez Rumors: Tuesday
SI.com’s Jon Heyman says the Yankees aren’t optimistic about signing Mark Teixeira, and "seem ready to pounce for Manny Ramirez." He says the Yankees "love the idea of Manny."
Heyman notes that Teixeira signing with the Red Sox would be ideal for Manny and Scott Boras, since Boston is not a possibility for Ramirez. The Angels might have heightened interest in Manny if they are unable to sign Tex.
Phillies Sign Raul Ibanez
TUESDAY: The Phillies’ three-year, $31.5MM deal with Ibanez is official.
FRIDAY, 12:45pm: Geoff Baker offers commentary on the signing. He says the Cubs cooled on Ibanez over defensive concerns while the Angels remained in a Mark Teixeira holding pattern.
7:56am: Ken Rosenthal is reporting that the Phillies have signed Raul Ibanez to a three-year deal. Rosenthal says the contract is worth $30MM. The deal is pending a physical.
As a type A free agent, the Mariners will receive the Phillies’ first round pick next year (#28) and a supplemental pick between the first and second round. With Ibanez now the everyday left fielder, Jayson Stark says the Phillies will cut ties with Pat Burrell.
Cork Gaines writes for RaysIndex.com and can be reached here.
Odds and Ends: Astros, Saito, Yankees
Links for Monday night…
- Astros GM Ed Wade is "kicking the tires" on players to share time with Geoff Blum at third next year. It seems unlikely that they can afford Ty Wigginton.
- The Marlins haven’t yet inquired on Takashi Saito, a recent non-tender.
- It’s "very unlikely" though "not impossible" that Mark Teixeira or Manny Ramirez becomes a Yankee according to Tyler Kepner. He also thinks that the longer Andy Pettitte waits, the lower the chances are of a return to the Yankees.
- Adam Everett thinks the Tigers are a great fit for him. Tigers GM Dave Dombrowski said Everett’s in line to get most of the starts at shortstop.
- Felipe Lopez could be a positive for the D’Backs in spite of his questionable effort and unspectacular defense, writes Keith Law.
- Rob Neyer thinks that the Yankees "pretty obviously overpaid" for A.J. Burnett.
- Here’s a video clip of Bronx Banter authors and Anthony McCarron debating the pros and cons of the Burnett signing.
- Sarah D. Morris weighs in on the Dodgers’ offseason moves.
- Tony Massarotti ranks the five worst current pitching contracts.
Mark Teixeira Rumors: Monday
Some Mark Teixeira nuggets have surfaced around the web…
- The Angels “appear to have abandoned their usual quick-deadline strategy” according to Jon Heyman. They’ve been known to offer contracts with deadlines, but this year they’re making an exception.
- Ken Rosenthal writes that the Angels could be “bracing for the loss” of Teixeira to another club.
- Still, the Red Sox still consider the Angels “a more serious competitor” than the Orioles or Nationals according to New York Times writer Jack Curry.
- Red Sox GM Theo Epstein didn’t deny that the his team is a “super power financially,” but he told Curry that Boston spends “99%” of its resources on scouting and development. With good reason, Curry suggests that they might be spending more than 1% of their energy on signing Tex.
Rosenthal’s Latest: Abreu, Griffey, Varitek
The latest hot stove info from Ken Rosenthal…
- One executive told Rosenthal Bobby Abreu seeks a three-year, $48MM deal. He may have a hard time convincing someone he’s worth $16.5MM more than Raul Ibanez.
- Mariners GM Jack Zduriencik, rather than his bosses, has final say on whether to sign Ken Griffey Jr.
- If the Mets can move Brian Schneider, they could pursue Jason Varitek. They might have to give him a multiyear deal (and also surrender their second-round pick to the Red Sox). The Mets reportedly discussed Schneider with the Red Sox several weeks ago. Rosenthal says some execs still believe in the Mark Teixeira-Varitek package deal idea though. It doesn’t really make sense to me.
Scioscia Asked Francona About Manny
Newsday’s Ken Davidoff passes along a report from The Sports Lodge radio show. According to Davidoff:
The skipper [Mike Scioscia] disputed the idea that he wouldn’t want Manny Ramirez on his team, and he said that the Angels have reached out to Red Sox manager Terry Francona to get a feel for what it’s like to have Manny on your team. I wonder how that conversation went?
Ken Rosenthal has quotes from Scioscia. Scott Boras is going to have to play a few teams off each other if he’s going to get three guaranteed years for Ramirez.
Davidoff also has a quote from Scioscia suggesting Jake Peavy "would be a good fit" for the Angels (and vice versa). Meanwhile, SI.com’s Jon Heyman explains why the Angels are still players for Mark Teixeira.
Odds and Ends: Teixeira, Hunsicker, Burrell
Links for Monday…
- According to the Newberg Report mailing list and CBSSports.com, the Rangers re-signed pitcher Doug Mathis to a minor league deal.
- Joe Nelson‘s been popular since being non-tendered – he’s heard from "at least 12-14 teams." Ruben Amaro Jr. said today the Phillies inquired on "20 or so" non-tendered players.
- Adam Everett‘s deal with the Tigers is official – $1MM plus incentives.
- MLB.com’s Barry Bloom spoke to Padres owner John Moores.
- Richard Justice doesn’t think Drayton McLane would ask Ed Wade to trade Roy Oswalt, but he could see Oswalt requesting a trade.
- Dave Sheinin says nothing has happened with Mark Teixeira since the Winter Meetings ended, and it’s no coincidence that we haven’t heard much about offers from the Red Sox or Yankees. Michael Silverman says Boston’s eventual offer to Tex will easily be a record for this ownership group. He guesses eight years in the $145-175MM range, noting that the Red Sox do not like to have players signed beyond age 36.
- Buster Olney says the Orioles and Nationals bidding on Tex is "nothing less than lunacy."
- Gerry Hunsicker has signed an extension to stay with the Rays.
- RotoAuthority takes a look at Jonathan Sanchez.
- George King says Kenny Lofton attempted to dissuade C.C. Sabathia from signing with the Yankees.
- Ken Davidoff says it seems that the Yankees will avoid Scott Boras this offseason.
- Steve Serby did a Q&A with Omar Minaya, learning details of Minaya’s Winter Meetings dealings.
- Pat Burrell says he never received a formal offer from the Phillies. His replacement, Raul Ibanez, will receive three years and $31.5MM.
Red Sox-Teixeira Rumor
2:34pm: A reader who heard the show says Patrick was only speaking in the hypothetical with the $200MM figure, so Bloom’s post was apparently inaccurate. This is why I typically avoid radio reports unless I hear them myself…sorry about that. In listening to the Reggie Miller interview on Patrick’s site he was definitely only giving an opinion during that portion.
2:16pm: Take it with a grain of salt, but we have a report of a report that the Red Sox offered Mark Teixeira an eight-year, $200MM deal. Earl Bloom of the Orange County Register heard Dan Patrick say it on his radio show. It’d be best to treat the report with skepticism until it’s confirmed by another source.