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Odds & Ends: Oeltjen, Hensley, Gload, Halladay

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Links for Friday, as team execs and media folk pack their bags for Monday's Winter Meetings in Indianapolis…

  • The Brewers signed Trent Oeltjen to a minor league deal, according to MLB.com's Adam McCalvy.  Oeltjen, 27 in February, hit .303/.362/.500 in his third Triple A tour, playing the outfield corners.
  • Brewers assistant GM Gord Ash spells out why his team won't be acquiring Roy Halladay, talking to McCalvy.
  • MLB.com's Joe Frisaro tweets six minor league free agents signed by the Marlins, including Jesse Foppert, Vinny Rottino, and Hector Luna.
  • The Pirates expressed "mild interest" in free agent pitcher Clay Hensley, according to Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.  Hensley, 30, spent the year at Triple A in the Astros and Marlins organizations, posting a 3.56 ERA in 124 innings.
  • Joe Capozzi of the Palm Beach Post feels there's "still a good chance [Ross] Gload returns [to the Marlins] with a two-year deal."
  • Darren Dreifort's five-year, $55MM deal tops Jeff Passan's list of the ten worst contracts of the 2000s for Yahoo.
  • Joe Pawlikowski of River Ave. Blues explains why the Yankees probably won't sign Rafael Soriano.
  • In his Winter Meetings preview for AOL FanHouse, Ed Price says there was some discussion about a Tigers-Diamondbacks trade involving Edwin Jackson and Max Scherzer.
  • ESPN's Buster Olney talked to rival executives who say the Tigers have not aggressively shopped Curtis Granderson.
  • Olney doesn't think the Mariners will pay up for Jason Bay.  He believes the Red Sox are "controlling the market" for Bay and Matt Holliday.
  • Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch says the Cardinals are "increasingly weighing spreading what it would cost to retain Holliday over several players."  Bernie Miklasz of the P-D feels the Cards are "enacting their exit strategy from the Holliday sweepstakes."  I would not be surprised to see the Cardinals make their best offer soon - let's say $110MM over six years – and entirely move on if Scott Boras rejects it.
  • SI's Jon Heyman tweets that Nick Johnson is "drawing interest from the Giants, maybe Braves, and a half-dozen more."
  • MLB.com's Corey Brock talked to former Padres GM Kevin Towers, who will meet with the Mets, Yankees, Mariners, and Red Sox at the Winter Meetings.
  • ESPN's Keith Law isn't impressed with the Phillies' Placido Polanco signing.  My initial impression upon hearing about the signing is that no other team would've valued Polanco that highly.
  • MLB.com's Joe Frisaro tweets that other teams have been more aggressive on Jamey Carroll than the Marlins.  Other Carroll suitors include the Rockies, Red Sox, Angels, Dodgers, A's, Rangers, Pirates, Reds and Indians.

Odds & Ends: Hudson, Pujols, Gonzalez, D-Backs

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Some Thursday night links…

  • Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports note that the Phillies had a creative idea for third base before signing Placido Polanco – they asked Orlando Hudson if he'd make the position change.  He passed.
  • Cardinals president Bill DeWitt III spoke openly about the club's limitations in retaining Albert Pujols beyond his current deal, writes Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.  Signing Pujols and free agent Matt Holliday to new contracts would almost definitely mean committing upwards of 40% of the team's payroll to two players.
  • If the Tigers cannot re-sign free agent relievers Brandon Lyon or Fernando Rodney, they may have to look into a pair of Type A free agents, writes James Schmehl of MLive.com.  Atlanta's Mike Gonzalez or Rafael Soriano could appeal to Detroit, but they would require the forfeiture of a first-round pick.
  • Diamondbacks GM Josh Byrnes conducted a live chat today on MLB.com.  It sounds as though Byrnes would be content to more or less stand pat this offseason, telling one fan that most of the club's impact players evolve within their system rather than "arrive via offseason splash."  Don't expect Arizona to go after a second baseman this winter either as Byrnes says he looks forward to competition over the spot this season, featuring late-season acquisition Tony Abreu.
  • More from Arizona as the club outrighted a pair of prospects to their Triple-A affiliate – pitcher Kyler Newby and catcher Luke Carlin, according to MLB.com's Steve Gilbert.  Nick Piecoro of The Arizona Republic writes that the move was not made in anticipation of a free agent signing or trade.
  • Matt Stairs told Larry Mahoney of the Bangor Daily News that he would like to play next season.  Andy Martino of the Philadelphia Inquirer says not to expect Stairs back in Philadelphia next season, as Phils GM Ruben Amaro offered him the opportunity to audition for other teams at Spring Training.
  • Jacque Jones also wants back in baseball, according to MLB.com's Thomas Harding.  The 34-year-old last played in 2008, seeing time in 42 games in which he recorded an OPS of .446.  However, his agent insists that teams will be impressed with his physical conditioning and desire to continue his career.

Brown On Bay, Kennedy, Crosby

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One assistant GM tells Yahoo's Tim Brown that this year's free agent class is "a whole bunch of schlock" compared to next year's. Here are Brown's latest rumors:

  • At least one agent expects many free agents to be overpaid this offseason, because the free agent class is relatively weak.
  • Some Red Sox officials prefer Jason Bay to Matt Holliday because Bay has proven himself in the AL East.
  • The agent for Adam Kennedy and Bobby Crosby says both infielders have attracted interest from about six teams. We know the Red Sox are interersted.

Strong Possibility Of Bradley-Burrell Swap?

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A Milton Bradley–Pat Burrell swap is still a "strong possibility," according to Joel Sherman of the New York Post.  Sherman notes that since Burrell is owed $9MM over one year and Bradley $21MM over two, the Cubs would have to eat good money (he guesses $6MM) to make the trade work.

There is no question that the Cubs would have to flip Burrell in this scenario.  Sherman speculates that they could offer him to the Mets for Luis Castillo, a player the Cubs wouldn't mind adding.  Sherman says, "It is hard to find a baseball official who actually thinks the Mets are going to land either Jason Bay or Matt Holliday," though ESPN's Buster Olney found one today in regard to Holliday.

My guess is that the Cubs would prefer to get a more usable piece than Burrell for Bradley.  Acquiring Burrell increases uncertainty and drags out the process.  Acquiring another bad contract more directly, someone they can use in center field, the rotation, or second base, would be ideal. 

Cards Offer Arb To Holliday, Pineiro, DeRosa, Decline On Glaus

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The official St. Louis Cardinals Twitter feed breaks the news that Matt Holliday, Joel Pineiro and Mark DeRosa are all being offered arbitration by the Cardinals.  Holliday is a Type A free agent, while Pineiro and DeRosa are Type Bs.  The only ranked free agent not mentioned was Troy Glaus (a Type B), but MLB.com's Matthew Leach (via Twitter) reported that St. Louis didn't make an offer to the veteran third baseman.

The moves were expected, given that Holliday is arguably the jewel of this winter's free agent class and at least four clubs are seriously pursuing DeRosa.

Mets Talk: Cora, Catchers, Krivsky

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Let's gather up the latest Mets hot stove links…

  • Joel Sherman of the New York Post, Jesse Spector of the New York Daily News, and Ken Davidoff of Newsday all trashed yesterday's signing of Alex Cora for $2MM.  The basic premise is that every dollar counts when you're up against a payroll limit, and uninspired signings like Cora, John Grabow, and Ramon Hernandez for $2-3MM hurt.
  • In that same blog post, Davidoff says the Mets "like Matt Holliday, but it's pretty apparent that they're not going after him the way they pursued Carlos Beltran five years ago."
  • The Mets are poised to add Henry Blanco and Chris Coste as backup options, but Davidoff says their top free agent target is Bengie Molina.  If he's offered arbitration today and turns it down later, Molina would cost the Mets' their #40 draft pick (unless they also sign a higher-ranked Type A who turned down arb, in which case their #40 pick would go to another team and the Giants would get #71).  Davidoff notes that Gerald Laird and Chris Snyder were Mets trade targets in the past, and that other free agent catchers would not cost a draft pick.  Bart Hubbuch of the New York Post says the Mets are interested in Type B free agent Rod Barajas.
  • Roch Kubatko of MASN talked to Orioles president Andy MacPhail about Wayne Krivsky leaving his special assistant position with the O's for a better position with the Mets.  Knowing that Krivsky wants to be a GM again, does this put more pressure on Omar Minaya?

Do Red Sox Prefer Holliday Over Bay?

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3:34pm: Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe says Bay is still a top priority for the Red Sox, who are "trying to build on" their rejected $60MM offer.  Cafardo says that offer was over five years, though most have reported it to be over four.

8:30am: How much do you trust the information of "one rival executive?"  Such a source makes for the basis of the latest blog post from Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports.  This exec told the FOX writers that the Red Sox prefer Matt Holliday over Jason Bay, and do not intend to re-sign Bay despite ongoing negotiations.

The writers go on to explain that the Red Sox would stand to gain a draft pick by signing Holliday instead of Bay.  They'd lose their #29 pick to the Cardinals by signing Holliday, but would get a pick back from the team that signs Bay and would also receive a supplemental pick.  Furthermore, the writers believe Bay will not be signed by a team with a protected first-round pick (such as the Mets). 

Odds & Ends: Matsui, Cardinals, Arb Offers

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Links for Monday…

Cardinals Rumors: Pujols, Holliday, Nady, Beltre

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The Cardinals know it will take a lengthy and substantial offer to keep Albert Pujols in St. Louis, but the slugging first baseman would like to see what the Cards do this offseason before beginning serious contract talks, according to Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Agent Dan Lozano says he and his client aren't in a rush to complete a long-term deal. Pujols is under contract for next year and the Cardinals are expected to pick up his $16MM option for 2011.

The Cardinals have interest in signing Matt Holliday, who's in position to demand one of the offseason's biggest contracts. Team chairman Bill DeWitt Jr. told the Post-Dispatch that signing Holliday "at the right level" wouldn't prevent them from locking Pujols up long-term.

If Holliday's demands exceed the team's budget, they figure to spend on pitching, according to Goold. They have interest in Xavier Nady, and Miguel Tejada could be a fit, too. Adrian Beltre has yet to draw interest from the Cardinals, according to Goold's source.

Holliday Would Play Anywhere

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Like Jason Bay, Matt Holliday is choosing not to rule out any potential suitors. Holliday told Jody McDonald and Rob Dibble of SIRIUS XM Radio that he's open to signing anywhere; Newsday's Ken Davidoff has the transcript.

"I've been around, and I've lived in some big cities so I would say that I'm open to any sort of coast or city," Holliday said. "Obviously I've never lived in some of the big cities on the East Coast, but at the same time, I've spent some time there."

Davidoff writes that Holliday considers the Yankees his first choice and the Mets his second choice. The Yankees may simply bring Johnny Damon back, but Davidoff says the Mets consider Holliday a "serious" option for their left field vacancy.

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