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Matt Holliday

Rosenthal’s Full Count Video: Figgins, Hanley, Kershaw, Drew

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Let's see what FoxSports.com's Ken Rosenthal has for us in his latest Full Count video…

  • Chone Figgins could be one of the most popular free agents this winter. The White Sox have long had interest in him, and his skills as a leadoff hitter will make him attractive to many teams, perhaps even the Yankees.
  • Figgins will come cheaper than Matt Holliday or Jason Bay, and the Yanks could easily withstand his lack of power if they put him in left field. Four years younger than Johnny Damon, Figgins and Derek Jeter would make a dynamic 1-2 punch atop the Yankees' lineup.
  • Apparently, Hanley Ramirez isn't very popular in the Marlins' clubhouse. The complaints should only go so far though, because he's played hurt this seasons and is on target to play in 150 or more games for the fourth straight year. Hanley's also batting .385 with runners in scoring position this year after hitting just .239 in those spots last year. He's also worked very hard to improve his defense as well.
  • The Dodgers did well by adding Jon Garland and Vicente Padilla to their rotation, but one National League GM is worried about Clayton Kershaw because he's approaching 3,000 pitches thrown on the season, which is when you start to worry.
  • Maybe it's time to cut J.D. Drew some slack. Sure, he's missed 92 games in three seasons with Boston, but one team official told Rosenthal he'd sign Drew to the same contract (five years, $70MM) again in a second. The Red Sox consider Drew one of the five best right fielders in baseball when you consider on-base percentage, slugging percentage, and defense.

Heyman On Holliday, Red Sox, Pedro, Bradley

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The latest from SI's Jon Heyman…

  • Heyman covers numerous examples of National League GMs mining the American League scrap heap.
  • Heyman agrees with Jayson Stark's note yesterday, that the Yankees will allow Derek Jeter to enter his walk year unsigned and worry about it after the 2010 season.
  • The Cardinals will try hard to retain Matt Holliday, but Heyman believes the Yankees, Mets, and Red Sox could be in the mix for the slugger.
  • Heyman discusses future shortstop possibilities for the Red Sox – they could retain Alex Gonzalez or go after Marco Scutaro.  He says they "don't seem anxious" to bring Orlando Cabrera back.
  • Pedro Martinez is looking good, and Heyman says only the Phillies and Rangers had real interest.  The Cubs and Brewers were on the fringes.
  • Heyman talked to two GMs about the Cubs and Milton Bradley.  One thought the Cubs could unload him by eating half his remaining $21MM; another thought they'd need to assume almost all the money.  I am not a Bradley apologist; he's certainly been a distraction.  But how would subtracting a .394 OBP make the Cubs' middling offense better?

Odds & Ends: Posey, Maybin, Penny

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Links for Wednesday…

  • Due to Bengie Molina's injury, the Giants have changed their mind and called up top prospect Buster Posey according to Andrew Baggarly of the San Jose Mercury News.  So Posey's clock starts earlier than planned.
  • Speaking of service time, MLBTR's Ben Nicholson-Smith tells me Cameron Maybin's call-up gives him 129 days of service time after this year.  That puts him on the fringe of Super Two status after the 2011 season.
  • ESPN's Jerry Crasnick ranks the impact of trades made by contenders in July.  He talked to an exec who thinks Matt Holliday "could make an extra $3MM a year as a free agent this winter because of his strong finish."
  • Yahoo's Gordon Edes has his trade deadline winners and losers.
  • Ryan Doumit's agent Matt Sosnick shot down recent negativity surrounding his client, while Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette gets to the bottom of the catcher's recent benching.
  • Brad Penny still hates the Dodgers, a team he'll face twice this month according to Baggarly.  Baggarly also has a quote from Penny ripping on the Marlins.
  • Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel has more from Brewers shortstop J.J. Hardy, who knows he gained trade value when the team delayed his free agency.
  • J.C. Bradbury of Sabernomics wonders whether the Braves should pick up Tim Hudson's $12MM option for 2010.  Hudson has the right to void that option, not that he would.  Back in January Dave O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution said the Braves "fully intend to exercise it, barring some unexpected turn of events."
  • Dave Cameron of FanGraphs notes that Kendry Morales has matched the production of the Angels' former first baseman, $180MM man Mark Teixeira.
  • Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic has comments from Diamondbacks GM Josh Byrnes on the team's Jon Rauch–Kevin Mulvey swap.  Piecoro says the D'Backs have about $23MM to work with this winter as they presumably look to add pitching.
  • Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times guesses Ken Griffey Jr. will retire after this season.

Perrotto’s Latest: Twins, Damon, Franklin, Penny, Dye

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John Perrotto of Baseball Prospectus brings us his latest from around the leagues:

  • When they come off the DL, Francisco Liriano and Glen Perkins will be used in relief. So, the Twins are hoping to add a starter who can pitch in the playoffs. This means they have until tomorrow at midnight to do so.
  • The Yankees would like to re-sign Johnny Damon to a one year deal and give Austin Jackson a second year to develop at Triple-A, while pursuing Matt Holliday and Jason Bay in the offseason.
  • The Marlins and Giants are frontrunners to land Brad Penny.
  • The Cardinals expect to exercise Ryan Franklin’s $2.75MM club option and then sign an extension with their closer for 2011.
  • The Royals want to extend G.M. Dayton Moore who is signed through 2010.
  • Perrotto says the Cubs are likely to deal Milton Bradley this winter, even if it means eating a large portion of the $21MM owed to him through 2011.
  • Jermaine Dye will more than likely not see his $12MM option exercised by the White Sox after a dip in production in tandem with the salary demands of Alex Rios and Jake Peavy.
  • For the postseason, the Dodgers are seeking “a left-handed bat with power” for their bench.
  • The Nats are auditioning Livan Hernandez as a veteran innings eater for 2010.
  • The Diamondbacks may non-tender Conor Jackson.
  • Brewers manager Ken Macha said G.M. Doug Melvin “scoured the area for pitching” before the deadline but was unable to add a starter because he refused to trade Mat Gamel or Alcides Escobar.
  • After making seven trades this year, the Pirates are the youngest team in the MLB.

Stark On Holliday, Lee, Yankees, Hoffman

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ESPN.com's Jayson Stark reports that the Cardinals and Phillies may be better off letting their respective deadline acquisitions walk once they hit free agency. Here are the details and the rest of his rumors:

  • We know that Matt Holliday's interested in staying in St. Louis. But one AL exec doubts the Cards can afford to tie up $40-50MM per year in Holliday and Albert Pujols. It could work short-term, but could prevent the Cardinals from keeping Adam Wainwright and Chris Carpenter. Plus, the pair of sluggers may not be worth a combined $50MM in a few years.
  • One team official believes Cliff Lee's agent will be looking for a $100MM payday once the lefty hits free agency after next season (assuming the Phils pick up his 2010 option). The official says the Phillies should consider letting Lee walk after next year, instead of committing long-term to him.
  • The teams that considered dealing for Johan Santana after the 2007 season aren't surprised to hear that he's having elbow trouble now, though it's not something they anticipated with any sense of certainty. However, Mets assistant GM John Ricco says he doesn't regret the way the team handled its ace.
  • There are increasing indications that the Yankees don't plan on being big buyers in the free agent market this offseason. The Yankees seem more likely to keep Johnny Damon and let Austin Jackson grow into a full-time player than pursue Matt Holliday or Jason Bay.
  • Stark hears that the Red Sox were the only team to claim Billy Wagner. We heard the Angels had interest, but apparently they never made a claim.
  • One executive believes AL teams would have very little interest in Trevor Hoffman. Hoffman has value because of his status as a Type A free agent, which could factor in to teams' claims.
  • Rival clubs expect the Blue Jays to try dealing Edwin Encarnacion after the season. He makes $4.75MM in 2010, so it won't be easy.
  • The Royals are still trying to deal Ron Mahay and at least one scout expects a team or two to have interest in ther veteran lefty.

Holliday Interested In Extension With Cardinals

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Matt Holliday's first month as a Cardinal could hardly have gone any better. The team's 20 games over .500 and 9.0 games ahead of the Cubs in the NL Central, largely because of Holliday's hot hitting. He has a .386/.448/.667 line with six homers in his first month back in the National League. Today, Holliday said on the Team 1380 in St. Louis that he hopes his stay in a Cards uniform lasts more than a couple months (You can listen in here).

"That would be really exciting for me to get a chance to be here and play next to Albert [Pujols] along with the rest of these guys and to do some special things over the next however many years," Holliday said. "Hopefully this will be a long-term relationship."

He hasn't begun negotiating an extension with the team, but says there's a chance he signs one before the season's over.

"Hopefully there'll be some progress and hopefully I'll be able to stick around here for a long time."

Holliday, who will turn 30 this offseason, makes $13.5MM this year. His improved offensive stats and strong outfield defense will likely make him one of most highly coveted free agents after the season if he doesn't sign an extension first.

Odds & Ends: Holliday, White Sox, Giants

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Some more links to close out the evening:

Rosenthal On Mets, Cubs, Yankees, Hawkins

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Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports wonders how Mets GM Omar Minaya and Cubs GM Jim Hendry will untangle themselves from their respective messes. Both execs have overpaid for players in the recent past, but both can point to recent successes. Here are the details:

  • The Mets are expected to lower their payroll from the $150MM range next season.
  • The Rockies obtained Carlos Gonzalez from the A's in last winter's Matt Holliday trade and, for all of Holliday's heroics in St. Louis, Gonzalez is out-slugging Holliday by 142 points since the A's flipped him to the Cards.
  • A Yankees official says it's "very likely" the team will bring Johnny Damon back after the season if he's willing to take a paycut.
  • Like their cross-town rivals, the Yanks are expected to be operating on a lower payroll next year.
  • The Yankees figure to be in the mix for Matt Holliday, Jason Bay, or both.
  • Alex Gonzalez could have vetoed the trade that sent him to Boston.
  • The Astros placed LaTroy Hawkins on waivers and Rosenthal expects the Rockies, Cardinals and Dodgers to at least consider him.

Rosenthal’s Full Count Video: Wagner, Holliday, Brewers

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Ken Rosenthal of FoxSports.com has a new Full Count video up. Let's dive in…

  • Don't expect the Mets to just give away Billy Wagner as a salary dump. He'll have "actual trade value" this winter, and his $8MM club option would not be outrageous money on a one year deal if he's healthy.
  • Even if his team declines the option, they could offer him arbitration and receive two high draft picks if he signs elsewhere since he projects to be a Type-A free agent. Wagner would be much more than a six-week rent in that case.
  • Matt Holliday's performance with the Cardinals has undoubtedly boosted his stock as an impending free agent. One GM still thinks Jason Bay is a comparable player on the open market, but Holliday is better defensively, younger, and better at hitting breaking balls than Bay.
  • The real question is how each player will age, which is impossible to say at this point.
  • The Brewers have yet to place veterans like Mike Cameron and Trevor Hoffman on trade waivers, but with the team now out of contention, Rosenthal asks "why not?"
  • GM Doug Melvin is disinclined to make such deals because he knows the return may not be significant, but Hoffman in particular would be attractive. The Rockies have already discussed him internally.
  • Craig Counsell, Braden Looper, and Jason Kendall could have value as well.
  • Earlier this season there was talk that Mark Mulder and Ben Sheets could help teams in the second half, but that hasn't happened. Sheets has decided that the risk of a setback isn't worth the reward of an accelerated return, but he should be healthy for next season.
  • Mulder has only thrown 12.2 IP over the last two seasons, but he's been working with his former pitching coach Rick Peterson and supposedly wants to pitch this season.

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Odds & Ends: Rizzo, A’s, Draft, Williams

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Some tidbits from around the league on Thursday evening…

  • ESPN's Peter Gammons outlines the methods Nationals GM Mike Rizzo used to land Stephen Strasburg. He also discusses the long road Rizzo has ahead of him. 
  • MLB.com's Mychael Urban writes that the Athletics are enjoying success despite trading Matt Holliday and Orlando Cabrera.
  • Dave Cameron at Fangraphs argues that the draft should be "abolished" and offers a creative suggestion for how to replace it.
  • MLB.com's Scott Merkin talks to White Sox GM Kenny Williams, who is happy with the team he has constructed. In fact, Williams says that he "would love to bring back this whole darn team." 
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