Mariners Rumors: Olivo, Second Base, Diaz
The Mariners have been linked to Rich Harden, Gregg Zaun, Eric Chavez, Hideki Matsui, Jack Cust, Matt Diaz, Koji Uehara, and even Zack Greinke in recent days. The latest:
- ESPN's Mike Salk says Miguel Olivo's name is popping up more than Zaun's in association with Seattle. Olivo spent parts of the '04 and '05 seasons with the Mariners.
- Salk says the Mariners are looking harder for a second baseman than a third baseman. They prefer Chone Figgins at third.
- Salk describes the Mariners' interest in Matsui as tire-kicking and is skeptical a deal will happen.
- The Ms are more focused on their everyday lineup than rotation right now, tweets Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports.
- The Mariners are in on Matt Diaz, but they're one of as many as ten teams. ESPN's Jayson Stark tweets that things are moving fast with Diaz. He's expected to pick a team by midday Wednesday, tweets Ed Price of AOL Fanhouse. Diaz's agent Larry Reynolds told WEEI's Rob Bradford his client could even sign today.
American League Free Agent Arbitration Decisions
23 American League free agents were offered arbitration on November 23rd. Four of those - Joaquin Benoit, John Buck, Victor Martinez, and Javier Vazquez - already have new contract agreements. Current free agent Kevin Gregg has chosen to decline. The remaining 18 AL free agents offered arbitration will have their decisions noted here and in our tracker.
- Cliff Lee (A) declined the Rangers' offer, as expected.
- Miguel Olivo will decline the Blue Jays' offer, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports (on Twitter). Jason Frasor (A) will accept the team's offer, according to Mike Wilner of the FAN 590. Scott Downs (A) will decline the Blue Jays' offer, reports Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reported earlier that Jason Frasor would either sign a multiyear deal or accept arb (Twitter link).
- Adrian Beltre will decline arbitration from the Red Sox, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (on Twitter). Felipe Lopez (B) will also decline an offer of arbitration, reports WEEI's Rob Bradford.
- Carl Pavano (A) has officially turned down arbitration, according to Newsday's Ken Davidoff (on Twitter). Orlando Hudson (B) will decline the Twins' offer of arbitration, tweets SI's Jon Heyman. Joe Christensen of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune tweets of "strong indications" Jesse Crain (B) will also decline.
- A source tells Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times that Paul Konerko (A) will decline arbitration (Twitter link). J.J. Putz (B) declined arbitration from the White Sox, according to MLB.com's Scott Merkin (on Twitter).
- Chad Qualls (B) and Carl Crawford (A) have declined arbitration, according to Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times (on Twitter). Grant Balfour (A) turned down arbitration, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (on Twitter). As anticipated, Randy Choate (B) declined the Rays' offer, according to Newsday's Ken Davidoff. ESPN's Buster Olney predicted the decision earlier today. Rafael Soriano (A) will decline the Rays' arbitration offer, tweets SI's Jon Heyman. Brad Hawpe (B) will decline the Rays' offer as well, tweets SI's Jon Heyman.
- Frank Francisco (A) will accept the Rangers' offer, according to MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan.
Dodgers Interested In Damon, Multiple Catchers
The Dodgers have outfielder Johnny Damon on their radar, reports Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. They're also in contact with "virtually every free agent catcher," including Jason Varitek, Rod Barajas, A.J. Pierzynski, and Miguel Olivo. They're trying to hammer out a deal with Russell Martin prior to Thursday's non-tender deadline; the Dodgers will not risk going to arbitration with him.
Martin is at least a week away from running and maybe six weeks away from baseball activities, says Rosenthal. Martin is recovering from an August hip fracture; his agent Matt Colleran gave MLBTR an update last week. Martin would still be at $4MM if the Dodgers cut his salary by the maximum, something Colleran would presumably reject anyway.
As Rosenthal notes, Damon might be an awkward fit for the Dodgers in left field since he logged fewer than 300 outfield innings in 2010. On the other hand, the Dodgers put up with Manny Ramirez in left field for over 1,100 innings across the 2009-10 seasons.
The Dodgers have been aggressive this offseason, committing over $71MM to Ted Lilly, Juan Uribe, Hiroki Kuroda, Jon Garland, and Jay Gibbons.
Poll: Top Free Agent Catcher
Assuming you consider Victor Martinez a part-time catcher, part-time first baseman, and part-time designated hitter, John Buck was the best free agent catcher available this offseason. He hit .281/.314/.489 with 20 homers for the Blue Jays last year, but he's since signed a hefty three-year deal with the Marlins. As always, the number of teams looking for a quality backstop far exceed the number that are actually available, but there's still a few out there.
Miguel Olivo is a lock for double-digit homers year in and year out, and the same can be said for Rod Barajas. Both have thrown out a high percentage of would-be base stealers historically. Yorvit Torrealba has a .346 OBP over the last two years, a mark just eight other catchers can top. Jason Varitek hit for a ton of power (.473 SLG) in limited action this year. Then there's A.J. Pierzynski. He's started no fewer than 124 games behind the plate in five of the last six years, and his .284 AVG since 2008 can be topped by only three other catchers.
The Dodgers, Rangers, and Padres are known to be seeking help behind the plate, and it's safe to assume that the Mariners and Red Sox will hunt for upgrades as well. It wouldn't be a surprise if the Yankees, Rockies, Mets, or Orioles tried to improve their backup catcher situation either.
Who is the best catcher still available on the free agent market?
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Blue Jays Rumors: Frasor, Downs, Lind
Blue Jays GM Alex Anthopoulos says the organization can afford to be more patient than last offseason, since his team's needs are less pressing than they were a year ago. Here's the latest on the Blue Jays, from MLB.com beat reporter Gregor Chisholm:
- Anthopoulos doesn’t know whether Scott Downs, Jason Frasor, Kevin Gregg and Miguel Olivo will accept arbitration, but he hopes to have the players back in Toronto for the 2011 season. Asked to predict the players’ decisions, Anthopoulos guessed they will decline the team’s offers.
- The club thought Adam Lind played respectably good defense at first base, but has yet to determine the 27-year-old’s position for 2011.
- The Blue Jays are open to acquiring a player with “baggage” under the right circumstances. "It depends, how significant is it? Would it affect other players?” Anthopoulos asked. “If it's the right player, and the right fit, the right talent, at the right price, then you have to be open to it."
- That's good news for fans hoping to see Manny Ramirez in Toronto. ESPN.com's Buster Olney can't envision any team guaranteeing Ramirez $5MM and expects the slugger to sign an incentive-laden deal.
American League Free Agent Arbitration Offers
10 American League teams have free agent arbitration offer decisions to make, and we'll group them in this post. For a fantastic customizable chart with all 65 Type A/B free agents and their decisions in real-time, click here.
- The Blue Jays offered arbitration to Scott Downs (A) Jason Frasor (A) Kevin Gregg (B) Miguel Olivo (B), according to MLB.com's Gregor Chisolm (on Twitter).
- The Twins offered arbitration to Carl Pavano (A), Jesse Crain (B) and Orlando Hudson (B) and declined to offer arbitration to Matt Guerrier (A), Brian Fuentes (B) and Jon Rauch (B), according to Joe Christensen of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune (on Twitter).
- The Rays offered arbitration to Grant Balfour (A), Carl Crawford (A), Rafael Soriano (A), Randy Choate (B), Brad Hawpe (B) and Chad Qualls (B), according to Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times. They did not offer Dan Wheeler (A) or Carlos Pena (B) arbitration. It seems possible that Hawpe has agreed in advance to turn down arbitration.
- The Orioles won't offer arbitration to Koji Uehara (B) or Kevin Millwood (B), according to Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun (Twitter links).
- The Angels declined to offer Hideki Matsui (B) arbitration, the team announced.
- The Rangers offered arbitration to Cliff Lee (A) and Frank Francisco (A), but not to Vladimir Guerrero (A) and Bengie Molina (A), according to MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan.
- The Yankees will offer arbitration to Javier Vazquez (B), but not to any of their other free agents, according to Ken Davidoff of Newsday on Twitter. Andy Pettitte (A), Derek Jeter (A), Mariano Rivera (A), Lance Berkman (B) and Kerry Wood (B) were the team's other ranked free agents. Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports first reported that the Yankees would offer Vazquez arbitration and noted that the right-hander has agreed to reject the offer, a common gentleman's agreement that can take place with Type B free agents. Marc Carig of the Newark Star-Ledger first reported on Twitter that the Yankees would not offer Jeter arbitration.
- The Red Sox offered arbitration to Adrian Beltre (A), Victor Martinez (A) and Felipe Lopez (B), but not to Mike Lowell (B) or Jason Varitek (B), according to the team.
- The White Sox offered arbitration to Paul Konerko (A) and J.J. Putz (B), but not to A.J. Pierzynski (A) or Manny Ramirez (A) according to the team (on Twitter).
- As expected, the Tigers announced that they will not offer arbitration to any of their free agents, including Scott Boras clients Magglio Ordonez (A), Johnny Damon (B), and Gerald Laird (B).
Free Agent Stock Watch: Miguel Olivo
The Blue Jays pulled off a nice little move when they acquired Miguel Olivo from the Rockies 17 days ago, essentially swapping a player to be named later or cash for a supplemental first round draft pick. Toronto declined Olivo's $2.5MM option, so add the $500K buyout to the bounty for the draft pick, but more importantly it made Olivo a free agent. Let's review the backstop's stock…
The Good
- Olivo is a proven power threat, hitting no fewer than a dozen homers every year since 2006 and averaging 16 per season during that span. Brian McCann is the only other backstop with double digit homers in each of those years (min. 60% of games behind the plate).
- He's adept at stopping the running game, throwing out 124 of 343 attempted basestealers (36.2%) over the last five seasons.
- Despite the rigors of catching, Olivo has been on the disabled list just once in his career; he missed 15 days when he had kidney stones removed during the summer of 2004. Other than various day-to-day ailments associated with the position, he's been perfectly healthy.
- He's just a Type-B free agent, so it won't cost a draft pick to sign him.
The Bad
- Olivo will turn 33 next July, an age when catchers can start to turn into pumpkins.
- Power is the only thing to like about his offensive game. He doesn't hit for average (.246 career) or draw walks (just 108 unintentional walks in over 3,000 career plate appearances), resulting in paltry on-base percentages (.283 career).
- As good as he is at throwing out base runners, Olivo has led the league in passed balls in four of the last five seasons.
The Verdict
As usual, the number of teams looking for a catcher this winter far exceeds the number of quality catchers available. The Red Sox, Tigers, White Sox, Rangers, Mariners, Dodgers, Padres, and others could all be in the market for a new backstop, so Olivo should have his pick of offers. He's not likely to match John Buck's three-year, $18MM contract given his age, but Olivo's one of the best free agent catchers and the open market should yield a two-year contract.
New York Notes: Terrasas, Mets Manager, Jeter
The latest on both teams in the Big Apple…
- Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports says that Bob Melvin should be the Mets next manager because he "would be a calming influence in the New York storm."
- The Mets fired scouting director Rudy Terrasas according to SI.com's Jon Heyman (Twitter link). This isn't terribly surprising, new GM Sandy Alderson presumably wants his own guy in that position. ESPN New York's Adam Rubin reviews the five drafts that Terrasas oversaw and says he could remain with the team in another capacity (via Twitter).
- Bob Klapisch of The Bergen Record tweets that the rest of the Mets' front office is taking the day off as Alderson deals with his father's passing. Klapisch's source says that everyone will "compare notes" tomorrow in choosing the team's next manager.
- Brian Costello of The New York Post says that it's possible Derek Jeter's camp will not respond to the Yankees' recent three-year, $45MM contract offer, forcing the team to "come up with a new plan."
- Chad Jennings of The Journal News looks at three players connected to the Yankees this offseason (Bill Hall, Justin Upton, and Miguel Olivo) and says he isn't sold on any of them being a legitimate fit.
Rangers, White Sox, Blue Jays Interested In Olivo
Miguel Olivo is drawing "varying levels of interest" from several clubs, including the Rangers, White Sox, and Blue Jays, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. Morosi adds that the Red Sox could also be interested if Victor Martinez signs elsewhere.
Olivo is seeking a two-year contract, so it appears likely that he would turn down an arbitration offer from the Jays, who acquired him from the Rockies earlier this month. In that case, perhaps Toronto's interest would dwindle, since they'd earn a supplemental pick if Olivo signed with another team.
With John Buck and Ramon Hernandez already locked up to deals, the catching market behind V-Mart is thinning rapidly. Check out our list of remaining free agent backstops here.
Rockies Rumors: Vazquez, Catching
Troy E. Renck of the Denver Post has the latest Rockies buzz…
- The Rockies are interested in Javier Vazquez. Vazquez joins Jake Westbrook, Jon Garland, and Hiroki Kuroda as pitchers of interest for the team in case they are unable to re-sign Jorge de la Rosa.
- GM Dan O'Dowd described the team's plans at catcher as "a fluid situation," but added, "We are absolutely prepared to give Chris [Iannetta] every opportunity to get over the hump." Re-signing Miguel Olivo hasn't been ruled out, but it sounds like the Rockies will be giving less playing time to Iannetta's catching partner in 2011.
- Notable minor league free agents, from Baseball America's Matt Eddy: Luis Ayala, Brad Eldred, and Kaz Matsui.