Dodgers & Angels Notes: Payroll, Crawford, Werth
Kevin Baxter and Dylan Hernandez of The Los Angeles Times bring us the latest from Tinseltown…
- Pitching is the number one item on the Dodgers' shopping list this offseason. "Pitching is a priority — both starters and relievers," said GM Ned Colletti. "We're open-minded to both left-handers and right-handers."
- Colletti declined to give an exact number, but he promised that payroll would rise from the $95MM or so they spent in 2010.
- Ted Lilly might end up being the Dodgers' biggest pickup. They aren't likely to pursue Cliff Lee, and could instead turn to Carl Pavano, Javier Vazquez, and Jake Westbrook. Jon Garland, Hiroki Kuroda, and Vicente Padilla might also become options if their prices drop as the offseason progresses.
- Colletti also wants to add a left fielder, "full time or platoon," plus figure out his bench and catching situation. Russell Martin is a non-tender candidate, but they could look at Miguel Olivo.
- There is nothing to indicate that the Dodgers will make a run at either Carl Crawford or Jayson Werth.
- "We're going to be active. Whether it's via free agency or trades," said Angels GM Tony Reagins. "We're going to look at the opportunities and be aggressive when the opportunity presents itself."
- Owner Arte Moreno is expected to approve a 10% payroll increase, pushing it to about $135MM. The team already has close to $93MM committed to 2011 contracts, not including the arbitration eligible Jered Weaver, Howie Kendrick, and Erick Aybar.
- The Times' scribes call Werth and Adrian Beltre "more economical Plan B options" to Crawford, relatively speaking of course. Both Werth and Beltre are Scott Boras clients however, and the Angels still have a bad taste in their mouths from the Mark Teixeira negotiations two winters ago.
- Rafael Soriano might be an option after Fernando Rodney's terrible finish (6.08 ERA after Sept. 1st).
Marlins Notes: Olivo, Rodriguez, Nolasco, Bullpen
The Heat and the Dolphins may be dominating the headlines in Miami at this time of year, but there's some news out of the Marlins camp as well.
- If Miguel Olivo's option is declined by Colorado, MLB.com's Joe Frisaro thinks Olivo could be a good fit behind the plate for the Marlins. We know the Fish are looking for a catcher this winter, and Olivo is a known quantity who played for the club in 2006 and 2007.
- Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com thinks that by extending Edwin Rodriguez's contract just through 2011, the team is "only treading water until they move into their new ballpark in 2012."
- The Marlins are focusing on an extension for Dan Uggla before they return to negotiations with Ricky Nolasco on a long-term deal, reports Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald.
- Larry Beinfest tells Joe Capozzi of the Palm Beach Post that relief pitching will be a priority for Florida in the offseason. “In terms of addressing the bullpen, we’ve kind of opened up ourselves to every avenue, whether it be free agency, keeping one of our own free agents or looking elsewhere. We are cultivating trades,” Beinfest said.
- Beinfest also tells Capozzi that it's "possible" the Marlins will look into bringing back free agents Will Ohman, Jorge Sosa and Chad Tracy.
Rockies Decline Option For Miguel Olivo?
7:49 pm: Dan O'Dowd tells MLB.com's Thomas Harding that a decision hasn't yet been made about Olivo's option. "We're allowed to take our time and make a decision tomorrow," O'Dowd said. The Denver Post's Troy Renck tweets Olivo won't be a Rockie in 2011 either way since the option will either be declined or the option will be picked up and then Olivo will be traded. Renck also tweets that the Rockies may be going right down to the deadline for their decision as part of their efforts to explore all possible trade partners for Olivo.
5:38 pm: The Rockies will not pick up their end of catcher Miguel Olivo's mutual option for 2011, reports Tracy Ringolsby of FOXSports.com (Twitter link). Olivo's option was worth $2.7MM (up $200K from $2.5MM due to reaching a games-played incentive) but instead Colorado will pay him a $500K buyout.
With Chris Iannetta in the fold and under contract through 2012, Olivo was expendable to the Rockies even though Olivo had a better season last year and usurped much of the playing time behind the plate. Olivo is likely to seek out a starting job elsewhere, meaning he could be worth a supplementary draft pick to Colorado as a Type B free agent. Olivo hit .269/.315/.449 in 427 plate appearances in 2010.
De La Rosa Will Test Free Agent Market
Lefty Jorge de la Rosa will test the free agent market, reports Troy E. Renck of the Denver Post. Rockies GM Dan O'Dowd still plans to make an aggressive multiyear offer, saying, "We continue to have a strong desire to bring him back. The conversations have been great."
In Renck's estimation, De La Rosa is seeking a four or five-year contract. The southpaw, 30 in April, is one of the better free agent starters available despite never reaching 200 innings and a career walk rate of 4.5 per nine. De La Rosa's case was strengthened when the Dodgers re-signed Ted Lilly at three years and $33MM earlier this month. De La Rosa is represented by TWC Sports.
Our reverse-engineered Elias rankings suggest De La Rosa barely made the Type A cutoff. He'll likely turn down an arbitration offer from the Rockies on November 30th, allowing Colorado to snag two draft picks if another team signs him. Only one of those picks would come from the signing team. Note that at 74.092 points, De La Rosa is the sixth-lowest rated of the 29 Type A free agents. If a team signs De La Rosa and another higher-rated Type A who also turned down arbitration, one of the Rockies' picks could be pushed to the second or third round of the draft. Renck expects the Rockies to pursue another free agent starter if De La Rosa departs.
Renck adds that the Rockies' decision on catcher Miguel Olivo's $2.5MM mutual option is due three days after the World Series. He says they're leaning against exercising their side due to Carney Lansford's success working with Chris Iannetta.
Rockies Undecided On Olivo Option
2:52pm: The Rockies have not determined whether they'll pick up their side of Olivo's option, tweets Troy E. Renck of the Denver Post. Renck says the Rockies are keeping an open mind, with Victor Martinez on the radar. At #20, the Rockies would give the second-best available draft pick to the Red Sox if they sign V-Mart after he turned down an arbitration offer.
8:11am: The Rockies will exercise their option on catcher Miguel Olivo, tweets Tracy Ringolsby of Inside The Rockies. By reaching his 110th game played on September 26th, Olivo's club option became mutual and jumped up to $2.7MM. That means Olivo could still decline the option in search of a bigger payday or multiple years, though he told Jim Armstrong of the Denver Post last month he wants to stay.
The 32-year-old backstop hit .269/.315/.449 with 14 home runs in 427 plate appearances this year for the Rockies. He caught 935 innings, throwing out 42% of attempted thieves. His presence in 2011 would again create an uncomfortable situation for Chris Iannetta, who is on a multiyear deal running through 2012. Iannetta has a 2013 club option he can void if he's traded, which seems like a legitimate possibility this winter.
Odds & Ends: Brewers, Buehrle, Francis, Vazquez
Miguel Olivo never played a major league game for the A's, but he signed with Oakland as an amateur free agent 14 years ago today. Here are some afternoon links, including an update on Olivo…
- Steve Foster of Inside the Rockies breaks down some of Colorado's offseason decisions and says Olivo wants to stay in Denver next year.
- Brewers owner Mark Attanasio gave GM Doug Melvin a strong vote of confidence, according to Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
- Mark Buehrle repeated to Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune that he'll consider retiring after the 2011 season.
- Rockies manager Jim Tracy told Troy E. Renck and Jim Armstrong of The Denver Post that he'd "absolutely" like to see Jeff Francis on next year's team. Colorado will likely decline its $7.5MM option for the lefty's services, but could re-sign him nonetheless.
- Joel Sherman of the New York Post says the Yankees are not going to offer Javier Vazquez arbitration this winter and predicts that the right-hander will sign a one-year deal with a base salary of $4MM or so.
- Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports explains why he considers Blue Jays manager Cito Gaston "a proud and often outspoken man who carried himself with dignity in a business that isn’t always fair."
Olivo’s 2011 Option Is Now Mutual
Catcher Miguel Olivo's option for next season went from club to mutual after he made his 110th appearance in today's contest against the Giants. However, the Rockies can still opt to buy out his 2011 for $500K rather than bring him back for $2.7MM.
Olivo's return to Colorado could create an uncomfortable situation with Chris Iannetta, writes Jim Armstrong of The Denver Post. The Rockies signed Iannetta to a three-year, $8.35MM deal before the season in the hopes that he would take hold of the everyday job behind the plate. If Olivo returns, he will earn more than the 27-year-old who believes that he is a starting major league catcher.
In his first season with the Rockies, Olivo has hit .271/.317/.447 with 13 homers. His option was initially worth $2.5MM but he boosted that figure to $2.7MM by reaching 100 and 110 appearances this year.
Odds & Ends: Miller, Laird, Fielder, V-Mart
As the Giants pick up a major win over the Rockies tonight, here are some news items….
- The Marlins face a tough decision with the out-of-options Andrew Miller, writes Joe Capozzi of The Palm Beach Post.
- Gerald Laird is looking for regular playing time next season, so it could mean the end for his time in Detroit what with Alex Avila having locked down a regular catching job, reports MLB.com's Jason Beck.
- "I think there’s probably a better chance that [Prince Fielder]’s not with us than he is [next season]," Ryan Braun said to Anthony Witrado of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel before what could be Fielder's last home series as a Brewer.
- Troy Renck of the Denver Post (via Twitter) predicts that Miguel Olivo will return to Colorado next season even if he doesn't reach his vesting option.
- C.C. Sabathia doesn't think his friend and former Indians teammate Victor Martinez will re-sign with Boston this winter, tweets Sports Illustrated's Jon Heyman.
- Matt Cerrone of the MetsBlog would like to see Bobby Valentine managing the Mets next season, with Wally Backman (who's been rumored as another managerial candidate) as the team's bench coach.
- Now that we know Stan Kasten won't be back as Washington's president next season, MASNSports.com's Phil Wood thinks Kasten would be a prime candidate to be baseball's next commissioner. Wood also thinks the Nationals will promote their next president from within the organization.
- With Yadier Molina shut down for the rest of the season with a knee injury, Bernie Miklasz of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch thinks the Cardinals should look for a veteran backup for the workhorse catcher over the winter.
- A number of Padres coaches are being interviewed for open managerial jobs, writes MLB.com's Corey Brock.
Marlins Rumors: Uggla, Catchers, Managers
The Marlins don’t have a permanent manager and Dan Uggla is nearing free agency so Marlins president of baseball operations Larry Beinfest and GM Michael Hill have some franchise-defining decisions to make this offseason. Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald has the details:
- Dan Uggla’s representation has asked for a deal worth about five years and $58MM, but the Marlins are offering fewer years and less money. They’d prefer to work out a three-year deal and are offering just over $8MM per season. Uggla, who will be eligible for free agency after 2011, makes nearly that much this year and he’ll earn a raise through arbitration next year, so the Marlins don’t appear to be offering much of a deal.
- The Marlins say they would like to add a top catcher and they’ll consider alternatives to John Baker, who is recovering from Tommy John surgery. Yorvit Torrealba, Bengie Molina, John Buck and Miguel Olivo will be considerations for Florida if they hit the open market, but Victor Martinez probably won’t be a fit. The Marlins could also have interest in Jason Varitek and Rod Barajas as part-time options.
- Rafael Soriano’s expected salary demands have priced him out of the Marlins’ plans.
- The Marlins will consider Yankees bench coach Tony Pena, Padres first base coach Rick Renteria and Padres bench coach Ted Simmons as they search for their next manager. Interim manager Edwin Rodriguez could keep his job and it doesn’t seem likely that the team will resume talks with Bobby Valentine, who was once considered the frontrunner for the gig.
- The Marlins would have interest in Ozzie Guillen if he were available, but the White Sox skipper is under contract in Chicago next year. However, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports hears that Guillen wants assurances that the White Sox want him to be their long-term manager. White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf would prefer to keep Guillen around than search for a new manager, so Guillen could get the security he’s looking for.
Cafardo On Suzuki, Cabrera, Griffey, Zambrano
In Nick Cafardo's latest piece for the Boston Globe, he takes an extended look at the Red Sox' early-season catching issues. He reiterates that if David Ortiz's struggles continue, the logical solution is to move Victor Martinez to DH and acquire a catcher. Cafardo names Kurt Suzuki as a player who would intrigue the Sox, since he can hit as well as play defense. Here are a few of Cafardo's other notes:
- Other catchers to keep an eye on for the Sox include Chris Iannetta, Miguel Olivo, Chris Snyder, and even Twins prospect Wilson Ramos, though he'd be costly.
- Cafardo praises the work Miguel Cabrera has put in to improve his image after last year's off-field problems. According to Cafardo, the Tigers "entertained trade proposals for him, but they wanted the farm in return."
- Ken Griffey Jr. is off to a slow start this year, but the Mariners will give him time to work through it. Seattle may eventually have to limit his playing time if his bat doesn't get hot, but would never release him.
- Cafardo is skeptical that the Cubs will be able to trade for a setup man and move Carlos Zambrano back into the rotation in the near future, suggesting the relief market is fairly thin.
- One AL international scout's assessment of Cuban shortstops Jose Iglesias and Adeiny Hechavarria: "Iglesias is certainly the more polished player at this stage, but Hechavarria has more upside…. I’d say Iglesias could play defensively in the big leagues right now, where Hechavarria would need a year or two to refine his game a bit." While the Sox would like to give Iglesias more minor league experience, they could bring him up if something were to happen to Marco Scutaro or Dustin Pedroia.