Twitter Rumors: Capps, Felix, Harden, Pierre
A fresh batch of Twitter rumors, for those of you with extra-short attention spans…
- MLB.com's Jenifer Langosch learned that the Pirates plan to tender a contract to Matt Capps.
- Stubborn Dodgers GM Ned Colletti says he has no regrets about not offering arbitration to Randy Wolf, reports Dylan Hernandez of the L.A. Times. Hernandez also notes that the Dodgers are considering Ronnie Belliard, Craig Counsell, Juan Uribe, and Jamey Carroll as second base options. The Reds also like Carroll, says MLB.com's Mark Sheldon.
- Yahoo's Steve Henson says the Rockies are open to re-signing Jason Marquis at a reduced number (less than the $9.875MM he made in '09).
- SI's Jon Heyman believes Felix Hernandez is seeking six years and $100MM, while the Mariners are thinking four years plus an option at less than $50MM. That phrasing makes a possible divide seem larger than it is, since those last two years of the deal would be the most expensive (more than $15MM per year). At any rate, Shannon Drayer and Mike Salk learned that no numbers have been exchanged on Felix yet.
- La Velle E. Neal III of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune says White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen wants Mike Redmond to back up A.J. Pierzynski.
- MLB.com's Steve Gilbert says the Rangers may have interest in arbitration-eligible D'Backs infielder Augie Ojeda. The Rangers added Joe Inglett off waivers, but were said to still be looking at utility infield candidates.
- Morosi tweets that Rich Harden is "willing to sign a one-year deal with a lot of incentives." Will he exceed Brad Penny's $7.5MM base salary? Morosi names the Red Sox, Yankees, and Mariners as the most serious suitors.
- Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports says the Tigers have interest in Juan Pierre, and are "looking for a third team to supply the pitcher L.A. needs." Odd, since the Tigers have more bad pitching contracts than anyone. The Tigers apparently prefer to unload Carlos Guillen.
- Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette says the Pirates are not interested in bringing back Brian Giles.
- ESPN's Jayson Stark says the Red Sox "have two or three teams they could trade Mike Lowell to right now" if they'd take a similar contract back. Looking at our Bad Contract Swap Meet I don't see any obvious matches for one year and $12MM.
- There's been some tire-kicking with the Phillies and Ron Mahay, writes Andy Martino of the Philadelphia Inquirer. The Red Sox were linked to Mahay by Michael Silverman on Monday. Martino also says the Phillies met with John Smoltz's agent this morning, "but discussions remain informal."
- Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star characterizes the White Sox and Red Sox interest in Coco Crisp as "low-level," but says that's still more than the Royals have shown. Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports says the White Sox would consider Crisp, Mike Cameron, and Marlon Byrd. ESPN's Mike Salk notes that the Mariners spoke to Byrd's agent.
- Dutton also has the Red Sox eyeing Ryan Shealy on a minor league deal.
- Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports names the most asked-about Padres: Heath Bell, Kevin Kouzmanoff, and Adrian Gonzalez (in that order). He says the Padres are "not hearing anything compelling on Bell." MLB.com's Corey Brock says about eight teams inquired on Kouzmanoff. Surprised not to see Kevin Correia mentioned by Rosenthal. He'd be a great affordable option for a team like the Brewers. ESPN's Buster Olney heard from rival execs who expect the Padres to get second-line prospects for Kouzmanoff and Correia.
- The Mets appear to find a Luis Castillo deal unlikely, says Joel Sherman of the New York Post.
- ESPN's Jayson Stark says the Yankees are shopping their #1 pick in tomorrow's Rule 5 draft, which they acquired for Brian Bruney. If they don't trade the pick, Yahoo's Steve Henson says the Yankees could use it on pitcher Arquimedes Caminero.
Market For Mike Cameron, Marlon Byrd
WEDNESDAY, 11:15am: Jon Paul Morosi says the markets for Cameron and Marlon Byrd are running parallel, with the Braves, Angels, Cubs, Yankees, Mariners, Mets and Giants checking in on both.
TUESDAY, 4:29pm: Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports has thoughts on the market for free agent center fielder Mike Cameron. He names the Mariners, Cubs, Red Sox, and Yankees as potential suitors Cameron, who turns 37 in January. Rosenthal notes that Cameron would move from center to left field for the right team.
Regarding the Cubs, Rosenthal explains that they can pursue him if they free up "a good amount" in their Milton Bradley trade. Marlon Byrd and Scott Podsednik could be other options if they save less.
Cubs Rumors: Bradley, Cameron, Putz
Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times passes on the latest updates he has heard regarding a potential Milton Bradley trade. His source indicates that neither Texas or Tampa Bay is the destination for Bradley in this rumored scenario, and that the Cubs are "ready to pull the trigger" as soon as the other team is. Here are Wittenmyer's other Cubs rumors:
- A Cubs source denies that the team has any interest in Melky Cabrera.
- Mike Cameron is at or near the top of the club's center field wish list.
- The Cubs are interested in J.J. Putz, and were among the teams that watched the righty throw this winter.
- Though Chicago was disappointed to miss out on Curtis Granderson, a club source insists that the Bradley discussions didn't hinder the Cubs' ability to pursue Granderson.
- There is no truth to any Bradley-Carlos Silva trade rumors, according to a Seattle source.
- If the Cubs can eventually move Bradley, they could be on the market for a mid-level starter.
Sherman’s Latest: Mets, Molina, Damon, Granderson
Here's a quick look into Joel Sherman's latest column:
- The Mets need to add a starting pitcher, and given all of the already-volatile options in their rotation, they're likely to pursue someone more "vanilla" as Sherman describes. He names Kevin Millwood, Doug Davis, Jon Garland, and Jason Marquis. We've already seen that the O's may be closing in on Millwood today.
- While acquiring Roy Halladay is a pipe dream, a full-on pursuit for John Lackey isn't quite as far-fetched, and Lackey would be every bit the No. 2 starter to complement Johan Santana that the previously mentioned options simply are not.
- Minaya will meet with Lackey's representation but isn't confident; he'd prefer to wait for the price to come down, so as not to spend most of the Mets' available funds on one resource. If that price drops, though, suitors for Lackey will abound.
- The Mets are confident that they can improve their pitching staff by improving their catching core; they're confident they can land Bengie Molina and believe he and Henry Blanco can help stabilize the staff.
- If the Yankees acquire Curtis Granderson, they can use him as leverage against Johnny Damon. Adding Granderson will allow the Yanks to pose a "take it or leave it" offer to Damon, and remove some of the leverage Damon and Scott Boras may have. Sherman lists free agent alternatives to bring in should Damon leave in that scenario, including Mike Cameron or re-signing Xavier Nady.
Heyman On Mariners, Valverde, Damon
A look at the latest column from SI's Jon Heyman…
- Aside from Jason Bay and John Lackey, Heyman names Marlon Byrd, Rich Harden, Randy Wolf, and Joel Pineiro as Mariners targets. That's the first I've heard of Byrd, Wolf, or a Pineiro reunion. Heyman names the Cubs and Braves as other Byrd suitors.
- Heyman says "execs expect" Jose Valverde to remain in Houston, whether through accepting arbitration today or just re-signing later.
- Heyman expects the Yankees to offer about two years and $20MM to Johnny Damon, and otherwise move on to Mike Cameron, Jermaine Dye, Curtis Granderson, or possibly Byrd.
Odds & Ends: Melky, Green, Branyan, Lowe
It's officially Winter Meetings time! New thread for links as the folks in Indianapolis begin to wake up and get going:
- Joel Sherman of the New York Post tweets an interesting situation: the Cubs and Yankees both like Mike Cameron, while the Cubs like the Yanks' Melky Cabrera. The Cubs will need to clear payroll space before they can try for Cameron though. Also muddying the picture: both clubs may have interest in Curtis Granderson.
- ESPN's Buster Olney is hearing that the starting pitching market is "intensifying."
- Larry Stone of the Seattle Times has all kinds of amusing Winter Meetings memories from years past, and he explains why the Meetings were cancelled for five years in the nineties.
- David Lennon of Newsday says Mets COO Jeff Wilpon is not scheduled to come to Indianapolis this week, suggesting the team won't be signing major free agents at the Meetings.
- The Dodgers met with Nick Green's agent, tweets Yahoo's Tim Brown. Green, 31, hit .236/.303/.366 in 309 plate appearances for the Red Sox this year while playing all around the infield (mainly shortstop).
- The Mariners have begun preliminary negotiations with Russell Branyan, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. Branyan already rejected an offer from the Mariners in November. The Mets appear to be among Branyan's other suitors.
- Jon Heyman reports, via Twitter, that Adrian Beltre is "not likely" to accept Seattle arbitration offer. They'll still likely try to retain him, however. It might be difficult to keep Branyan, Beltre, and Jose Lopez, with Ken Griffey Jr. already signed.
- In case you were wondering, Morosi tweets that nothing is cooking with the Braves and Diamondbacks for Derek Lowe. Nor are the D'Backs in on Bronson Arroyo.
- Dan Uggla doesn't like the uncertainty surrounding what uniform he'll be wearing in five months. The Marlins slugger says he still sees himself as a second baseman, though many teams would like to move the 30-home run machine to third base. Matt Lindstrom is in a similar spot.
- Andy MacPhail told Steve Melewski that free agents are beginning to look at Baltimore in a different light, thanks to the great reviews their farm system is getting in the national media. That said, Melewski still feels that if the O's add a big name this offseason, it'll be through a trade.
- Alex Speier takes a look at what pieces the Red Sox could potentially use as trade bait.
- Joel Sherman explains why Andy Pettitte is so important to the Yankees, why personal relationships matter among GMs, and the Mets struggles in finding a taker for Luis Castillo.
- Mark Feinsand gives Yankee fans five situations to watch this week, including Pettitte, Roy Halladay, Johnny Damon, the Tigers, and Hideki Matsui.
Odds & Ends: DeRosa, Bradley, Figgins
Here are some links to check out as the snow falls for the first time this season in New York:
- Free agent Mark DeRosa is in a state of flux, writes Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. The Cardinals, Braves, Yankees, Giants, and Red Sox are all possibilities, but each have higher priorities than the 34-year-old. The Mets and Nationals are also interested in the right-handed batter, but he would prefer to play for a contender. DeRosa may be waiting by the phone for a while if he is unwilling to lower his asking price.
- More from Ken Rosenthal as he writes that despite interest from the Rangers, the Rays remain the frontrunners for Milton Bradley.
- Considering their plans to reduce their hefty payroll, It shouldn't surprise anyone that the Yankees won't consider Matt Holliday or Jason Bay (per Buster Olney's blog). However, Mike Axisa of River Ave Blues wisely point out that this time last year, it was said that the Yanks didn't have enough cash to land Mark Teixeira after signing CC Sabathia and A.J. Burnett.
- The Mariners' signing of Chone Figgins may indicate that the organization believes power is currently overrated, says ESPN's Keith Law.
- In a footnote to his report of the Orioles re-signing Chad Moeller, Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun writes that while the O's remain interested in righty reliever Ryota Igarashi and lefty Hisanori Takahashi, they aren't expected to be terribly aggressive in their pursuit. Both players recently applied for international free agency.
- On the heels of Phillies GM Ruben Amaro stating that the door is open for Pedro Martinez's return to the club, the 38-year-old reciprocated that sentiment to Scott Lauber of The News Journal.
- Kevin Towers is leaning towards accepting an offer from his close friend – Yankees GM Brian Cashman, according to Tracy Ringolsby of FOX Sports.
- Tom Haudricourt of the Journal Sentinel estimates that the Brewers will have about $12MM to spend on starting pitching after addressing the rest of their roster. Since that probably puts them short of the capital needed to sign John Lackey, what do you think would be the best way to take care of their starting pitching needs on the open market?
- The Pirates placed Luis Cruz on waivers to make space for their second pick in the Rule 5 draft, writes Jennifer Langosch of MLB.com.
Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Beltre, Wolf, Callaspo, Rule 5 Draft
On this date two years ago, the Tigers acquired Miguel Cabrera and Dontrelle Willis for six players including Cameron Maybin and Andrew Miller. Only one of the other four players, Burke Badenhop has yet to see significant playing time at the big league level. With this year's winter meetings set to begin next week more big players could be on the move. Let's take a look at what is being written in the Blogosphere…
- Jorge Says No! wonders if the smart move for Adrian Belte is to accept arbitration from the Mariners now that the Phillies no longer need a third baseman.
- Around the Majors explains why the Dodgers made a mistake in not offering arbitration to Randy Wolf.
- The Baseball Opinion looks back at how each team did with their '04 free agency compensation draft picks.
- Royals Authority makes a case for trading Alberto Callaspo.
- River Ave Blues wonders who could play left field for the Yankees if they don't land Johnny Damon, Matt Holliday or Mike Cameron.
- UmpBump looks at what the Astros need this off-season.
- MLB Notebook believes Justin Duchscherer would be a good fit for the Pirates.
- Bucco Fans previews the right-handed pitchers in the upcoming Rule 5 draft with Aneury Rodriguez of the Rays listed as one of the top options overall.
- DRaysBay looks at some relief pitchers that are available in the Rule 5 draft.
- We Should Be GMs examines the free agent market for relief pitchers and who might be a good fit for the Phillies.
- The Pinstriper looks back at what might have happened had the Yankees not re-signed Alex Rodriguez in '07.
Cork Gaines writes for RaysIndex.com. If you have a suggestion for this feature, Cork can be reached here, and followed on Twitter here.
Cubs Interested In Cameron, Byrd
The Cubs have discussed bringing in free agent outfielder Mike Cameron according to Gordon Wittenmyer of The Chicago Sun Times, however they must first unload Milton Bradley to see how much payroll that frees up.
Manager Lou Piniella, who knows Cameron from their days in Seattle, said he anticipates meeting with Cameron's agent during the Winter Meetings next week. They also have interest in Marlon Byrd, according to Wittenmyer.
Cubs centerfielders hit .260/.358/.417 in 2009, however their -16.7 UZR was third worst in baseball.
Olney On Halladay, Mets, White Sox
As ESPN.com's Buster Olney notes, the Yankees and Red Sox are hesitant to give top prospects up for Roy Halladay, since they'd have to pay him like a free agent to keep him around long-term. But some scouts aren't sure Joba Chamberlain will be able to improve his control, so Olney wonders if the Yankees might consider including him in a potential Halladay trade. Here are the rest of Olney's rumors:
- The Mets appear poised to sign two or three veterans for $5-7MM per season. We know they're interested in Bengie Molina and they're looking for pitchers, but they have other needs, too.
- Olney expects the Mets to land a starter like Randy Wolf, Jason Marquis or Joel Pineiro.
- The Mets have discussed Mike Cameron, who would consider playing left or right, and Xavier Nady.
- Olney hears that the White Sox don't have much payroll flexibility this offseason.