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Branyan Has Offer From Indians

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2:53pm: Castrovince hears (via Twitter) that the Indians offered Branyan a major league deal.

10:19am: The Indians have an offer out to Branyan, though it's not clear whether it is for a major league deal, according to MLB.com's Anthony Castrovince. The club could platoon Branyan with Matt LaPorta, who has been cleared to resume baseball activities after undergoing surgeries on his left hip and left big toe.

7:59am: The Rays and Red Sox are in the mix for Russell Branyan, but neither one of those clubs has progressed as far as the Indians, according to Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. The Rays have "mild interest" in the 30-homer man and the Red Sox are keeping tabs on him even though they don't appear to have room for the slugger unless they trade Mike Lowell.

The 33-year-old Branyan could play a variety of corner positions for the Indians, the club he broke in with in 1998. Branyan hit 31 homers and slugged .520 last year, but a slow second half and a back injury have limited interest in him this offseason. The Marlins aren't interested, though the Blue Jays could be.

Red Sox Notes: Lowell, V-Mart, Beckett

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Mike Lowell is playing catch, but isn't yet swinging a bat as he recovers from a thumb injury, reports Rob Bradford of WEEI.com. That means the third baseman isn't going anywhere for now, but GM Theo Epstein says there's a chance the Red Sox trade Lowell eventually.

"Once he gets healthy, it will take care of itself," Epstein said. "If he’s really impressive and impressive to other clubs, maybe something can be worked out."

The GM noted that the club will have discussions with Victor Martinez about the catcher's future with the Red Sox, especially after hearing that V-Mart wants to extend his stay in Boston. Fellow 2011 free agent Josh Beckett has yet to address his future with the Red Sox, but the pitcher arrived to camp in top form and appears ready for a big year.

Gammons On Bay, Lowell

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The Red Sox lowered their offer to Jason Bay from four years to two years because they were "scared to death" of his knees, according to Peter Gammons. Here's the audio from WEEI and here's the transcript. The Mets were the only team to seriously pursue the left fielder, according to Gammons.

The Rangers are no longer a destination for Mike Lowell, since they now have Vladimir Guerrero. Gammons mentions the Indians as a possible fit for Lowell, but points out that Cleveland has "no money" and notes that the team's budget limits the chances we'll see a deal.

Cafardo On Sheets, Lowell, Pineiro

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Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe wonders why more teams don't take advantage of arbitration hearings. Clubs do have a history of winning cases against their players in recent years. Here are Cafardo's latest rumors:

  • A Red Sox source tells Cafardo that it's unlikely the team signs Ben Sheets. Not a surprise, given Boston's rotation depth.
  • One scout is certain Ron Mahay will be on a major league roster by the time Spring Training starts. 
  • An NL scout considers Miguel Batista a "very serviceable piece."
  • Since Miguel Cabrera was in rehab for alcoholism this offseason, teams weren't eager to trade prospects for the first baseman and pay his $20MM salary.
  • As we heard last week, the Twins are interested in signing Jim Thome. 
  • The Red Sox and Angels considered swapping Mike Lowell for Gary Matthews Jr. before concerns about Lowell's thumb emerged. 
  • An AL GM considers Joel Pineiro "another middle-rotation guy." 

Gammons On Chapman, Lowell, Damon

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Peter Gammons answered fans' questions today in a chat session for the Boston Globe. Most of the inquiries were Red Sox-related or required some guesswork from Gammons, but let's check out a few highlights….

  • Gammons speculates that the Angels will end up landing Aroldis Chapman, pointing to Chapman's connection to Kendry Morales as a possible factor.
  • Mike Lowell's hip is improving and his thumb injury shouldn't be an issue by March. Gammons thinks there will still be some teams that would be willing to take on $2-3MM of the third baseman's contract, and that the Red Sox will eventually be able to trade him.
  • The Red Sox may try to acquire another big bat sometime down the road, but right now the team doesn't seem too concerned about it. They think their improved defense will help make up for the offense they lost when they parted ways with Jason Bay.
  • If Johnny Damon can't find a two-year contract that's close to his asking price, Gammons wouldn't be surprised to see the outfielder back in the Bronx next season.

Odds & Ends: Epstein, Cards, Contracts, Greene

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Links for a snowy Thursday…

Odds & Ends: Tigers, Pineiro, Padres, Giambi

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Here's a round-up of a few news items floating around the baseball world tonight….

  •  MLB.com's Jason Beck reports that Detroit might sit out the bidding for the few remaining closers on the market and instead hope that youngsters Ryan Perry, Daniel Schlereth or a healthy Joel Zumaya are able to pick up some saves.
  • Jon Heyman of Sports Illustrated reports (via Twitter) that the Mets "have debated" the merits of offering Joel Pineiro a two-year contract, but Pineiro wants a deal akin to the three-year, $29.75MM contract that Randy Wolf signed with Milwaukee.
  • Corey Brock of MLB.com reports that the Padres will sign an experienced backup catcher "within a few weeks."
  • Dave Cameron of the U.S.S. Mariner blog isn't a big fan of Seattle's trade for Casey Kotchman.
  • The apparent lack of interest in free agent Jason Giambi means that there's a greater chance he ends up back in Colorado, reports MLB.com's Thomas Harding. 
  • With Boston's signing of Adrian Beltre, Richard Durrett of ESPNDallas thinks that the Rangers might have leverage to get a more favorable trade for Mike Lowell, should Texas still be interested.

Red Sox, Mets Discussed Castillo For Lowell

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TUESDAY, 12:52pm: Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports finds Castillo "highly unlikely to be traded, for Lowell or anyone else."  Joel Sherman of the New York Post learned that the Mets and Red Sox have not discussed a Castillo-Lowell swap for weeks.

MONDAY, 9:52pm: WEEI.com's Rob Bradford writes that a Castillo-for-Lowell deal is "not close."  He feels that it's most likely Lowell will have to prove his health in Spring Training before a trade occurs.  Meanwhile, Yahoo's Tim Brown tweets that the Rangers "have not ruled out re-engaging on Lowell."

6:56pm: ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick tweets, "I just heard that Red Sox have talked to the Mets about a Mike Lowell-for-Luis Castillo trade. Not sure how serious it is." He adds that Lowell is expendable with Adrian Beltre in the fold. Also, with Castillo gone, the Mets could go after Orlando Hudson.

The deal certainly clears an unwanted player for both teams. But while it is easy to see Lowell getting some at-bats for the Mets at first, and even spelling David Wright at third base, where Castillo fits in- given his poor defense at second base, and the existence of Dustin Pedroia– with Boston is harder to understand.

The money would be even in such a deal. Lowell is owed $12MM in 2010, while Castillo is owed $6MM in each of the next two years.

Mets “Very Interested” In Delgado

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Erik Boland and David Lennon over at Newsday have a piece up reporting that the Mets are "very interested" in bringing back Carlos Delgado.

Delgado, who played in the Puerto Rican Winter League Sunday for the first time since surgery on his hip in May, went 1-for-4 as a designated hitter. As befitting a player who managed to play in just 26 games in 2009, the Mets are interested in Delgado on an incentive-laden deal.

Still, it is easy to understand New York's interest. Delgado was hitting .298/.393/.521 in 2009, one year after putting up a 2008 batting line of .271/.353/.518, including a tremendous second half.

Just for fun, let's combine rumors for a Delgado platoon with Mike Lowell, who was rumored to be in discussions to come to New York in exchange for Luis Castillo early this evening in a tweet by ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick.

Delgado, against righties, had a .912 OPS in 2008, .902 in 2009. Lowell had a .961 OPS against lefties in 2008, an .867 OPS against them in 2009.

In other words, it would be an offensive option that would likely leave Daniel Murphy in the dust.

The piece also reports that the Mets are interested in starting pitching, with Joel Pineiro their preferred choice.

Odds & Ends: Bay, Byrd, Liriano, Duchscherer

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Some links on the last day of a year we'll remember for Joe Mauer, Albert Pujols and the World Series Champion New York Yankees…

  • Tigers catcher Gerald Laird and his younger brother Brandon Laird, a prospect in the Yankees farm system, were arrested following a brawl at the Celtics-Suns NBA game in Phoenix, Arizona, according to the Associated Press.  Gerald lives in Arizona during the offseason while Brandon played in the Arizona Fall League this past year.
  • Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle reports (via his newly minted Twitter account) that Chan Ho Park's name has come up in the Giants' front office.
  • Alex Speier of WEEI.com hears that Jason Bay was indeed interested in joining the Mets. The two sides didn't go longer than a day without talking once negotiations got started. An interesting note: Speier hears that the Mets never offered Bay a guaranteed five-year deal.
  • Dave Cameron of FanGraphs considers Marlon Byrd an average player, but likes the Cubs' decision to sign him.
  • Cameron tweets that the Mariners are "kicking the tires" on Francisco Liriano.
  • Mike Lowell's thumb surgery was a success, according to Rob Bradford of WEEI.com. Lowell appears to be available, but health concerns may prevent the Red Sox from dealing the third baseman and some of his $12MM salary (the D'Backs face a similar challenge with Chris Snyder). 
  • Just because Lowell's still in Boston doesn't mean the Red Sox won't consider other third basemen. Adrian Beltre is one option and R.J. Anderson of FanGraphs doesn't think $10-15MM is an unfair asking price for the Scott Boras client. 
  • Justin Duchscherer tells Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle that he returned to the A's because he's comfortable in Oakland and appreciates the club's support through his struggles with depression. Slusser also has details on the incentives in the righty's contract. 
  • Joe Pawlikowski of River Ave. Blues wants the Yankees to stay away from free agent outfielder Marlon Byrd. 
  • Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette says the Pirates' failure to sign Dominican prospect Miguel Angel Sano was one of the club's low points this year. As Kovacevic says, "not every signing can be an absolute steal."  
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