NL East Links: Rollins, Conrad, Mets, Baxter
Eight years ago today, the Braves acquired J.D. Drew and Eli Marrero from the Cardinals in exchange for Ray King, Jason Marquis, and a pitching prospect named Adam Wainwright. Here's the latest from the NL East (all links go to Twitter) …
- Dan Lozano, agent for Jimmy Rollins, told a source of ESPN's Jayson Stark that he is having dialogue with a team other than the Phillies. The Tigers are believed to have interest, however Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com says they insist they won't pursue the shortstop. People with other teams believe they will though, according to Knobler.
- The Braves non-tendered Brooks Conrad yesterday, and Dave O'Brien of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution heard that the team told him to check out the free agent market. They do have interest in bringing him back on a minor league deal, though.
- Mets GM Sandy Alderson told Adam Rubin of ESPN New York that adding starting pitching will be tricky because they need to have the flexibility to move a new starter to the bullpen or even option him to the minors.
- The Mets have interest in bringing Mike Baxter back according to Rubin, though it depends on what the market offers the outfielder. Baxter was non-tendered yesterday.
- Alderson told Andy Martino of The New York Daily News that minority sales of the Mets could be complete next month. The GM answered more financial questions on FOX Business' "After The Bell," today. MLB.com's Anthony DiComo has a transcript.
- MLB.com's Joe Frisaro reports (on Twitter) that Nick Green's minor league contract with the Marlins has been finalized. The infielder has not played in MLB since 2010, but he gets an invite to Spring Training.
Marlins Notes: Fielder, Oviedo, Green, Buehrle
The Marlins offered huge deals to Albert Pujols and C.J. Wilson, but the pair of free agents opted to sign with the Angels for less money. Will the Marlins turn their attention to the top free agents still available? Joe Capozzi of the Palm Beach Post tweets that he wouldn't be surprised to see the Marlins "at least kick the tires" on Prince Fielder, despite their insistence they don't have interest (Twitter link). Here are the rest of the latest Marlins updates:
- Juan Carlos Oviedo, formerly Leo Nunez, was arrested in his native Dominican Republic today, but won't face false identity charges, according to an AP report (via ESPN.com).
- The Marlins will sign Nick Green to a minor league deal, tweets Joe Frisaro of MLB.com.
- Ozzie Guillen wants White Sox fans to know that he didn't steal Mark Buehrle away from the Sox, as he told ESPN 1000 today (hat tip to ESPN Chicago).
Orioles Acquire Zach Phillips
The Orioles acquired lefty reliever Zach Phillips from the Rangers for Nick Green and cash, reports MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan. Green will not go on the Rangers' 40-man roster, tweets Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
Phillips, 24, posted a 4.43 ERA, 7.7 K/9, 4.2 BB/9, and 0.6 HR/9 in 44 2/3 innings for the Rangers' Triple-A club before being designated for assignment to clear a 40-man spot for Scott Feldman on Thursday.
Green, 32, has a .208/.276/.357 line in 348 plate appearances for the Orioles' Triple-A club this year. He's mainly played shortstop, second base, and left field.
Andy MacPhail and Jon Daniels matched up on a trade once before, when the Orioles acquired Kevin Millwood and cash for Chris Ray and Ben Snyder during the 2009 Winter Meetings.
Minors Notes: Jennings, Transactions, Red Sox
The Phillies' Domonic Brown became the latest prospect to get the call up to the big leagues today (although he debuted in 2010), but some blue-chippers remain down on the farm. Here's a note about one of them, and some other interesting items …
- Rays manager Joe Maddon said Desmond Jennings wasn't called up after Dan Johnson was designated for assignment because Tampa wants the speedy outfielder to play every day, tweets Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times. Of course, Maddon was implying that the decision was not related to Jennings' service time.
- The Phillies' signing of 17-year-old Australian catcher Liam Bedford was among last week's notable minors transactions, compiled by Matt Eddy of Baseball America. Another noteworthy move: The Angels have finally signed UC Irvine catcher Francis Larson, their 22nd-round pick in last year's draft.
- The Red Sox have a unique sales pitch for minor league free agents, writes Alex Speier of WEEI.com. Boston has a recent track record of awarding promotions to players like Nick Green and Darnell McDonald, which is appealing to guys like Drew Sutton who are looking to latch onto organizations that will give them a legitimate shot of playing in the Majors.
Orioles To Sign Nick Green
5:47pm: SI.com's Jon Heyman reports that Green will earn $600K if he makes the big league team (Twitter link).
3:24pm: The Orioles have agreed to sign Nick Green to a minor league deal that includes an invitation to Spring Training, according to Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun (Twitter link). The sides appeared to be close to a deal in December, when the Orioles re-signed Cesar Izturis.
Green appeared in 14 big league games for the Blue Jays and Dodgers last year. The 32-year-old has a .237/.305/.348 line in 1131 big league plate appearances over the course of six big league seasons. Green figures to compete with Robert Andino and Brendan Harris for a utility job.
Orioles Rumors: Hardy, Matsui, Thome, Uehara
The O's are talking about a J.J. Hardy trade with the Twins. Here are some more Orioles updates from Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun…
- The team did not offer Carlos Pena or Paul Konerko contracts before the first basemen signed in Chicago, according to president of baseball operations Andy MacPhail.
- It's likely that the team's shortstop will be Hardy, Jason Bartlett, Brendan Ryan or Cesar Izturis, MacPhail said. The Padres appear to be close to a deal for Bartlett, which would limit the Orioles' options.
- MacPhail says the club has expressed interest in a number of DH types. Vladimir Guerrero, Hideki Matsui and Jim Thome are believed to be among the team's targets.
- The team, which selects fourth in tomorrow's Rule 5 draft, is considering a number of players.
- There are no updates on Kevin Gregg, but Zrebiec reported yesterday that the team has offered the former Blue Jays closer a two-year deal.
- Troy Renck of the Denver Post hears (on Twitter) that Nick Green could end up in Baltimore.
Padres Sign Nick Green
The Padres have signed Nick Green to a minor league deal, according to Corey Brock of MLB.com (via Twitter). Green was DFA'd last Saturday by the Blue Jays in order to make room for the returning Shaun Marcum. Brock adds that the move was made in order to give San Diego organizational depth.
The infielder, who will report to Triple-A Portland, has a career slash line of .237/.305/.348. Known mostly for his glove, Green has made major league cameos for seven different teams.
Blue Jays Designate Nick Green For Assignment
The Blue Jays have designated utility infielder Nick Green for assignment, tweets MLB.com's Jordan Bastian. The move frees up a roster spot for Shaun Marcum, who is coming off the disabled list.
The 31-year-old Green hit .154/.214/.154 in 14 plate appearances with Toronto. They signed him last month after he opted out of his minor league contract with the Dodgers.
Blue Jays Sign Nick Green
The Blue Jays signed Nick Green to a major league contract and optioned Mike McCoy to Triple A, according to the team. Green, 31, became a free agent this month after opting out of his deal with the Dodgers.
Green appeared in five big league games this year before the Dodgers designated him for assignment. He picked up one hit in eight at bats and reached base a second time when Dontrelle Willis plunked him. The utilityman spent most of the season at Triple A Albuquerque, where he batted .204/.235/.398 and played shortstop, second, third and (for one game) center field.
Not only can Green play around the infield and outfield, he pitched for the Red Sox last year. The White Sox couldn't get a hit or run off of Green, who threw an 88 mph fastball, in two innings. Green has also played for the Braves, Devil Rays, Yankees and Mariners in his six-year MLB career.
Odds & Ends: Green, Gonzalez, Berkman, Stanton
Links for Saturday….
- Nick Green, who was designated for assignment by the Dodgers, has cleared waivers and accepted a minor league assignment, writes MLB.com's Ken Gurnick.
- WEEI's Alex Speier explains why trading for Adrian Gonzalez appears less and less likely for the Red Sox.
- Lance Berkman's agent is telling teams that his client will approve a trade in which his $15MM option for 2011 is picked up, tweets Jon Heyman of Sports Illustrated. No teams are willing to do that but if the demand is dropped, Heyman says that the Angels are a match.
- Joe Frisaro of MLB.com says that while no exact date has been set for the major league debut of Mike Stanton, speculation is that he could get the call as soon as Tuesday when the Marlins head to Philadelphia.
- Alex Rodriguez now has some say in the fate of his former team after being named to the Rangers creditors' committee, tweets Heyman. Texas owes A-Rod $24.9MM in deferred compensation.
- Tyler Kepner of the New York Times writes that Jaime Garcia would have been an Oriole if not for a translation mishap.
- Hank Blalock is happy to be in Tampa Bay, writes Drew Davison of the Dallas Morning News.