Padres Eyeing Vizquel, Eckstein
Padres GM Kevin Towers in an interview today said he expects to sign a shortstop by next week, according to Corey Brook at MLB.com.
"Towers said he had interest in veterans David Eckstein and Omar Vizquel, in addition to a few names he didn’t want to divulge. ‘There are a couple of other guys, too,’ Towers said. ‘We’ve got three or four options.’"
Padres Eyeing Vizquel, Eckstein, Grudz
Tom Krasovic talked to Padres GM Kevin Towers, who is looking for help in the middle infield via the free agent market. Three players on the radar: Omar Vizquel, David Eckstein, and Mark Grudzielanek. Towers is looking for bargains. San Diego might be a tough sell for Grudzielanek, who left Kansas City to sign with a team with a better chance of reaching the World Series.
Vizquel Wants To Play Again
Omar Vizquel wants to play another year in the majors and maybe more according to MLB.com.
He said his agent “has been talking to a couple of teams,” but didn’t reveal which ones.
Vizquel realizes he’s not going to get long-term offers at his age, but he’s interested in one-year deals, especially from National League teams.
The 41-year-old said he feels “really good” and can play better than he did last season for the Giants.
Padres Have Interest In Vizquel; Dodgers Don’t
7:39pm: Ned Colletti told Diamond Leung the Dodgers aren’t looking at Vizquel.
5:55pm: Andrew Baggarly says the Padres also have interest in Vizquel. He adds that the A’s are looking at free agent pitcher Kevin Correia for a minor league deal.
4:52pm: Tony Jackson says the Dodgers might have interest in free agent shortstop Omar Vizquel if they can’t sign Rafael Furcal.
Giants Rumors: Aurilia, Vizquel, Cain
Andrew Baggarly of the San Jose Mercury News did some quick blogging from Brian Sabean’s press conference today. Here’s a full transcript. Hot stove notes:
- Rich Aurilia could be re-signed, but Omar Vizquel won’t be back. The Giants will buy Vizquel out for $300K.
- With Pablo Sandoval penciled in at first base, the Giants may be reluctant to trade catcher Bengie Molina (my own speculation on the Molina part).
- Matt Cain is said to be "untouchable" in a trade. So we’ll stop with the Cain trade scenarios for now.
- Possible offseason needs include bullpen help and a run-producer. The relief help could come via free agency, while the bat would probably come via trade. That bat would not be a guy with one year left on his contract (Matt Holliday comes to mind).
D-Backs Now Favorite To Land Eckstein
Ken Rosenthal is reporting that the D-Backs are the favorite to land David Eckstein from the Blue Jays, prior to tonight’s deadline for players to be eligible for the post-season. Previously we heard that both the D-Backs and the Angels were in pursuit of Eckstein.
Eckstein, 33, is almost certain to be traded before the deadline for setting postseason rosters at midnight Sunday. While talks are fluid, the Jays currently are more inclined to trade with the D-backs, sources say.
Rosenthal says the Angels are now considering other options, including Omar Vizquel of the Giants and Juan Castro of the Orioles.
Cork Gaines writes for RaysIndex.com and can be reached here.
Vizquel Wants To Play Next Year
Omar Vizquel, arguably one of the best defensive shortstops in the game, is not ready to retire and if he cannot sign with a Major League club in 2009, he’ll look for playing time in Japan.
"I’ve played here long enough in America," he told Henry Schulman, of the San Francisco Chronicle. "I’ve seen every team, every ballpark. I think it would be great to experience a new league and something new. I played in Japan in 2000 on the major-league all-star tour and I found it very cool – good baseball, good fans. Why not? It’s a new culture."
Schulman believes Vizquel’s days with the Giants are drawing to a close, but the veteran shortstop thinks he can be a leader for the younger infielders in the Giants’ roster.
Once the team puts on a tribute, however, he knows hes probably not coming back.
Alejandro A. Leal writes for UmpBump.com. Comments? Rumors? E-mail me alexo05 (at) umpbump (dot) com.
Odds and Ends: Murphy, Vizquel, Roberts
Today’s collection of links and rumors.
- I’ll be doing the weekly live chat here at 2pm CST. Right after that I’ll be on New Jersey’s Fox Sports Radio 1260AM.
- White Sox GM Kenny Williams talked about difficult it is to find an impact starter on the trade market.
- River Ave. Blues thinks the Yankees should pursue Josh Bard.
- The Athletics designated second baseman Donnie Murphy for assignment. Murphy, 25, showed a hint of promise at Triple A last year.
- The Giants don’t want to embarrass Omar Vizquel by releasing him.
- The Red Sox aren’t likely to make a major bullpen addition.
- A Brian Roberts trade is unlikely.
- David O’Brien on the difficulty in trading Mark Teixeira.
Sabean Explains Giants’ Trade Strategy
Giants GM Brian Sabean explained his trade deadline strategy to the San Francisco Chronicle’s Henry Schulman.
- As you might expect, starters Tim Lincecum, Matt Cain, and Jonathan Sanchez are off-limits. The trio has 331 Ks already.
- The Giants aren’t interested in a rental, even though they are in the race at five games out.
- Sabean is likely to keep Bengie Molina and Randy Winn, but Ray Durham, Omar Vizquel, and Rich Aurilia are available.
Cafardo’s Latest: Boston Could Use Vizquel
Last week I heard Peter Gammons on ESPN radio discussing Omar Vizquel as a possible replacement candidate for the struggling Julio Lugo. In today’s Boston Globe, Nick Cafardo chimes in:
"Vizquel is quite fond of Boston but would be interested only if he were a starter. He has a close relationship with Manny Ramírez from their Cleveland days. Vizquel still has a terrific glove and can hit."
Lugo – who is just returning from a mild concussion – finds himself batting .284 but with a .331 OBP and only 7 extra base hits, all doubles. He has a major league leading 11 errors, almost half of the Red Sox 23 errors. Here’s a sampling of Red Sox fan frustration.
Playing in a hitters haven would be a good move for Vizquel, who wants to play in ’09, assuming he produces in the spotlight of Boston. I see Vizquel as a band-aid (although a band-aid may be what they need). He might be a better option than a Cora/Lugo platoon; however, the Red Sox are a team that can weather this problem even if Lugo’s contract becomes a sunk cost this year. Jed Lowrie should be called back up this season and may progress well enough to be the solution, making Lugo the new Coco Crisp in ’09.
By Nat Boyle