Odds and Ends: Burrell, Bradley, Abreu
Links for Tuesday…
- RotoAuthority asks for your #1 fantasy baseball bust for 2009.
- Keith Law calls the Pat Burrell signing a "major bargain," panning the Raul Ibanez contract by comparison. River Ave. Blues says the recent Burrell and Milton Bradley deals prove that Brian Cashman was wise not to offer arbitration to Bobby Abreu.
- Will the Rays have enough money to re-sign Rocco Baldelli now? Buster Olney still thinks he will land with Boston.
- Gordon Edes says Jim Hendry had a stealth dinner with Bradley during the November GM Meetings. Edes adds that the Cubs believe Derek Lowe is too expensive.
- Cool story about a guy trying to get an autograph on each card in the 1983 Fleer baseball card set.
- Baseball America’s Jim Callis has the updated ’09 draft order. Callis also weighs in on the broken free agent compensation system, which is up for discussion after the 2011 season.
Rays, Burrell Agree To Two-Year Deal
1:51pm: Buster Olney agrees with Rosenthal. He writes that Burrell has agreed in principle to a two-year $16MM deal with the Rays pending a physical.
12:51pm: According to Ken Rosenthal, the Rays are close to signing Pat Burrell to a two-year, $16MM deal. It’d be a solid move, as the Rays can increase his value by not using him in the field. The ’08 Rays struggled against lefties (.726 OPS) and Burrell crushes them (.952 OPS in ’08).
Rosenthal figures this signing may pave the way for the Cubs to get Milton Bradley and the A’s to sign Jason Giambi. You have to think they’ll also be affordable; Raul Ibanez could be the outlier.
Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times has similar information about the potential signing. He doesn’t get into financial details, but writes that the Rays are nearing a two-year deal with Burrell.
Manny Is Dodgers’ First Choice
Bill Shaikin of the L.A. Times talked to Dodgers GM Ned Colletti, who said Manny Ramirez is the team’s first choice. Colletti hasn’t heard from Manny’s agent Scott Boras since Mark Teixeira signed a week ago. As reported yesterday, the Dodgers have interest in Adam Dunn and Bobby Abreu as backup plans. Pat Burrell and Garret Anderson are not on the team’s radar.
Shaikin reiterates Marty Noble’s story from yesterday – talks to unload Andruw Jones on the Mets fizzled a while ago.
Rays Looking For Big Bat
Joe Smith of the St. Petersburg Times says the Rays are still in the market for an impact bat, likely to be their designated hitter. While it appears the Cubs are confident they’ll land Milton Bradley, that still leaves Jason Giambi, Pat Burrell, Garrett Anderson, and Bobby Abreu. The Rays have already added to their outfield by acquiring Matt Joyce, so whoever they sign will most likely need to be onboard with playing DH.
Smith also notes that 25 year old Fernando Perez "is playing well in the Venezuelan winter league, hitting .301 with two homers and seven RBIs" possibly giving the Rays even further depth at outfield.
More Jocketty Talk On The Reds
C. Trent Rosecrans of TheLotD.com also talked with Cincinnati Reds general manager Walt Jocketty today. Here are some conversation highlights:
- The Reds are still talking to Jerry Hairston Jr. to play left field. “We’re still trying to get Hairston,” Jocketty told Rosecrans. “We’ll have a different look on our club, but we still have guys like (Joey) Votto, (Jay) Bruce, (Brandon) Phillips, (Edwin) Encarnacion and even (Ramon) Hernandez with power.”
- Jocketty hasn’t spoken with Pat Burrell in awhile. They are holding back on that one right now.
- Health remains a serious issue with Rocco Baldelli, Jocketty said.
- The Reds have been in discussion with the New York Yankees about their extra outfielders, but no deals are close.
- No Barry Bonds; no Sammy Sosa.
Olney’s Latest: Lowe, Castillo, Hudson
Buster Olney focuses his new column on reluctant-to-spend teams and how they’ve changed the market. He turns up some interesting rumors…
- The Rays and A’s are in a "bidding war" of sorts over the likes of Jason Giambi, Pat Burrell, Garret Anderson and Bobby Abreu. Both teams are willing to spend, but neither wants to go first since prices are higher now with both teams interested than they will be once the first team signs a player.
- The Mets are in a great position since the Cards and Brewers aren’t likely to compete for Oliver Perez, Derek Lowe and Randy Wolf. This means they can wait, knowing that bargains will likely surface.
- The Mets have "quietly continued to gauge" the Luis Castillo market and are interested in moving him and some of his salary.
- If they find a taker, they could pursue Orlando Hudson.
- As Joel Sherman predicted, the Nationals are now courting O-Dog.
- Olney asks whether aging stars like Ken Griffey Jr. and Pedro Martinez will choose to play for the offers they’re likely to get.
- Brad Penny may soon decide where he wants to pitch next year. He’s weighing "an overture from the Cardinals" against other options.
Angels Standing Pat With Current Outfield
Angels GM Tony Reagins told Mike DiGiovanna of the L.A. Times Wednesday that his club is "not likely" to retain outfielder Garret Anderson. Reagins also mentioned that the organization has no plans to pursue free agent outfielders Adam Dunn, Bobby Abreu or Pat Burrell. Reagins, of course, had already written off the idea of the Halos inking Manny Ramirez.
The Angels already have a fine outfield built around Vladimir Guerrero, Juan Rivera and Torii Hunter, with Reggie Willits providing depth off the bench. Gary Matthews Jr. probably won’t be ready for Opening Day after undergoing knee surgery in October, but he’ll also be a major contributor.
Rosenthal’s Latest: Bradley, Burrell, Dunn
Ken Rosenthal filed a new column earlier today.
- The Angels are lukewarm on Manny Ramirez, and for now are talking about filling their lineup with internal candidates.
- Kevin Towers says that if the Jake Peavy sweepstakes heats back up, "nobody is going to know it." Rosenthal discusses the chances of the Angels or Cubs.
- Mark Teixeira is "almost certain" to get an escape clause in his deal.
- The Cubs are confident about signing Milton Bradley, but the Rays, Yankees, and Nationals are interested too.
- Rosenthal looks at possibilities for Pat Burrell, discussing the Rays, Mariners, Rangers, and Reds.
- The Brewers expressed interest in Adam Dunn as they were mulling a Mike Cameron trade (Corey Hart would’ve played center).
- Bobby Abreu "remains in touch with the Yankees." Surprisingly to hear, as the two sides reportedly had not spoken for quite a while.
- The Rangers would like to move some salary, with Kevin Millwood, Vicente Padilla, and Hank Blalock the candidates.
- The Royals like Jerry Hairston Jr., but don’t have the money to sign him.
Odds and Ends: Boras, Wigginton, Burrell
Tuesday linkage…
- Changed my mind on the chat…we will not be holding it at 2pm today. The time/day of the chat is TBD.
- Here’s a list of the largest contracts in baseball history. You can see why Scott Boras would want Teixeira to reach $190MM.
- Michael S. Schmidt of the New York Times notes that aside from Felipe Lopez, all of Boras’ free agent clients are unsigned.
- Peter Abraham explains the Yankees’ large luxury tax.
- The Reds have yet to open talks with Aaron Miles, Ty Wigginton, and Pat Burrell. Talks are ongoing with Jerry Hairston Jr. and Willy Taveras, though Walt Jocketty is not making much progress with Rocco Baldelli.
Impacto Deportivo Manny Report
5:02pm: Hal Steinbrenner denies the report as well, says Kat O’Brien. She says no offer is on the table for Manny. Interestingly, O’Brien said she’s heard the names Pat Burrell and Jason Giambi mentioned for the Yankees.
3:34pm: Impactivo Deportivo sticks to its guns despite the Cashman denial.
MONDAY, 8:27am: MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch asked Yankees GM Brian Cashman about this report. Cashman responded: "Not true."
SUNDAY, 10:53pm: According to a report in the Dominican newspaper Impacto Deportivo, the Yankees are on the verge of signing Manny Ramirez to a three-year, $75MM deal. The report says negotiations are advanced and an announcement would take place Monday or Tuesday. If true, this would be an incredible scoop. However, there is reason for skepticism. The money and timing just don’t seem right.
A look at Impacto Deportivo’s recent history:
- 11/24/08: Reported the Braves as the mystery team in on Rafael Furcal, offering four years and $52MM. The offer was inaccurate, but they did nail the mystery team.
- 11/12/08: Correctly scooped the Damaso Marte signing.
- 2/21/08: Incorrectly indicated the White Sox reached an agreement with Bartolo Colon. Also incorrect on a similar rumor involving the Royals.
- 1/21/08: Correctly scooped the Octavio Dotel signing.
- 11/18/07: Correctly scooped the Luis Castillo signing.