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Pirates Have Money To Make Splash

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Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette informs us that while it may be an unlikely scenario, general manager Neal Huntington does have the payroll flexibility to make a big move at the meetings if he sees value in it for the Pirates. Says Huntington:

"The key word you're going to be hearing from us is value… We could do something big just so that we can feel good about ourselves and show everybody that we did something or that we're spending up to a certain level. But we're not going to do that unless it makes sense and unless there's a real value to the Pittsburgh Pirates."

The Pirates are currently projected to have a $34MM payroll, down significantly from the $49MM they spent on their 40-man roster in 2009. So the "value" that Huntington mentions doesn't necessarily have to mean "inexpensive."

Still, Kovacevic calls any real interest in Matt Holliday, Jason Bay, Rich Harden, or Mike Gonzalez "unlikely," and reminds us that the Pirates free agent contact so far has consisted of Rick Ankiel, Hank Blalock, Justin Duchscherer, Noah Lowry, J.J. Putz, Ron Villone, and Kameron Loe.

Danny Knobler from CBS Sports seems to think the Pirates have some money as well though, as he's heard them linked to Juan Pierre. Knobler reports that the Dodgers would like to acquire Zach Duke or Paul Maholm in any deal, meaning they'd have to eat a significant portion of Pierre's salary. Personally, I'd assume they'd have to include some prospects as well to make the deal make sense for Pittsburgh.

While the Pierre scenario may not entirely make sense for the Buccos on the surface level, it does add to the thought that Pittsburgh may be in line to surprise us at this year's meetings. Any thoughts on an ace that Huntington may have up his sleeve?

D’Backs Attempting To Trade For A Starter

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The Diamondbacks "are more focused on trades than free agents" in their search for a starting pitcher, according to a source of Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports.  The writers suggest the D'Backs will look for a cheap back-end rotation type, speculating on non-tender candidates Dave Bush, Brian Tallet, and Tim Redding.  It sounds like the D'Backs don't want to give up a ton in trade, as they're reluctant to meet the asking price for Edwin Jackson and haven't inquired on Pirates starters Paul Maholm and Zach Duke.

Back on November 12th, we named about 30 potentially available starters, including Tallet and Bush.

Odds & Ends: Duke, Hardy, Mets, Angels

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Some Saturday evening links…

  • Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports write that the Brewers asked the Pirates for Zach Duke or Paul Maholm in exchange for J.J. Hardy.  Pittsburgh hoped to land the shortstop in exchange for closer Matt Capps or catcher Ryan Doumit.  When the Pirates refused to budge, the Brewers pulled the trigger on the deal with Minnesota for Carlos Gomez.
  • Also noted is that the Mets are considering former Indians skipper Eric Wedge as a candidate for their bench coach vacancy.  The position could be a stepping stone to the head job as Jerry Manuel is in the final year of his contract.  Bob Melvin and former Orioles bench coach Dave Jauss are also in the mix.
  • After recently signing GM Tony Reagins to a new contract, the Angels have made a few front office changes, reports Lyle Spencer of MLB.com.
  • John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer implores the Reds not to trade Bronson Arroyo or Brandon Phillips to clear payroll.
  • Peter Schmuck of the Baltimore Sun suggests that Dan Uggla would make a good fit for the Orioles.  Based on conversations that Schmuck has had with beat writer Jeff Zrebiec, it doesn't seem as though the O's front office agrees.
  • Marquis Grissom will not return as the Nationals' first base coach, writes MLB.com's Bill Ladson.

Rosenthal On Garcia, Pirates, Papelbon

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The latest from Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports…

  • Rosenthal says Florida's Chris Coghlan deserves the NL Rookie of the Year award.  Andrew McCutchen, Garrett Jones, J.A. Happ, Randy Wells, and Tommy Hanson are also in the mix…who do you like?
  • For the AL ROY, Rosenthal sticks with his preseason choice of Rangers shortstop Elvis Andrus.  Jeff Niemann, Andrew Bailey, Nolan Reimold, and Gordon Beckham are other top contenders.
  • Rosenthal has a few possible Nationals managerial candidates: Diamondbacks third base coach Chip Hale, Bobby Valentine, and Bob Melvin.  It's also possible Jim Riggleman is retained.
  • I was not aware of this – Freddy Garcia's deal with the White Sox has a 2010 option with a $1MM base and $2MM in incentives.  Garcia has an 89mph fastball these days, but he's posted quality starts in three of four tries (against the Yankees and Red Sox).
  • The Pirates would only trade starters Paul Maholm or Zach Duke if they receive "a young major league starter of similar quality, plus another piece."  I mentioned that the Bucs look pretty good for 2011, but Rosenthal says team officials are not conceding 2010.
  • Rosenthal's source describes a Jonathan Papelbon trade as "pretty unrealistic."  Jayson Stark's sources had a similar opinion.
  • Rosenthal rattles off the teams that have had past interest in Marlins second baseman Dan Uggla, who is getting pricey: the Orioles, Twins, Giants, D'Backs, Dodgers, and Cardinals.

Edes On Lee, Feliciano, Pirates

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Yahoo's Gordon Edes says the Phillies and Dodgers are interested in Cliff Lee, but the Indians aren't anxious to move him. Not only would it mean trading Cy Young Award winners in back-to-back years, it would diminish the team's chances at contending next season. Here are the rest of Edes' rumors:

  • The Dodgers would have interest in Pedro Feliciano if the Mets become sellers.
  • The Brewers scouted Brad Penny over the weekend, but a trade seems unlikely now that Tim Wakefield's on the DL.  
  • At least one NL executive believes the Pirates are ready to move almost anyone. Zach Duke, Paul Maholm, Matt Capps, John Grabow, Freddy Sanchez, Adam LaRoche and Jack Wilson could all be targets.
  • It looks like the Reds would listen to offers for Francisco Cordero. However, he has no-trade protection and an big contract. 
  • The Red Sox had a scout watch Nick Johnson this weekend.

Trade Candidates: Starting Pitchers

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Roy Halladay's availability changes everything, because teams in search of an ace can target him instead of settling for lesser pitchers. But many arms could be moved in the next 17 days and some could even be traded in August. These pitchers, who could all conceivably be dealt, are ranked from highest 2009 salary to lowest:

  • Roy Halladay, Blue Jays – At $14.25MM he's pricey, but he's one of the top pitchers in the game, capable of transforming a team's playoff chances like C.C. Sabathia did last year.
  • Javier Vazquez, Braves – The rumors surrounding Vazquez have quieted lately, but he could be moved. He makes $11.5MM this year and next and can't be traded to any Western division team.  
  • Gil Meche, Royals – Meche makes $11MM this year and has $24MM remaining on his deal afterwards.
  • Doug Davis, D'Backs – The D'Backs aren't impressed with the players the Brewers are willing to offer for their pitcher, who makes $8.75MM this year. Davis has been productive all season.
  • Jon Garland, D'Backs – Another solid but unspectacular arm, Garland makes $6.25MM this year. No team acquiring him should count on receiving picks if he leaves as a free agent, because Garland has a clause in his contract that prevents teams from offering him arbitration if he has Type A stauts.
  • Cliff Lee, Indians – He makes just $5.75MM this year and the Indians have an affordable $8MM option for 2010, so they'd have to see an awesome offer to part with Lee, who's following up his Cy Young season with another solid year.
  • Brad Penny, Red Sox – Now that they've called on Clay Buchholz, the Red Sox once again have a surplus of big league pitchers. At $5MM plus incentives, Penny's affordable this year. 
  • Ian Snell, Pirates – He's pitching well in Triple A, where he struck out 17 in one game. The Pirates have tried to move Snell and his $3MM salary.
  • Paul Mahom, Pirates – The Pirates have been willing to sell and Maholm's been effective this year. He makes $2MM, and has at least $11MM remaining on his deal after the year.
  • Brian Bannister, Royals – At just $1.7MM, he's one of the cheaper starters out there.  
  • Carl Pavano, Indians – The Indians aren't contenders and Pavano has pitched better this season than he did in four years with the Yankees. He makes a base salary of just $1.5MM, but that could rise as high as $6.8MM because of incentives.
  • Jonathan Sanchez, Giants – He makes less than $500k and, as we found out this weekend, he has the potential to be dominant.  

Let's not forget about some free agent pitchers like Ben Sheets (may be injured), Pedro Martinez (about to sign), Odalis Perez and Paul Byrd.

None of the following pitchers are available now, but they could be if their teams fall from contention: Bronson Arroyo, Doug Brocail, Jason Marquis, Erik Bedard and Jarrod Washburn.

Odds And Ends: Pirates, K-Rod, Jackson

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Some links to peruse in between home runs…

  • Here are the latest minor league transactions from Baseball America.
  • CBS Sports reports that Indian pitcher Rinku Singh picked up his first win as a pro. Check out Dejan Kovacevic's article on Singh's team, the Bradenton Pirates, which has players from five continents on its roster.
  • Danny Knobler of CBS Sports has a source who believes a Roy Halladay deal is more likely in the winter. It's hard to imagine Halladay's value being much higher than it is now. 
  • Francisco Rodriguez told Kevin Baxter of the LA Times that he enjoys baseball less than he did growing up, but realizes it's a business.
  • Edwin Jackson isn't bitter about his Tampa Bay Rays tenure, according to Kevin Baxter of the LA Times.
  • The AP (via the Miami Herald) reports that a number of agents are pressing the Players' association to file a collusion grievance against teams.
  • John Perrotto of PiratesReport.com revisits a deal that would have sent Paul Maholm to Toronto for Alex Rios in 2005 and wonders if the Pirates and Jays could make the same deal work today. 
  • Click here to listen to my chat with Justin Hull on 1570 The Score this afternoon.

Knobler On Cardinals, Phillies, Giants

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Danny Knobler of CBS Sports identifies the five neediest teams in baseball. No team will be able to acquire big names easily, however, as officials around the league agree that impact arms and bats aren't available with so many teams in the race. Here's a closer look at Knobler's rumors:

  • The Cardinals have had less production out of the cleanup spot than just about any NL team and GM John Mozeliak says he's "not ignoring" the issue.
  • As one official points out, "thirty teams in baseball could use Mark DeRosa" and the Cardinals could use him most of all.
  • Knobler expects the Phillies to continue looking for a starting pitcher. He doesn't rule out Erik Bedard and says the Phils have considered Zach Duke and Paul Maholm.  
  • The Giants could use a hitter and Knobler hears that Brian Sabean's facing pressure from his superiors to make a move.
  • The Brewers could use an arm, as we know. 
  • Omar Minaya seems more intense than usual, but the many injuries to his players could make it harder for him to justify making one big move. As one Mets official said, the team is in a "bad position."

Pitching Market May Mean Phils Add To ‘Pen

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It's still possible that the Phillies will add the top starter Charlie Manuel covets, but the weak market for starting pitching could force them to improve their bullpen instead, according to Danny Knobler of CBS Sports. With Erik Bedard and Jake Peavy on the disabled list, there's a shortage of top starters available. The Phillies are watching Brad Penny, who, along with Jarrod Washburn, may be the best starter available.

But pitchers such as Jason Marquis, Zach Duke and Paul Maholm "don't excite" the Phillies, so they may look to improve their pitching by adding a reliever, even though it's not their first choice.

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