Astros Rumors: Wolf, Hawkins, Hampton
MLB.com’s Alyson Footer has the latest Astros buzz.
- Astros GM Ed Wade will meet with Randy Wolf‘s agents tomorrow, but doesn’t expect an agreement to be reached before the exclusive negotiating period ends. Wolf will test the open market, and the Mets are already known to be interested.
- Talks are ongoing with the agents for Doug Brocail and LaTroy Hawkins. Brocail is a Type A free agent, and the Astros already declined a $3.25MM option on him.
- Wade met with Mike Hampton‘s agent recently. Hampton could return to Houston on an incentive-laden contract.
- Wade is on the lookout for a second-tier catcher to complement Humberto Quintero.
- MLB.com’s Jim Molony wonders if the Astros will try to bring lefty Trever Miller back.
Mets Rumors: Wolf, Fuentes, K-Rod, Street, Pedro
11:37am: SI.com’s Jon Heyman says the Mets are eyeing Randy Wolf, in addition to Derek Lowe and Oliver Perez.
Heyman adds that some Mets people are concerned about their catching, but others aren’t thrilled with the free agent options.
9:20am: All kinds of Mets rumors this morning.
- Let’s begin with the closer situation. The Mets are interested in Brian Fuentes, but Omar Minaya will not rule out Francisco Rodriguez. He makes a great point: contract numbers are tossed around early, but the player often fails to reach that amount.
- Joel Sherman says the Mets also want to speak to the A’s about Huston Street. However, his sources say the A’s feel they match up better with the Indians, Rockies, and Brewers (all interested parties). Rosenthal has Kerry Wood and Joe Beimel in the Mets’ sights as well. Matthew Cerrone of MetsBlog believes J.J. Putz could be a trade target, with interest on the Mariners’ side.
- Ken Davidoff explains how the Mets could end up signing K-Rod – the Fuentes market blows up, while Rodriguez settles for less. I’m on board with that.
- The Javier Vazquez rumors were addressed in this post. Elsewhere on the starting pitching front – Minaya will talk to Pedro Martinez‘s agent, but he’s unlikely to return. Aaron Heilman won’t be moving to the rotation.
- We’ve heard about the Mets’ interest in Raul Ibanez, but Minaya does not seem to consider the offense a problem. He even spoke optimistically about a Luis Castillo rebound (though he did not give Castillo a ringing endorsement).
Astros Rumors: Sabathia, Wolf, Hawkins
Brian McTaggart of the Houston Chronicle has the lowdown on the Astros.
- Again the word "tweak" is thrown around in regard to the Astros’ offseason. So I would not expect a major signing or trade.
- Regarding C.C. Sabathia, owner Drayton McLane said, "That might be way out of our league."
- The Astros will try to re-sign Randy Wolf and LaTroy Hawkins. It would still make sense to sign a starter if Wolf is retained. GM Ed Wade has flexibility to go past last year’s $90MM payroll.
- The ‘Stros will apparently go with internal options in center field. At catcher, they’ll look for someone to complement J.R. Towles. Pretty much all the catchers out there are short-term options anyway.
Wolf Open To Astros Return
Jose de Jesus Ortiz quotes Astros southpaw and Ed Wade favorite Randy Wolf:
A few weeks ago I had a short conversation with Ed and talked about what I thought of it here and if I’d be open to playing here. Like I’ve said, I think…yes definitely. The geography doesn’t really matter anymore. I think first and foremost I want to be on a winning team and have the best possible chance to be where I’ve never been before, which is the playoffs.
It seems this was a consideration for Wade all along when he made the trade for Wolf. Overall Wolf has a 4.30 ERA in 190.3 innings. He made all his starts and posted a solid 7.6 K/9. Wolf averaged 88.8 mph on his heater, showing more velocity than he had in recent years.
With a fair offer, the Astros might be able to sign Wolf before he hits the open market. He earned $8.5MM this year, hitting all his incentives. It might take three years and $30-35MM to sign him. At the least, the Astros can offer Wolf arbitration and snag a draft pick since he’s a Type B free agent.
Week In Review: 8/31 – 9/6
Sunday afternoon means it’s time to look back at the week and recap the major stories here on MLBTR. Let’s take a look:
- Arizona made a move to help replace Orlando Hudson when they acquired David Eckstein from Toronto for minor league pitcher Chad Beck. Second major move we saw from the D’Backs in August, and it seems like a fair price to add some stability to the middle of their infield for the remainder of the season.
- Brief update on the Pedro Alvarez drama. The Pirates will not re-negotiate his contract even if that option is somehow allowed.
- Tim began a couple of new series this week, one being the Offseason Outlook series, which will take a look at potential signings and moves for each team this offseason. So far, the Giants, Mariners, Padres, and Orioles have been covered.
- Tim also broke down some of the free agent market, taking a look at free agent starters sorted by strikeout rate, and position players sorted by on-base percentage.
- Curious to see if your team’s pitchers will be Type-A or B free agents? Here’s a look at the Elias rankings for both American League and National League free agent starters.
- Speaking of starting pitchers, Randy Wolf (Type B) has decided that his desire to pitch closer to home wasn’t as important as he originally thought. He’ll be open to all options this offseason. Wolf has pitched well since being acquired by Houston, despite moving to a more hitter-friendly park.
- Can’t say I’m surprised, but if you any Seattle fans were hoping for a big-name free agent this offseason, you’ll have to wait a bit longer.
Rosenthal’s Latest: Mets, Brewers, Astros
Ken Rosenthal has a lot to offer in his latest Full Count video:
- The Mets will prefer to pickup Carlos Delgado‘s $12MM option rather than buy him out for $4MM. That’s a guarantee for a guy who should finish the year around 35-100 despite not contributing for the first two months.
- According to sources, Manny Ramirez is unlikely to go the Mets. They will more likely focus their spending on pitching. John Maine has a bone spur in his right shoulder. Pedro Martinez and Oliver Perez are free agents. The Mets will need to go after starting pitching.
- If the Mets go after Francisco Rodriguez, would they dangle Billy Wagner on the trade market in his contract year?
- If the Astros sign Ben Sheets and Randy Wolf, they’d become immediate contenders, if not division favorites.
- To recoup the loss of Ben Sheets and C.C. Sabathia, the Brewers might want to trade J.J. Hardy or even Prince Fielder for a pitcher to join Yovani Gallardo, Manny Parra, and Dave Bush. I can’t see them trading Fielder and a lot will be determined by how they fare in the playoffs.
- Casey Blake will be in high demand this offseason. As a third baseman, his only real competition is the fragile Joe Crede. Blake can play 1B, 3B, RF and LF. He’s a good fit for the Dodgers to re-sign but, according to Rosenthal, he may want to go closer to his Iowa home.
Wolf Will Consider All Destinations In ’09
When Astros lefty Randy Wolf reached free agency after the 2006 season, he made his desire to play closer to home, on the West Coast, well known. He signed with the Dodgers, and managed a little over 100 innings amid shoulder issues. His ERA, 4.73, wasn’t too impressive. Yet the Padres, considered before the season to be contenders, decided to take a flier. They signed him to a one-year, $4.75MM deal with a number of incentives.
Back in July, the Astros acquired Wolf in a trade. GM Ed Wade had been fond of the lefty since his days as general manager in Philly. He had even courted Wolf last winter, but the pitcher chose to stay out west. As Wolf once again reaches free agency after this season, he says that geography won’t quite play the role it did over the past two off-seasons.
"It doesn’t matter anymore," Wolf said. "I played on the East Coast for so long, and you’re like, ‘I wonder what it would be like [to play closer to home].’ I’ve done it. It didn’t change my world."
Wolf says he’ll consider the Astros, but his foremost concern is signing with a contender. He has been pitching in the majors since 1999, and hasn’t yet made the postseason. Will the Astros sate that desire? Personally, I’m not so sure. Any ‘Stros fans out there think that next year could be the one?
Over at ESPN, Rob Neyer writes about how well Wolf has pitched for the Astros, and how he was wrong in his initial judgment of the trade.
Week In Review: 7/20 – 7/26
This one will be a bit lengthy, which can be expected as the deadline approaches. Here’s a review of some of the major moves and rumors of the last week:
- The Yankees acquired Xavier Nady and Damaso Marte from the Pirates for OF Jose Tabata, RHP Ross Ohlendorf, RHP Dan McCutchen and RHP Jeff Karstens . I agree with Tim that Ian Kennedy would’ve been a better centerpiece, but Tabata is pretty highly-touted himself. Kennedy would have made a more immediate impact, while Tabata is only 19 years old.
- The Dodgers acquired Casey Blake for minor league RHP Jon Meloan and C Carlos Santana. The Dodgers get a nice boost to their lineup without giving up too much, although Santana’s putting together a very impressive season in Class-A ball.
- The Nationals sent Jon Rauch to the Diamondbacks in exchange for minor league 2B Emilio Bonifacio. Rauch adds to a strong bullpen for Arizona, while Bonaficio could become a very solid leadoff hitter in the future for Washington. They may have been able to get more for Rauch, but I personally like the move, regardless.
- The Brewers acquired Ray Durham from the Giants for minor leaguers Darren Ford and Steve Hammond. Rickie Weeks has been a disappointment to an otherwise red-hot club. Can Durham provide a bit more stability? The power’s gone, but he can still get on base.
- The Astros acquired Randy Wolf from the Padres for minor league pitcher Chad Reineke. This one confuses me a little bit; with all due respect, did the Astros forget they were 12.5 games out? I don’t see the logic in buying on a pitcher.
- The Cardinals traded Anthony Reyes to the Indians for minor league pitcher Luis Perdoma. I don’t get this one either. I feel like the Cardinals could have gotten more, despite Reyes’ struggles in the past. The Indians could make this one look like a steal, in my opinion.
- The Yankees are in deep discussion with the Mariners about acquiring Jarrod Washburn. Tim cites Buster Olney and Ken Rosenthal in saying that the Mariners want a top prospect in addition to the salary dump, but the Yankees are only offering a marginal prospect. Can’t say I blame them. A top prospect for an mediocre pitchers who’s due an additional $14MM? Sounds like Seattle’s getting greedy…
- A new, and surprising name surfaced in trade talks: Manny Ramirez. Manny has said he would waive his no-trade clause, and based on interviews, has basically said that 2008 will be his last season in Boston. I can’t see Boston trading their (arguably) best hitter in the middle of a pennant race, however. I’d bet on him finishing out the season.
- Speaking of corner outfielders, the Mets need one, and they know it. Having missed out on Nady and Blake, they will likely zero in on Raul Ibanez. Ibanez makes great sense for them, and the Mariners would obviously like to rebuild. I expect this one to get done.
- There was a report that Roy Halladay came out and told the Blue Jays that he is unhappy in Toronto, which has provoked the Jays to explore their potential options. Halladay’s price would have to be astronomical, I’d think. He’s signed through 2010 and pitching like it’s 2003 all over again. Personal speculation: I think Halladay to the Cardinals with a Colby Rasums centerpiece would make sense.
- Crisitan Guzman signed a two-year, $16MM contract extension. Guzman has revived his career after surgery following an awful 2005. I like the signing for the Nats.
- Jorge Posada could be out for the season. The Yankees are looking for catchers. In addition to the names mentioned there, they could take a shot at signing Johnny Estrada, who was DFA’ed by Washington this week. Estrada was terrible in Washington, but has put up solid offensive numbers for a catcher throughout his career.
- Brian Fuentes, Huston Street, and George Sherrill are all still potential trade pieces. Fuentes is the most likely to go, I’d say, although the Rockies are asking for quite a bit.
- Tim updated the left-handed reliever and left field markets.
Rosenthal’s Latest: Redding, Laird, Wolf
Fresh column from Ken Rosenthal.
- The Rockies, six games out in the NL West, could certainly become buyers. They offered Clint Barmes for Jeremy Guthrie and were turned down, and continue to monitor Bronson Arroyo and Tim Redding. Closer Brian Fuentes still seems likely to be traded though (the demand: top of the line prospect and a secondary player).
- Rosenthal cautions us against judging the Pirates’ new regime too quickly. The deadline will be a good test for them.
- The Yankees definitely have interest in Rangers catcher Gerald Laird, but haven’t asked the Royals about Miguel Olivo.
- The Astros are unlikely to flip Randy Wolf before the deadline, partially due to lack of interest.
Wolf Trade Reactions
The Padres found an unlikely suitor for lefty starter Randy Wolf in the Houston Astros. Here are the reactions:
- Paul DePodesta thinks Chad Reineke might be able to help the Padres soon.
- Richard Justice calls it a stubborn move for the Astros, who "threw $3.5MM at a lost season."
- MLB.com’s Jim Molony wonders if the Astros could shop Wolf in August if the team falls further out of contention. An Ed Wade quote reveals part of the motivation for the acquisition – the GM says the Astros get their foot in the door in case they want to sign Wolf beyond this season.