Odds & Ends: Jenkins, Orioles, Molina, Lee, Konerko
Links for Saturday…
- Geoff Jenkins told Tom Haudricourt of The Journal Sentinel that he received several offers in Spring Training this year, but they were all jobs in Triple-A, which "wasn't in [his] heart." Earlier tonight we learned that Jenkins is close to announcing his retirement.
- Despite his team's poor start, Orioles president of baseball operations Andy MacPhail believes his team is on the right track with their rebuilding effort, says Peter Schmuck of The Baltimore Sun.
- Andrew Baggarly of the San Jose Mercury News provides a follow-up to today's Bengie Molina discussion in a series of tweets. Baggarly says service time will not factor into Buster Posey's potential promotion, and doesn't think the Giants will shop Molina after Posey arrives. Baggarly adds that Molina's hamstring injury is not serious and no roster move will be needed.
- Molina told Kevin Burkhardt of SNY that he wanted to sign with the Mets and was ready to move his family to New York, but was upset that they refused to increase their offer to two guaranteed years. (hat tip to Matt Cerrone of MetsBlog.com)
- In a CMSB radio interview, Newsday's Ken Davidoff suggests that Cliff Lee and Paul Konerko will be two of the most interesting players to monitor as the trade deadline approaches.
- John Shea of The San Francisco Chronicle has some quotes from Eric Chavez, who admitted feeling pressure to perform since this is the last year of his contract. He also understands that the A's need a productive DH, which he hasn't been. Through 91 plate appearances, Chavez is hitting .220/.275/.305.
- CC Sabathia doesn't believe that Victor Martinez's impending free agency is the reason behind his former battery mate's slow start, according to WEEI.com's Alex Speier. V-Mart is hitting just .267/.330/.381 on the year, though he's picked it up of late.
- Joel Sherman of The New York Post wonders why the Yankees would do business with the injury prone Nick Johnson instead of waiting out Johnny Damon. Johnson left last night's game with a sore right wrist and appears headed for the disabled list.
- Ever wonder what happened to the six players that went to Florida in the Miguel Cabrera–Dontrelle Willis blockbuster? The Detroit Free Press has the answer.
Odds & Ends: Red Sox, Howard, Francisco, Mendoza
Links to check out as we await Cliff Lee's Mariners debut…
- BoSox manager Terry Francona says that the upcoming player move to make room on the roster for Daisuke Matsuzaka will almost certainly involve a pitcher, tweets Scott Lauber of the Boston Herald.
- If you play fantasy baseball, be sure to follow our @closernews feed on Twitter. We've got instant news on all closer situations, enabling you to conquer the save category.
- Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports takes a behind-the-scenes look at the Ryan Howard extension negotiations, speaking to Phillies GM Ruben Amaro Jr. and Howard's agent, Casey Close.
- In an MLB.com mailbag, T.R. Sullivan suggests that Frank Francisco could be a prime trade candidate in July, particularly if the Rangers are slipping from playoff contention.
- Luis Mendoza cleared waivers and accepted an outright assignment to Triple-A Omaha, tweets Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star. Mendoza was designated for assignment by the Royals last week.
- GM Jim Hendry says prospect Starlin Castro will join the Cubs at some point this season, but he won't say how soon, according to ESPNChicago. A source told Bruce Levine of ESPNChicago earlier in the week that Castro's promotion could be right around the corner.
- ESPN.com's Rob Neyer doesn't think the White Sox have any need for Jermaine Dye. We heard earlier today that Dye believes he'd be a fit for the South Siders.
- Talking to Tom Krasovic of AOL FanHouse, Brewers outfielder Jody Gerut explained why the Padres should retain Adrian Gonzalez.
- Rockies outfielder Carlos Gonzalez answered questions from Denver Post readers, explaining that "it's a really bad feeling when you get traded" and he'd like to sign a contract "for a few years." Gonzalez is not arbitration-eligible until after the 2011 season, and he's represented by Scott Boras.
- The Yankees are not typically inclined to sign young players to long-term deals. It makes sense to maintain flexibility, as they did going year-to-year with Chien-Ming Wang. On the other hand, Joel Sherman of the New York Post points out that Robinson Cano's extension has worked out quite well. Will the Yankees exercise his $14MM club option for 2012, or choose the $2MM buyout?
- Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald believes that the future of the Red Sox catching position points more toward Adalberto Ibarra than Victor Martinez.
Odds & Ends: Fields, Contracts, Suppan, Silva
Links for Sunday….
- Injuries have really soured the Royals' half of the Mark Teahen trade so far. Both Chris Getz and Josh Fields are on the disabled list, and the Associated Press reported today that Fields will undergo hip surgery that will likely end his season.
- Ethan Trex has an interesting article up on CNN.com that highlights some unusual contractual clauses over the years, including George Brett becoming partial owner of a Memphis apartment complex back in 1984 and Charlie Kerfeld receiving 37 boxes of orange Jell-O in 1987. Seriously.
- It looks like a trend is developing in the NL Central. A few days after the Cubs moved Carlos Zambrano to the bullpen, Adam McCalvy of MLB.com reports that the Brewers will do the same thing with Jeff Suppan and his $12.5MM salary. As for Zambrano, the Cubs won't use him on back-to-back days for now, tweets MLB.com's Carrie Muskat.
- Joel Sherman of the New York Post tries to play matchmaker and work out a Carlos Silva–George Sherrill/Jamey Carroll trade between the Cubs and Dodgers. I'm not sure such a swap necessarily makes sense for either team, given the Cubs' lefty surplus and Silva's price tag next year.
- Brian MacPherson of the Providence Journal writes that Victor Martinez is working overtime to improve his throwing, presumably hoping to silence the constant rumblings about the Red Sox shopping for a catcher.
- The latest mailbag from Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer includes a Carlos Santana update and an assessment of the Indians' free agent prospects following the 2010 season.
Gammons On Snyder, Ramos, Martinez, Ortiz
Peter Gammons made his weekly appearance on WEEI’s Big Show today, and as always, dished about some possible Red Sox moves. Ethan Landy has the full transcript available, but here are some of the more interesting tidbits…
- In regards to the Chris Snyder trade rumors, Gammons said the Sox would be hesitant about paying the catcher the rest of the $4.75MM he’s owed for this season and the $5.75MM owed for 2011. Gammons said the Red Sox would prefer to spend that money on “a big piece” at the trade deadline.
- Gammons tabs Minnesota prospect Wilson Ramos as “probably the best [catcher] in the minor leagues that might be traded,” though he thinks a deal is a longshot since the Twins would ask for Daniel Bard or Clay Buchholz in return. A few weeks ago, MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes looked at what the Twins might do with Ramos.
- Should Boston pick up another catcher, of course, that would leave Victor Martinez out of a position what with Kevin Youkilis at first and Adrian Beltre at third. Gammons points out that the Sox would face a tough decision about what to do with “three DH’s on the roster,” counting Martinez along with David Ortiz and Mike Lowell.
- Gammons reiterated a past point about how catching prospect Mark Wagner may have more value to Boston than Ortiz at this stage, given Wagner’s defensive skills and Ortiz’s struggles at the plate. Though, as Gammons notes, “they set this team up to get offense out of catcher and DH, so that is a tough change in direction without a real answer.”
Odds & Ends: Martinez, Rangers, Strasburg, Zambrano
Links for Wednesday…
- Daniel Barbarisi of the Providence Journal thinks that Victor Martinez's inability to contain baserunners could cost him millions in free agency and compromise his long-term future with the Red Sox.
- Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram writes that Tom Hicks is "concerned" about the sale of the Rangers to new ownership. Hicks' comments prompted MLB to release a statement in which they say the league has taken control of the Rangers' sale.
- Despite Stephen Strasburg's hot start, Mike Rizzo has no plans to rush his prized prospect through the minors, according to Mark Zuckerman of CSNWashington. Rizzo says that when Strasburg arrives in Washington, the club wants it to be for good.
- Ever seen a $17.875MM reliever? Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune reports that the Cubs are moving Carlos Zambrano to the bullpen on Friday. Carlos Silva will remain in the rotation; Tyler Kepner of the New York Times recently looked at his potential resurgence.
- In a pair of February articles, Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune noted that Mark Buehrle's 10-and-5 rights kick in on July 6th, while A.J. Pierzynski's date is June 14th.
- Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times posits that if the Mariners hadn't traded Adam Jones, they wouldn't have Jack Zduriencik and Franklin Gutierrez.
- Though he'll continue to work for ESPN, Joe Morgan has joined the Reds as a "special advisor to baseball operations." Morgan will not be involved in the team's day-to-day operations, learned John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer.
- ESPN's Jerry Crasnick says the Diamondbacks looked into a trade for Nate Robertson before the southpaw was dealt to Florida. Crasnick's article deals with the performances of nine important fill-ins so far this season.
- FanGraphs has added an aspect of catcher defense to its Wins Above Replacement stat.
- Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports talks about the plight of Dodgers pitcher Chad Billingsley. I imagine quite a few teams would like to try to get him back on track.
- Kevin Millar, released by the Cubs in March, has joined the MLB Network as an analyst according to Maury Brown of The Biz of Baseball.
Gammons On The Red Sox
Peter Gammons appeared today on WEEI's Big Show, and addressed a few Red Sox-centric topics. Ethan Landy of WEEI has the transcript, which includes these highlights:
- Victor Martinez continues to struggle throwing out opposing base-stealers, leading Gammons to speculate that the Red Sox may eventually have to call up Mark Wagner or look outside the organization for a defensive catcher. Otherwise, teams will run wild on Boston all season.
- The Sox may also need to look into acquiring middle relief help at some point this year. Gammons says that the club doesn't have any obvious minor league arms that they could bring up to pitch in important situations, like they did with Daniel Bard last season.
- If David Ortiz continues to struggle, Gammons thinks the Sox will have to seriously consider releasing him: "I don’t think they are going to keep him here and sit him on the bench."
Odds & Ends: Dodgers, Figueroa, Rays, Martinez
Links for Saturday…
- Rule 5 Draft pick Carlos Monasterios will make the Dodgers' Opening Day squad, writes Ken Gurnick of MLB.com. However, Joe Torre will not announce whether the team will carry 11 or 12 pitchers until tomorrow.
- Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times (via Twitter) says to expect word that Elliot Johnson has cleared waivers and will stay with the Rays at their Triple-A affiliate. Johnson, who was out of options, was waived by Tampa Bay earlier this week.
- Righthander Nelson Figueroa was one of six players cut by the Mets, according to MLB.com's Bill Chastain. Figueroa is out of options and has been outrighted before, so he can elect to become a free agent instead of reporting to the minors if he clears waivers.
- Victor Martinez doesn't feel he needs promises in his next contract that he will remain at catcher, reports WEEI.com's Rob Bradford. This morning we learned that V-Mart doesn't want talks about a contract extension to take place during the season.
- Tracy Ringolsby of Inside The Rockies points out that the Rockies will start the year with the highest Opening Day payroll in team history, a cool $85,808,682.
- Marc Carig of The Newark Star-Ledger tweets that Marcus Thames has officially made the Yankees' Opening Day roster. He could have opted out of his minor league deal if he didn't make the team out of Spring Training, but now he'll earn $900K for the season.
No Contract Talks For Martinez During Season
Victor Martinez doesn't want there to be any talks about a new contract with the Red Sox during the season, according to Scott Lauber of The Boston Herald.
“During the season, I really have enough to worry about, just playing the game,” Martinez said. “I don’t want any distractions.”
The switch-hitting catcher has maintained that he would like to remain in Boston beyond the 2010 season, but there haven't been any talks about a new deal during a Spring Training. Lauber mentions that there are reasons for Boston's apparent hesitation, including Martinez's less than stellar defense and poor throwing arm.
The 31-year-old catcher hit .336/.405/.507 after coming over from the Indians at the trade deadline, setting career highs in games played (155) and plate appearances (672) as well. The Red Sox picked up Martinez's $7.6MM option back in November.
Tim previewed V-Mart's impending free agency earlier this offseason.
Joe Mauer Extension Reactions
Joe Mauer's eight-year, $184MM extension with the Twins will be officially announced later today. Reactions from around the web:
- Aaron Gleeman says "the decision was a no-brainer for the Twins despite the incredible amount of risk involved." Gleeman notes that a payroll in the $100MM range will still leave the Twins with "more money to spend than they had in any previous season" despite Mauer's percentage.
- Joel Sherman of the New York Post suggests Twins catching prospect Wilson Ramos could "enable the Twins to better preserve Mauer." Or maybe Ramos becomes one of the game's better trade chips?
- How much did Mauer leave on the table? ESPN's Jayson Stark believes he could've gotten $30MM per year and more than eight years on the open market. Stark's colleague Buster Olney says Mauer "might've walked away from the promise of another $60 million to $70 million in free agency."
- ESPN's Rob Neyer discusses the opportunity costs of being locked into a Mauer megadeal, as well as the short-term credibility cost of not signing him.
- Red Sox catcher Victor Martinez told WEEI's Alex Speier that Mauer "deserves every penny he got." Regarding his own extension, Martinez is leaving the ball in Boston's court and hasn't heard anything thus far.
Red Sox Notes: Ortiz, Victor Martinez
A few Red Sox bullet points today…
- David Ortiz told Dennis & Callahan he'd like to play three or four more years, and wants to finish his career with the Red Sox. In my opinion, for that to happen, Ortiz will need to be willing to go one year at a time and also sign for much less than his $12.5MM 2011 club option.
- Also on Dennis & Callahan, catcher Victor Martinez said he has not discussed an extension with the Red Sox yet.
- In an article for Baseball America, Maury Brown notes that the Red Sox exceeded the luxury tax threshold four times but only paid a total of $13.86MM. Maury's article concerns the luxury tax and revenue sharing in general; check it out.