2013 Vesting Options Update
With a little less than one-third of the season left to go, let's check in on the various vesting option situations from around the league…
- Jason Bartlett, Padres — $5.5MM option vests with 432 plate appearances. Bartlett came to the plate just 98 times before being placed on the disabled list with a knee injury. He won't return to the lineup anytime soon, so this option will not vest.
- Kevin Gregg, Orioles — $6MM option vests with 50 games finished. Gregg has finished just 12 of the team's 113 games, so this one is very unlikely even though it's still mathematically possible.
- Brett Myers, White Sox — $10MM option vests with 45 games finished or based on a points system. Myers has finished 33 games this season, and he has finished four of the ten games he's appeared in with Chicago despite not being the closer. This is one worth monitoring.
Chipper Jones has an option worth $9MM+ that will vest with 123 games played, but he's already rendered the option moot by announcing his plans to retire after the season. He recently said that he won't change his mind about retirement despite his strong play as well. Chipper has played in 71 of the Braves' first 112 games.
Alex Gonzalez has an option worth $4MM that will vest with 525 plate appearances, but he is expected to miss the rest of the season with a torn ACL. Gonzalez came to the plate just 89 times before the injury, so the Brewers do not have to worry about this one kicking in.
Quick Hits: Padres, Cubs, Bourn, Sheets, Braves
Earlier today, the Indians released right-hander Derek Lowe after designating him for assignment earlier this month. The veteran is willing to start or relieve and there's reportedly a sense that he'll return to the National League. While we keep an eye on where the veteran might land, here's tonight's look around baseball..
- As first reported by Jim Callis of Baseball America, Padres scouting director Jaron Madison is leaving the organization to join the Cubs. The 36-year-old will take over as Chicago's scouting director while Tim Wilken has been reassigned to the role of Special Assistant to president Theo Epstein, the team announced.
- One Braves official believes that if Michael Bourn had an agent other than Scott Boras he might already have a new contract with the club, writes Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com. People who know Nationals GM Mike Rizzo believe that Bourn has always been at the top of his wish list and the Phillies, Reds, and Marlins are also potential suitors this winter.
- Ben Sheets wasn't entirely confident about his return to the big leagues, but the veteran has looked tremendous so far, Knobler writes. The 34-year-old isn't sure how long he'll continue pitching but he says that he wants to leave on his own terms as opposed to being forced out by injury.
Quick Hits: Oswalt, Bourn, Hendry, Bay Area
The Indians snapped an 11-game losing streak today with a 6-2 victory over the Twins. The 11-game skid matched a franchise record, set four times previously in Tribe history. Avoiding a new futility record is of small consolation to the Indians, who were in wild card contention before their streak and now can only look ahead to 2013.
Here's the latest from around the majors….
- The Red Sox scouted Roy Oswalt and expressed interest in him earlier this season but they never made an offer, the veteran right-hander tells Brian MacPherson of the Providence Journal. Oswalt also said that he didn't insist to pitch for a team close to his home in Mississippi, noting that he was "pretty close" to signing with the Dodgers before finally settling on a contract with the Rangers.
- Michael Bourn "strikes out a lot and doesn't have a great on-base percentage. He's going to be 30 years old, and guys his age do not get faster. I'd be careful," a scout tells Bob Brookover of the Philadelphia Inquirer. The Phillies have been rumored to be interested in signing Bourn as a free agent this winter, with the Nationals and Braves also in the mix for the center fielder.
- Former Cubs GM Jim Hendry has embraced being a special-assignment scout for the Yankees, writes Daniel Barbarisi of the Wall Street Journal. Brian Cashman said that Hendry played key roles in the signing of first-round draft pick Ty Hensley and in the team's recent trade for Casey McGehee.
- The dispute between the Athletics and the Giants over San Jose territorial rights "might be the most difficult decision in baseball history because of the circumstances," an MLB executive tells Yahoo Sports' Steve Henson. The executive says there is some belief that the Giants could break protocol and sue the league if the A's are allowed to move.
- Tom Krasovic of Inside The Padres thinks the Padres made a good move in extending Carlos Quentin and Huston Street, though wonders if either player can "stay healthy in a heated pennant race."
NL West Links: Uribe, Melky, Fowler, Padres
Here's the latest from the NL West…
- Juan Uribe's time with the Dodgers could be nearing an end, writes Dylan Hernandez of the Los Angeles Times, as the team will need to open a roster spot with Adam Kennedy due back from the DL this week. Uribe has just a .553 OPS in 459 plate appearances since signing a three-year, $21MM free agent contract before the 2011 season. The Dodgers would have to eat the approximately $10.3MM left on Uribe's deal but Hernandez notes this would hardly be a burden to the club's free-spending new owners.
- Melky Cabrera told reporters (including Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle) that he hadn't heard anything from his agent Sam Levinson about tabling extension talks with the Giants until after the season. Andrew Baggarly of CSN Bay Area tweets that the two sides "had conceptual talks" about a new contract, so as Schulman speculated, it's possible the discussions never got serious enough for Levinson to bring anything solid to his client.
- Dexter Fowler has played well enough to earn a contract extension, though Troy Renck of the Denver Post thinks the Rockies should wait until midway through next season to explore such a deal just to ensure that Fowler is for real. Fowler is still under team control through the 2015 season and eligible for arbitration three more times as a Super Two player. Fowler is earning $2.35MM this season.
- Bill Center of the San Diego Union-Tribune outlines a few ways that the Padres' prospective new owners can quickly win the favor of San Diego fans.
Outrighted To Triple-A: Wells, Carpenter, Sutton
The latest outright assignments from around MLB…
- Padres pitcher Kip Wells cleared waivers and accepted an outright assignment to Triple-A Tucson, according to U-T San Diego (via Twitter). The Padres designated the right-hander for assignment on Friday. Wells, 35, made seven starts for the Padres this year.
- The Blue Jays outrighted Andrew Carpenter to Triple-A, Las Vegas, according to MLB.com’s transactions page. The Blue Jays had removed Carpenter from their roster to create room for Adeiny Hechavarria and Jesse Chavez over the weekend.
- The Pirates outrighted Drew Sutton to Triple-A Indianapolis, according to MLB.com’s transactions page. Pittsburgh designated Sutton for assignment one week ago on the day of the non-waiver trade deadline.
Minor Moves: Jake Fox, Scott Patterson
Today's minor moves..
- The Phillies have signed catcher/outfielder Jake Fox to a minor league contract, according to Ryan Dunleavy of NJ Press Media (via Twitter). Fox, 30, will report to the Phillies' Triple-A affiliate after posting strong numbers for the Somerset Patriots of the Atlantic League.
- The Mets announced that they have signed right-hander Scott Patterson to a Triple-A deal. The 33-year-old was previously with the Mariners' Triple-A affiliate and last appeared in the majors in 2008 with the Padres.
Padres Designate Kip Wells For Assignment
The Padres have designated right-hander Kip Wells for assignment, according to a team press release. In a corresponding move, right-hander Cory Burns has been selected from Triple-A Tucson.
Wells posted a 4.58 ERA in seven starts with the Padres, recording more walks (20) than strikeouts (19) in 37 1/3 innings of work. It was Wells' first time pitching in the Major Leagues since the 2009 season. The 35-year-old signed a minor league deal with San Diego in May.
Chase Headley Rumors: Monday
With a .267/.363/.423 line that looks even better on the road, 28-year-old Padres third baseman Chase Headley has drawn interest from many teams this month. Throw in team control through 2014 and you've got a hot commodity, but it appears Headley may stay put for now. The latest:
- The Padres wanted Jake Arrieta and two prospects for Headley, Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun reports (Twitter links). After Dylan Bundy and Manny Machado, Arrieta is the young Orioles player rival teams covet most, Connolly writes. However, those clubs are trying to buy low on Arrieta. Connolly reports that one of the two prospects the Padres sought with Arrieta is a high ceiling player at Class A Delmarva.
- The Padres told clubs Sunday they'll keep Headley unless the market changes dramatically, according to ESPN's Jayson Stark. Earlier, Yahoo's Jeff Passan wrote that the Padres expect to decide today whether to keep Headley.
- The Athletics won't trade starting pitching prospect Dan Straily in a Headley deal, tweets Peter Gammons of MLB Network. Lightly regarded by prospect gurus prior to the season, the 23-year-old is in the midst of a breakout campaign and is now considered a quality pitching prospect. Still, despite leading the minor leagues in strikeouts, Straily did not crack top 50 prospects lists published by ESPN's Keith Law and Baseball America this month.
Heyman On Morneau, Dodgers, Athletics, Mets
The latest from Jon Heyman of CBS Sports:
- The Dodgers, Blue Jays, and Giants "appear to have some interest" in Twins first baseman Justin Morneau. Heyman notes that the Dodgers are looking at many offensive options, possibly as many as 10. Morneau, 31, has somewhat bounced back to a .260/.322/.457 line after a 2011 season lost to concussion symptoms and other injuries. He has $5MM in salary remaining this year and is owed $14MM in 2013.
- The Athletics' top two choices for a shortstop upgrade are still Stephen Drew of the Diamondbacks and Yunel Escobar of the Blue Jays. The A's remain interested in Padres third baseman Chase Headley as well, but Heyman finds a match unlikely.
- The Mets have talked about Geovany Soto of the Cubs, Kelly Shoppach of the Red Sox, and Ramon Hernandez of the Rockies, but the prices are too high on these catchers. Heyman says the Mets may be willing to delay their catcher search until the winter.
Projected 2013 Salaries For Pence, Choo, Headley
You may remember Matt Swartz from such MLBTR projects as the 2012 arbitration projections. Matt's model was very accurate the first time through, and he's made it even better for the 2013 projections. I asked Matt for a sneak peek at 2013 projected salaries for some arbitration eligible trade candidates. He used Dan Szymborski's rest-of-season ZiPS projections to account for the remainder of the 2012 season.
- Hunter Pence: $14.3MM
- Jason Vargas: $8.1MM
- Shin-Soo Choo: $7.6MM
- Chase Headley: $6.1MM
- Geovany Soto: $4.6MM