Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Manny, Peavy, Cubs
A look at what is being written around the Blogosphere…
- Sox and Pinstripes has eight questions the Red Sox must address this offseason including whether or not to re-sign Jason Varitek and Tim Wakefield.
- Dodger Thoughts notes that there is not a lot of substance behind the rumors of the Dodgers offering Manny Ramirez a contract worth $60MM for two years.
- Fanhouse wonders if Ramirez could make more money in the long run if he signs a two-year deal with the Dodgers now.
- Gaslamp Ball wonders if the Padres are not getting the offers they expected for Jake Peavy and are starting to get "cold feet."
- Talking Chop notes that Frank Wren’s public posturing during the Peavy negotiations is in stark contrast to what Braves fans are accustomed.
- Bleed Cubbie Blue projects a Cubs ’09 roster, including Aubrey Huff at first base and Luke Scott in right field.
- The Sports Bank says the biggest need for the White Sox lineup is to add speed. They look at some potential moves and project an ’09 lineup that includes Rafael Furcal and Chone Figgins.
Cork Gaines writes for RaysIndex.com and can be reached here.
Jake Peavy Rumors: Thursday
2:05pm: Braves GM Frank Wren spoke to the AP today about the Peavy rumors. He still says the Braves will not trade their top prospects. He notes that much of the talk lately is based on questionable speculation by rival executives.
12:27am: Let’s kick things off with the freshest Jake Peavy rumors.
- Dan Hayes of the North County Times says "as many as 14 clubs" inquired about Peavy so far, with some teams taking an aggressive approach. Barry Axelrod and Kevin Towers want to slow things down now, have some meetings. A trade will not be announced during the World Series and is not likely until the November 3-6 GM meetings at the earliest. Axelrod and Towers again suggested Peavy could stay in San Diego.
- Tom Krasovic of the San Diego Union-Tribune says at least three Padres scouts watched Braves pitching prospect Tommy Hanson in the Arizona Fall League recently.
- J.C. Bradbury explains that the only team that benefits from Peavy’s below-market contract is the Padres. Is it too early in the morning for econ?
- Cardinals GM John Mozeliak "all but dismissed" the idea of being in the mix for Peavy. They have their ’08 rotation locked in, pending Chris Carpenter‘s health. They’ve already got more than $32MM committed to the current group of starters.
- ESPN’s Keith Law does not feel that a package of Tommy Hanson, Jordan Schafer, and one of Kelly Johnson/Yunel Escobar is a reasonable expectation for Peavy.
Padres Notes: DePodesta, Zduriencik
A few Padres non-Peavy notes from Tom Krasovic of the San Diego Union-Tribune…
- Padres exec Paul DePodesta doesn’t have any interest in the upcoming Moneyball movie. I hadn’t realized that DePo appeared in a few episodes of the excellent "Homicide: Life On The Street" TV show back in the day.
- Padres GM Kevin Towers is a longtime friend of new Mariners GM Jack Zduriencik. Perhaps the Padres and Brewers will be frequent trade partners for Zduriencik.
Cardinals Rumors: Pujols, Payroll, Needs
Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch has the latest Cardinals buzz…
- The Cards are going to stand pat with their starting rotation until they learn more about Chris Carpenter‘s injury. He’ll be examined in late November. Strauss says a swing man type acquisition is possible as insurance.
- The Cardinals are likely to approach Albert Pujols about an extension before he enters his 2011 option year. Pujols will earn just $16MM in each of the ’09, ’10, and ’11 seasons. Teams must be salivating at the prospect of Pujols on the free agent market, but the Cardinals will try to prevent that. Pitchers Hit Eighth recently did a roundtable about this very topic.
- The ’09 payroll is projected in the $106-108MM range. The Cardinals have $20MM+ to spend, with the exact number depending on several arbitration cases.
- The Cardinals need middle infielders and lefthanded relievers. Strauss says, "The club prefers to deal from its surplus of righthanded relievers, outfielders, minor-league pitching and corner infielders." I have argued about this in chats a bit…is there really a surplus here? To me a surplus in baseball means more starters than positions (rather than just good depth). The Cards have a starting outfield of Ryan Ludwick, Rick Ankiel, and Skip Schumaker, with Colby Rasmus coming on fast. Rasmus will be a rookie, while Ankiel is a Boras client eligible for free agency after ’09. There are other interesting players on the roster (Brian Barton, Joe Mather, Chris Duncan), but the Cards aren’t overflowing with starters.
- Viva El Birdos contests the idea of a surplus of righty relievers, and would like to see Russ Springer re-signed.
- Strauss says the Cardinals have yet to talk to the agents for Cesar Izturis and Felipe Lopez. He sees players such as Rafael Furcal and Khalil Greene as possible middle infield targets.
Odds and Ends: Prior, Mulder, Cameron
Links for Wednesday…
- Mark Prior hopes to return to the Padres, according to a blogger who talked to him at a pumpkin patch. That wheelbarrow looks a bit heavy…
- I am still digging through the many applications for the Saturday morning position – thanks for your interest. Tons of great candidates in the mix.
- Viva El Birdos reflects on Mark Mulder‘s time with the Cardinals. Mulder is trying everything he can to get back to his old self.
- Dave Cameron names Mike Cameron the top free agent bargain of last offseason.
- SI.com’s Jon Heyman looks at how the Rays were built.
- Joe Posnanski looks at the divergent paths of the Royals and Rays.
- Sox Machine considers some free agent fits for the White Sox.
- Mets owner Jeff Wilpon spoke about "addition by subtraction" in a recent radio interview.
- I agree with this take on the Mark Ellis signing.
- Patrick Newman believes NPB will eventually soften its stance toward Junichi Tazawa.
- Steve Buckley of the Boston Herald doesn’t like the idea of the Red Sox shifting things around to accomodate Mark Teixeira.
- The Mariners apparently have still not decided on their new GM.
Peavy Rumors: Wednesday
Another day, another batch of Jake Peavy links.
- Joel Sherman of the New York Post talked to several executives. They expect Peavy will be traded to the Braves for Tommy Hanson, Jordan Schafer, and one of Kelly Johnson/Yunel Escobar. This scenario becomes more plausible to me if Johnson/Escobar is replaced with a lesser player. But, maybe I am misguided. Buster Olney also talked to execs who envision a Hanson/Schafer/Johnson package.
- Tom Krasovic of the San Diego Union-Tribune checked with Towers and Peavy’s agent Barry Axelrod, and learned that Peavy has a clean bill of health. Krasovic also discusses Peavy’s violent delivery and minimal usage of his changeup.
- Chipper Jones likes the idea of the Braves acquiring Peavy, and also would welcome A.J. Burnett as a teammate.
- Axelrod agrees that the Braves are the frontrunner and the Astros may not have the goods for Peavy. He downplayed Peavy’s friendship with Roy Oswalt as a factor in his decision.
Peavy Will Require Full No-Trade
10:10am: ESPN’s Buster Olney says Peavy will listen if the Padres have other ideas aside from his five preferred NL teams. Olney believes Peavy may require more than full no-trade powers with his new team. He could ask that his $22MM 2013 option be exercised, or that the $4MM buyout be increased.
8:47am: Tom Krasovic of the San Diego Union-Tribune talked to Jake Peavy‘s agent Barry Axelrod, who said Peavy would require a new team to grant him full no-trade powers. Currently Peavy’s full no-trade powers run through 2010 but his contract can run through 2013.
While the Padres have been informed of Peavy’s five preferred clubs, Axelrod clarified:
"We certainly did not say we would approve a trade to here, here and here. Let’s take a breath and do some reasoned analysis. We’re trying to take some time to get a grip on this, if that’s possible."
Axelrod also told Krasovic that he would not be surprised if Peavy stays put.
Cards Not Likely To Acquire Peavy
According to Bernie Miklasz of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, the Cardinals are not a serious player for Jake Peavy. Miklasz’s Cardinals sources downplayed the idea and noted that they’ve only had one conversation with the Padres.
As Miklasz says, it could be the money, the prospects, or both. Viva El Birdos believes it would limit roster construction. If the Cardinals take a pass and the Astros don’t have the goods, it might be down to the Braves, Dodgers, and Cubs.
Peavy Rumors: Monday
Let’s kick off the day with a roundup of Jake Peavy rumors.
- Peavy is not a fan of the American League or New York, so don’t look for him to land with the Yankees or Mets. The Mets don’t seem interested anyway.
- David O’Brien figures the Braves will have to surrender Yunel Escobar, Kelly Johnson, Tommy Hanson to get it done. Baseball Prospectus’ Kevin Goldstein says Hanson flies under the radar a bit, as he belongs in any discussion of the game’s top pitching prospects.
- Joel Sherman of the New York Post says the Padres were doing a lot of background work recently on Braves center field prospect Jordan Schafer.
- Despite Peavy’s wishes, the Padres have identified four possible AL trading partners for him: the Yankees, Angels, Rangers, and Red Sox. Peavy’s agent says he hasn’t closed any doors but the Boston Herald’s Michael Silverman believes the Red Sox or Yankees would have to pay a steep price in extra compensation to entice the pitcher.
Cafardo’s Latest: Lowe, Maddux, Peavy
Here’s a look at the latest column from Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe.
- Interestingly, the Red Sox are reportedly Derek Lowe‘s preferred destination. It’s unknown whether the Sox intend to add a starter this winter, but they may lose free agent Paul Byrd (and will have to decide on Tim Wakefield‘s $4MM option). Cafardo names a dozen other clubs interested in Lowe: the Yankees, Mets, Tigers, Indians, Cardinals, Cubs, Angels, Braves, Phillies, Rangers, Astros, and Blue Jays.
- Bill Mueller, 38 in March, admits he’d like to play again. Medically, it’s a long shot because he’d need to regrow cartilage in his knees.
- One of Greg Maddux‘s teammates feels he’ll retire. Maddux could return to the Padres as a player/coach (specifically, he’d prefer a bench coach gig).
- The Brewers as a sleeper for Jake Peavy? They’re not on his list, but he’s named other midwest clubs.
- Cafardo believes catchers Bengie Molina and Ramon Hernandez will be available this winter. Makes sense, given the weak free agent market at the position.