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Shannon Stewart Switches Agents

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Shannon Stewart had a bounceback 2007, finally staying healthy and hitting .290/.345/.394 as Oakland’s left fielder.  Though his left field defense ranked seventh at the position according to the Fielding Bible’s panel of experts, a sub-.400 SLG doesn’t work for a corner outfielder.  He hit all of his playing time incentives in ’07, earning a total salary of $2.5MM.

ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick notes that Stewart "apparently scared off some clubs by looking for a two-year deal earlier this winter."  Is that something Stewart pushed for, or was it his representatives at Legacy Sports Group?  Either way, Stewart has switched to Barry Praver and Scott Shapiro given his lingering unemployment.

Crasnick suggests the Mariners and Padres as two possibilities for Stewart, who is likely to sign quickly under the new representation.  If he sets his sights on one year and a fourth outfielder role he should find something. If Stewart signs elsewhere and Mike Piazza retires, the A’s stand to snag the 39th overall pick in June.  The A’s could find the next Joba Chamberlain, Clay Buchholz, or Huston Street with that pick.

Padres Eyeing Mike Sweeney

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The Padres "have expressed mild interest" in Mike Sweeney, according to ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick.  The problem would be finding a fit for Sweeney.  First base or left field would be the logical choices but between the presence of Adrian Gonzalez and Sweeney’s fragility, both seem a long shot.  And there’s no fit at catcher either, if you really want to stretch your imagination.

Crasnick notes that Padres GM Kevin Towers has found the talks for Xavier Nady or Matt Murton to be "slow going," so maybe he’s trying to get creative.

Sweeney, 35, has been a Royal his entire career.  He hasn’t topped 100 games or an .800 OPS since ’05.  It was said in mid-December that Sweeney’s agent had been in touch with the Royals and two other teams.

Pirates Rumors: Bay, Nady, Capps

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Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette has a few new Pirates tidbits today.

  • Jason Bay expressed displeasure with the Pirates’ lack of activity, but his comments were respectful.  He hopes to stay with the Bucs and win. Bay says he "found a whole different level of being in shape" this winter, which bodes well for a bounceback. 
  • Kovacevic says Neal Huntington and Kevin Towers have been in touch this week regarding Xavier Nady but nothing is close.  Towers admitted publicly that he was looking at Nady and Matt Murton.
  • There’s been "little progress" on a multiyear deal for Matt Capps. The Pirates approached Capps earlier this month with three or four-year scenarios in mind.

Marlon Byrd/Matt Murton Rumors

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Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News has the latest on the Marlon Byrd/Cubs rumors.

Byrd has been informed that the Cubs have interest in him.  Grant says the Rangers reportedly turned down an offer of Matt Murton for Byrd, requiring one or two pitching prospects be added by the Cubs.  So for those who think Murton is worth more than Byrd – the Rangers apparently do not agree.

Meanwhile, ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick runs down three possible destinations for Murton: Texas, Baltimore, and San Diego.  It seems that the Cubs would prefer to resolve the Baltimore trade talks before they’d ship Murton to one of the other two clubs.  Talks for Erik Bedard and/or Brian Roberts are ongoing, according to Crasnick.

Odds and Ends: Zimmerman, Tulo, Hawpe, Wang

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Some bits and pieces from today…

Odds and Ends: Foulke, Ordonez, Feliz, Phillips

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All sorts of odds and ends to discuss this morning.

Kevin Towers To Receive Extension

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FROM 1-22-08 at 10:20pm: The new deal for Towers will run through 2010.

FROM 1-22-08 at 2:17pm:

According to Cot’s Baseball Contracts, Padres GM Kevin Towers is signed through 2007 with a 2008 club option.  MLB.com’s Corey Brock wrote today that Towers is set to receive an extension this week.

I haven’t done any rankings but I think Towers might be the game’s best GM.  Maybe I’ll do an MLBTR poll on that.

Odds and Ends: Howard, Cormier, Gerut

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I am currently evaluating Phil Hughes’ playlist.  Some of it is solid.  Let’s get on to the odds and ends…

  • Bill Conlin thinks it’s a mistake for the Phillies to pay Ryan Howard at a rate commensurate with his service time.  It’s a slippery slope – shouldn’t Cole Hamels be earning $15MM instead of $500K, then?  The system may be broken but it doesn’t make sense for the Phillies to start ignoring service time.
  • John Mozeliak is not done yet.  Meanwhile, Albert Pujols continued to direct his ire at KTVI-TV of St. Louis. 
  • The Orioles agreed to a minor league deal with 27 year-old righty Lance Cormier worth around $450K.  Cormier doesn’t have much to show for his 244 big league innings, whether starting or relieving.  He has a decent groundball rate, at least.
  • The Padres signed Jody Gerut to a minor league pact that could be worth as much as $910K.  He’s 30 now; his best season was an .830 OPS for Cleveland at age 25.  Since then he’s had all sorts of knee problems and even had a grievance with the Pirates.

Rosenthal’s Latest: Boras, Murton, Marquis, Clark

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Ken Rosenthal is here to hopefully rescue what’s been a slow day for rumors.

  • Rosenthal points out that it seems Scott Boras has been more flexible with his clients’ contracts this year, perhaps even as the result of his "failures" with Alex Rodriguez and Kenny Rogers.  A new, gentler Boras?  Wait til Mark Teixeira, Matt Holliday, and Prince Fielder reach free agency.
  • The Padres are targeting Matt Murton for left field, a notion that gels with Kevin Towers’ stated quest to acquire a corner outfielder via trade.  Plus, Towers gets along well with Cubs GM Jim Hendry.  Not sure how the teams would match up, unless things expand to include Khalil Greene.  The Cubs would have to be sure they don’t need Murton for other deals or because of other deals.
  • Rosenthal agrees with the recent rumor that the Orioles will decide whether to trade Erik Bedard and Brian Roberts by month’s end.  He notes that Cubs starter Jason Marquis actually does have trade value, and could be part of a package for Roberts.  Other teams are interested in him too – go figure.  Innings are innings I guess.  Marquis, 29, is owed $16.25MM over the 2008-09 seasons.
  • An MLBTR commenter questioned the other day why Troy Tulowitzki’s deal was said to top Grady Sizemore’s as the record holder for a player with less than two years service time.  The commenter wondered why Brian McCann wasn’t part of the discussion – he signed for more than Sizemore ($26.8MM) in March of ’07 with about a season and a half under his belt.  Anyone know why McCann’s name doesn’t come up in this discussion?
  • One of Rosenthal’s sources believes progress has been made on a long-term pact with Holliday, and the recent two-year deal is a positive sign.
  • Teams inquiring on Tony Clark: Mariners, Giants, and Red Sox.  Clark has been mentioned as a Giants target before.

Khalil Greene’s Future

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Padres beat writer Corey Brock sums up the Khalil Greene situation on his blog.  Greene is due for free agency after the 2009 season, and it does not look like he wants to stay in San Diego longer than that.  Despite his Spicoli-like appearance he might prefer to play on the East Coast and/or in a more hitter friendly park.  He’s 28, plays strong defense, and has a lot of power.  He has been a bit OBP-challenged, whether due to low batting averages, lack of walks, or both.  He’s set to earn $4-5MM in ’08.

Plenty of teams could use a shortstop like Greene: the Orioles, Royals, Angels, Nationals, Cubs, and Cardinals come to mind.  However the Padres have no replacement for him.  Erick Aybar, Felipe Lopez, and Ronny Cedeno are three possibilities where Towers could get a young shortstop in return (Lopez, less so).  Are any of those three a sufficient bounty for two years of Greene?  Pitching might have to be added to make it viable for San Diego.  Towers will be a lot less limited if he can acquire a good young shortstop in a separate deal.

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