Melky Cabrera Suspended For Positive PED Test
Giants outfielder Melky Cabrera has been suspended 50 games after testing positive for a performance-enhancing drug, reports ESPN's Jorge Arangure (on Twitter). MLB has confirmed both the suspension and that substance was testosterone. The suspension takes effect immediately and will cost him the rest of the season.
"My positive test was the result of my use of a substance I should not have used," said Cabrera through a statement, courtesy of Hank Schulman of The San Francisco Chronicle (on Sulia). "I accept my suspension under the Joint Drug Program and will try to move on with my life. I am deeply sorry for my mistake and I apologize to my teammates, to the San Francisco Giants organization and to the fans for letting them down."
Cabrera, 28, was in the middle of a breakout season and is scheduled to hit free agency this coming winter. Both Melky and the team recently agreed to put contract extension talks on hold. Cabrera hit .346/.390/.516 with 11 homers in 501 plate appearances during his first season in San Francisco, earning him his first All-Star Game nomination.
Ryan Braun was suspended for a failed PED test this past offseason but successfully appealed and did not miss any games. Cabrera will not do the same based on his statement. He was set to hit the open market as one of the most coveted free agents available due to his age and production, but the suspension will surely impact his next contract, perhaps in a real big way.
Andrew Baggarly of CSNBayArea.com confirmed that Cabrera will be eligible to play in the postseason once his suspension is over (Twitter link). He would have to miss his team's first four games, however. The Giants are currently tied atop the NL West with the Dodgers at 64-53.
Quick Hits: Lowe, Padres, Hairston, Twins, Tigers
Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com notes (on Twitter) that the MLB owners meetings will be held in Denver later this week. They are expected to vote on the sale of the Padres, but the Athletics/Giants/San Jose issue is unlikely to be resolved. Here's the latest from around the league…
- The Giants, Orioles, Phillies, and Red Sox all had interest in Derek Lowe before he signed with the Yankees, tweets Danny Knobler of CBS Sports.
- The Mets have not yet put Scott Hairston on trade waivers, reports Ken Davidoff of The New York Post. Davidoff argues that the Amazin's should trade the outfielder this month.
- Phil Mackey of 1500ESPN.com says that it's lazy to blame the Twins' struggles on their payroll, particularly the $23MM owed to Joe Mauer on an annual basis.
- Josh Slagter of mLive.com says the Tigers should give top prospect Nick Castellanos a shot, similar to how the Orioles used Manny Machado to bolster their lineup.
- In today's Insider-only blog post, ESPN's Buster Olney mentions that he's heard Mark Kotsay's name pop-up as a future big league manager. The Padres signed the veteran to a one-year extension yesterday, so he's not ready to transition to coaching just yet.
Extension Candidate: Buster Posey
The first order of business for Buster Posey this season was to prove himself healthy following a 2011 campaign cut short after 45 games due to a fractured fibula. Not only did that home plate collision with Scott Cousins cost Posey most of a season, it also may have cost him some money in the short-term, as the Giants may have wished to quickly sign him to a multiyear extension. 
Ironically, Posey's injury may make him a wealthier man in the long-term. Posey had a .756 OPS when he was injured in 2011, so supposing he'd stayed healthy and stayed at that more modest number (call it a sophomore slump), the Giants might have been able to sign Posey to an extension akin to Carlos Santana's five-year, $21MM deal with the Indians.
That scenario will remain a hypothetical, however, as Posey has returned from injury with an MVP-caliber .328/.394/.542 batting line and 18 home runs over 409 plate appearances entering Wednesday's action. This performance has only strengthened Posey's case as the best-hitting catcher in the game and now he'll have an even higher price tag should the Giants look to lock him up.
Posey will reach arbitration for the first time this winter and he'll have four arb years in total as a Super Two player, leaving him under Giants control through the 2016 season. MLBTR's Ben Nicholson-Smith opined that Posey would likely be in line for a salary between $2-$3MM for 2013, and at Posey's current rate of production, I'd guess that $3MM will be at the low end of his 2013 salary.
The Super Two status makes Posey a unique case, as while several notable catchers (such as Santana, Brian McCann, Yadier Molina and Joe Mauer) have signed extensions that covered their arb years, none of these players had that fourth year of arbitration. Also, none of these players signed their extensions with between 2-3 years of MLB service, as Posey will have at the conclusion of this season.
Perhaps the closest comparison is Mauer, who signed a four-year, $33MM extension with the Twins before the 2007 season that covered his three arb years and his first free agent season. Mauer had a career line of .321/.399/.471 with 28 homers through his first 1284 plate appearances before signing his extension; Posey currently has a a 307/.369/.492 career line and 40 homers through 1054 plate appearances and should make up that gap in PAs by the end of the season.
Mauer's deal broke down as $20.5MM for his three arb years and $12.5MM for his first year of free agency. If we use $3MM as the baseline for Posey's 2013 salary, I could see the Giants offering something like a five-year deal worth around $47MM for their star catcher. The salaries would break down as $3MM in 2013, $6MM in 2014, $9MM in 2015 and $12MM for 2016 to cover the arb years, and Posey would then earn $17MM for the 2017 season, which would've been his first free agent year. Posey will turn 31 years old in March 2018, so he'd still be young enough to net another big contract in free agency.
There's also the possibility that Posey and agent Jeff Berry would look to go even longer-term in San Francisco. A seven-year deal — worth $17MM and $20MM, respectively, for 2018 and 2019 — would bring the total value to $84MM. That's a big contract for any player and especially for a catcher, though the Giants have already looked to keep Posey fresh with occasional starts at first base. If Posey can keep up his current .935 OPS, that's certainly enough pop to play at first base (particularly at AT&T Park) and be worthy of that type of major financial commitment.
A seven-year, $84MM contract would be the third-most expensive deal ever given to a catcher, behind Mauer's eight-year, $184MM extension with the Twins and Mike Piazza's seven-year, $91MM deal with the Mets from 1999-2005.
Since the Giants do have four years of control to work with, it's possible they just settle on a one-year deal with Posey this offseason and save extension talks for a later date. Still, the Giants face some interesting payroll issues — Melky Cabrera will be a free agent and the newly-acquired Hunter Pence is going into his last arb year (the Giants claim to be able to extend both), not to mention potential tough decisions about franchise icons like Tim Lincecum and Brian Wilson. Posey is a player the Giants obviously want in the fold for years to come so they might look to get some cost certainty on his future salaries before looking at other business.
Photo courtesy of Kelley L. Cox/US Presswire
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.
Melky, Giants Agree To Put Extension Talks On Hold
The Giants and Melky Cabrera have agreed to put contract extension talks on hold until after the season, reports Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com. The team is believed to have suggested a three-year deal worth approximately $27MM a few weeks ago, though no official offer was made.
Cabrera, 27, has indicated a willingness to sign with San Francisco long-term and GM Brian Sabean maintains that there is enough financial flexibility to sign both Melky and Hunter Pence. Cabrera is hitting .353/.399/.530 with 11 homers during a breakout All-Star season, and will become a free agent this winter. He figures to one of the most attractive outfielders on the market give his age and production.
West Notes: Oswalt, Giants, Overbay, Dodgers
Rangers pitcher Roy Oswalt was reportedly unhappy about being relegated to the Texas bullpen, leading Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports and others to suggest that the veteran put his concerns aside for the sake of the team. Morosi stopped short of saying that the Rangers should part ways with the veteran, but that notion has undoubtedly crossed the minds of fans who have watched Oswalt struggle this far with his new club. Here’s more out on Oswalt and some items out of the NL West as well..
- Oswalt and Rangers manager Ron Washington met Tuesday and both seemed satisfied that the right-hander is ready to help the bullpen in any way possible, writes Richard Durrett of ESPNDallas.com. The soon-to-be 35-year-old has also said that he never requested a trade from the club during any point of their disagreement.
- The Giants have looked into signing first baseman Lyle Overbay, according to Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle (via Twitter). However, the Giants would like the first baseman to get some work at Triple-A Fresno first and so far he is not eager to do that. Overbay was released by the D’Backs yesterday and Reds GM Walt Jocketty says that he isn’t interested in his services.
- The new Dodgers ownership has made it clear that they are willing to spend big in order to win, and this may just be the tip of the iceberg, writes Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com. Heyman adds that the Dodgers were not only willing to eat the remainder of Cliff Lee‘s sizable contract but offered players in exchange for him as well.
Giants Acquire Jose Mijares
The Giants have claimed left-handed reliever Jose Mijares from Kansas City, the teams announced. Mijares will provide Giants manager Bruce Bochy with a third lefty relief option to go along with Jeremy Affeldt and Javier Lopez.
Mijares has a 2.56 ERA with 8.6 K/9, 3.0 BB/9 and a 33.3% ground ball rate in 38 2/3 innings this year. The 27-year-old earns $925K, will be arbitration eligible following this offseason, and will remain under team control through 2014.
I identified Mijares as a midseason trade candidate in May. However, I wouldn't have predicted he'd go unclaimed by 13 American League teams and a number of National League teams given the season he's having and his modest salary.
Giants To Sign Xavier Nady
The Giants and veteran Xavier Nady have agreed to a minor league contract, club officials told Andrew Baggarly of CSNBayArea.com. Andy Martino of the New York Daily News (via Twitter) first reported that the two sides were close to a deal.
Nady is taking batting practice with the club's Triple-A affiliate tonight and is likely to be activated tomorrow. The Nationals designated Nady for assignment in late July before granting him his unconditional release on Sunday.
The 33-year-old has been out of action since mid-June due to a wrist injury. Before that, Nady had a .157/.211/.275 slash line with three homers in 109 plate appearances for Washington. The veteran had interest from San Francisco over the winter but wound up inking a minor league deal with the Nats in March.
West Notes: Giants, Chavez, Dodgers, A’s
Last night, Dodgers right-hander Chad Billingsley held the Cubs to four hits over seven innings en route to the club's 6-1 victory at home. With Cliff Lee reportedly off the market and Ted Lilly perhaps out for the season, Mark Saxon of ESPNLosAngeles.com writes that the Dodgers will have to bank on more solid pitching out of the 28-year-old. Here's more out of the Western divisions..
- Before the trade deadline, the Giants offered Nate Schierholtz to the Yankees in an effort to land veteran Eric Chavez, according to Buster Olney of ESPN.com (via Twitter). The Giants presumably pursued Chavez prior to acquiring Marco Scutaro, who has been plugged in at third base. Chavez, 34, is hitting .269/.332..486 with ten homers on the year.
- After trading for Joe Blanton and putting a claim in on Lee, the Dodgers continue to show that money is no object, writes Steve Henson of Yahoo Sports. GM Ned Colletti seems to be happy with his newly-found flexibility, but it seems unlikely that the Phillies will part with Lee.
- Catcher Kurt Suzuki was surprised to hear that the Athletics traded him to Washington but the veteran believes that the trade will work out for him as he will play every day, write John Shea and Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle.