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Mariners, Angels To Swap Morales, Vargas

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Two AL West rivals have agreed to exchange prominent players in a deal that will address major needs for both clubs. The Mariners and Angels have agreed to a trade that will send Kendrys Morales to Seattle for left-hander Jason Vargas, the Mariners announced.

Kendrys Morales - Angels (PW)

Angels GM Jerry Dipoto had been hoping to obtain an innings eater for Morales, and that's precisely what he's getting in Vargas. The 29-year-old has completed at least 192 innings in each of the past three seasons. He pitched 217 1/3 innings this past season, posting a 3.85 ERA with 5.8 K/9, 2.3 BB/9 and a 40.2% ground ball rate. He joins a rotation that will include Jered Weaver, C.J. Wilson, Joe Blanton and Tommy Hanson. Garrett Richards now projects as the team's sixth starter.

Vargas will go to arbitration for the third and final time this offseason and remains on track to hit free agency one year from now. MLBTR projects a 2013 salary of $7.4MM for Vargas, a CAA Sports client.

Vargas, a fly ball pitcher like Weaver, will have a fleet-footed outfield of Mike Trout, Peter Bourjos and Josh Hamilton covering lots of ground behind him. Mark Trumbo now projects as the Angels' designated hitter. Though Bourjos and Trumbo also surfaced in trade rumors after the Angels signed Hamilton, it now seems likely that they'll stay put.

Morales, who is also one year away from free agency, projects to earn $4.8MM in 2013. He'll add some offense to a Mariners lineup that finished last in the American League in runs scored in 2012. The 29-year-old posted a .273/.320/.467 batting line with 22 home runs and 26 doubles in 522 plate appearances for the Angels this past season after missing the entire 2011 campaign with a leg injury.

The addition of Morales could cost Justin Smoak playing time, assuming the Mariners find a way to get Jesus Montero into the starting lineup most days. The Mariners' rotation will include Felix Hernandez, Hisashi Iwakuma, Blake Beavan and, potentially, promising young arms such as Erasmo Ramirez, James Paxton and Danny Hultzen. It's possible GM Jack Zduriencik will add a veteran arm, MLB.com's Greg Johns suggests (on Twitter).

Alden Gonzalez of MLB.com first reported the trade (on Twitter). Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Mariners Notes: Swisher, Bourn, Prospects

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Here's the latest from the Pacific Northwest…

  • The Mariners should try something "bold and imaginative" to bring a major hitter to Seattle, such as trading top prospects for a big bat like Curtis Granderson, Andre Ethier, Carlos Gonzalez or Giancarlo Stanton, FOX Sports' Ken Rosenthal writes.
  • Nick Swisher visited Cleveland earlier today to meet with Indians executives and is headed to visit another city, but CBS Sports' Jon Heyman (via Twitter) reports that "the Swisher tour" will not stop in Seattle.  The M's would have to give up their first-round pick in next year's draft (No. 12 overall) as compensation for signing a free agent who has declined a qualifying offer from their former team.  Heyman tweets that the Mariners aren't willing to sacrifice their pick for Swisher but could do it for "a bigger free agent than Swisher."  Michael Bourn seems to be the only free agent left on the market who fits that criteria.
  • If the Mariners had $25MM earmarked for Josh Hamilton, Larry Stone of the Seattle Times points out that the club could use that money to sign Bourn and still have enough payroll left to acquire Michael Morse from the Nationals.
  • The trade value of elite prospects seems to be dropping, writes Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times, thus hurting the Mariners' chances of using their top minor leaguers as trade chips to acquire proven big league talent.
  • Speaking of those Seattle minor leaguers,  Fangraphs' Marc Hulet runs down his list of the top 15 prospects in the Mariners' system.  "Unlike a lot of the top systems in the game, the bulk of Seattle’s talent is at the Double-A and Triple-A level suggesting better days are ahead for the Mariners and their fans," Hulet writes.

At Least Five Teams Interested In J.P. Howell

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The Nationals, Phillies, Cubs, Mariners and Rangers are all interested in free agent reliever J.P. Howell, reports MLB.com's Bill Ladson.  Howell said last month that "a handful" of teams were pursuing him, and Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times speculated that the Angels could be one of those suitors.  The Brewers were also known to be looking for left-handed relief help, though Howell was not one of the names recently mentioned as targets by Milwaukee GM Doug Melvin.

Howell posted strong numbers out of the Rays' bullpen in 2008-09 before missing the entire 2010 season due to shoulder surgery and struggling to a 6.16 ERA in 30 2/3 innings in 2011.  The southpaw returned to form in 2012, however, posting a 3.04 ERA, 1.91 K/BB ratio, 7.5 K/9 rate and 48.9% groundball rate, though some advanced metrics (4.78 FIP and a .250 BABIP) indicate that Howell benefited from some good fortune. 

The Legacy Sports Group client has held left-handed batters to a .675 OPS in his career, topping that mark in 2012 when lefty hitters managed only a .200/.306/.306 slash line.

Phillies Claim Mauricio Robles

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The Phillies announced that they claimed Mauricio Robles off of waivers from the Mariners. Seattle had designated the left-hander for assignment six days ago.

Robles, 23, posted a 5.78 ERA with 8.7 K/9 and 7.9 BB/9 in 43 total games in the upper minors this past season. In parts of seven minor league seasons he has a 4.15 ERA with 9.4 K/9 and 5.3 BB/9. The Phillies already have left-handed relievers such as Antonio Bastardo, Jeremy Horst and Raul Valdes on their 40-man roster.

Fallout And Impact Of The Josh Hamilton Signing

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Here's the latest on how Josh Hamilton's agreement with the Angels will affect several other players and teams all around the league, including how close some other teams came to signing the free agent slugger themselves…

  • The Rangers have told Geovany Soto he'll be their everyday catcher in 2013, but ESPN's Buster Olney wonders if the Rangers could now pursue free agent backstop A.J. Pierzynski.  Also from Olney, rival evaluators are speculating that the Rangers might now be the best fit for Nick Swisher (both links are to Olney's Twitter account).
  • The Mariners "badly wanted" Hamilton, which means the Angels disappointed two of their AL West rivals today, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com reports (on Twitter).  MLB.com's Greg Johns hears that the M's were heavily courting Hamilton and "had strong hopes" he would sign with them.
  • The Red Sox had interest in Hamilton but weren't willing to offer a contract longer than three years, reports WEEI.com's Rob Bradford.
  • The Phillies were similarly not interested in Hamilton at such a high price, writes Matt Gelb of the Philadelphia Inquirer.  Hamilton's signing could increase interest in other free agent outfielders like Swisher and Cody Ross, thus possibly pricing the Phillies out of the market and forcing them to turn their attention to acquiring pitching instead.
  • The Marlins could reverse their stance on trading Giancarlo Stanton, opines MLB.com's Joe Frisaro, if the Rangers are desperate to add another big bat and were willing to offer Jurickson Profar or Mike Olt in a deal.  Frisaro also thinks Miami could be a trade match with the Angels as Peter Bourjos "has been on the Marlins' radar for a while."
  • Fangraphs' Dave Cameron breaks down the value of Mark Trumbo, Kendrys Morales and Bourjos both to the Angels and on the trade market.
  • Bourjos, for his part, tells MLB.com's Alden Gonzalez that he wants to remain in Anaheim and enjoys being an Angel, though he also wants to be an everyday player.
  • ESPN's Keith Law doesn't see Hamilton providing much value in the last two years of his contract, though his signing "makes more sense" if the Angels trade some roster depth to fill the holes in their rotation.  Law also notes that Michael Bourn appears to be running out of suitors, and speculates that Bourn could look for a one-year deal now and then look for a big multiyear contract next winter.
  • Early today, we looked at rumors concerning the possibility of the Angels and Mets working out a trade involving R.A. Dickey.

MLBTR's Ben Nicholson-Smith also contributed to this post

Josh Hamilton Rumors: Thursday

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Yesterday Texas GM Jon Daniels said the Rangers remain interested in Josh Hamilton. "We want Josh back and always have," Daniels said. They're not the only team eyeing the free agent outfielder. Here's the latest, the the most recent items up top…

  • The Mariners are among the other teams showing interest in Hamilton, and they appear to be willing to offer a deal of four years or more, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com reports. However, they’re still viewed as an outsider by rival executives. It’s not clear if the Mariners have made Hamilton an official offer.
  • Rival officials suggest to Heyman that the chances of Hamilton re-signing with the Rangers appear to have increased in recent days. Meanwhile, there’s little evidence that the Brewers and Red Sox have seriously pursued Hamilton recently.

Indians In “Aggressive Pursuit” Of Nick Swisher

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The Indians are in "aggressive pursuit" of Nick Swisher in the wake of the Shin-Soo Choo trade, reports ESPN's Jim Bowden (Twitter links). Mark Feinsand of The New York Daily News says the Red Sox, Phillies, Mariners, Rangers, and Orioles have interest in the free agent switch-hitter as well.

Swisher, 32, hit .272/.364/.473 with 24 homers for the Yankees this season. It was his seventh consecutive season of 145+ games played and 22+ homers, one of only three big leaguers who can make that claim. MLBTR's Tim Dierkes ranked Swisher as the sixth best free agent available this offseason, predicting he would sign with Baltimore.

NL East Notes: Braves, Nationals, Phillies

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Here are the latest links from the NL East…

  • The Braves made an “aggressive” offer for Shin-Soo Choo before the Reds acquired him, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reports (on Twitter). The Mariners were also involved, but their offer wasn’t as strong.
  • Nationals manager Davey Johnson said he has received “positive signs” from GM Mike Rizzo that Washington will re-sign free agent first baseman Adam LaRoche before Christmas, Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post reports (on Twitter).
  • The Phillies and Brewers were in on Sean Burnett before he signed with the Angels, Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports reports (all Twitter links). Morosi wonders if this means the Phillies would be willing to move a left-handed reliever. It's possible Antonio Bastardo, Jeremy Horst and Raul Valdes would have become trade candidates if the Phillies had signed Burnett.
  • Here's the latest on the Mets and R.A. Dickey.

Tigers, Mariners Discussed Boesch

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The Tigers and Mariners have had preliminary trade talks about a potential deal that would send Brennan Boesch to Seattle, Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports reports. Danny Knobler of CBSSports reported during the Winter Meetings that the Mariners have some interest in Boesch.

The teams aren’t close to a trade, Morosi reports. However, Boesch remains an option for Seattle. The Tigers might seek left-handed relief in a deal for the outfielder, Morosi suggests.

Boesch appeared in 132 games for the Tigers this past season, posting a .240/.286/.372 batting line with 12 home runs in 503 plate appearances. The left-handed hitting 27-year-old will go to arbitration for the first time this offseason. He has a projected salary of $2.1MM for 2013.

Olney On Wilson, Bourn, Indians, Red Sox

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One AL GM said the Indians got “incredible value” for Shin-Soo Choo by obtaining Trevor Bauer in last night’s three-team trade, ESPN.com’s Buster Olney reports. While evaluators love Didi Gregorius’ glove, they wonder if the Diamondbacks’ new infielder will hit enough to merit an everyday job. Here's the latest from Olney (some Twitter links)…

  • Free agent right-hander Brian Wilson is expected to have opportunities to close, Olney writes. The Giants non-tendered their longtime closer last month, making him a free agent.
  • Agents and executives wonder what will happen with free agent center fielder Michael Bourn, Olney reports(on Twitter). In my view the Rangers and Mariners appear to be two possible destinations for the Scott Boras client.
  • The Indians could still trade Asdrubal Cabrera, Justin Masterson and Vinnie Pestano, as Olney points out (on Twitter). There’s “not much action” on Chris Perez, however.
  • Some evaluators say the Red Sox are poised to move on the pitching market as prices drop, according to Olney(on Twitter). GM Ben Cherington figures to add starting pitching depth at some point, as his projected rotation consists of Jon Lester, Clay Buchholz, Felix Doubront, John Lackey and Franklin Morales.
  • It’s apparent that the Mariners aren’t the top choice of the best free agent hitters. Olney suggests Seattle will end up signing a leftover player, though they’re pressing to land someone of note.
  • Phillies officials have privately maintained that they’d be prepared to offer Josh Hamilton a three-year deal.
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