Headlines

Go To Pro Hockey Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Mariners Rumors

Pitching Links: Edwin, Marlins, Saunders, Felix

By | at

Here's the latest on the arms race from around the majors…

  • Edwin Jackson and John Danks have comparable numbers over the last three years, which is why Mike Axisa of the River Ave Blues blog thinks Scott Boras will use Danks' recent extension with the White Sox as a model for Jackson in free agency.  "Now I know hearing five years and $65M+ for Jackson is a little wacky, just because he [doesn't] come off as the type of pitcher deserving of that kind of commitment…but I refuse to bet against Boras," Axisa writes.
  • "Anytime you hear a pitcher's name, you can safely say the Marlins are in," a National League source tells Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald.  Matt Garza, Roy Oswalt, Wandy Rodriguez and Joe Saunders are all mentioned as possibilities for the Fish, though if the Marlins didn't have the minor league talent to acquire Gio Gonzalez and Mat Latos, it's hard to see them being able to deal for Garza.  Rodriguez is a possibility since I'd guess Houston's larger concern is getting his salary off the books rather than obtaining a large haul of prospects.
  • Speaking of Saunders, he talked to Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic about the negotiations between he and the Diamondbacks.  Arizona offered Saunders a two-year, $12MM deal and Saunders' camp countered with a three-year, $27MM deal.  The D'Backs never made a counter, and though Saunders said he then offered to take a two-year contract worth around $16MM, the club non-tendered him and moved on.  I've got to side with the D'Backs in this case — with the rest of their rotation so cost-controlled, if you're going to splurge on a starter, you can spend your money on a better pitcher than Saunders (perhaps Hiroki Kuroda).
  • The Mariners not only shouldn't trade Felix Hernandez, argues Shannon Drayer of ESPN 710 Seattle, but if the team absolutely feels the need to swap a starter, they should deal Michael Pineda instead.  Dreyer calls Pineda "replaceable…There is a very good chance that by the end of next season Danny Hultzen could be Michael Pineda on the hill in regards to development, path, and what he brings to the rotation."
  • Kevin Goldstein of ESPN (Insider subscription required) presented 10 Major League scouts and executives with a field of Matt Garza, Zack Greinke, Ian Kennedy, Ricky Nolasco and Justin Verlander and asked the question, "Based on talent alone, would you take Yu Darvish ahead of this pitcher?"  Aside from the Verlander comparison, Rangers fans will heartily enjoy the other answers.

A’s Talking Gio Gonzalez, Andrew Bailey

By | at

3:02pm: Rival executives say the Nationals have the best chance at obtaining Gonzalez and some believe Danny Espinosa or Ian Desmond could be in play, according to Heyman.

2:44pm: The Red Sox are trying to get Gonzalez and Bailey in a "monster deal," tweets Rosenthal. The Rays are also in on Bailey and the Nationals are the team to beat on Gonzalez, Rosenthal reports.

2:20pm: The Red Sox are still discussing both Andrew Bailey and Gonzalez with the Athletics, tweets Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe. The Red Sox "obviously won't get both," Cafardo writes.

2:14pm: It looks like the Nationals and Red Sox are the finalists for Gonzalez, tweets Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com. Peter Gammons of MLB Network tweets that the Red Sox or Nationals will likely acquire Gonzalez today. Both Heyman and Gammons suggest the Nationals are the favorites to obtain the left-hander.

1:10pm: The A's are moving closer to a Gio Gonzalez trade, according to ESPN.com's Buster Olney (all links go to Twitter). The bidding is down to two teams, one of which is the Nationals. The Marlins and Red Sox may also be involved, but the Rangers are not. The Yankees and A's never built momentum toward a deal involving Gonzalez, Olney reports. The Mariners had discussed Gonzalez and it's not clear if they're involved in the current trade talks.

The Nationals are believed to be willing to include multiple top prospects for Gonzalez, according to Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com. Prospects such as Brad Peacock, Destin Hood, Eury Perez and A.J. Cole could be available to the Athletics. Derek Norris is in the discussion, Olney writes.

Gonzalez is under team control through 2015 and has reached the 200-inning plateau in each of the past two seasons without posting an ERA above 3.23. However, no MLB pitcher has walked more opponents in the past two seasons than Gonzalez and he's about to get expensive through arbitration (projected 2012 salary of $4.2MM).

Pitching Rumors: Red Sox, Felix, Giants, Jurrjens

By | at

The Nationals, Red Sox, Marlins, Blue Jays, Royals, Tigers, Mariners, Yankees and Orioles are among the teams still looking to add one or more starting pitchers this offseason, according to Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com. Here are more details on the market for starting pitching:

  • The Red Sox are “in on everybody,” Knobler reports. Peter Gammons of MLB Network confirms that the Red Sox are still looking for starters (Twitter link).
  • Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports makes the case that the Mariners should trade Felix Hernandez this offseason, but Mariners GM Jack Zduriencik disagrees. “I still say, as I’ve said all along, we’ve still got the best young pitcher in the game, and that’s pretty darned good,” Zduriencik said. Rosenthal pointed to the prospects the Padres obtained for Mat Latos and the fact that the AL West has become tougher this offseason.
  • The Giants aren’t looking for a free agent to replace Jonathan Sanchez, but are interested in adding pitchers who are willing to accept minor league contracts, tweets Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle.
  • The Orioles, Red Sox, Blue Jays, Rockies, Tigers and Rangers are among the teams that have expressed some interest in Jair Jurrjens, according to Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com. The Braves have suggested they won’t trade the right-hander within their division.

M’s League May Be Available; Teams Interested

By | at

Some baseball people believe the Mariners are willing to trade closer Brandon League, according to Jon Paul Morosi and Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports.com, and sources say several teams have reached out to Seattle to express interest.

The Dodgers checked in on League during the Winter Meetings, according to the report, although their interest is not believed to be serious at this point.

The Mariners' decision to trade League may be held up by their possible negotiations with Prince Fielder, according to the report, as it could be hard to sell Fielder that they're serious about building a contender while simultaneously trading away a useful veteran coming off his best season.

League, 28, is a projected free agent after the 2012 season. He's eligible for arbitration for the fourth (he's a Super Two) and final time this offseason and is in line to make $4.2MM through that process, according to MLBTR's projected arbitration salaries. He has been a possible trade candidate since popping up in rumors prior to last season's non-waiver trade deadline, although Mariners GM Jack Zduriencik said earlier this offseason that a trade was "not likely at all."

Hiroki Kuroda May Be Nearing Deal

By | at

Yahoo’s Tim Brown heard yesterday that Hiroki Kuroda was close to agreeing to a new contract. However, it’s not clear which team is nearing a deal with the right-hander. Here are the details and more of Brown’s links from around MLB:

  • The Mariners, Diamondbacks, Rockies, Rangers, Red Sox and Yankees were among the teams that informed Brown they were not the team nearing a deal with Kuroda.
  • The Dodgers didn’t scout Yoenis Cespedes in earnest or consider bidding on Yu Darvish, Brown reports. It cost the Rangers $51.7MM for the rights to negotiate with Darvish and Cespedes figures to cost tens of millions as well, so the players are too expensive for the cash-strapped Dodgers to consider.
  • Carlos Beltran figures to agree to terms by Sunday. His market includes the Cardinals, Blue Jays, Red Sox and a fourth team, possibly the Rays. Beltran is weighing two and three-year offers, Brown reports.

Mets Interested In Eric Young Jr.

By | at

The Mets have expressed interest in Eric Young Jr. of the Rockies, according to Adam Rubin of ESPNNewYork.com. Rubin's source indicated that the Mets may be able to obtain Young by sending Justin Turner to Colorado and that the teams continue discussing Jon Niese. However, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com tweets that Turner's name hasn't come up yet.

Young, 26, has a .246/.324/.295 line with 15 extra base hits in 479 career plate appearances in three stints at the Major League level as an outfielder and second baseman. The Rockies' plans at second remain unclear, but the outfield has become crowded with the recent additions of Tyler Colvin and Michael Cuddyer.

The Rockies nearly traded Young to the Mariners during the Winter Meetings, according to Troy Renck of the Denver Post (on Twitter). All signs point to a trade involving Young before Spring Training, Renck reports.

Quick Hits: Mariners, Rockies, Indians, Rangers

By | at

Two years ago, the White Sox acquired Juan Pierre from the Dodgers in what was only the second-most memorable trade of the day. The day's other deal saw the Mariners and Cubs swap bad contracts, with Carlos Silva heading to Chicago in exchange for Milton Bradley. We can only hope this year's December 18th will be as eventful. For now, here are a few links from around the league…

Mariners Close To Signing George Sherrill

By | at

The Mariners are close to signing left-hander George Sherrill to a one-year deal, reports Geoff Baker of The Seattle Times. Jason Churchill of Prospect Insider first reported that the two sides were close to a deal (on Twitter), saying it's worth $1.1MM plus incentives. The contract is pending a physical, and an announcement could come early next week.

Sherrill, 34, originally broke into the big leagues with the Mariners in 2004 after spending time with four different independent league teams. He was part of the trade that sent Adam Jones, Chris Tillman, and others to Baltimore for Erik Bedard before the 2008 season, but he spent last season with the Braves. Sherrill held left-handed batters to a .256/.275/.333 batting line with 32 strikeouts and just one walk in 81 plate appearances in 2011.

This post was originally published on December 17th.

Prince Fielder Rumors: Friday

By | at

The Cubs are the early front-runners to sign Prince Fielder, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. But in the words of one executive, agent Scott Boras can usually “pull a rabbit out of his hat” for his top free agent clients, so other teams are very much in the mix for the 27-year-old free agent. Here’s the latest:

  • Cubs manager Dale Sveum says the team hasn't had conversations with Fielder, according to Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune (on Twitter). Sveum says the Cubs "haven't initiated any contact at all," according to Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times (on Twitter).
  • It looks like the Cubs and Mariners are Fielder’s most serious suitors, Rosenthal reports. 
  • The Cubs don’t want to give Fielder a ten-year deal and would be more comfortable with a six or seven-year term, according to Rosenthal.
  • The Rangers and Marlins won’t bid on Fielder, according to Rosenthal’s sources. The Orioles may only be a viable suitor for Fielder if he lacks other options.
  • Boras wants an opt-out clause for Fielder, Rosenthal reports.
Show all

MLB Trade Rumors is not affiliated with Major League Baseball, MLB or MLB.com

Do not Sell or Share My Personal Information

hide arrows scroll to top