AL East Links: Montero, Kuroda, Red Sox, Yankees
Here's the latest from the AL East, starting with an update on two pending moves involving the Yankees…
- Jesus Montero is dealing with a passport or visa issue at the moment and is unable to travel to Seattle for his physical, reports Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. Once that is resolved, the trade sending him and Hector Noesi from the Yankees to the Mariners for Michael Pineda and Jose Campos will be made official.
- Bob Klapisch of The Bergen Record says (on Twitter) that Hiroki Kuroda is still in Japan, so he has yet to take his physical and finalize his one-year contract with the Yankees. Klapisch adds that like Montero, Campos is stuck in Venezuela at the moment.
- Red Sox GM Ben Cherington indicated to MLB.com's Ian Browne that the team is unlikely to make any big changes to the roster before Spring Training. "If Spring Training were to start tomorrow, we'd feel good about where we are and [we'd be] ready to put the team together," said the GM.
- Though the Yankees currently have $1-2MM to spend on a designated hitter, they could free up cash by dealing A.J. Burnett, Jon Heyman of CBS Sports tweets. Burnett has $33MM remaining on his contract, and it would be a surprise if the Yankees free up more than $10MM via trade.
- Newsday's Ken Davidoff suggests Raul Ibanez might be the best DH option for the Yankees, assuming Johnny Damon signs with a team that can offer more plate appearances.
- Steve Melewski of MASNSports.com reports that former Oriole Brady Anderson was named special assistant to Orioles GM Dan Duquette today. Melewski also lists some changes in the responsibilities handled by other front office employees.
Ben Nicholson-Smith contributed to this post.
AL West Notes: Fielder, Angels, Darvish, Perez
The Athletics signed Brian Fuentes to a two-year, $10.5MM contract on this date last year. The veteran left-hander posted a 3.70 ERA with 6.5 K/9, 3.1 BB/9 and a 36.7% ground ball rate in 58 1/3 innings for the A's and is set to earn $5MM this coming season. Here are the latest links from the AL West…
- The Rangers want Prince Fielder to go along with Yu Darvish, but are wary of saying so publicly, Bob Nightengale of USA Today writes. Though they don’t want to offer an Albert Pujols-like $240MM deal, they’d like to sign Fielder, the top free agent remaining.
- The Angels are likely to add a late-inning reliever before Opening Day, Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports tweets. Francisco Cordero and Brad Lidge are among the relievers who have been linked to the Angels this month.
- The Mariners, who signed Oliver Perez yesterday, view the lefty as a reliever, Morosi of FOX Sports tweets.
- Mike DiGiovanna of the LA Times explains that before Darvish turned pro, the Angels were willing to offer a lucrative bonus to lure him to MLB. The Dodgers had been scouting Darvish since he was 15 and Tommy Lasorda was intrigued by the right-hander’s stuff.
- The A's are shopping first baseman Brandon Allen, Jerry Crasnick reported this morning.
Mariners Sign Oliver Perez
The Mariners signed left-hander Oliver Perez to a minor league deal that includes an invitation to Spring Training, the team announced. The Boras Corporation represents the 30-year-old, who didn't pitch in the Major Leagues in 2011.
Perez struck out 239 batters with a 2.98 ERA as a 22-year-old in 2004. After he struggled with his command for two seasons, the Pirates traded him to the Mets for Xavier Nady. Perez posted a 3.91 ERA with 8.6 K/9 and 4.5 BB/9 in 371 innings from 2007-08 and the Mets signed him to a regrettable three-year, $36MM contract. They got just 112 1/3 innings of 6.81 ERA ball out of the investment before releasing Perez last March.
Perez pitched 75 2/3 solid innings for the Nationals' Double-A club in 2011. He finished the season with a 3.09 ERA, 6.9 K/9 and 3.2 BB/9 in 15 starts.
Players Avoiding Arbitration: Tuesday
Dozens of arbitration eligible players have agreed to deals with their respective teams today and we've been tracking all of the developments right here. Several teams, including the Rays, Nationals, Marlins, White Sox, Blue Jays, Braves, and perhaps Astros, are known for committing to going to hearings if they get to the point of filing. Keep track of all the madness with MLBTR's arbitration tracker, which shows settlement amounts, filing figures, and midpoints. Today's players to avoid arbitration on deals worth less than $4MM:
- The Cardinals avoided arbitration with pitcher Kyle McClellan, tweets B.J. Rains of FOX Sports Midwest. Joe Strauss of The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports (on Twitter) that the one-year deal is worth $2.5MM with incentives based on starts. MLBTR projected a $2.7MM for the Steve Comte client.
- MLBTR's Ben Nicholson-Smith reports (on Twitter) that the Padres and Chase Headley agreed to a one-year deal worth $3.475MM, avoiding arbitration. Earlier this evening, the Padres announced that they avoided arbitration with Luke Gregerson, Edinson Volquez, Carlos Quentin and Will Venable. They also avoided arbitration with lefty reliever Joe Thatcher on a deal worth $700K, tweets Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. CAA announced catcher John Baker has signed for $750K. Bill Center of the San Diego Union-Tribune first reported that the Padres reached agreements with Hundley, Chase Headley, and Tim Stauffer. Hundley will earn $2MM in 2012, MLB.com's Corey Brock tweets. Dan Hayes of the North County Times tweets the salaries for Volquez ($2.2375MM), Venable ($1.475MM), Gregerson ($1.55MM)
- The Rangers avoided arbitration with Matt Harrison, tweets Evan Grant of The Dallas Morning News. The ACES client gets $2.95MM on a one-year deal. MLBTR had projected a $2.9MM salary.
- The Cubs announced that they have avoided arbitration with Jeff Baker ($1.375MM), Blake DeWitt ($1.1MM), Ian Stewart ($2.237MM) Chris Volstad ($2.655MM), and Randy Wells ($2.705MM). MLB.com's Carrie Muskat tweeted the salary figures.
Mariners Avoid Arbitration With Jason Vargas
The Mariners avoided arbitration with starter Jason Vargas on a deal worth $4.85MM, announced his agency CAA. The Mariners have signed all of their arbitration eligible players.
Mariners Avoid Arbitration With Brandon League
The Mariners avoided arbitration with closer Brandon League, agreeing to a $5MM deal, tweets Jon Heyman of CBS Sports. Matt Swartz had projected $4.2MM for the ACES client. League will be eligible for free agency after the 2012 season.
As our arbitration tracker shows, the Mariners have Jason Vargas and Shawn Kelley remaining.
Olney’s Latest: Montero, Cespedes, Indians
Last night's news was highlighted by the Yankees' signing of Hiroki Kuroda and the four-player trade that sent Jesus Montero and Hector Noesi to the Mariners in exchange for Michael Pineda and Jose Campos. ESPN's Buster Olney tweets that it might not be until next week that the trade is announced (as teams wait for completion of physicals), and opines that it may be the Blue Jays who are hurt most by this trade, as their rotation once again looks too thin to compete in the AL East. Here's a look at the highlights from Olney's latest blog (ESPN Insider required)…
- Both the Yankees and Mariners believe that Montero will be able to stick at catcher, which many in the industry feel is a must in order for the trade to make sense for Seattle.
- One executive posed the question: "Why is Yoenis Cespedes playing in any Winter ball games?" Olney says Cespedes' first few games have looked rough, as he hasn't played for a long time. With questions about his ability to pick up a breaking ball, he could potentially hurt his value with a poor showing, and doesn't stand to gain much if he plays well.
- The Indians seem to be in position to land a good first baseman, writes Olney. Casey Kotchman, Carlos Pena, and Derrek Lee all remain unsigned, and if the Nationals sign Prince Fielder, Adam LaRoche will become available as well. Olney points out that all four are regarded as good fielders, which is crucial to Cleveland's groundball staff (Justin Masterson, Derek Lowe, and Fausto Carmona are all extreme groundball pitchers). Olney writes that there were indications earlier this offseason that Lee did not want to play for the Tribe.
- With the Diamondbacks showing interest in Bartolo Colon, GM Kevin Towers, who spent a year working for the Yankees, will "presumably get an honest read about what [the Yankees] feel Colon could contribute."
East Notes: Red Sox, Maddon, Wright, Orioles
We know it's been quite the busy day for New York baseball, but let's see what else is happening in both the AL and NL East…
- The Yankees' big acquisitions of Hiroki Kuroda and Michael Pineda could mean the Red Sox may have to counter by signing Roy Oswalt or getting involved in the Matt Garza trade market, writes Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe.
- The Red Sox were interested in Kuroda but couldn't sign him without finding payroll space via another roster move, reports WEEI.com's Rob Bradford. Bradford also notes the Sox wouldn't have been able to outbid the Yankees for Pineda since the Mariners didn't value any of Boston's prospects as much as they valued Jesus Montero.
- The Red Sox and Yankees were both talking to the Mariners about a Felix Hernandez trade but the M's weren't interested, reports Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com (Twitter link).
- Joe Maddon's increasingly likely contract extension with the Rays may not be worked out until the manager returns in late January from a European vacation, reports Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times (Twitter link).
- Mets third baseman David Wright said "it's going to be a pain" listening to his name come up in trade rumors all summer, during an interview with Cliff Floyd and Mike Ferrin of Sirius XM Radio. ESPN New York's Adam Rubin has a partial transcript of the interview.
- The Orioles have not had "substantive talks" with the Cubs about Alfonso Soriano, tweets Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports.
- Eduardo A. Encina of the Baltimore Sun looks at some of the Orioles' remaining free agent possibilities.
- Braves GM Frank Wren tells David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution (Twitter link) that he doesn't expect to make a trade before Spring Training. "Every day that goes by it’s probably less likely. It doesn’t mean you stop trying," Wren said.
Analysis And Background Of The Montero/Pineda Deal
It's not every day that two of baseball's best young stars are swapped for each other, but the Mariners and Yankees pulled off just such a deal today, as Jesus Montero and Hector Noesi went to Seattle in exchange for Michael Pineda and Jose Campos. Here is some of the early reaction to this stunning trade, plus some information on how the deal came together…
- "The risk for both clubs is low. The reward for both clubs is outstanding. This could be a transformational deal that will have fans of both clubs buzzing about for a long time," writes MLB.com's Bernie Pleskoff.
- Replacing pitching via minor leaguers or the free agent market is far easier than attracting top-caliber hitters in Seattle, notes MLB.com's Greg Johns.
- Mike Salk of ESPN 710 Radio in Seattle outlines the reasons why he "loves" the deal for the Mariners. Also from Salk (on Twitter), he hears from "a non-M's baseball guy" who believes Noesi is a better long-term option than Pineda.
- The trade makes the Yankees the favorites in the AL East, writes Scott Miller of CBSSports.com. Miller talks to two scouts who rave about the Yankees' sudden surplus of young pitching that also includes Dellin Betances and Manny Banuelos.
- Dave Cameron of the U.S.S. Mariner blog sees Montero as developing into a Carlos Lee-type of hitter who is productive but not quite a superstar. Cameron thinks the deal will look better for the Mariners if they were to sign a free agent starter like Roy Oswalt or Edwin Jackson, since then the team would have Montero's bat plus a pitcher that could match Pineda's production.
- Yankees GM Brian Cashman feels he took a "huge risk" with the trade, reports The Record's Bob Klapisch (via Twitter). "I gave up a ton (for Pineda)," Cashman said. "To me, Montero is Mike Piazza. He's Miguel Cabrera."
- "Some execs from other AL East teams believe Yankees just made an incredible trade," tweets ESPN's Buster Olney.
- The two teams were "talking for weeks" about the deal, reports Joel Sherman of the New York Post (Twitter link). Each side told the other that they had limited funds to address their needs.
- The Yankees initially tried to acquire Felix Hernandez from the Mariners, reports Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com (via Twitter) and were willing to offer a package that included Montero, Betances, Banuelos and more.
Mariners Close To Deal For “Young Impact Hitter”
6:36pm: The trade could involve Michael Pineda and Yankees prospect Jesus Montero, as Larry Stone of the Seattle Times has heard "rumblings in that direction" (Twitter link).
6:06pm: The Mariners have moved closer to a trade that would net them a "young impact hitter," reports ESPN's Jerry Crasnick. A source calls the trade "significant" and says Brandon League is not part of the deal (both links via Twitter).