Braves Claim Anthony Varvaro
The Braves have claimed Anthony Varvaro off waivers from the Mariners, reports MLB.com's Mark Bowman. Seattle designated the right-hander for assignment to make room on the 40-man roster for Miguel Olivo earlier this month.
Varvaro, 26, made his big league debut this past season, allowing five runs in four innings out of the Mariners' bullpen. The Tommy John surgery survivor pitched to a 4.02 ERA with 10.0 K/9 and 4.8 BB/9 in 65 relief innings at the Double and Triple-A levels in 2010. Baseball America ranked Varvaro as Seattle's 30th best prospect before the 2008 season, noting that he sits in the low-90's with his fastball.
AL West Notes: Mariners, A’s, Daniels, Thome
The four AL West teams averaged 78 wins in 2010. Here's the latest on the A's, Rangers and Mariners as they look to win baseball's smallest division:
- The Mariners are not looking at left fielders at the moment, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (Twitter link).
- The A's issued a statement saying that owner Lew Wolff "has no interest whatsoever in purchasing the Los Angeles Dodgers franchise." Earlier in the week, ESPN.com's Buster Olney speculated that Wolff could be a potential buyer for the Dodgers.
- MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan suggests Rangers execs Nolan Ryan and Chuck Greenberg could discuss an extension with GM Jon Daniels this week. Daniels' contract is up after the season, but he has said he would like to stay in Texas.
- Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News explains how a potential Jim Thome signing would shape the 2011 Rangers. I examined the same issue earlier in the week.
Quick Hits: Rockies, Kouzmanoff, Kennedy
Links for Tuesday night..
- Steve Foster of Inside The Rockies takes a look into his crystal ball and predicts what the Rockies might look like in 2017.
- Carlos Gonzalez never wanted to leave Colorado, writes Jim Armstrong of The Denver Post.
- The talk of Adrian Beltre coming to the Athletics made third baseman Kevin Kouzmanoff a little uneasy, writes Jane Lee of MLB.com.
- Adam Kennedy is happy to be back in the AL West, writes MLB.com's Greg Johns. Kennedy inked a minor league deal with the Mariners yesterday.
Mariners Sign Adam Kennedy
The Mariners signed Adam Kennedy to a minor league deal and invited him to Spring Training, the team announced. Kennedy, who turns 35 today, enters the mix for a utility infield job with Seattle.
I suggested ten days ago that Kennedy would be a good fit for the M's, who also have Josh Wilson and Matt Tuiasosopo in the mix for utility roles. The former first rounder hasn't played shortstop since 2007, but he played everywhere else on the infield for the 2010 Nationals. His .249/.327/.327 batting line wasn't as robust as it was in 2009, when he hit .289/.348/.410 for the A's. To his credit, Kennedy chipped in with 14 steals in 16 attempts and nearly as many walks (37) as strikeouts (44) in 2010.
Seattle GM Jack Zduriencik will likely consider ways of obtaining pitching between now and Spring Training. The Mariners could use relief help, especially now that David Aardsma might not be healthy to open the season. The team could also look to improve its rotation depth.
Quick Hits: Garza, Rays, Aardsma, Iwakuma
On this day last year the Rangers agreed to sign Vladimir Guerrero to a one-year, $5MM deal. In 2011, the veteran continues to look for a home with the Orioles, Angels, and Rays said to be interested. Let's take a look at the batch of links for tonight..
- Jamey Newberg of The Newberg Report is glad that the Rangers didn't overpay to land Matt Garza. The right-hander was shipped to the Cubs in an eight-player deal.
- Speaking of the Garza deal, Dave Cameron writes in a piece for Fangraphs that there's a good chance that the Rays got better in the short term by making the trade.
- Mariners GM Jack Zduriencik told Geoff Baker of The Seattle Times that David Aardsma's hip surgery was more extensive than first thought and the hurler might not be ready by Opening Day. The M's were shopping the 29-year-old for quite some time but now they'll wait even longer to move him.
- In an interview on 1500-ESPN, Twins GM Bill Smith revealed that the club finished a distant second in the bidding for Japanese starter Hisashi Iwakuma (information passed along by Aaron Gleeman). Minnesota offered $7.7MM for the hurler while the Athletics won the bidding with $19.1MM. Ultimately, Iwakuma and the A's couldn't agree to terms.
AL West Notes: Young, Sweeney, Angels
Some news items from the western side of the American League…
- Michael Young has said he's open to being a primary DH in the wake of the Rangers' acquisition of Adrian Beltre, but ESPNDallas.com's Jeff Caplan wonders if the career infielder will get "bored" from not playing in the field. Caplan talks to Lance Berkman, who signed with St. Louis in part because he disliked being a designated hitter, about the transition away from fielding.
- As part of an MLB.com mailbag, Greg Johns reports the Mariners ended up receiving cash from the Phillies in the Mike Sweeney trade last August, rather than a player to be named later. From the same piece, Johns also shoots down the idea of Seattle trading Felix Hernandez or signing Jermaine Dye.
- In regards to the Angels' lack of major free agent signings, manager Mike Scioscia said "These contracts just ran away from what our team can do," during an interview on 710 ESPN Radio's Mason & Ireland Show (as reported by ESPNLosAngeles.com's Mark Saxon). Scioscia noted the club might have "some other minor things" in the works.
- Eric Denton of LAAngelsInsider.com wonders if the Angels would be better served by rebuilding and putting "some long term pieces in place for the Mike Trout era."
Mariners Finalize Two-Year Deal With Brendan Ryan
The Mariners have avoided arbitration with Brendan Ryan, finalizing a two-year contract with the infielder, tweets Kirby Arnold of the Everett Herald.
We heard earlier this week that Seattle was close to a deal with Ryan, with Stephen Hawkins of the Associated Press reporting the two-year contract was worth $2.75MM ($1MM in 2011 and $1.75MM in 2012). MLB.com's Greg Johns adds that Ryan can earn an extra $400K in 2011 if he reaches certain playing time incentives, and up to $750K in 2012.
Left-hander Jason Vargas and right-handers David Aardsma and Brandon League are the Mariners' remaining arbitration-eligible players. Keep track of their status and every other arb-eligible player this winter with the MLBTR Arb Tracker.
Relief Rumors: Ohman, Durbin, Mariners
By now you've heard that the White Sox and Yankees are probably not going to pursue Rafael Soriano. But you've come to the right place if you're looking to hear the latest on all the other free agent relievers out there. Here are today's updates…
- Will Ohman is deciding between three American League teams, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (on Twitter). The Rays, Orioles, Red Sox, Blue Jays and Tigers could all use left-handed relief out of the 'pen, so I would not personally be surprised to see Ohman join any of those clubs.
- Chad Durbin is still talking to the Phillies and others, according to Heyman (on Twitter). The sides exchanged offers earlier this week.
- The Mariners could use some relief help, but GM Jack Zduriencik doesn't expect to have much payroll flexibility. He told Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times that he'll have to be creative if he makes any additions (Twitter link). That applies to the team in general, not just the 'pen.
Quick Hits: Pettitte, Figgins, Giants, Hoffman
On this date in 2002, the Diamondbacks signed Carlos Gonzalez as an amateur free agent. Two blockbuster trades and one breakout season later, CarGo has agreed to a seven-year extension with the Rockies. Here are today's links…
- Andy Pettitte told Brian Costello of the New York Post at his home in Texas that he's just "chilling out, hanging" and still hasn't decided whether he'll play in 2011.
- The Mariners have officially asked Chone Figgins to move back to third base, reports Kirby Arnold of the Daily Herald. Figgins has played more games at third than at any other position, but he played second base last year.
- The Giants will likely rely on players already in the organization for infield depth now that Edgar Renteria has agreed to sign with the Reds, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (on Twitter).
- Trevor Hoffman is leaning toward retirement, according to Heyman (on Twitter). The reliever has drawn some interest this offseason, but he had hoped for the chance to close in 2011.
- Michael Girsch will replace John Abbamondi as the Cardinals' assistant GM, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports (on Twitter).
Mariners, Brendan Ryan Working To Reach Deal
WEDNESDAY, 8:14am: The Mariners and Ryan are working to reach a two-year deal, according to MLB.com's Greg Johns.
TUESDAY, 6:33pm: Jeff Evans, the team's manager of baseball information, confirms via email that the Mariners have not reached an agreement with Ryan.
5:14pm: The Mariners have signed infielder Brendan Ryan to a two-year contract worth $2.75MM according to Stephen Hawkins of the AP. Ryan was arbitration-eligible for the first time heading into 2011. He'll earn $1MM in 2011 and $1.75MM in 2012.
Ryan, 29 in March, was acquired from the Cardinals last month. He's just a .256/.314/.344 career hitter, but his value lies in his top-of-the-line defense at short. His +18.7 UZR at the position is the best in baseball since the start of the 2009 season, close to four runs better than the runner-up.