Bowden Talks To Epstein, Zduriencik, Reagins, Wren
Jim Bowden's weekly GM's Corner video pieces for FOX Sports make for good viewing. This week he talked to Theo Epstein, Jack Zduriencik, Tony Reagins, and Frank Wren. A few hot stove highlights:
- Epstein admitted that new third baseman Adrian Beltre would "have to have a big year" to achieve Type A status after the season, but finds at least Type B likely. Epstein noted that there's the possibility of signing Beltre long-term if he proves to be a good fit.
- Zduriencik told Bowden he was aggressive in pursuing Chone Figgins, and got the deal done within 48 hours. Also, Zduriencik mentioned that the Brewers were one pick away from taking Casey Kotchman in the first round in 2001; they instead took Mike Jones at #12 overall. I wonder if the Brewers still would've drafted Prince Fielder in '02 if they had Kotchman.
- Reagins is "not really concerned" about having a limited number of lefties in the bullpen, after the Halos lost Darren Oliver to the Rangers this offseason.
- Wren believes the Braves have "improved quite a bit" offensively, and talked up Nate McLouth, Martin Prado, Jason Heyward, Melky Cabrera, and Troy Glaus.
Odds & Ends: Grudzielanek, Royals, Fielder, Calero
Links for Sunday….
- In his latest mailbag, MLB.com's Jim Street writes that he could see Chad Cordero hooking on with a major league club if he continues to stay healthy and perform well in Spring Training. Cordero is in camp with the Mariners and competing for a job, but is unlikely to make the team as the bullpen is already stocked with quality right-handers.
- Mark Grudzielanek is eager to hook on with the Indians, writes Anthony Castrovince of MLB.com. The 39-year-old second baseman, who was absent from the majors in 2009, says he has his eye on the starting job.
- MLB.com's Dick Kaegel reports that Royals shortstop prospect Jeff Bianchi will miss the 2010 season with elbow surgery. Danny Duffy, a left-handed pitcher and the organization's #8 prospect according to Baseball America, will be shut down as well for the time being due to elbow stiffness.
- Michael Hunt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel talks to Brewers GM Doug Melvin about Prince Fielder's future. Melvin reiterates that the team hopes to keep Fielder around for many years, and revisits an instance during his stint as the Rangers' GM when he had to trade a heavy hitter.
- Questions about Kiko Calero's health might have kept him on the market longer than expected this winter, but Adam Rubin of the New York Daily News says that the righty has been throwing off a mound and looks okay for now. "Conditioning-wise he's pretty good," pitching coach Dan Warthen said. "He just hasn't seen hitters."
- Newly-acquired Melvin Mora could end up playing nearly every position on the diamond for the Rockies this year, writes Jim Armstrong of the Denver Post.
- WEEI's Alex Speier reports that Brian Shouse's minor league contract will earn him $800K if he makes the Red Sox' major league roster.
Heyman On Lee, Reynolds, Mauer
- Mark Reynolds would like a two-year $18MM deal to cover his first two arbitration years. That's Prince Fielder money, but the D'Backs would prefer to pay him $13MM or so, which would be closer to what Dan Uggla made for the same stretch of his career.
- There has been no acrimony between the Twins and Joe Mauer. That's a good thing for Twins fans, but other than that we know very little about the negotiations.
Offseason In Review: Seattle Mariners
Next up in our Offseason In Review series, the Mariners.
Major League Signings
- Chone Figgins, 3B: four years, $36MM. Includes $9MM vesting option for 2014.
- Jack Wilson, SS: two years, $10MM.
- Ken Griffey Jr., DH: one year, $2.35MM.
- Erik Bedard, SP: one year, $1.5MM. Includes $8MM mutual option for 2011 with a $250K buyout.
- Ryan Garko, 1B: one year, $550K.
- Ryan Langerhans, OF: one year, $525K.
- Eric Byrnes, OF: one year, $400K.
- Total spend: $51.325MM.
Notable Minor League Signings
- Wes Littleton, Jesus Colome, Chad Cordero, Mike Koplove, David Pauley, Yusmeiro Petit, Steven Shell, Levale Speigner, Eliezer Alfonzo, Josh Bard, Guillermo Quiroz, Brad Nelson, Josh Wilson, Chris Woodward, Corey Patterson, Mike Sweeney, Pedro Okuda
Extensions
- Felix Hernandez, SP: five years, $78MM.
- Franklin Gutierrez, CF: four years, $20.25MM. Includes $7.5MM club option for 2014 with a $500K buyout.
Trades and Claims
- Claimed P Yusmeiro Petit off waivers from Diamondbacks
- Claimed Rule 5 pick P Kanekoa Texeira from Yankees
- Acquired SP Cliff Lee from Phillies for P Phillippe Aumont, P J.C. Ramirez, and OF Tyson Gillies
- Acquired OF Milton Bradley from Cubs for SP Carlos Silva and $9MM
- Acquired RP Brandon League and OF Johermyn Chavez for P Brandon Morrow
- Acquired 1B Casey Kotchman from Red Sox for 3B Bill Hall
- Claimed 1B Tommy Everidge off waivers from Athletics
Notable Losses
- Adrian Beltre, Russell Branyan, Kenji Johjima, Endy Chavez, Bill Hall, Phillippe Aumont, J.C. Ramirez, Tyson Gillies, Carlos Silva, Brandon Morrow, Chris Shelton, Miguel Batista, Roy Corcoran, Randy Messenger, Gaby Hernandez, Robert Manuel, Chris Jakubauskas, Justin Thomas
Summary
The Mariners' offseason kicked off with a big positive on October 19th: they were freed of the $16MM left on Kenji Johjima's contract. GM Jack Zduriencik went on to remake his team, spending over $51MM on free agent contracts and acquiring Lee, Bradley, League, and Kotchman via trade.
The Mariners spent big on their two extensions, guaranteeing almost $100MM to Felix and Gutierrez. It's hard to argue with securing one of the best pitchers in baseball. The Gutierrez extension made me shrug – the savings over going year-to-year probably weren't big.
Most of the free agent spending was used to lock down the left side of the infield with two plus defenders in Figgins and Wilson. Figgins brings on-base skills as well, and should be worth the commitment.
On a team projected to have one of the worst offenses in the AL, the Griffey signing strikes me as unwise. Bradley, at least, comes with the promise of his 2007-08 seasons. By signing Griffey and acquiring Kotchman, the Ms didn't add much hitting at traditionally offensive spots. Could that $5.8MM have gone toward a more productive free agent bat or two? Zduriencik got three seasons of League plus a prospect for Morrow; were no interesting hitters being offered? The Mariners must have decided that Morrow could not provide 25 respectable starts in 2010.
The front end of the Ms rotation, of course, looks fantastic. Acquiring Lee, who was hardly known to be available, was a huge win for the Mariners. The rotation lacks depth; Bedard can't be counted on for 100 innings. The bright side is that projection systems think Ryan Rowland-Smith and Ian Snell can provide over 325 innings of 4.30 ball. If they stumble, a midseason acquisition may be necessary.
The Mariners have some similarities to their division rival A's – questionable offenses, plus defenses. It wouldn't be surprising to see a tight AL West race with all four clubs in the mix.
Heyman On Adrian, Jeter, Hamilton
SI's Jon Heyman leads his latest column with a discussion about Padres first baseman Adrian Gonzalez, who he feels is likely to be shopped hard at this year's trade deadline. I've noted before that Gonzalez's market should not be limited to big-spending clubs, as he's set to earn just $10.25MM for 2010-11. It's fitting that Heyman believes as many as 10 to 12 teams already inquired, including the Red Sox, Mets, Mariners, and Dodgers. On to Heyman's other rumors…
- Heyman spoke to "two executives from competing teams" who believe Derek Jeter "could ask for a six-year deal." The idea is that a six-year extension would take Jeter to age 42, as Alex Rodriguez's contract does.
- Heyman notes that Josh Hamilton turned down a four-year, $24MM offer from the Rangers last year. The security might've made sense for Hamilton given his injury problems.
- One executive Heyman spoke to believes the availability of decent free agents, perhaps continuing into the season, could reduce trading.
Latin Links: Anderson, Cuba, Venezeula
All the noticias de beisbol fit to imprimir…
- Jorge Ebro at Nuevo Herald spoke to Leslie Anderson‘s agent Jaime Torres, who repeated the familiar refrain that Anderson is “about to sign.” Anderson is currently playing for the Tigers of Quintana Roo in the Mexican League, and he has said he is willing to continue playing in Mexico if he doesn’t find the right offer in the majors.
- In the same article, Ebro outlines how an increasing number of defections is affecting the level of play in the historically prestigious Cuban Serie Nacional. According to his sources, more than 300 players at various levels have left the island in recent years. Kendry Morales and Yunel Escobar tell Ebro that the league has greatly diminished since when they played in it.
- This season, only the US and the Dominican Republic will have more representation on major league rosters than Venezuela. But more South Americans will be playing stateside soon, now that the Venezuelan Baseball Federation has signed a three-year affiliation with the independent Yuma Scorpions of the Golden Baseball League. According to the press release, the agreement is intended to showcase not only players, but also coaches and trainers to major league organizations.
- Fresh from being bumped to DH and part-time left fielder duties by Johnny Damon, Carlos Guillen spoke with Carlos Valmore Rodriguez at the Venezuelan newspaper La Lider about his career as a position-hopping “Bedouin of baseball.” He lauds the Venezuelan winter leagues for forcing prospects to become more versatile, and passes along the advice he received from journeyman Stan Javier upon starting out with the Mariners: “Work hard in any position, because you know where you start but not where you end up.”
Mariners Sign Wes Littleton
The Mariners signed righty Wes Littleton to a minor league deal, tweets ESPN's Shannon Drayer. Littleton, 27, spent '09 with the Brewers' Double A and Triple A clubs after being claimed off waivers from the Red Sox. It was a rough year, as he posted an overall 6.50 ERA, 7.5 K/9, and 7.7 BB/9.
Littleton has 102.3 innings of big league experience with the Rangers from 2006-08. Even after a useful '07 season, Baseball America noted that "the possibility exists that major leaguers will adjust to his funky motion and start to hit him."
Odds & Ends: Calero, Beckett, Robles, Bay
Links to kick off the new month…
- The Mets "would have interest in Kiko Calero on a minor league deal," tweeted Ken Davidoff of Newsday yesterday. Calero is holding out for a big league contract, which seems reasonable.
- Scott Boras client Jacoby Ellsbury hasn't had any long-term contract discussions with the Red Sox, nor does he intend to, reports Joe Haggerty of CSNNE.com.
- The latest GM's Corner video from Jim Bowden of FOX Sports is fifteen minutes well-spent, with appearances by Billy Beane, Jack Zduriencik, Mike Rizzo, Logan White, and Lance Berkman. The video is all about scouting.
- Check out Rob Bradford's in-depth discussion with Josh Beckett for WEEI.
- Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times says the Mariners might have a nice find in hard-throwing lefty Mauricio Robles, who came from Detroit in last summer's Jarrod Washburn trade.
- Baker's colleague Larry Stone talked to Jason Bay, who said the Mariners expressed interest but never made a serious push for him.
- Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle notes that Brett Tomko and Jason Jennings will each earn $700K if they make the A's.
Odds & Ends: Royals, Fielder, Cameron, Park
Some Sunday links to browse….
- The Royals agreed to terms with Brayan Pena and Chris Getz, according to a team press release. Terms of the contracts were not disclosed. With Pena and Getz sorted out, the team now has four unsigned players remaining: Billy Butler, Alberto Callaspo, Luke Hochevar, and Carlos Rosa.
- In his most recent blog post, ESPN.com's Buster Olney writes that Prince Fielder ought to consider a long-term extension with Milwaukee, since "it's still unclear whether any team would value him as much as the Brewers."
- Mike Cameron considered signing with the Mariners before he landed in Boston, according to Larry Stone of the Seattle Times.
- Andy Martino of the Philadelphia Inquirer writes that the Phillies were Chan Ho Park's first choice heading into this winter, but that the two sides just couldn't work anything out.
- If Josh Beckett's last contract was any indication, he won't be concerned about "setting the market" when he signs his next deal, writes John Tomase of the Boston Herald.
- Richard Justice of the Houston Chronicle defends the Astros' offseason bullpen signings, explaining how the team evaluated Brandon Lyon and Matt Lindstrom.
- Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch passes along comments from Tony La Russa about how the club's infield rotation will work with Felipe Lopez now a Cardinal.
- Blaine Boyer played a major part in recruiting Adam LaRoche and Kelly Johnson to Arizona, according to Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic.
Odds & Ends: Jeter, Marlins, Fielder, Aurilia, Boras
If you're in the Northeast, here are some links to check out while you take a break from shoveling…
- ESPN's Jayson Stark ranked baseball's ten-year contracts, with Derek Jeter's soon to be completed ten-year, $189MM deal coming in as the best.
- The Marlins agreed to one-year contracts with 12 of their pre-arbitration eligible players according to MLB.com's Joe Frisaro, including Sean West, Chris Volstad, Emilio Bonifacio, and Dan Meyer.
- Brewers owner Mark Attanasio confirmed that he will be involved in long-term contract discussions with Prince Fielder, according to Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel (via Twitter). Haudricourt also tweets that Attanasio and GM Doug Melvin met today to discuss the situation and there will be no deadlines imposed on the 25-year-old.
- Rich Aurilia, who stopped by the Giants' camp today, says that while he's still looking for a job, he will retire if he doesn't have one by the end of spring, tweets Jeff Fletcher of AOL Fanhouse. The 38-year-old has a broadcasting deal in place if he is unable to find a job on the field.
- Shin-Soo Choo says that he would like to stay in Cleveland long-term, writes MLB.com's Anthony Castrovince. Choo, like Morales, cut ties with his former agent (Alan Nero) in favor of Scott Boras.
- Michael Weiner, the executive director of the players' union, confirmed that the union is participating in an investigation into alleged unauthorized withdrawals from Kendry Morales' bank account by a former employee of his former agents, Hendricks Sports Management (Bill Plunkett of the OC Register reporting). Morales recently dropped HSM and hired Scott Boras.
- Bernie Miklasz of The St. Louis Post-Dispatch provides a few quotes from Albert Pujols about his contract situation. "Do I want to do this right now and take care of this so we don't need to worry about it? Of course," said Pujols. "If it happens, it happens. But there are some things I am able to control and there are other things that are out of my hands that I can't control. And that's the truth."
- The Mariners signed righty Tom Wilhelmsen to a minor league contract, according to Geoff Baker of The Seattle Times. The 27-year-old had been out of baseball since 2005 because of substance abuse issues, though he resurfaced with an independent league team last season.
- Patrick Newman of NPB Tracker passes along a report indicating the the Orix Buffaloes are moving towards a deal with Freddie Bynum. The White Sox released Bynum last week so he could pursue opportunities in Japan.
- Meanwhile, Joe Strauss of The St. Louis Post-Dispatch says that Felipe Lopez will provide the Cardinals with a great amount of flexibility.
- Joel Sherman of The New York Post calls the contracts of Alex Rodriguez, Mark Teixeira, C.C. Sabathia and other Yankee players "time-bomb contracts."
- John Tomase of The Boston Herald says the Red Sox have a deep bench with Mike Lowell, Bill Hall, Jeremy Hermida, and Jason Varitek.