Mailbag: Nioka, Crede, Snell
Let’s dig through the ol’ mailbag once again. Feel free to shoot an email to mlbtraderumors@gmail.com.
Do you have any news regarding Japanese shortstop Tomohiro Nioka? Is he a free agent and are any teams pursuing him? – Bob
It seems that Nioka turned out to be ineligible for free agency. We’ll have to keep an eye out for him next year.
What’s up with Joe Crede? Will the ChiSox be looking to deal him this summer if they are struggling? And if so, you have to believe the Phillies would be top contenders for him. – Dan
I’m almost certain Crede will be dealt, I’m just not sure when. Maybe after a week or two of proving his health in Spring Training? Josh Fields needs his reps at third base, so I’d be surprised if the Sox started the season with Crede at the hot corner. The Phillies seem like the perfect fit, especially since Kenny Williams and Pat Gillick have gotten together for many deals.
Have you heard anything about a package of Snell and Bay from Pittsburgh to the M’s for some prospects? – Aaron
Jake at Bucco Blog heard this rumor just a few days ago. Both of them going to Seattle would represent a whole lot of talent. Seems that it would require Adam Jones and then some. Might make more sense for the Mariners to target just Snell, since they’re in fine shape in the outfield.
Ranger Rumors: Botts, Otsuka, Padilla
Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News recently did a Q&A, and there were some interesting hot stove-related tidbits to consider.
- Grant believes one of Nelson Cruz or Jason Botts will depart before Opening Day. Botts is out of options, so he may be more likely to go. While acknowledging that he is a 27 year-old DH, Botts’ recent Major League Equivalencies say he may be able to post an .800 OPS in the bigs.
- Grant answers a question about Akinori Otsuka and his "scary" elbow. He says Otsuka probably can’t pitch through the pain and if he did his ligament would be at risk of tearing anyway. That’s why Otsuka is a free agent (not because he recommended San Diego to Kosuke Fukudome). The Padres and Phillies have been linked to Otsuka, while the White Sox passed on him.
- Grant notes that the Mariners had mild interest in Vicente Padilla but that may be gone with their Carlos Silva signing. Since Padilla’s value is at a low point it may make sense to hope he has a solid first half and deal him then.
Odds and Ends: Hillenbrand, Tsao, Uehara
Here are some random bits and pieces to hold us over until front offices re-open…
- Shea Hillenbrand has only received one inquiry this winter – from the Giants. He probably won’t be earning $6MM again. Hillenbrand posted a .599 OPS in 267 ABs for the Angels and Dodgers this year. I thought perhaps that was one of the worst performances of the decade for guys with 250+ ABs. However it’s only the 49th worst since 2000. Homer Bush’s 2000 takes the cake – a .524 OPS for the Blue Jays in 297 ABs.
- The Royals inked Chin-Hui Tsao to a minor-league deal. Tsao was once considered the Rockies’ best prospect, but he’s been decimated by injuries. Makes sense for the Royals to throw him a bone though.
- Koji Uehara re-signed with the Yomiuri Giants for 400 million yen – about $3.57MM. He’ll turn 33 in April. A hamstring injury knocked Uehara out of the ’07 season’s first month, denying him free agency this winter. Now he needs to be active for just eight days to be eligible after the season. The Giants used him in relief in ’07, perhaps to spite him. Read more about that and his repertoire in my Q&A with Mike Plugh on Uehara.
- John Fay runs down the Reds’ veteran free agent starter options.
- A-Rod still won’t return Scott Boras’ calls.
- Jason Churchill names some intriguing, possibly available young hurlers who may be on Seattle’s radar: Scott Olsen, Noah Lowry, Daniel Cabrera, Edwin Jackson, Chris Capuano, Ian Snell, and Anthony Reyes.
- Nothing is cooking with Brandon Inge, and the Tigers won’t be bringing Sean Casey back.
Johan Santana Rumors
UPDATE, 12-29-07 at 10:59am: Jayson Stark’s sources speak of glacially moving Santana talks with the Red Sox, Yankees, Mets, and Mariners that may drag out for several more weeks.
UPDATE, 12-28-07 at 11:00am: Joel Sherman’s sources name the Red Sox as the "strong favorite" to acquire Santana in the new year. He sees the Yankees backing down and the Mets as lagging behind for lack of MLB-ready young players in their offer. Also here’s a Jayson Stark Santana article I missed yesterday giving his take on the Yankees, Red Sox, and Mets.
UPDATE, 12-27-07 at 2:59pm: Charley Walters has some quotes from the Twins’ president. He gives the impression that the Twins’ priority is still to sign Santana to an extension, for what it’s worth. They’ll have to do better than four years and $80MM though.
FROM 12-26-07 at 10:50pm:
LEN3 checks in with the latest Johan Santana rumors this evening.
- The Mets appear to be a solid contender, even without offering up Jose Reyes. Neal ponders whether the Twins would prefer to send Santana to the NL so they can avoid him. Matthew Cerrone has been saying this for some time, adding that Santana would prefer to come to the NL as well.
- Interesting note – Neal says Kei Igawa‘s name has surfaced in regards to the Yankees talks. It wouldn’t materially change the deal though.
- Neal says talks with the Red Sox are currently dormant.
Mariners Offering Three Players For Bedard?
On Monday, Phil Rogers wrote of the Mariners’ continuing pursuit of Baltimore’s Erik Bedard. He says the Ms are shopping a package including Adam Jones, Jeff Clement, and Yung Chi Chen. Rogers notes that the O’s would probably require Brandon Morrow. This is the first time we’ve seen Chen’s name as part of a Bedard deal. He doesn’t fall within Seattle’s top 14 prospects, according to Kevin Goldstein.
Our previous Bedard update came four days ago, with info supplied by Jeff Zrebiec and John Fay. At that time Andy MacPhail said there was a "strong likelihood" that Bedard is the Orioles’ Opening Day starter in 2008.
Odds and Ends: A-Rod, Morrow, Cabrera
The daily, and sometimes twice daily, odds n’ ends roundup…
- A site called You Been Blinded got its hands on the huge A-Rod binder Scott Boras handed out in 2000.
- The Mariners are highly unlikely to trade young hurler Brandon Morrow or start him in Triple A.
- Tigers GM Dave Dombrowski stated his desire to sign Miguel Cabrera long-term. The lack of an extension window was a big reason why the Angels dropped out on Cabrera.
- Talking Chop breaks down the Braves’ payroll and finds they have about $83MM committed.
Carlos Silva Signs With Mariners
UPDATE, 12-20-07 at 3:18pm: The bar is raised higher than we thought – four years, $48MM according to Rosenthal. This is the new price of a big league innings eater. The Mariners remain interested in Erik Bedard and Johan Santana.
UPDATE, 12-19-07 at 7:03pm: MLB.com’s Jim Street is reporting via a source that the Silva deal is done. He agrees with Rosenthal’s original figure of four years, $44MM. Remember a year ago, when the Twins weren’t sure whether to exercise his $4MM option?
UPDATE, 12-19-07 at 3:08pm: John Hickey of the Seattle PI expects Silva to be introduced to Seattle on Thursday.
UPDATE, 12-19-07 at 11:11am: The AP is reporting that the Ms are "closing in on a deal" with Silva.
FROM 12-18-07 at 1:59pm:
A scoop from Ken Rosenthal – the Mariners are in "serious negotiations" with Carlos Silva for a deal worth at least four years, $44MM. It appears that talks for Erik Bedard would not be affected by this signing.
Rosenthal notes that $44MM or more would represent the bar for Silva’s tier of starters being moved slightly up. That is to be expected; some have speculated it might take more like $12MM annually to get Silva. Silva may not be anything special, but he’s shown the ability to eat American League innings. Those guys don’t grow on trees.
By the way, Charley Walters says the Royals put out a three-year, $30MM offer to Silva.
The Mark Prior Derby
Let’s do a recap on the Mark Prior Derby, which is getting more confusing each day. Jerry Crasnick has added some good info this afternoon. Prior wants a one-year deal and hopes to be on a big league mound before the end of May.
- Yankees – They’ll probably pass, per Hank Steinbrenner.
- Red Sox – Named only by Jayson Stark.
- White Sox – Named only by Stark.
- Mariners – Named by Stark, denied by Jim Street.
- Mets – Named by Stark, Crasnick, Ken Rosenthal, Ed Price
- Cardinals – Named by Stark, Crasnick, Rosenthal, Matthew Leach
- Padres – Named by many, made an offer according to Crasnick. Prior went to USC but would have to take less money to play in San Diego
- Astros – Named by many, made an offer according to Alyson Footer
- Giants – Named only by Stark
- Reds – Named by Stark, Crasnick. Prior previously played under Dusty Baker
- Nationals – Named by Stark, Crasnick, Bill Ladson
- Rangers – Named by Crasnick but not Stark, aggressively pursuing according to Rosenthal
- Marlins – Named only by Crasnick
- Indians – Named only by Crasnick
One more and we’re at half of all baseball teams linked at some point. The Phillies and Pirates are not interested, and it’s probably safe to count the Cubs out.
Rosenthal’s Latest: Prior, Bedard, Haren
The rumor mill is picking up today, thanks in no short part to Ken Rosenthal. Check out his latest column.
- Rosenthal believes the Padres are Mark Prior‘s first choice, but as usual they won’t pay as much as other teams. Both Texas clubs are in the lead for Prior currently. Rosenthal also names the Cards, Mets, and Yankees are suitors, as we knew. The Pirates, by the way, have not inquired.
- Talks for Erik Bedard have slowed down, because the Orioles aren’t impressed with the offers. The Mariners, Reds, and Mets are the top contenders. Rosenthal indicates that the Reds may be overvaluing Homer Bailey, compared to the perception of other clubs.
- Interesting late-game suitors for Dan Haren: the Rockies and Braves. You wonder, then, whether they’ll also inquire on Bedard.
- Rosenthal notes that the Chris Burke acquisition could be a sign that the D’Backs won’t re-sign Orlando Hudson. Burke will have to show something first though.
- The Orioles don’t seem likely to flip Luke Scott; they like his style. The guy could hit 30 bombs this year, in the opinion of Ron Shandler and Co.
- The Twins are up to 39 on their 40 man roster, so they’ll have to be creative to take back four players in a Johan Santana deal. It could mean including a player with Johan.
Giants Pursuing Corner Infield Help
I’m not sure of the Giants’ plan – are they rebuilding? Playing for 2008? Kind of rebuilding but trying to seem respectable?
At any rate, the Giants don’t have much going on at first and third base. I like the idea of going after a cheap under-30 third base upside play like Dallas McPherson. But I wouldn’t fill the spot with a vet just to fill it. As for first, I’ve said before I’d just toss Dan Ortmeier there for 550 ABs in lieu of adding some stopgap. But that’s just me; here’s the latest on Brian Sabean’s corner infield pursuits:
- Tony Clark is a target, and San Francisco is a good fit for him in terms of playing time. He’d probably get a one-year deal and be paired with Ortmeier.
- The Mariners are apparently shopping Adrian Beltre for pitching. Doesn’t seem to be a smart move for Seattle but it may be a moot point if they are nearing a Carlos Silva signing.
- No doubt Joe Crede can be had. Paul Konerko, not so much. Crede makes sense for the Giants in that they might be able to flip him if he has a good April-May.
- Morgan Ensberg is a free agent who would probably play for $3MM and jump at a full-time chance.
- Pedro Feliz remains on the radar, but apparently still wants three years. C’mon now.
- The Giants have "moved in opposing directions" with McPherson, a Scott Boras client.