Latest On Marco Scutaro
The latest on free agent infielder Marco Scutaro…
- The Giants await word tonight from Scutaro's camp on their two-year offer, which includes a vesting option for a third year, tweets John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle. If Scutaro declines, they might move on.
- A source involved in the Scutaro talks thinks it's 50-50 he goes back to the Giants, tweets ESPN's Buster Olney. The Cardinals are considered the mostly likely alternative, and Olney says a decision is close. However, perhaps as a veiled reference to the team's inclusion in the Scutaro rumors, Cardinals GM John Mozeliak told reporters including B.J. Rains, "We’re not spending as much time as people think in this market. Our focus has been on other areas."
Earlier updates:
- The Giants' last offer was two years plus a vesting option, tweets Andrew Baggarly of CSNBayArea.com.
- Bidding for Scutaro is said to have reached something in the neighborhood of three years and $24MM, with the Giants still in the lead, tweets ESPN.com's Buster Olney.
- Scutaro isn't expected to sign with another team without the Giants getting a final shot at him, says Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle (Sulia link).
- The market for free agent infielder Marco Scutaro is heating up, according to Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. The FOX duo reports that the Cardinals are eyeing Scutaro as a potential starting second baseman, while the Yankees, in the wake of news of Alex Rodriguez's hip surgery, also likely have interest.
Yunel Escobar Rumors: Tuesday
We received a flurry of Yunel Escobar rumors yesterday once it was revealed that the Marlins were shopping their recently acquired infielder. Specifically, the Athletics had ongoing discussions with the Fish surrounding the controversial shortstop. We'll keep track of today's Escobar rumors with the newest info up top…
- The Rays are still in on Escobar, tweets Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. The Marlins are getting closer to trading the shortstop, but the A's, Yankees, and Cardinals remain involved.
Earlier updates:
- Despite the fact that they could use a defensive upgrade at shortstop, the Tigers aren't interested in Escobar, or at least don't view him as a fit, writes MLB.com's Jason Beck.
- The A's, Yankees, and Rays are the most likely teams for Escobar, reports Danny Knobler of CBS Sports. Talks with the A's have centered around Brad Peacock or Grant Green, while talks with the other clubs involve younger minor leaguers.
- There's some conflicting info out there on the Yankees' interest in Escobar. Reports yesterday suggested that the Yankees had inquired, and Jayson Stark of ESPN.com tweets that New York is "definitely in" on the shortstop. However, ESPN's Buster Olney tweets that the Yankees aren't in the mix.
- The other clubs that are "definitely in" on Escobar, according to Stark, are the A's, Cubs, and Rays.
Latest From The NL Central
A few NL Central free agent targets were identified today, as the Brewers and Cubs are in on Jason Grilli among other relievers, the Pirates have expressed interest in John Lannan, and the Cardinals are in the mix for Scott Hairston. More from the division…
- The Cardinals met with Marco Scutaro's agent tonight, tweets Danny Knobler of CBS Sports. Scutaro is represented by Barry Praver.
Earlier updates:
- Pirates GM Neal Huntington told reporters including Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, "In our minds, we’ve already made our big move with Russ." The Bucs signed Russell Martin for $17MM last week, but still have some work to do. Biertempfel notes that the Pirates have shown interest in five recently non-tendered pitchers: Manny Parra, Lannan, Tom Gorzelanny, Jair Jurrjens, and Mike Pelfrey.
- There have been no substantive talks between the Cardinals and Adam Wainwright about an extension, writes Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. The Cardinals, of course, still remain interested in doing an extension with the 31-year-old before his contract season officially begins.
- Most of the quality lefty relievers are likely to be signed by week's end, suggested Cardinals GM John Mozeliak (B.J. Rains of FOX Sports Midwest reporting).
- The Cardinals and infielder Skip Schumaker are open to a trade, reports Rains, but of course it'd have to make sense for the team.
- The pressure of last summer's contract extension talks affected the performance of Cubs shortstop Starlin Castro, agent Paul Kinzer told Jesse Rogers of ESPNChicago.com. The 22-year-old can rest easy now that he's under contract through at least 2019.
- The Cubs remain popular with free agents, president Theo Epstein told reporters including Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune. The team is looking to get creative at third base and will continue to monitor the available starting pitchers (and presumably relievers). Epstein suggested the Cubs have interest in some recently non-tendered players.
NL West Rumors: Scutaro, Rockies, Otani, Minor
While the Dodgers have been linked to just about everyone this offseason, they won't be the only NL West club active in Nashville this week. Here are a few updates from around the division:
- Chris Haft of MLB.com (Twitter link) heard from an agent earlier today that the Giants were "bending over backwards" to re-sign Angel Pagan and Marco Scutaro. Haft wonders if Scutaro is next, now that the team has reached an agreement with Pagan.
- The Rockies are targeting late-inning and closer-type pitchers this week, according to Troy Renck of the Denver Post (via Twitter).
Earlier updates:
- The Dodgers would be "shocked" if Shohei Otani declares for MLB and doesn't sign with them, says Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times (via Twitter). However, the Dodgers are skeptical that Otani will come stateside. We heard this morning that the 18-year-old was leaning toward remaining in Japan.
- In discussing Dexter Fowler with the Braves, the Rockies asked for Mike Minor, according to David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal Constitution (Twitter link).
- Troy Renck of the Denver Post notes (via Twitter) that the Yankees had some interest in Chris Nelson last season, and wonders if their interest in the Rockies' infielder could be renewed now that Alex Rodriguez is undergoing hip surgery.
- The Giants are one of five teams with "real interest" in Scott Hairston, according to Adam Rubin of ESPNNewYork.com. The Cardinals, Tigers, Indians, and Yankees round out the list, and Hairston himself hasn't ruled out a return to the Mets.
Eight Teams Interested In Sean Burnett
9:05am: The Angels are one of the eight teams interested in Burnett, according to Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times (Twitter link), who classifies the team's interest as "serious."
4:07am: Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch has a rundown of the Cardinals' gameplan for the Winter Meetings, and within it he writes that St. Louis is one of at least eight teams to have reached out to lefty Sean Burnett.
Burnett figures to be the premier left-handed reliever available in this year's free agent crop now that Jeremy Affeldt has re-upped with the Giants on a three-year deal. Burnett's agent, Jim Munsey, recently refuted a report that his client was seeking a four-year deal.
The Brewers are said to be prioritizing left-handed relief this week, and the Nationals have made it known that they'd like Burnett to return for a fifth season. Burnett declined his half of a mutual option with the Nats last month in order to seek a multi-year free agent deal.
Bowden On The Winter Meetings, Dickey, Drew
Jim Bowden of ESPN.com and MLB Network Radio offered his five bold predictions for the Winter Meetings including the Mets trading R.A. Dickey and the Rangers re-signing Josh Hamilton to a four-year contract. Here are some other notes from Bowden (all Twitter links):
- Dickey made an appearance today at the Gaylord Opryland, site of the Winter Meetings, to meet the Mets trainer to follow-up on his recent abdominal surgery. Dickey expressed optimism a contract extension will happen, but a source tells Bowden the sides aren't close to a deal.
- The Yankees, Red Sox, Tigers, Cardinals, and A's are all in on free agent shortstop Stephen Drew.
- The Yankees' interest in Drew is based on serious concern about the declining range of both Derek Jeter and Alex Rodriguez.
- The Red Sox are in pursuit of Drew because they are not sure of Jose Iglesias' bat and Xander Bogaerts is at least a year away.
- If the Cardinals sign Drew, look for Rafael Furcal to be traded or moved to second base.
Cardinals Rumors: Burnett, Mozeliak, Non-Tenders
The latest on the Cardinals..
- The Cardinals aren’t interested in giving Sean Burnett a four-year deal, according to Derrick Goold of the Post-Dispatch (via Twitter).
- The Cardinals have interest in left-hander Sean Burnett, a source tells Bill Ladson of MLB.com (via Twitter). Burnett is looking to get a four-year deal but Ladson (Twitter link) doesn’t see the Nationals going beyond two. The reliever posted a 2.38 ERA with 9.1 K/9 and 1.9 BB/9 through 56.2 innings of work last season.
- Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (via Twitter) expects General Manager John Mozeliak to swing a trade at the Winter Meetings.
- Strauss adds also believes that the Cardinals will have interest in one of the recently non-tendered players (Twitter link). You can peruse the full list using MLBTR’s Non-Tender Tracker and look at the notable non-tendered players here.
Quick Hits: Giants, Cardinals, Wright
After a relatively quiet Thanksgiving week, it’s time for MLB teams to resume their offseasons. The Rays completed a historic deal today, signing Evan Longoria to an extension that will keep him in Tampa Bay through at least 2022. Here are some more news items as teams gear up for next week’s Winter Meetings…
- The Giants each obtained $377K for winning the World Series and the Tigers obtained $284K each for winning the AL pennant, according to the Sports Network (via the Miami Herald). Check out the article for the complete details on how the $65MM players' pool was divided between the ten playoff teams.
- Speaking of the Giants, Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle hasn’t heard anything to suggest the Giants are in on Michael Bourn or B.J. Upton (Sulia link).
- The Cardinals continue looking for a left-handed reliever, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch writes. GM John Mozeliak said he believes in Marc Rzepczynski but intends to find another lefty reliever. "When he was a one-man band out there he didn’t pitch as well," the GM said. "That’s why we need to find someone.” Mozeliak repeated that he's open to signing a reliever to a multiyear deal.
- The Mets haven’t yet seriously explored trade options involving David Wright, Brian Costa of the Wall Street Journal reports (on Twitter). The club could explore potential trades eventually, but for now they remain hopeful of signing the third baseman to an extension.
- Teams are concerned about Dan Haren’s hip, not his back, ESPN.com’s Buster Olney reports (on Twitter). Haren’s bad hip won’t prevent teams from showing interest, according to Olney.
- Jason Grilli and Stephen Drew are among the undervalued free agents remaining on the open market, Jim Bowden writes at ESPN.com.
Minor Moves: Rice, Romak, Twins
The latest minor moves from around MLB…
- The Mets announced that they agreed to sign left-hander Scott Rice to a minor league contract that includes an invitation to MLB Spring Training. Rice, 31, has a 4.08 ERA with 6.6 K/9 and 4.3 BB/9 in 14 minor league seasons.
- The Mets also signed outfielder Jamie Hoffmann to a minor league contract, Adam Rubin of ESPNNewYork.com reports. The 28-year-old spent this past season with the Orioles' Triple-A team.
- The Cardinals agreed to a minor league contract with first baseman/right fielder Jamie Romak, MLBTR has learned. The Cardinals acquired the 27-year-old from the Royals midway through the 2012 season. In 442 total plate appearances in the upper minors, Romak posted a .260/.336/.406 batting line and hit 10 home runs and 21 doubles this past season.
- The Blue Jays signed infielder Jim Negrych to a minor league deal that includes an invitation to Spring Training, Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca reports (on Twitter).
- The Twins announced that they signed 12 players to minor league contracts that include invitations to MLB Spring Training: right-handers Samuel Deduno, Shairon Martis, Luis Perdomo, Esmerling Vasquez and P.J. Walters; outfielders Brian Dinkleman and Wilkin Ramirez; infielders James Beresford and Deibinson Romero and catcher Eric Fryer. Right-hander Tom Boleska and infielder Jason Christian also signed minor league deals with the Twins.
NL Notes: LaRoche, Phillies, Reds, Cardinals
Today is the 63rd anniversary of Jackie Robinson becoming the first African-American player to win the MVP Award. This would be the only such honor during Robinson's Hall of Fame career. Here's the latest news from the Senior Circuit:
- Negotiations between the Nationals and Adam LaRoche are going slowly, a source tells MLB.com's Bill Ladson. The source also says LaRoche's top priority is to return to the Nationals, but the free agent first baseman is thinking about his two children, which is why he wants a three-year deal and has talked with several teams.
- A five-year, $75MM contract might be accurate for B.J. Upton but expect Michael Bourn to seek more, tweets Dave O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
- Despite the declining influence of home runs to change a game, as typified by the Giants winning the World Series after slugging the fewest home runs in baseball, the Phillies still need a power surge in 2013, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer's Bob Brookover.
- Centerfield is one position where the Phillies could seek to boost their power output. ESPN's Buster Olney breaks down their various centerfield options in his latest Insiders-only blog.
- John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer sees the Reds' 2013 payroll being $92MM, but a team insider tells him the actual number could start with an eight. This would make it difficult, in Fay's opinion, to do anything in free agency except sign a closer or re-sign Ryan Ludwick.
- Within the same piece, GM Walt Jocketty says he will wait until after Thanksgiving to speak with Scott Rolen, who is contemplating retirement.
- The Cardinals' needs are simple for 2013, writes Bernie Miklasz of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. The team needs to reinforce a thin bench by adding some right-handed power and find a fourth outfielder who can generate some offense. Miklasz adds the health of shortstop Rafael Furcal is also a significant question.
- Blessed with the deepest of pockets, the Dodgers' desire to pursue an elite starting pitcher reveals myriad ways the team can approach the process, writes Steve Dilbeck of the Los Angeles Times. Common sense, however, may still prevail at Chavez Ravine as Dodgers controlling partner Mark Walter once eloquently stated, "Pitchers break."
Daniel Seco contributed to this post.