Cardinals Rumors

Poll: The Cardinals & Albert Pujols

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | January 17, 2011 at 8:52am CDT

The Cardinals have until Spring Training to work out an extension with Albert Pujols. Since he's the face of the franchise and arguably the best player in the game, there's a fair amount of pressure on the team not to let the slugger hit free agency. After all, the bidding for a three-time MVP coming off of consecutive home run titles would likely accelerate in no time. Now, the Cards have exclusive negotiating rights with their first baseman.

With just one season remaining on his current contract, Pujols has a fair amount of leverage. If the Cardinals don't meet his demands, he can resist their overtures and wait for other clubs to enter the bidding after the season. And a player of Pujols' caliber could potentially ask for an Alex Rodriguez-like deal on the open market.

Which means everyone wants to know the answer to this question:

Ryan Franklin Wants To Play Beyond 2011

By Mike Axisa | January 16, 2011 at 2:31pm CDT

Just a few months ago, Ryan Franklin announced that he intended to retire after the 2011 season, when his current contract is up. Seven months and some rethinking later, Franklin told Derrick Goold of The St. Louis Post-Dispatch that he would like to continue pitching beyond the 2011 campaign.

"I've done a lot of [thinking] this offseason," said Franklin. "I've come to the conclusion that if this year goes well, I'm going to keep playing. If I stay healthy, and I don't see why I shouldn't. The family has told me to keep playing, so I'm going to keep playing."

We heard that Franklin was reconsidering his retirement plans back in September, but he emphasized that the decision would be based around his family and what they want. As the reliever stated, his family is on board with him continuing his career.

Franklin will turn 38 early in Spring Training, and specifically mentioned Jason Motte, Mitchell Boggs, and Kyle McClellan to Goold as potential understudies for the closer's role. He pitched to a 3.46 ERA with 27 saves in 65 innings in 2010, one year after he posted a 1.92 ERA with 38 saves in 2009. Franklin's current contract guarantees him $6.5MM.

Cafardo’s Latest: Bonderman, Pettitte, Pavano, Bautista

By Luke Adams 2 | January 16, 2011 at 11:42am CDT

Despite their impressive offseason, the Red Sox will still need some luck at a couple positions, says Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe. Cafardo leads this week's column by discussing the production the Red Sox hope to receive behind the plate and from their left-handed relievers. Here are the rest of the items of interest from the piece:

Jeremy Bonderman is still looking to land a spot at the back of a rotation, and is drawing "minor interest" from the Rangers and Cardinals. The Yankees, whose interest in Bonderman we heard about earlier this month, have also been in touch with the right-hander's representation.
Someone "close to" Andy Pettitte told Cafardo that he would be shocked if we've seen the last of the left-hander in the bigs. The longtime Yankee won't start the 2011 season with the club, but hasn't officially announced any plans to retire.
There has been a "strange silence" surrounding Carl Pavano's situation over the last week, but Cafardo suggests that since Pavano definitely wants to remain a Twin, there's no urgency to act quickly.
According to Cafardo, Jose Bautista would prefer to play right field rather than third base for the Blue Jays this season. Where Bautista ends up on the field may hinge on whether the Jays add another bat.

NL Central Notes: Pirates, Pujols, Rasmus, Wandy

By Luke Adams 2 | January 16, 2011 at 10:33am CDT

The fact that the Pirates haven't had a winning season since 1992 isn't stopping new manager Clint Hurdle from aiming high in 2011. Speaking to Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, Hurdle said that "people can laugh," but Pittsburgh will head into the season with the goal of winning the NL Central. Here are the latest updates on the Pirates and the rest of the division they hope to win:

Hurdle was a major factor in Lyle Overbay's decision to sign with the Pirates, as Colin Dunlap of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette explains.
As ESPN's Buster Olney hinted yesterday on Twitter, Albert Pujols is serious about his Spring Training negotiating deadline. In Olney's Insider-only blog, he says that if the deadline passes without an extension in place, "all bets are off. Because the talks will shift from a nice one-on-one conversation between the Cardinals and their star player to being a straight bidding war."
Cardinals GM John Mozeliak tells Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch that trade rumors surrounding Colby Rasmus were blown out of proportion. According to Mozelieak, most of the calls he received on Rasmus were from teams who were "bottom-fishing," thinking the Cards might part with the 24-year-old at a reduced price.
The Astros will face a tough decision this year regarding the future of Wandy Rodriguez, writes Richard Justice of the Houston Chronicle. Justice expects the team to try to extend the left-hander, a possibility the Astros and Rodriguez have already discussed, but cautions that "the money can't get crazy."

Quick Hits: Carpenter, Martin, Francis, Yankees

By Mike Axisa | January 15, 2011 at 10:26pm CDT

Eighteen years ago today, the Angels traded Lee Stevens to the Expos for minor leaguer Jeff Tuss, but Tuss refused to report to his new team. Keith Morrison, another minor leaguer, was included in the deal instead, and Tuss never played affiliated baseball again.

Here are today's batch of links…

Chris Carpenter told MLB.com's Matthew Leach that he's not worried about his future with the Cardinals. The right-hander is under contract for 2011 with a $15MM club option for 2012, but an extension for Albert Pujols might push the 35-year-old Carpenter out of town if the team needs to shed payroll.
Richard Griffin of The Toronto Star reports that the Blue Jays offered Russell Martin the same amount of money as the Yankees, but the catcher signed with New York because of a better opportunity to win (Twitter link). Shi Davidi of The Canadian Press tweets that the Jays wanted Martin to catch four times a week as well as play another position.
Jeff Francis said the Blue Jays did not show any interest in him before he joined the Royals according to Davidi on Twitter. Francis grew up in Canada, but nowhere close to Toronto.
Chad Jennings of the The Journal News takes a look at the Yankees' multiyear relief contract from the last decade.
Derrick Goold of The St. Louis Post-Dispatch tweets that Cardinals GM John Mozeliak has pledged to keep negotiations about a contract extension with Albert Pujols private.
The Rangers offered Jim Thome more than $4MM before he decided to sign with the Twins for $3MM, reports Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (on Twitter). We knew that Thome turned down more money from Texas, but now we know how much.
Cubs chairman Tom Ricketts told fans that he has confidence in GM Jim Hendry at today's Cubs Convention according to MLB.com's Carrie Muskat (on Twitter).
Matt Gelb of The Philadelphia Inquirer says this winter's market for free agent relievers has been wonderful for Ryan Madson. The Phillies' setup man is due to become a free agent next offseason after his three-year, $12MM contract expires.

Pujols’ Agent Sets Deadline For Extension Talks

By Zachary Links | January 15, 2011 at 6:24pm CDT

6:24pm: ESPN's Buster Olney says (via Twitter) that if a contract can not be worked out by the deadline, Pujols "is intent on testing the free agent market." SI.com's Jon Heyman spoke to one executive that thinks Pujols would get 20% less than expected on the open market because big spenders like the Yankees, Red Sox, Phillies, and Tigers don't figure to enter the bidding given their first base situation (Twitter link).

Olney speculates that the Cubs, Angels, Dodgers, and Giants could be interested.

1:41pm: Dan Lozano, the agent for Albert Pujols, notified the Cardinals that Spring Training is the deadline for a new deal to be struck, GM John Mozeliak told Derrick Goold of The St. Louis Post-Dispatch (via Twitter). Earlier this week, Cards chariman and CEO Bill DeWitt Jr. said that he was "hopeful" that the club can extend Pujols by Opening Day.

It's difficult to find a dead-on comparison for the stellar slugger, but our own Ben Nicholson-Smith suggested that Pujols could compare himself to Alex Rodriguez who is earning $27.5MM per season over the life of his newest contract. We don't know much about the inner-workings of the talks as it is, but earlier today Mozeliak vowed to keep his lips sealed on the matter.

Cardinals To Sign Ramon Vazquez

By Zachary Links | January 15, 2011 at 2:56pm CDT

The Cardinals are set to sign infielder Ramon Vazquez to a minor league deal, according to Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. The deal comes with an invite to Spring Training and could be completed and announced this weekend, a source told Goold.

Vazquez, 34, last appeared in the majors in 2009 with Pittsburgh. The veteran, who is represented by MDR Sports, could give the Cards some much needed depth on the left side of the infield. Vazquez spent 2010 with the Triple-A affiliates of the Mariners and Astros, hitting .257/.330/.363 in 202 plate appearances.

Cardinals Avoid Arbitration With Kyle McClellan

By Mike Axisa | January 15, 2011 at 1:00pm CDT

The Cardinals and reliever Kyle McClellan have agreed to a one-year contract, avoiding arbitration according to the team's Twitter feed. The deal is worth $1.375MM, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. With the right-hander's contract taken care of, the Cardinals have no more arbitration eligible players for 2011.

Last season McClellan, 26, turned in a career-best 2.27 ERA last season with 7.2 K/9 and 2.7 BB/9 in 75.1 innings of work. This winter marked McClellan's first crack at arbitration eligibility. To keep up on all of the 2011 arbitration cases, check out our Arb Tracker.

Cardinals To Sign Batista, Snell

By Zachary Links | January 14, 2011 at 11:49am CDT

The Cardinals have agreed on minor league deals with Miguel Batista and Ian Snell, according to the club (via Twitter). Both right-handers will receive invitations to Spring Training.

Batista, 40 in February, turned in a 3.70 ERA with 6.0 K/9 and 4.9 BB/9 for the Nationals last season. In 16 major league seasons with eight different clubs, Batista owns a 4.51 ERA with 5.8 K/9 and 4.1 BB/9.

Snell, 29, was part of a seven-player swap between the Mariners and the Pirates in 2009. The hurler cleared waivers and accepted a Triple-A assignment after being DFA'd by the M's in June. Snell has a career 4.80 ERA with 7.2 K/9 and 4.2 BB/9.

Cardinals ‘Hopeful’ About Extending Pujols

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | January 12, 2011 at 4:50pm CDT

Cardinals chairman and CEO Bill DeWitt Jr. told Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports that he is “hopeful” that the Cardinals can extend Albert Pujols by the time the season starts. The sides are not that far along yet, but they have had “discussions” and will continue to talk. They re-started extension talks last week.

DeWitt says the sides don’t necessarily have to agree to a deal by the start of Spring Training. However, Pujols has said that he doesn’t want to negotiate in-season. I suggested earlier today that it wouldn't be unreasonable for Pujols to compare himself to Alex Rodriguez, who signed the biggest contract in baseball history three offseasons ago.

DeWitt said he doesn’t expect “major” upgrades to his team’s roster between now and the start of the regular season. The Cardinals are not likely to add expensive position players, so Michael Young won't be going to St. Louis. He probably won't be going anywhere, as the Rangers have told him he's staying put.

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