Heyman On Pujols, Reyes, Feliz
SI's Jon Heyman leads his latest column with a discussion of Albert Pujols' impending free agency. Three GMs Heyman spoke to speculate that Pujols will re-sign with the Cardinals after the season. One significant factor could be the lack of involvement from the Yankees and Red Sox, big spenders who already have long-term solutions at first base. A Yankees person told Heyman there was "no chance" of a pursuit, while a Red Sox person agreed that his club is unlikely to get involved. Cardinals GM John Mozeliak didn't have much to say on the topic, other than, "Nothing's changed." On to Heyman's other notes…
- Mozeliak told Heyman the Cardinals "have a pretty good idea" of what they'll do when Adam Wainwright's two-year, $21MM club option comes up after the season. Heyman takes that to mean that the Cardinals will pick up the option, the expected course of action.
- Heyman feels that the Cubs and Orioles could be possibilities for free agent Kevin Millwood, though I heard yesterday that it's doubtful the Cubs get involved.
- One Giants person said, "There's nothing to it," regarding the recent Jose Reyes speculation. Andrew Baggarly of the San Jose Mercury News explained today that "If any conversations have happened at all, it’s nothing more than tire kicking." That makes sense, since trading season begins about two months from now. For a look at who the Giants might have to give up to get Reyes at that point, click here.
- Heyman finds the Rangers likely to move Neftali Feliz into the rotation next year, despite the righty's recent comments. Heyman feels that a strong free agent closer market is a factor.
- The Tigers have decided this will be Joel Zumaya's last year in Detroit, according to Heyman. That was written prior to today's report that Zumaya will have exploratory elbow surgery.
NL Central Notes: Cardinals, Braun, Pena, Pirates
After losing five of their first seven games, the Cardinals went 14-5 to finish April with a two-game lead in the NL Central. As the Cards attempt to extend their current winning streak to five games this afternoon behind Jaime Garcia, here's a roundup of today's NL Central-related links:
- The ninth inning carousel in St. Louis has been the team's achilles heel so far, says Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Ryan Franklin is out as the closer and is in the final year of his contract, but GM John Mozeliak doesn't know who the Cardinals' closer of the future is yet. "This season will dictate if [Mitchell] Boggs or [Jason] Motte or [Eduardo] Sanchez is the answer," he said. "It's a little early to render that verdict."
- Farm director John Vuch tells Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch that the Cardinals have placed an emphasis on acquiring power arms in recent years.
- Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports digs into the specifics of Ryan Braun's long-term contract extension with the Brewers.
- Carlos Pena isn't the first big free agent bat to get off to a slow start for the Cubs, writes Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times. Despite a poor April, Pena still believes he can be a "huge contributor" in Chicago.
- The promotion of former fourth overall pick Danny Moskos gives the Pirates two left-handed relievers, something that manager Clint Hurdle was hoping for heading into the season, according to Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
2012 Vesting Options Update
It's the final day of the month, so let's check the status of the various vesting options around the league…
- Bobby Abreu, Angels: $9MM option vests with 433 plate appearances. Abreu is more than a quarter of the way there already; he has 116 PA after today's game.
- Rafael Furcal, Dodgers: $12MM option vests with 600 plate appearances. Furcal came to the plate 28 times before breaking his thumb. He's going to miss another three to five weeks, so he's unlikely to see the option vest.
- Jon Garland, Dodgers: $8MM option vests with 190 innings pitched. Garland started the year on the disabed list and has thrown just 20 innings so far. He should still get there if he stays healthy.
- Francisco Rodriguez, Mets: $17.5MM option vests with 55 games finished and if doctors declare him healthy at the end of the season. K-Rod has finished eight games so far, but you have to think the club will use him in a way to prevent the option from vesting.
- Koji Uehara, Orioles: $4MM option vests with either 55 appearances or 25 games finished. Uehara has appeared in eight games and finished four, putting him on pace for 54 and 27, respectively.
- Arthur Rhodes, Rangers: $4MM option vests with 62 appearances and if he's not on the disabled list at the end of the season. He's appeared in eight games so far, putting him on pace for 50. Injuries to the some of his bullpen mates could increase Rhodes' workload though.
- Joakim Soria, Royals: $6MM option vests with 55 appearances. He's already appeared in 12 games and is on pace for 75.
- Dan Wheeler, Red Sox: $3MM option vests with 65 games; increases to $3.25MM with 70 games. Wheeler has appeared in just eight games so far, so he'll have to start seeing more time for the option to kick in.
Adam Wainwright's 2012 ($9MM) and 2013 ($12MM) options will not vest because he will finish the season on the disabled list. Aramis Ramirez's option depends on MVP Award finishes and whether or not he's traded, not plate appearances or another counting milestone.
Mark Buehrle is scheduled to become a free agent after the 2011 season and although he doesn't have a traditional option in his contract, he gets an extra year at $15MM tacked onto his current deal if he's traded at some point this season.
Thanks to Cot's Baseball Contracts for the info.
Quick Hits: Pujols, Mets, Dodgers
On this date 12 years ago, Tigers scout Ramon Pena signed 17-year-old Omar Infante out of Venezuela. Now, it's a make or break year for the Marlins' infielder, who is 29. Here are today's links…
- Some Cardinals fans are creating signs to encourage Albert Pujols to re-sign in St. Louis and donating the proceeds to the first baseman's foundation, Yahoo's Jeff Passan reports. Pujols is set to hit free agency after the season and Ron Heinz and his friends want to make sure he stays put.
- The Mets will likely have a payroll of about $120MM next year, according to Matt Cerrone of MetsBlog. Cerrone suggests the Mets haven't yet decided how seriously they'll consider trade offers for Jose Reyes this summer and points out that it's unclear if GM Sandy Alderson intends to offer the shortstop a long-term deal.
- ESPN.com’s Jerry Crasnick identifies nine key partnerships that have emerged so far this season, including Andre Ethier and Matt Kemp and Jose Bautista and Blue Jays hitting coach Dwayne Murphy.
Quick Hits: Braun, Lohse, Franklin, Wood
Some news items as Matt Kemp is once again a walkoff hero for the Dodgers…
- Ryan Braun and his agent, Nez Balelo, initially approached the Brewers about the long-term extension Braun signed with the team today, reports Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. “We didn’t have to do this and he didn’t have to do this,” said GM Doug Melvin. “Very rarely does it happen where a player understands a franchise and where he’s at, and where he wants to be in the future."
- ESPN's Keith Law discusses the Braun extension, Joe Mauer's future at catcher and several draft prospects in a chat with fans.
- Kyle Lohse is finally living up to his contract and helping the Cardinals' rotation survive without Adam Wainwright, writes Jeff Gordon of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
- Ryan Franklin's recent criticism of St. Louis fans might ensure that this is his last year with the Cardinals, says ESPN Insider's Doug Mittler.
- How does Brandon Wood compare to other disappointing prospects? Baseball America's Ben Badler investigates (BA subscription required).
- Adrian Gonzalez talks to Chris Jenkins of the San Diego Union-Tribune about how the slugger is adjusting to the heightened expectations that come with playing for the Red Sox.
- Baseball America's Matt Eddy has this week's compilation of minor league transactions.
Cardinals Notes: Ludwick, Eduardo Sanchez, Pujols
As the Cardinals continue their four-game series in Los Angeles tonight, here are some Redbird-related news items…
- GM John Mozeliak took some criticism for trading Ryan Ludwick last summer, but Jeff Gordon of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch argues that Mozeliak may deserve some credit given Ludwick's struggles since the deal. Ludwick has just a .607 OPS in 207 plate appearances as a Padre.
- The Cardinals have spent some extra money on Caribbean scouting and development in recent years, and the first prospect to emerge from the revamped system is Eduardo Sanchez, writes Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Sanchez made an impressive Major League debut on Wednesday, recording five strikeouts in two innings of relief against Arizona.
- Gordon, Strauss and a roundtable of other Post-Dispatch writers look at how Adrian Gonzalez's extension with the Red Sox may affect Albert Pujols' contract this winter.
- Speaking of Pujols, Tim Brown of Yahoo Sports looked the slugger's recent emergence from an early-season slump.
Stark On Orioles, Beltran, Reyes, Carpenter
The Yankees weren’t counting on much from Kevin Millwood when they signed him to a minor league deal and, according to Jayson Stark of ESPN.com, that may be a good thing. Stark hears that Millwood “looks terrible” and isn’t throwing as hard as usual in extended Spring Training. Here’s Stark’s latest from around the league:
- An AL executive expects the Orioles to be one of the most active sellers in baseball if they fade this summer. With Vladimir Guerrero, Derrek Lee, J.J. Hardy and others on the roster, the O’s have a lot of potential trade chips.
- The Mets would ‘love’ to see Carlos Beltran play well enough to make himself appealing as a trade candidate. Scouts are already watching Beltran in case he’s available at the deadline.
- One NL scout says he’d recommend Jose Reyes on a two month rental, but wouldn’t advise committing to the shortstop long-term.
- Despite speculation that Chris Carpenter could be traded, most clubs expect the Cardinals to hold onto him. St. Louis holds a $15MM option for Carpenter in 2012 ($1MM buyout).
Quick Hits: Zito, Rangers, Morgan, Angels
Links for Thursday night..
- The Giants likely can't get much for Barry Zito and therefore a deal involving him is unlikely, writes MLB.com's Chris Haft.
- Ryan Theriot enjoyed his brief stint with the Dodgers last season, writes Quinn Roberts for MLB.com. After playing 54 games for the club last season, he was shipped to the Cardinals for reliever Blake Hawksworth.
- Despite all of the uncertainty about their rotation heading into this season, it seems like the Rangers pitching is just fine, writes Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com.
- After bouncing around from the Pirates to the Nationals to the Brewers, Nyjer Morgan seems to be carving out a niche for himself in Milwaukee, writes George Von Benko for MLB.com. The Brewers acquired Morgan in exchange for Cutter Dykstra in late March.
- Major League Baseball announced the selection order for the draft (June 6-8) and the Padres own five of the first 58 overall selections, writes Corey Brock of MLB.com. In addition to their own first-rounder, the club has the ninth pick for failing to sign their 2010 first-round pick, pitcher Karsten Whitson. They also have three compensatory picks for Jon Garland (Dodgers), Yorvit Torrealba (Rangers) and Kevin Correia (Pirates).
- The Angels are grateful to have picked up left-handed relievers Hisanori Takahashi and Scott Downs this offseason, writes Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times.
Cardinals Acquire Victor Marte
The Cardinals acquired reliever Victor Marte from the Royals for future considerations, tweets Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
Marte, 30, posted a 3.32 ERA, 6.4 K/9, 3.3 BB/9, and 0.7 HR/9 in 40 2/3 Triple-A relief innings last year. Marte was signed by the Royals as an amateur free agent over ten years ago; he logged time in Japan at one point.
Quick Hits: Abreu, Dodgers, Snell
Links for Monday night, as Sam Fuld comes tantalizingly close to hitting for the cycle and a couple of young left-handers toe the rubber in San Francisco…
- MLB.com's Doug Miller says some players can't be replaced because they do more than put up numbers. Bobby Abreu, Mark Ellis and Craig Counsell are in Miller's select group.
- A Boston law firm, Bingham McCutchen, is suing Dodgers owner Frank McCourt, according to Bill Shaikin of the LA Times.
- The Cardinals officially granted Ian Snell his release so that he can pursue a job elsewhere, according to Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (on Twitter). Snell, who retired about a month ago, now says he's considering a return.