Eckstein seeking Lugo-esque deal
If Julio Lugo was able to snag four years and $36 million last off-season, well, by golly, David Eckstein wants to do the same this year. You can make some arguments with the comparison — Lugo is a year younger, flashes a bit more power, and has been more consistent in his production (from year-to-year; we’re not counting his huge drop-off after being traded to the Dodgers last year). But it’s tough to argue with Eckstein for wanting to start talks at that level.
This may deter Eckstein’s perceived No. 1 suitor, the New York Mets, who are looking at him to fill their second base vacancy. One has to wonder, though, if the Mets wouldn’t just be better off with Luis Castillo, who performed averagely in his 199 at bats with the Mets last season (.296/.371/.372). On the whole, Castillo is far better Lugo comp than Eckstein; both Lugo and Castillo will be 32 next season, and have seen similar production over the years. The Astros are also reportedly interested in Castillo, though the same can be said for nearly every FA on the list.
The Mets are also looking at Orlando Hudson in possible trade scenarios to fill their second base vacancies. Speculation, though, is that the Mets would like to hold onto their movable prospects in order to acquire a front-line pitcher. Clearly, Johan Santana tops that list.
The Cardinals aren’t officially severing ties with Eckstein, but it appears unlikely that they will dole out a Lugo deal for him. New Cardinals GM John Mozeliak had this to say about the scrappy shortstop:
"We’re going into it looking for a shortstop, and given the fact that David is out there, obviously we have him in mind. One of the things we’re doing internally is trying to get a feel for the supply and the demand of shortstops in this market. David probably is doing the same, and right now there doesn’t appear to be a lot of teams looking for shortstops."
At first, I didn’t think too many teams needed shortstops, but after looking around it seems that there are plenty of teams that could at least use an upgrade at the position. Unfortunately, Eckstein doesn’t represent much of one.
Joe Pawlikowski is co-author of River Ave. Blues, a Yankees blog.
Giants Rumors: Cabrera, Rolen, Walker
Finally some Giants rumors! I know a few fans have been clamoring for the team to join the hot stove rumblings. Andrew Baggarly has an article here and Henry Schulman has one here. Let’s discuss.
- The Giants have no one to play third base. Kevin Frandsen could technically do it but they prefer him at second. Thankfully, they will pass on Pedro Feliz. Feliz – get this – wants a three year deal. He’s on the Brewers’ radar, by the way.
- Miguel Cabrera is one option, though Baggarly doesn’t see the Giants offering up Tim Lincecum to jump into the fray. However Schulman’s source says the Giants have been "one of the most aggressive teams" after Cabrera. Who to believe?
- Baggarly’s team source doesn’t expect to go after the available Scott Rolen, given his health questions and contract. Free agents Morgan Ensberg and Mike Lamb seem more likely options at third base.
- Brian Wilson and the newly signed Tyler Walker will mix it up for the closer job. Brian Sabean doesn’t anticipate dropping big bucks/losing a draft pick for Scott Linebrink. Nor are the Giants likely to hit up the Japanese market.
Did Mike Lowell Really Receive Four Offers?
This has all been covered here on MLBTR, but I guess it’s gotten lost in the shuffle because I’m receiving tons of email about it. Maybe I’ll try to build something into the site to better keep up with the big names besides just reading through everything. In the meantime, you can always use the search bar on the sidebar.
Anyway, let’s talk about this Mike Lowell rumor from WHDH Channel 7 News out of Boston. These guys are getting a ton of traffic to this rumor and I just gave them more. Oh well.
The uncredited rumor says a source close to Lowell indicates that he’s received four-year offers in the $55-60MM range from the Braves, Angels, Cardinals, and Yankees.
GM Frank Wren debunked the Braves portion today. Esteemed St. Louis Post-Dispatch writer Bernie Miklasz killed the Cardinals portion last night. The Boston Herald’s Rob Bradford shot down the Angels rumor.
So we have an uncredited rumor that is currently 0 for 3.
A different Boston TV station, WBZ, said today that the Yanks did make an offer in the $56-60MM range to Lowell today (courtesy of Dan Roche). That could be accurate but I would like to see some of the regular Yankees beat writers pick it up also.
Padres Look To Extend Peavy
Jake Peavy will soon add a Cy Young to his resume, and the Padres would like to explore a contract extension with him. Under his current contract, Peavy will earn $6.5MM in ’08 and $11MM in ’09 once he wins the award. The Padres would like to extend him for the 2010 and 2011 seasons and possibly more.
Peavy realizes the Padres won’t give him the $18MM+ per year he could earn on the free market. But an extension for 2010-11 in the range of $32-35MM could work.
It’s been assumed that any team trading for Peavy this winter would have him for two seasons. However, that isn’t the case – Tom Krasovic says he could opt for free agency after ’08 as a player traded during a multiyear deal. I assume Dan Haren has the same right, but Erik Bedard does not. That certainly bumps up Bedard’s value.
Krasovic also adds that the Padres have their eye on Jim Edmonds and Ryan Church as center field options. The Padres would expect Edmonds to be a salary dump and the Cards to throw in some cash. Meanwhile Jim Bowden has a high asking price for Church.
Rosenthal’s Latest: Cordero, Livan, Jenkins
Somehow, I missed a Ken Rosenthal column. This thing is already 14 hours old. I’m slipping.
- A Mystery Team has already made a four-year offer to Francisco Cordero. We know the Brewers made an offer on Monday but Rosenthal may be referring to another club.
- Rosenthal suggests Scott Linebrink could be reunited with Bruce Bochy to become the Giants’ closer. It’s known that the Astros already have an offer out to Linebrink.
- Teams interested in Geoff Jenkins: the Cubs, Padres, Giants, Rangers, and Royals. Several of those are new to me.
- The Tigers’ payroll is expected to exceed $115MM. Time to head over to Cot’s and do some math. By my count the Tigers are around $105MM right now (includes some arbitration guesses). That leaves room for one starting pitcher signing, be it Kenny Rogers, Carlos Silva, or whoever.
- The Cardinals, Astros, and Mets have their eye on Livan Hernandez. Mets’ management is divided on signing him, since he’s a back-rotation guy.
- Rosenthal believes the Reds could shop Joey Votto or Josh Hamilton a year from now in hopes of acquiring starting pitching.
- Tony Clark is gaining in popularity as a cheap power source. He might be looking at two years, $4MM plus more playing time.
Cardinals Interested In Silva, Lohse
Joe Strauss has the latest regarding the Cardinals’ pursuit for starting pitching. The team is interested in free agents Carlos Silva and Kyle Lohse. Matthew Leach recently quoted John Mozeliak as searching for a starter with some upside, so maybe the Cards favor Lohse. They’d have to tangle with Scott Boras to get him – I’ve heard some speculate that Lohse could get a Gil Meche 5/55 deal.
Strauss’s article also mentions that the Cards are exploring options besides David Eckstein for shortstop. They’ve recently been linked to Cesar Izturis. Maybe the Cardinals could try to get a shortstop in return for Scott Rolen, someone like Erick Aybar or Rafael Furcal. Derrick Goold recently had a nice breakdown of the available shortstop options.
Finally, Strauss’s report adds that Mozeliak "downplayed any interest in Barry Bonds." It might be tough to fit both Chris Duncan and Bonds into the outfield.
Scott Rolen Is Available
Cardinals GM John Mozeliak confirmed this morning that third baseman Scott Rolen is indeed available in trade. The topic definitely came up at the GM meetings. It seems that Rolen and Tony La Russa just can’t get along.
Rolen would be up for waiving his no-trade clause for a competitive team. He’s owed $36MM over three years, probably a touch more than he could get on the open market right now. But not terribly different. Joe Strauss’s article says the Cardinals are reluctant to eat salary and want full value in return.
Who needs a third baseman? The Red Sox, Yankees, Indians, Tigers, Twins, Angels, and Dodgers could conceivably trade for Rolen. The Brewers and Phillies might have the need but those clubs don’t seem likely. The Cards and Twins may have already had low-level talks about Rolen.
If the Cards create a need at third base, they might have to fill it by signing a Mike Lamb type. I can’t see how they could acquire an MLB-ready third baseman for Rolen. That wouldn’t make sense for the other team.
Odds and Ends: Clark, Izturis, Clemens
First day for teams to negotiate with free agents, always a good time. Here are today’s odds and ends.
- Jeff Blair notes that one athlete may still be better paid than Alex Rodriguez: Kimi Raikkonen, a Formula One driver, earns $51MM per year. No need to debate on whether race car drivers should be considered athletes, I just thought it was interesting.
- The D’Backs don’t figure to spend much on free agents, because they’re a smart team. Tony Clark wants two years, $4MM, and the team is thinking it over.
- The Bucs will probably hold onto Jack Wilson this winter, as they’re cutting Cesar Izturis loose rather than pay him $5.45MM. The Cardinals have interest in Izturis, by the way.
- Confirming what we already knew: the Yankees will pursue Mike Lowell and Johan Santana.
- Marty York has a source saying the Blue Jays might pursue Roger Clemens and Andy Pettitte. Say what?
- Doug Melvin isn’t planning on moving Rookie of the Year Ryan Braun from third base unless the Brewers acquire another "legitimate, bona fide third baseman."
- Mark Gonzales notes that the White Sox tried to acquire Scott Linebrink and Octavio Dotel in 2006, implying that Kenny Williams might go after one of them now. Linebrink is going to be a costly sign, as he’s a Type A and I imagine the Brewers will offer him arbitration.
- Scott Gregor places odds on various center field possibilities for the White Sox. He thinks they have a decent chance of trading for Coco Crisp.
Odds and Ends: Rolen, Silva, Capps
Here are some hot stove links to digest this evening.
- The New York Post’s Joel Sherman runs down some third base options for the Yankees. He feels that Scott Rolen, Bill Hall, Freddy Sanchez, and a few others might be reasonable options. Bernie Miklasz says there’s no indication any team is truly interested in Rolen, though Randy Youngman suggests the Angels may look at him.
- Youngman also believes the Halos have slight interest in Carlos Silva, if he can be had at less than $10MM annually. Not bloody likely.
- Jon Paul Morosi thinks the Tigers could go after the Pirates’ Damaso Marte, Salomon Torres, or even Matt Capps.
- Hat tip to Bucco Blog on the Sherman and Morosi links above. Check out Jake’s latest post, where he uncovers some interesting minor league free agents.
- Rob Biertempfel names David Riske, Doug Brocail, Shawn Camp, and Scott Linebrink as some relievers the Pirates might consider. I imagine Riske and Linebrink will be too pricey.
- Troy E. Renck believes the Rockies might inquire about Cliff Lee.
- RotoAuthority assesses the health risks within the Nationals’ rotation.
Did Twins and Cards Discuss Rolen?
Buster Olney is a trusted source for baseball info if there ever was one. Here’s an excerpt from his blog today:
The Cardinals are shopping Scott Rolen. Heard on Thursday that the Twins and Cardinals are talking about a deal for Rolen, who is owed $33 million over the next three years. The Cardinals presumably are asking for pitching in return, but because of the money involved and Rolen’s injury history, they might not get a lot, because this is more of a salary dump.
On the other hand, Joe Christensen of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune is obviously very close to the Twins. He spoke to two Twins officials yesterday who said they’ve had no discussions about Rolen at all. Could it be that those two officials didn’t speak to the Cards about Rolen, but another member of the Twins’ front office did? It wouldn’t be the first time baseball execs played coy with the media.