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Jocketty Faces Burnett Aftermath

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A.J. Burnett slipped out of the Cardinals’ grasp because of The Fifth Year, and Lboros over at Viva El Birdos thinks the team was being cheap.  He mentions their new stadium, radio and TV deal revenue, and two postseasons in a row.  Given that A.J. Burnett was the only free agent pitcher out there who could be a difference-maker, what are Cards fans to do?

Well, they shouldn’t count Walt Jocketty out just yet.  While perhaps not the best trade in his history, Jocketty did make a move on one of last Javieyear’s hot commodities, Mark Mulder.  He’s fully capable of doing the same thing for Javier Vazquez.  The Indians appear to be the front-runner for Vazquez’s services, but the Cards might be able to pull something off.

After a perusal of the Cardinals’ Baseball America Top Ten Prospects, only Anthony Reyes is Major-League ready among a thin crop.  It seems that Reyes, and only Reyes, could bring Vazquez, or any other name starting pitcher, to St. Louis.  It wouldn’t be the first time Jocketty dealt a near-ready righthanded starter for a proven veteran version.  However, should the Snakes insist on a position player (they wanted Coco Crisp), Vazquez won’t be joining the Cardinals.  If Jocketty can’t come up with his #2 starter, expect Jason Marquis to remain with the club.

Cards Interested In Braden Looper

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Word on the street is that the Cardinals plan on making a run at Braden Looper this week to add some depth to their bullpen. 

Looper had a lost ’05 – his HR rate shot up, his lost his 2004 gains in control, and his K rate plummeted.  He lost his closer’s title in September and was an the operating table the following month (shoulder surgery).  With the AC joint arthritis cleaned up, it’s worth a million bucks on the Cards’ part to see if he can return to 2004 levels in a setup role.

The Cardinals are also poking their head around to see how much Octavio Dotel is asking for.  Dotel may not be ready til midseason, but many Cardinal fans think they’ll have the division locked up by then anyway.

Thanks to Drew

A.J. Burnett Update

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Some new information to report on the A.J. Burnett saga. 

Let’s start at Viva El Birdos, where lboros is getting a little weary with the constant Burnett sightings and updates.  It’s unclear whether he can be described as indefatigable.  Lboros references this Toronto Star article, which has the Cards close but the Blue Jays still in the game.  Another article mentions that the Nationals are still in the running even though they’ve yet to make an offer.

In light of this information, Brian Walton’s Scout.com article has changed significantly.  Walton is still contending that Burnett is due in St. Louis for a physical and has agreed to terms.

Speaking of Burnett in St. Louis sightings, I’ve got another source adamant that Burnett was seen at Lambert-St. Louis International Airport as first noted yesterday.  My source has talked to the head of security for Terminal A, who is "99% sure" it was A.J. Burnett last night.  Given that both sightings were by Cardinals fans, there may be another explanation to all the madness.   

Scout.com: “Burnett Deal Almost Done”

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Brian Walton of Scout.com is reporting that A.J. Burnett has agreed to terms with the Cardinals.  I have not spoken to Walton on the topic; he passed on an interview request a few days ago after writing a somewhat confusing article for Scout.com on November 30th. 

Walton’s article says the deal is for five years, guaranteed, and required special permission from the Cardinals’ chairman.

There’s a thread over at St. Louis Post-Dispatch columnist Bernie Miklasz’s Pressbox forum on this topic.  Miklasz has yet to weigh in.  Another poster on an STL Today forum claims to have seen Burnett at the Lambert-St. Louis International Airport, for what it’s worth. 

Lboros from Viva El Birdos has a trusted source down at the winter meetings, and he says the deal is "basically done."  Things are looking up for Cards fans at this point.   

Thanks to the many emailers who passed the article along.

That Infamous Cardinals Memo

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Didn’t get enough about this scandalous memo sent out by Walt Jocketty?  If you recall, we first reported on a memo to Cardinals employees threatening termination if they disclosed any information two days ago. 

Here’s the rundown of the memo history, based on a few of my own sources. 

A memo containing confidential information went out to all 30 MLB teams.

One team employee sent the memo to a member of the media, who published it (that’s more or less a direct quote; if I find text of the initial MLB memo I’ll be sure to post it.  For now, this is all I know.)

MLB sent firm instruction to teams: don’t leak confidential information!

The Cardinals, plus an unknown West Coast team, sent a memo to employees reminding them not to disclose confidential information.

So, in conclusion, the Jocketty memo that we thought prefaced a huge trade or signing may have been no more than a run-of-the-mill nondisclosure reminder.

Update:  Received some additional info concerning the initial memo sent by MLB to all 30 teams.  Seems that a large portion of Peter Gammons’s November 18th column may have come from the MLB memo.  It’s an Insider column, but here’s the gist.

There’s a rundown of teams’ percentage of revenues that go into payroll, and it’s been steadily decreasing since 2002.  In other words, the teams are holding on to almost half their revenue.  Gammons says the info was given to clubs by the Commissioner’s Office and even admits the memo is confidential.  The column goes on to state that 2/3 of teams were profitable in ’05.

More Cardinals Rumblings

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Trusted blogger Lboros has a new post over at Viva El Birdos that does a solid, thorough job of sifting through the rumors flying about in relation to the Cardinals.  Especially with that infamous memo.  The memo!  The memo!  You can check out our post from yesterday morning as a refresher.

The short version:

Walt Jocketty has been unusually uptight this offseason and has been keeping things close to the vest.

The Abreu to the Cards rumor is more than idle speculation; it seems some talks have taken place on that.  Lboros doesn’t think the deal is a good fit economically or logically for the Cardinals, regardless.

Jason Marquis is as good as gone; Anthony Reyes is likely to stay.

Solid sources are saying the Cardinals are expected to sign A.J. Burnett soon, and lboros thinks that’s the most likely scenario.

Cardinals Nearing Huge Trade

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I’ve got a source near the Cardinals organization telling me "something big is happening."  Apparently, all company employees have received a memo threatening termination if any information is disclosed.  Luckily, I’m not employed by the Cardinals, so I’m free to gossip. 

I dropped a line to Lboros over at Viva El Birdos, a blogger who has a finger on the pulse of the team.  Lboros had an intriguing list of trade rumors and possible signings that have presented themselves within the past few weeks:

Acquisition of Bobby Abreu.  It is known that Abreu is on the trading block, although the asking price is sky high.  It would be hard to imagine a deal getting done without Major League-ready pitching prospect Anthony Reyes included in the deal.

Trade for Ken Griffey Jr.  Lboros speculates that Jason Marquis could be shipped to Cincinnati for Junior.  Given Griffey’s terrible defense in recent years, a move to a corner would make a ton of sense.  The Reds are desperately trying to acquire young pitching, although Marquis will become a free agent after 2006.

Jim Edmonds traded to Yankees for Robinson Cano and Chien-Ming Wang.  Sure, it’s a staggering idea at first.  Considering defense, Edmonds is still unquestionably the best center fielder in baseball even at age 35.  He’s under contract for $12MM in 2006, and the Cards do have a need for a second baseman and a cheap young starter.  Before you call me a crazy, evil Rumor Monger (that’s a half-truth), remember that St. Louis Post-Dispatch columnist Bernie Miklasz originated the rumor.

A.J Burnett signing.  This one is considered the most plausible by the Cardinal faithful, and Walt Jocketty’s wooing of Burnett is well-known.  Burnett’s agent stated yesterday that a deal could be "one phone call away."  Jocketty doesn’t seem like the type to go to five years, $65MM for a starter, but he has to be considering it.     

   

Cubs Acquire John Mabry

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The word over at Bernie’s Pressbox via Viva El Birdos is that the Cubs have signed 35 year-old OF/1B/3B John Mabry to a one-year contract for $1MM.  Mabry is coming off a poor season during which he hit .240/.295/.407 in 246 at-bats.

This rumor is not yet confirmed.  A million bucks sounds a bit high coming off an off year, although Mabry earned $725,000 in 2005.  He was a spectacular role player in 2004, hitting .296/.363/.504 in 87 games.  It may be that Mabry was given more playing time than is good for him in ’05.

Mabry’s versatility would indicate that Jose Macias might be cut from the 40 man roster.  Macias made $800,000 in 2005 while playing many positions, none of them well.

Update: Bruce Levine of ESPN Radio 1000 is reporting that the Cubs have indeed signed John Mabry to a one-year deal.

Thanks to Alex

Mark Buehrle To The Cardinals

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Disclaimer: this one is pure speculation.

Over at the premiere Cardinals blog, Viva El Birdos, lboros dropped a very intriguing name: Mark Buehrle.  There haven’t been many published reports of Buehrle being available.  Here’s the logic behind the Buehrle idea according to commenters Demetre and lboros.

Demetre: There really isn’t anything concrete about Buehrle being available (I don’t think) except for his unapolegitic, vocal, native STL love and desire to be a Cardinal at all costs.

Its about as pre-ordained a cardinal pitcher-to-be as i can remember outside the system.

lboros: the Buehrle is pure speculation on my part, but based on two considerations:

  1. He’s due to be a free agent in 2007 and almost surely will leave Chicago, as Reinsdorf won’t pay big money for him.

  2. Reinsdorf is well known for blowing his teams up. A few years back he even dumped half the team when they were only 3 or 4 games out of 1st place. If the sox aren’t doing well at midseason, Reinsdorf may be tempted to get frugal, and get what he can for Buehrle.

This is very sound logic (although it comes from a couple of die-hard Cards fans). 

If the White Sox are looking to trim payroll and get the best value for Buehrle before free agency, the Cardinals would be the ideal trading partner.  Jocketty’s Mark Mulder trade set a precedent that he’s willing to give up top prospects for proven pitching.  If Jocketty made Jason Marquis and Anthony Reyes available, I think Kenny Williams would pull the trigger on this blockbuster.

What do you think? 

 

Dotel’s Agent Confirms Cards’ Interest

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Octavio Dotel’s agent, Dan Horwits, confirmed late Saturday that the Cardinals have been in contact with his client.  According to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch article by Derrick Goold, more than a dozen teams have inquired about Dotel.

Of course, regular visitors of MLBTradeRumors.com were privy to this information early on Thursday, long before the newspapers picked it up.  The scoop came via our favorite source, a New York barber in the know about Dominican players.  In addition to St. Louis, the Mets would like to fit Dotel into an 8th inning role, and the Indians are looking for an insurance policy should Bob Wickman not return.

The Post-Dispatch article left out the most pertinent fact – that Dotel is hard at work on a merengue album.   

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