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AL East Rumors: Lowrie, Upton, Maddon, Orioles

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The latest buzz out of the AL East…

Rays Making Serious Run At Josh Willingham

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3:04pm: The Rays are making a serious run at Willingham, tweets Crasnick.  Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports adds that while the Rays are not close on Willingham, they're one of three to four finalists.

2:21pm: Nine teams have called on free agent outfielder Josh Willingham, tweets ESPN's Jerry Crasnick, including the Twins, Red Sox, Indians, and Reds.  The Pirates have also been linked to him.  Willingham is something of a backup plan for the Red Sox and Twins, suggests Crasnick, as those teams are trying to re-sign David Ortiz and Michael Cuddyer, respectively.  ESPN 1500's Phil Mackey tweets that nothing is currently brewing with the Twins and Willingham.  The Indians' interest has been mild, tweets MLB.com's Jordan Bastian.  The Reds' interest in Willingham is "simmering on the back burner, if that," GM Walt Jocketty told reporters including MLB.com's Mark Sheldon.

Willingham, 32, hit a career-best 29 home runs for the Athletics in 2011.  A right-handed hitter, Willingham compiled a .246/.332/.477 batting line in 563 plate appearances.  He tallied 829 1/3 innings in left field, and also has experience in right field in 2009.  First base and designated hitter could be options as well.  Willingham's agent Matt Sosnick guessed in October that his client would sign a three-year deal. 

Friedman Decides Against Astros Job

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Rays executive vice president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman has already decided against taking the Astros GM job, tweets Bill Shaikin of the L.A. Times.  Joel Sherman of the New York Post agrees that Friedman is definitely staying in Tampa Bay.  Friedman, a Houston native, was said to be the first choice of the new Astros ownership group.  

Rockies senior vice president of scouting and player development/assistant GM Bill Geivett has interviewed for the Astros position, and Rockies folks told Troy E. Renck of the Denver Post today that Geivett has a real shot.  I interviewed Geivett in August as part of MLBTR's GM Candidates series.  Our top 20 GM candidates have been getting interviews and GM jobs left and right since the list was published on August 12th.

More East Links: Red Sox, Hamels, Reyes, Nix

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Another batch of links surrounding the Eastern divisions, less than 12 hours after the Marlins and Jose Reyes agreed to terms on a six-year, $106MM contract:

Manny Ramirez Files For Reinstatement

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MONDAY, 4:37am: Olney tweets that it's "unlikely, but possible" that the Rays will show interest in bringing Ramirez back.

SUNDAY, 8:44pm: In a news release, MLB has confirmed that Ramirez has applied for reinstatement and will serve a 50-game suspension, tweets Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports.

8:32pm: The Rays aren't expected to have any interest in signing Ramirez again, tweets Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times.

6:04pm: The Mariners are probably not interested in signing Ramirez, a source tells Buster Olney of ESPN.com (via Twitter).

4:01pm: Olney tweets that the early response from evaluators around baseball is that an AL team will give Manny a non-roster invite to Spring Training to see if he can still hit. Olney also speculates that the following teams will have no interest in Ramirez: the Red Sox, Yankees, Royals, Tigers, White Sox, Indians, Twins, Rangers, Angels, and A's (more Twitter links).

3:14pm: A source tells ESPN's Buster Olney that Ramirez has already filed for reinstatement and that he will indeed serve a 50-game suspension rather than 100. Ramirez is currently working out in Florida. He and his agents have told teams that he is ready to begin discussions. Ramirez's suspension clock wouldn't begin until he signs a contract (all Twitter links).

2:22pm: Morosi clarifies that the Players' Union will argue that Ramirez effectively served his 100-game suspension last season. MLB will need to apply some form of punishment though, and Morosi says a 50-game suspension is a likely compromise. The 50-game violation isn't official, but both sides "seem amenable to it," says Morosi (Twitter links).

1:55pm: Manny Ramirez apparently isn't done "being Manny" yet. The troubled slugger will file for reinstatement from Major League Baseball's voluntary retired list according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. Ramirez has hired agents Barry Praver and Scott Shapiro, and will be eligible to play in the 2012 season following a 50-game suspension, though his initial punishment was a 100-game suspension.

Ramirez signed a one-year deal to be the Rays' primary designated hitter last season, but abruptly retired in the season's first week after he tested positive for a banned substance for the second time in his career.

Without the PED controversy, the 39-year-old's career numbers would make him a lock for the Hall of Fame. He owns a career .312/.411/.585 triple slash line with 555 long balls. Those credentials are obviously questionable in light of drug testing though, and nearly 74% of MLBTR readers who responded to this April poll said they didn't feel Ramirez should make it to Cooperstown.

East Links: Damon, Reyes, Nats, Orioles, Manny

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Some links pertaining to baseball's Eastern division teams as the Winter Meetings draw near…

  • Don't rule out Johnny Damon for the Orioles, tweets Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe.
  • Marlins people are saying it's still possible Hanley Ramirez could move to center field but a source close to Ramirez says he's already agreed to play third base, tweets Jayson Stark of ESPN.com.
  • Ramirez's agent will not comment on the Marlins' signing of Jose Reyes, writes Tim Brown of Yahoo.  The Fish are expected to ask Ramirez to shift from shortstop to third base to accommodate Reyes.
  • The Orioles are looking for a left-handed hitting outfielder who can back up in center field and possibly platoon in left field, tweets Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com.
  • The Nationals center field targets include Peter Bourjos, B.J. Upton, and maybe Angel Pagan if he is non-tendered, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.
  • Yankees GM Brian Cashman doesn't think he'll have any interest in Manny Ramirez if he makes a comeback, tweets Daniel Barbarisi of the Wall Street Journal.
  • The Nationals are one team that is maintaining interest in Cuban defector Yoenis Cespedes despite his increasing price tag, tweets Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. Their pursuit of the center fielder may hinge on their negotiations with Mark Buehrle, C.J. Wilson, and Prince Fielder though.
  • Former Red Sox first base coach Ron Johnson will manage the Orioles' Triple-A affiliate in Norfolk, according to the Boston Globe's Nick Cafardo (on Twitter).
  • Joel Sherman of the New York Post points out (via Twitter) that it was new Orioles GM Dan Duquette who signed Manny Ramirez to his eight-year, $160MM contract with the Red Sox and wonders if he might sign Ramirez once more.
  • SI.com's Jon Heyman tweets that Duquette called Ramirez's attempted comeback an "interesting development." The Orioles are in the market for a designated hitter.

Six Teams Pursuing Luis Ayala

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There are six teams in on free agent reliever Luis Ayala, tweets Jim Bowden of ESPN XM radio, including the Mets, Yankees, Rays, Blue Jays, Angels and Red Sox.

Ayala was an excellent value signing for the Yankees in 2011 after inking a minor league contract in February. The right-hander, who did not appear in the Majors in 2010, posted a 2.09 ERA in 56 innings last season and could land a Major League contract this trip through free agency.

Of the clubs listed here, the Mets, Jays and Rays, in particular, have several openings in their respective bullpens, while Ayala could simply provide depth for a team like the Yankees or Red Sox.

Quick Hits: Damon, Wilson, Wakefield, Dodgers

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A few odds and ends to pass along …

  • Free agent outfielder/DH Johnny Damon prefers to re-sign with the Rays but said he hasn't had discussions with Tampa because EVP of baseball operations Andrew Friedman is a "free agent," according to Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe. Friedman isn't under contract and is expected to be courted by the Astros to be their next GM, but Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times reiterates that it's unlikely Friedman will leave the Rays.
  • The Rangers are making "no progress" in talks with free agent starter C.J. Wilson, tweets Jon Heyman of SI.com, who suggests Texas may look elsewhere — perhaps at Prince Fielder or Albert Pujols.
  • Tim Wakefield would like to pitch one more year with the Red Sox, according to Scott Lauber of the Boston Herald. The free agent knuckleballer, 45, has also mentioned the possibility of pitching in the National League.
  • NBA Hall of Famer Magic Johnson plans to bid on the Dodgers as part of a potential ownership group with former Braves and Nationals president Stan Kasten and Mark Walter of Guggenheim Partners, a financial services firm, according to Bill Shaikin and Bill Plaschke of the Los Angeles Times. Johnson is a former minority owner of the Los Angeles Lakers, selling his 4.5 percent stake in the team in 2010, according to the report.

Latest On Astros’ GM Search: Friedman, Geivett

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Former Astros GM Tim Purpura will be named the Rangers' farm director, Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reports. For details on who might be the Astros' next GM, keep reading…

  • Cardinals vice president of player procurement Jeff Luhnow has interviewed for the job, reports MLB.com's Brian McTaggart (on Twitter).
  • White Sox assistant GM Rick Hahn and Kim Ng of MLB turned down the opportunity to interview for the Astros GM job, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (on Twitter).
  • The Astros will do "whatever it takes" to obtain Andrew Friedman of the Rays, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com. However, Friedman's friends don't expect him to leave Tampa Bay.
  • Rockies assistant GM Bill Geivett is interviewing for the Astros' GM job today, MLB.com's Brian McTaggart reports. “I’m very excited to be here and it’s a great organization and a great city and everybody knows a great state,” Geivett said. “I’m very excited and we’ll see how it goes today.”

AL East Notes: Valentine, Wilson, Howell, Johnson

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Here are some notes from the AL East on the day the Red Sox officially introduced their new manager…

  • The Red Sox and manager Bobby Valentine agreed on a two-year deal, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (on Twitter).  The Red Sox hold team options on Valentine for 2014 and 2015, tweets WEEI.com's Alex Speier.
  • Valentine reached out to David Cone about becoming the new Red Sox pitching coach, reports Jack Curry of the YES Network (Twitter link).  Cone isn't expected to take the job but was "flattered."
  • The Yankees turned down a request by C.J. Wilson's agent for a visit to Yankee Stadium, reports ESPN New York's Andrew Marchand.  That's not a good sign for Wilson's chances of signing with the Bombers, which Marchand believes are "less than five percent."
  • Erik Hahmann of the DRaysBay blog looks at the situation between the Rays and lefty J.P. Howell.  MLBTR's Tim Dierkes listed Howell as one of this winter's non-tender candidates.
  • The Blue Jays are still open to bringing back Kelly Johnson next year, tweets Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports.
  • Also from Morosi, he thinks the Blue Jays could — and should — sign free agent first baseman Prince Fielder.
  • Eric Chavez definitely wants to play in 2012 and a number of teams have strong interest in him, according to Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle (Twitter links). Some West Coast teams are interested in Chavez and the Yankees appear to be in the mix as well.
  • The Rays have some interest in Cuban center fielder Yoenis Cespedes, but probably can’t afford him, according to Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times (on Twitter).
  • The Orioles hired former Phillies GM Lee Thomas as a special assistant, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (Twitter link). Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com first mentioned the possibility (on Twitter). It's worth noting that Scott Proefrock and Joe Jordan of the Phillies are former Orioles front office employees.

MLBTR's Mark Polishuk also contributed to this post

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