Cafardo On Rays, Lee, Fielder, Cubs, Eckstein
At Thursday's Baseball Writers Dinner, Red Sox GM Ben Cherington said that he felt good about his rotation heading into Spring Training, but admitted that the Yankees and Rays have fewer question marks in their respective rotations, writes Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe. The GM might now have the payroll flexibility to bolster the starting five after sending Marco Scutaro to the Rockies for Clayton Mortensen last night. Here's more from Cafardo..
- After taking care of their first base vacancy, the Rays can now accelerate a deal for B.J. Upton to get a shortstop. Currently, Sean Rodriguez is slated to play there over Reid Brignac. Tampa Bay could also use an everyday catcher, with Jose Molina currently slated to start.
- Astros first baseman Carlos Lee has to approve any deal because of his 10-5 rights, and hasn't been receptive to waiving those privileges in the past. The veteran is scheduled to make $18.5MM, but the club has said that they are willing to eat half of it to get a deal done. Cafardo thinks they'd cover even more of it to appeal to a team like the Tigers.
- One AL East GM thinks that the Prince Fielder sweepstakes will come down to the Rangers and Nationals, with the Brewers and Cubs taking a shot if he settles for a one-year deal and elects to become a free agent again.
- There has been talk that Victor Martinez’s injury could open the door for the Cubs to unload overpriced players such as Alfonso Soriano or Marlon Byrd, but Cafardo isn't buying it.
- David Eckstein, who didn't play last season, has decided to retire even though there were teams willing to bring him into camp. The 37-year-old hit .280/.345/.355 in his ten-year Major League career.
- If the Orioles, Tigers, or Yankees don’t come through soon, Johnny Damon could be in a real bind as far as finding a job. Cafardo opines that he would be a great fit in Detroit to replace the veteran leadership of Martinez.
- With DH openings few and far between, Cafardo also wonders about the futures of Vladimir Guerrero, Hideki Matsui, Magglio Ordonez, Raul Ibanez, and J.D. Drew.
- Cherington says that he won't consider bringing Drew back to Boston. Recently, an National League GM told Cafardo that he believes that Drew can be a great bat off of the bench for an NL team.
- Larry Lucchino won’t say whether he has re-upped with the Red Sox on a long-term deal, but Cafardo takes that as a yes.
Rays, Carlos Pena “Deep” In Talks
The Rays are "in pretty deep" on Carlos Pena, their first baseman from 2007-10, Yahoo's Tim Brown tweets. The Boras Corporation represents the first baseman, who's one of the top free agents remaining.
Pena, 33, posted a .225/.357/.462 line with 28 home runs in 606 plate appearances for the Cubs in 2011. Just 9.36% of 15,700 people who participated in MLBTR's December poll expected Pena to return to Tampa Bay. He earned $10MM in 2011, when the Rays spent $42MM on their entire Major League payroll.
The Rays, who recently signed Luke Scott, still have an opening at first base. Casey Kotchman played the position in 2011 and would sign elsewhere — possibly in Cleveland — if the Rays complete a deal with Pena. Pena averaged 36 home runs and a .238/.368/.516 line in his four seasons in Tampa Bay.
This post was first published January 20th, 2012.
Rays Sign Will Rhymes
The Rays signed second baseman Will Rhymes, outfielder Jesus Feliciano and right-handed reliever Romulo Sanchez to minor league deals, Matt Eddy of Baseball America tweets. Rhymes, 28, spent parts of the past two seasons with the Tigers, who non-tendered him in December. The team confirmed the moves and reports the signing of right-hander Matt Torra.
Rhymes, who's listed at 5'9" and 155 pounds, owns a .283/.341/.370 line in 312 MLB plate appearances. He was far more impressive at the plate in 2010 than in 2011, when his batting average on balls in play dropped by 50 points.
Feliciano made his MLB debut with the Mets in 2010, soon after his 31st birthday. He posted a .563 OPS in 119 plate appearances and spent the 2011 campaign in the minors. Sanchez, 27, spent last year in Japan and has MLB experience with the Pirates and Yankees.
Outrighted To Triple-A: Nevin Ashley
Here's where we'll keep track of the day's outright assignments…
- Rays catcher Nevin Ashley cleared waivers and was outrighted to Triple-A, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times tweets. The Rays had designated the 27-year-old for assignment five days ago. He posted a .263/.358/.384 line in 444 plate appearances for the Rays' Double-A and Triple-A affiliates in 2011. Ashley, a 2006 sixth rounder, has a .260/.353/.378 line in parts of six pro seasons.
AL East Links: Red Sox, Ellsbury, Crawford, Niemann
Let's round up the latest from the AL East…
- Red Sox GM Ben Cherington said there was nothing new to report as far as their pursuit of pitching, reports Scott Lauber of The Boston Herald (on Twitter).
- The Red Sox avoided arbitration with Jacoby Ellsbury by agreeing to a one-year deal worth $8.05MM today, and WEEI.com's Rob Bradford says that Cherington confirmed the two sides did not discuss a multiyear contract.
- Cherington confirmed that Red Sox outfielder Carl Crawford underwent arthroscopic surgery on his left wrist and may not be ready for Opening Day, reports Bradford.
- Rays executive VP of baseball operations Andrew Friedman told Marc Topkin of The Tampa Bay Times that being unable to avoid arbitration with Jeff Niemann is "definitely a sub-optimal outcome." (Twitter link)
- Rays owner Stuart Sternberg met with St. Petersburg mayor Bill Foster for two hours today to discuss the future of baseball in the city, reports The Tampa Bay Times. The team asked the city to allow them to speak to Hillsborough officials about a new stadium in the county.
Players Avoiding Arbitration: Tuesday
Dozens of arbitration eligible players have agreed to deals with their respective teams today and we've been tracking all of the developments right here. Several teams, including the Rays, Nationals, Marlins, White Sox, Blue Jays, Braves, and perhaps Astros, are known for committing to going to hearings if they get to the point of filing. Keep track of all the madness with MLBTR's arbitration tracker, which shows settlement amounts, filing figures, and midpoints. Today's players to avoid arbitration on deals worth less than $4MM:
- The Cardinals avoided arbitration with pitcher Kyle McClellan, tweets B.J. Rains of FOX Sports Midwest. Joe Strauss of The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports (on Twitter) that the one-year deal is worth $2.5MM with incentives based on starts. MLBTR projected a $2.7MM for the Steve Comte client.
- MLBTR's Ben Nicholson-Smith reports (on Twitter) that the Padres and Chase Headley agreed to a one-year deal worth $3.475MM, avoiding arbitration. Earlier this evening, the Padres announced that they avoided arbitration with Luke Gregerson, Edinson Volquez, Carlos Quentin and Will Venable. They also avoided arbitration with lefty reliever Joe Thatcher on a deal worth $700K, tweets Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. CAA announced catcher John Baker has signed for $750K. Bill Center of the San Diego Union-Tribune first reported that the Padres reached agreements with Hundley, Chase Headley, and Tim Stauffer. Hundley will earn $2MM in 2012, MLB.com's Corey Brock tweets. Dan Hayes of the North County Times tweets the salaries for Volquez ($2.2375MM), Venable ($1.475MM), Gregerson ($1.55MM)
- The Rangers avoided arbitration with Matt Harrison, tweets Evan Grant of The Dallas Morning News. The ACES client gets $2.95MM on a one-year deal. MLBTR had projected a $2.9MM salary.
- The Cubs announced that they have avoided arbitration with Jeff Baker ($1.375MM), Blake DeWitt ($1.1MM), Ian Stewart ($2.237MM) Chris Volstad ($2.655MM), and Randy Wells ($2.705MM). MLB.com's Carrie Muskat tweeted the salary figures.
Rays Avoid Arbitration With Price, Upton
The Rays avoided arbitration with starter David Price on a deal worth $4.35MM, tweets MLBTR's Ben Nicholson-Smith. Price's salary matches Dontrelle Willis' first-time pitcher record set six years ago. I thought he'd do better. It seems the "raise argument" did not apply on top of Price's $1.25MM 2011 salary, which represented the last year of a Major League deal he signed upon being drafted.
The team also avoided arbitration with B.J. Upton, tweets Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times. Upton gets $7MM plus some small plate appearance bonuses, tweets Topkin. MLBTR projected the Reynolds Sports Management client at $7.6MM.
The Rays appear headed for an arbitration hearing with pitcher Jeff Niemann.
Players Avoiding Arbitration: Monday
In advance of tomorrow's 11am central time deadline to exchange arbitration figures, settlements will be rolling in today. Follow all of the action with MLBTR's arbitration tracker. The latest for players under $4MM:
- The Braves and Eric O'Flaherty avoided arbitration, Mark Bowman of MLB.com tweets. O'Flaherty will earn $2.49MM, just shy of his projected $2.6MM salary.
- The Orioles and Jim Johnson have avoided arbitration, Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun tweets. The right-hander will earn $2.625MM in 2012, just north of his projected $2.5MM salary.
- The Red Sox avoided arbitration with Franklin Morales, Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe tweets. The left-hander had a projected salary of $1MM and agreed to an $850K deal.
- The Rays avoided arbitration with J.P. Howell, agreeing to a $1.35MM deal for 2012, MLBTR's Ben Nicholson-Smith tweets. Matt Swartz had projected a $1.4MM salary for the left-hander.
- The Royals avoided arbitration with Chris Getz, agreeing to a $967,500 deal for 2012, MLBTR's Ben Nicholson-Smith tweets. Matt Swartz had projected a $1.2MM salary for the infielder.
- The Nationals announced they've avoided arbitration with catcher Jesus Flores. Flores, who is represented by Praver/Shapiro, received $815K, MLBTR has learned.
- The Brewers avoided arbitration with outfielder Nyjer Morgan, tweets Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel. The ACES client received $2.35MM, reports MLB.com's Adam McCalvy.
- The Royals announced they've avoided arbitration with catcher Brayan Pena, a client of Wasserman Media Group. Rustin Dodd of the Kansas City Star says the deal is worth $875K; Matt Swartz had him at $900K.
- Orioles pitcher Darren O'Day avoided arbitration for a deal worth $1.35MM, tweets Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun. Matt Swartz had projected the same for the Beverly Hills Sports Council client.
- Yankees righty Phil Hughes agreed to a deal worth $3.2MM plus performance bonuses, tweets his agency CAA. The 25-year-old gets a $500K raise after a lost 2011 season.
- The Tigers announced they've avoided arbitration with lefty Phil Coke. Coke, a client of Full Circle Sports Management, gets a $1.1MM base salary with $50K in incentives for appearances or starts, MLBTR has learned.
- The Angels avoided arbitration with infielder Alberto Callaspo, signing him to a one-year deal worth $3.15MM, tweets ESPN's Keith Law. MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz nailed this one, projecting a $3.1MM salary. Callaspo, a client of Eric Goldschmidt, received a $1.15MM raise for his second time through arbitration.
NL Central Notes: Pujols, Beltran, Cubs, Aoki
The Reds signed a catcher today and the Pirates avoided arbitration with a pair of pitchers. Here are some more notes from the NL Central…
- Cardinals chairman Bill DeWitt Jr. said this weekend that his team must stay within certain financial limitations to put a competitive team on the field year after year, Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports. The Cardinals would have liked to retain Albert Pujols, but keeping him wasn’t necessarily realistic. “It's how much can I afford to pay one player and put together a team that's going to be competitive? That's the whole jigsaw puzzle that all teams have,” DeWitt said.
- Carlos Beltran said the Indians, Rays and Giants were among the finalists for his services this offseason, MLB.com's Matthew Leach reports. Beltran said another team offered a three-year deal worth less money, B.J. Rains of FOXSportsMidwest.com tweets.
- Cubs director of scouting and player development Jason McLeod said he's looking forward to meeting with his scouts this week to find ways of drafting more effectively under the new collective bargaining agreement, according to Carrie Muskat of MLB.com.
- Tom Haudricourt on the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel tweets that there's an expectation that the Brewers will sign outfielder Norichika Aoki. They have until 4pm CDT tomorrow to sign Aoki, or else he’ll be returned to the Yakult Swallows and the Brewers will get their $2.5MM posting fee back.
AL East Notes: Yankees, Pineda, Red Sox, Rays
We've already rounded up some Orioles and Red Sox items this morning, but those aren't the only updates out of the AL East. Here are a few more:
- Chad Jennings of The Journal News shares some final thoughts on the Yankees' eventful week, noting that the team feels Jesus Montero's potential is easier to replace than Michael Pineda's.
- GM Brian Cashman tells Jim Bowden of MLB Network Radio on SiriusXM that the Yankees will have made a mistake if Pineda never develops into a #1 starter (Twitter link).
- The Red Sox shouldn't feel pressured to answer the Yankees' pitching acquisitions immediately, says Brian MacPherson of the Providence Journal, arguing that plenty of new trade candidates could emerge by July's trade deadline.
- Although the Rays continue to explore adding another bat, they may not move forward until they see how arbitration figures look for David Price and B.J. Upton, writes Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times.
- Stephen Nohlgren of the Tampa Bay Times proposes what he believes could be a win-win solution for Tampa and St. Petersburg, regarding the Rays' stadium situation.