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Infield Market Hinging On Hudson?

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FRIDAY, 8:32pm: MLB.com's Bill Ladson reports that Hudson is looking for $9MM, but the Nationals are only willing to pay him a third of that. GM Mike Rizzo has spoken to Hudson recently, however they talked about how he would fit with the team, rather than dollars and years.

THURSDAY, 3:15pm: Chico Harlan of the Washington Post hears that the Nationals are waiting on Hudson's decision.

10:32am: Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports suggested yesterday three teams are in on free agent second baseman Orlando Hudson.  Today, Rosenthal says six teams are "showing varying degrees of interest."

The Nationals are one of those clubs, though MLB.com's Bill Ladson tweets that Hudson's price is still too high and they're considering either going internal or signing Adam Kennedy or Orlando Cabrera.

Rosenthal indicates Hudson is the "linchpin" of the free agent infield market, with the fates of Kennedy, Cabrera, Felipe Lopez, and Melvin Mora tied to Hudson.  Regarding Mora, a Rosenthal tweet has the Rangers, Rockies, Mariners, and Reds in the mix.

Rosenthal's list of teams that are or could be looking for infield help includes the Nats, Twins, Reds, Tigers, Rockies, Mariners, Rays, and Cardinals.  Morosi likes Kennedy as a match for Detroit.

Johnny Damon Rumors: Friday

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Johnny Damon is open to joining the Blue Jays, according to MLB.com's Jordan Bastian (via Twitter). Damon said in a text message that he is "all ears and eager to help make any team better."

Yesterday we learned that the Blue Jays inquired on Damon. GM Alex Anthopoulos suggested Jays fans keep expectations in check, however. We also heard that Scott Boras, Damon's agent, was trying to engage the Reds and Tigers.

Today, Jayson Stark wrote that the Tigers don't seem that interested. The Braves haven't spoken to Boras in a month and a half and the Rays have little to spend.

Stark On Damon, Bedard, Phillies, Smoltz, Gregg

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Jayson Stark of ESPN.com points out that teams aren't handing out long-term contracts as liberally as they were a few years ago. We've seen just eight contracts of three-plus years this offseason, after seeing 13 such contracts in each of the previous two winters. The offseason before that? Players signed 29 contracts of three years or more. Here are Stark's rumors:

  • Detroit doesn't seem that interested in Johnny Damon and the Braves haven't spoken with Damon's agent, Scott Boras, in a month and a half. The Rays have checked in, but they have little to spend.
  • Erik Bedard and the Orioles have mutual interest in a reunion, Stark hears. 
  • The Phillies would like to add a veteran left-handed reliever on a minor league deal, but Alan Embree and Ron Mahay are holding out for big league deals at this point, despite the Phillies' interest. 
  • Kevin Gregg is high on the Rockies' shopping list. They're looking at infield options and hoping to save enough money to shore up their bullpen, too. 
  • The Blue Jays have told clubs that Scott Downs and Jason Frasor are available. The Cubs have checked in on the pair of relievers. 
  • The Royals have told teams they're "open minded" about moving Gil Meche or Brian Bannister. 
  • John Smoltz is in no rush to sign. He's open to waiting for a few months, since he'd like a starting job and some execs question his ability to start for an entire season. 
  • Ben Sheets will be the first A's pitcher to make $10MM (though some believe Sheets will be traded before the end of the year).
  • Mark Prior is throwing off a mound and would like to make a comeback. 

Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Mets, Damon, Burrell, Lopez

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On this date two years ago, the Mets and Twins agreed to a five player deal sending two-time Cy Young Award winner Johan Santana to New York. The Mets and Santana had a 72-hour window to finalize a contract extension, and the two sides eventually agreed to a six-year, $137.5MM contract to make the trade official. Santana has given the Mets over 400 innings of 2.78 ERA ball, while just one of the four players the Twins received in the deal is still with the organization.

Here's some links from around the baseball blogosphere…

  • Blogging Mets isn't sure where the Mets can turn for pitching help now that Jon Garland and Ben Sheets are off the market.
  • The Baseball Opinion wonders if the Sheets and Justin Duchscherer signings were calculated moves by Billy Beane made with the intention of flipping both at the trade deadline.
  • Royals Authority takes a look a Kansas City's crowded outfield.
  • Camden Crazies goes through some different roster permutations for the Orioles.
  • The Sports Banter comes up with some possible destinations for Johnny Damon.
  • Meanwhile, U.S.S. Mariner thinks Damon would be a cost effective way to upgrade Seattle's roster.
  • Rays Index takes the latest Rays' rumors as a sign that they're still trying to trade Pat Burrell.
  • Pro Ball NW gives us five reasons why the Mariners should trade Jose Lopez.
  • TAUNTR chimes in on some of the latest hot stove news.

If you have a suggestion for this feature, Mike can be reached here.

Rays Sign Matt Bush

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The Rays signed pitcher Matt Bush to a minor league deal, tweets Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times. 

Bush, now 24, was the first overall pick by the Padres in the 2004 draft.  A shortstop at the time, Bush's signability pushed him past Stephen Drew, Jered Weaver, and Jeff Niemann on Kevin Towers' list.  He was arrested on felony assault charges weeks after the draft, resulting in a suspension.  Injuries hampered his progress, and the Padres converted him to pitching in May of '07.  He had Tommy John surgery later that year.

Bush was charged with assault again in February of '09, and the Padres designated Bush for assignment and traded him to the Blue Jays.  The Jays released him in April, and more incidents surfaced in June.

Odds & Ends: Prospects, Livan, Cardinals, Damon

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Some links for Wednesday night…

  • MLB.com's Jonathan Mayo released his list of the top 50 prospects in the game. Jason Heyward and Stephen Strasburg rank one-two.
  • Livan Hernandez sent a contract proposal to Nationals' GM Mike Rizzo back in December, but he never received a response according to a tweet from MLB.com's Bill Ladson.
  • MLB.com's Matthew Leach reports that Cardinals' GM John Mozeliak confirmed that any pickups from here on out would be on the offensive side of the roster.
  • Scott Boras said that "The Yankees never even made an offer to me regarding Johnny Damon during the entire process," according to a tweet from Tyler Kepner of The New York Times. In a second tweet, Kepner says Boras indicated that the two-year, $14MM offer the team reportedly made was conditional on whether or not Nick Johnson would sign. 
  • ESPN's Jorge Arangure reports that 17-year-old righty Rafael DePaula is back on the market after being suspended for a year by MLB after lying about his age. His agent hopes to have him signed within the next 15-20 days, and Arangure mentions that both the Yankees and Red Sox are interested.
  • Pirate relievers Anthony Claggett and Steven Jackson both cleared waivers according to MLB.com's Jenifer Langosch, and have been outrighted to Triple-A Indianapolis. Claggett was designated for assignment to make room on the roster for Octavio Dotel, Jackson for Ryan Church.  
  • Astros' GM Ed Wade said that signing Wandy Rodriguez to a long-term deal would become a "front-burner discussion for us" if he repeats his 2009 success in 2010, reports MLB.com's Brian McTaggart. Wandy had a 3.02 ERA with an 8.4 K/9 in 205.2 innings last season.
  • Craig Calcaterra of NBCSports.com says that the Braves have discussed Johnny Damon recently, but came up with three reasons why he wasn't a fit.
  • David Murphy of The Philadelphia Daily News lays out the Phillies' payroll commitments for the next four years. As of right now, the team stands to shed almost $70MM off the books following the 2011 season.

Rays Interested In Johnny Damon

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The Rays have interest in Johnny Damon as a DH candidate, reports Joel Sherman of the New York Post.  Sherman says the Rays are considering Damon even if they can't unload Pat Burrell.  Sherman's sources believe Damon would be willing to play for $7MM, partially deferred. 

We learned earlier today from ESPN's Jerry Crasnick that agent Scott Boras is "trying to engage" the Reds and Tigers for Damon.  Crasnick notes that those clubs would have a hard time fitting Damon into the budget.  The Yankees are out, having reached an agreement with Randy Winn today.

Oakland's rumored interest in a Damon reunion was not directly addressed by GM Billy Beane, reports MLB.com's Jane Lee.  Still, Beane said his priority is adding infield depth.

Tim Dierkes contributed to this post.

Cubs, Rays, Giants After Chan Ho Park

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WEDNESDAY, 1:44pm: Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle tweets that the Giants like Park, but want him on a minor league deal.

MONDAY, 8:51pm: SI.com's Jon Heyman tweets that the Cubs and Rays are looking at Chan Ho Park, who relieved for the Phillies last season.

Park put up a mediocre 4.43 ERA last season after a 3.40 mark in 2008, though his walks and strikeouts stayed fairly steady. Park has been far better as a reliever in both seasons- a 2.52 ERA out of the bullpen in 2009, and a 7.29 ERA as a starter.

Park will be 37 in June, so he's certainly not worth a multi-year deal. But he's a fairly decent option in the middle of the game, and should provide bullpen depth for some team.

Three Teams In On Orlando Hudson

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Last offseason was disappointing for second baseman Orlando Hudson.  He signed with the Dodgers on February 20th, accepting one year and a $3.38MM guarantee.  He had a decent '09 season, managing to stay healthy and hit most of his incentives.  Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports have the latest on Hudson's search for a new team.

The Nationals and Rays are known to be pursuing Hudson, with the Nats possibly offering more money.  The writers say a mystery team is also in the mix, and speculate on the Twins.  The Rockies could be another match, but Minnesota and Colorado would be looking for a bargain.

ESPN's Buster Olney first reported the Rays' interest in Hudson yesterday, but Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times finds a signing unlikely.  And in an interview with MLB.com's Bill Ladson, Hudson alluded to the Indians and Padres.  Those clubs are considered longshots.

Rays Interested In Orlando Hudson

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9:36pm: Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times (via Twitter) thinks "it's unlikely anything happens" between Tampa Bay and Hudson, noting that the Rays are happy with Zobrist, Reid Brignac and Sean Rodriguez at second base.  He does say, however, that the Rays "have interest in [a number] of free agents."

8:12pm: ESPN's Buster Olney reports (via Twitter) that Tampa Bay is "in on Orlando Hudson talks."  The plan would be to install Hudson at second base while Ben Zobrist gets moved to right field.  Olney says that the move "all depends on the price," which would presumably have to be significantly lower than Hudson's $9MM asking price.

The Nationals have been considered to be the leaders in the Hudson sweepstakes this winter, and MLB.com's Bill Ladson was told today by a source that the Nats "have a good chance" of signing the free-agent second baseman due to Hudson's close ties to Adam Dunn and Willie Harris. 

Ladson also went straight to the horse's mouth and talked to Hudson himself, who told Ladson that "progress had been made."  The interview also included this interesting passage from Hudson that cited two other teams in the hunt:

"I will sign soon enough. You can put it on the Internet and on TV. I'm going to sign. I can't say exactly when. It will not be long. I can't say if it's with the Nationals, San Diego or Cleveland. I can't say with whom. Something is getting done."

The Padres could be a longshot if, as MLB.com's Corey Brock tweeted earlier today, they've completed their winter shopping following the signing of Jon Garland.  The Tribe also seem like unlikely suitors given Hudson's contract demands.

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