Blue Jays Acquire Jason Frasor From White Sox
The Blue Jays have acquired Jason Frasor from the White Sox in exchange for right-handed pitchers Myles Jaye and Daniel Webb, according to a press release. Frasor, 34, returns to Toronto where he played his entire big league career before being traded to the White Sox mid-season.
The veteran right-hander had his $3.75MM club option exercised on October 31st. It's possible that the White Sox picked up the option with the intention of dealing him this winter. Frasor posted a 3.60 ERA with 8.6 K/9 and 3.9 BB/9 in 60 innings for the Blue Jays and White Sox in 2011. He will join former teammate Sergio Santos, whom Toronto acquired in early December. 
Jaye and Webb were not among the top 25 prospects in the Blue Jays' system, according to John Sickels of Minor League Ball. Jaye, 20, was Toronto's 17th round pick in 2010 and made nine starts and four relief outings for the club's Appalachian League affiliate in 2011. Webb, 22, spent the bulk of 2011 with Single-A Lansing where he posted a 5.59 ERA with 7.0 K/9 and 3.3 BB/9 in 12 starts and six relief appearances.
It appears that GM Ken Williams hasn't taken any time off to celebrate the New Year after trading Carlos Quentin to the Padres just over 24 hours ago. By trading Frasor and the arbitration-eligible Quentin, the club has saved roughly $11.25MM in 2012.
Frasor and starter Zach Stewart were shipped to Chicago prior to the trade deadline for starter Edwin Jackson and third baseman Mark Teahen. Of course, the Blue Jays dealt Jackson to the Cardinals that very same day in order to land center fielder Colby Rasmus.
Reactions To The Carlos Quentin Trade
Earlier today, the Padres bolstered their lineup by acquiring Carlos Quentin from the White Sox for pitching prospects Simon Castro and Pedro Hernandez. Here's a look at some of the fallout and reactions to the New Year's Eve swap..
- The early word from scouts is that Castro and Hernandez don't have much upside, which indicates that this was a payroll move, tweets ESPN.com's Buster Olney.
- Despite the criticism of the two prospects, White Sox GM Ken Williams insists that the club has identified the keys to getting Castro back to where he was a year ago when he was considered to be a strong prospect, according to the White Sox official Twitter. The 23-year-old right-hander was ranked as the Padres third best prospect last year by Baseball America.
- Williams also compared Castro's build and mound mechanics to those of Jose Contreras, according to the ChiSox Twitter. Kevin Goldstein of Baseball Prospectus (via Twitter) notes compared Castro to Contreras in a piece almost two years ago.
- Quentin said that the White Sox's sub-.500 finish in 2011 and his value led him to think he might be traded, tweets Dan Hayes of the North County Times (via Twitter). The outfielder also says that he knew he was on Padres' radar.
- In a piece for ESPN.com, Keith Law writes that Quentin is a mediocre fit for the Padres. Quentin, he writes, is a poor defensive outfielder who has great secondary skills, including above-average power and solid plate discipline. However, his history of injuries indicates that he'll have trouble playing the field 150 games a year.
- GM Josh Byrnes and Ken Williams have swapped Quentin once before. As Diamondbacks GM, Byrnes traded Quentin to Chicago for first baseman Chris Carter in 2007. Byrnes said that trading away Quentin was "pretty high" on his list of regrets as Arizona GM, tweets Tom Krasovic of Inside The Padres.
- The trade appears to signal that Kyle Blanks isn't in the team's plans going forward, Krasovic tweets.
- Byrnes says that he and Williams have been discussing the deal for the past ten days and the pace picked up significantly over the past two days, Krasovic tweets. Byrnes also says that he's looking to put together a team that can compete in 2012 while maintaining a long-term plan (via Twitter).
- The two sides agreed to the deal in principle Friday morning before announcing the trade today, according to Corey Brock of MLB.com.
Padres Acquire Carlos Quentin
The Padres have acquired Carlos Quentin from the White Sox for pitching prospects Simon Castro and Pedro Hernandez, the teams announced. It's the second time Padres GM Josh Byrnes and White Sox GM Kenny Williams have gotten together for a trade involving Quentin; Byrnes was the Diamondbacks GM when the outfielder was traded from Arizona to the ChiSox in 2007.
Quentin, 29, grew up in San Diego and will instantly add some power to the offensively challenged Padres' lineup. The right-hander hitter produced a .254/.340/.499 batting line with 24 homers in 2011, and he's hit .257/.352/.505 with at least 21 homers per year from '08-'11.
During his time in Chicago, the outfielder has battled shoulder, foot, hamstring, and wrist problems, requiring four separate stints on the disabled list. We project him to earn $7.5MM his third time through arbitration in 2012 before becoming a free agent after the season. On the surface, the deal appears to be a cost-cutting measure for the White Sox.
Castro, a 23-year-old right-hander, was ranked as the Padres third best prospect at this time last year by Baseball America but was left off of this year's top ten list. In 2009, Castro was tabbed as the best pitcher in the Padres system after turning in a 3.33 ERA with 10.1 K/9 and 2.4 BB/9 for the club's Single-A affiliate. The 6-foot-5 hurler started off 2011 with Double-A San Antonio before being promoted to Triple-A Tucson. Combined, Castro posted a 5.63 ERA with 7.4 K/9 and 2.7 BB/9 in 2011.
Hernandez, 22, was also left off of Baseball America's top ten list of Padres prospects in 2011. The left-hander worked his way up from Class-A+ Lake Elsinore to San Antonio and finished the year in Tuscon. In total, Hernandez turned in 116 innings of work with a 3.49 ERA, 7.3 K/9 and 1.7 BB/9.
Neither prospect was ranked among the top 25 in San Diego's system by John Sickels of Minor League Ball while Kevin Goldstein of Baseball Prospectus had Castro tabbed at No. 20. Goldstein writes that Castro has "gone backwards from [his] big prospect days" and cites the fastball as his only dependable pitch.
The first time Josh Byrnes and Ken Williams hooked up in a trade involving Quentin, the outfielder was sent to the White Sox for first baseman Chris Carter.
Zach Links contributed to this post.
White Sox Notes: Danks, Williams, Contracts
Here are a few items about John Danks' five-year, $65MM extension with the White Sox, which was officially announced today…
- Danks has a full no-trade clause for the first year of his contract, reports MLB.com's Scott Merkin. Danks will have partial no-trade protection for the remaining four years, able to block deals to six teams.
- The extension "really did come out of nowhere," Danks told media (including CSN Chicago's Chuck Garfien) during a conference call today. "Obviously, there was a lot of trade talk, and you can’t help but wonder and think…But I think I kind of took the attitude that until something happens I was going to prepare to be with the White Sox. Fortunately, this came along and I couldn’t be happier.”
- As Garfien notes, this is the first time the White Sox have ever given a pitcher a five-year deal. Owner Jerry Reinsdorf prefers to keep pitchers on contracts of three years or less due to concerns about health and consistency.
- From the same conference call, GM Kenny Williams said his comments earlier this month about the White Sox beginning a "rebuilding" phase were misconstrued. "We are still in win mode,” Williams said. “But at the same time that you’re in win mode, you can be in a little bit of a rebuilding phase, and I tried to articulate that, although I guess that message got lost after I said we were rebuilding. I tried to articulate that it wouldn’t be dominoes falling in terms of a true rebuilding because we have too many good veterans, and veterans looking to bounce back.”
Padres Notes: Rizzo, Maholm, Young, Quentin
Bill Center of the San Diego Union-Tribune held his weekly chat with fans today and shared some news about some possible moves the Padres could have cooking this offseason…
- Center thinks Anthony Rizzo will be traded "in the next week or two." He predicts Rizzo will be sent to the Rays, who will then flip Rizzo to the Cubs, where he is "still coveted" by (former Padres executives) Jed Hoyer and Jason McLeod.
- The Padres will begin negotiations with Cameron Maybin about a multiyear contract once the team has dealt with its arbitration-eligible players. We heard earlier this week that the two sides would revisit contract talks in January. Center predicts a Maybin extension would be worth "at least" $15-18MM and be five or six years in length, which would buy out all three of Maybin's arbitration years and at least one of his free agent years.
- Center believes the Padres will add another pitcher through free agency, and says he's heard the names of Paul Maholm and Jon Garland connected to the club, though Center doesn't think Garland returning to San Diego is likely. Garland pitched for the Friars in 2010 and then opted out of a mutual option to enter the free agent market. Garland ended up signing a one-year deal with the Dodgers but made just nine starts for L.A. due to an oblique injury and season-ending shoulder surgery in July.
- The team "apparently can't put together a deal that would interest Chris Young" since "it would have to be incentive laden and the Padres aren't offering incentive contracts." Young, who pitched for San Diego from 2006-10, has been plagued by shoulder injuries that have limited him to just 22 starts over the last three seasons. Young posted a 1.88 ERA in four starts with the Mets last year before undergoing season-ending surgery to repair an anterior capsule tear in his throwing shoulder.
- "There is nothing close" between the Padres and White Sox about a possible Carlos Quentin trade. The Friars were known to be targeting Quentin last month.
- The Padres may choose to take cash from the Pirates to finalize last July's Ryan Ludwick trade, rather than a player to be named later.
- Center thinks the Padres "desperately" need to acquire a close-to-Major League-ready middle infield prospect.
White Sox, John Danks Agree To Extension
Despite many rumors to the contrary, John Danks isn’t going anywhere. The White Sox announced that they have agreed to sign the left-hander to a five-year, $65MM contract extension. Danks will earn $8MM in 2012 and $14.25MM annually from 2013-16.
Danks would have been eligible for free agency following the 2012 season, his final year as an arbitration eligible player. Matt Swartz projected a 2012 salary of $7.6MM for the 26-year-old CAA client, who earned $6MM in 2011. That means the White Sox are paying $14-15MM for each of the four free agent seasons the deal buys out (Danks' age 28-31 seasons).
Jered Weaver's recent $85MM extension also covered one arbitration season and four free agent years. However, Weaver has superior career stats, was headed for a massive reward through arbitration and has finished in the top five in AL Cy Young balloting in both of the past two seasons. Weaver's deal was definitely out of reach for Danks and agent Jeff Berry.
Another comparable pitcher, Chad Billingsley, signed a three-year extension worth $35MM this spring. His deal covers his final season of arbitration eligibility and his first two seasons of free agency, which means Danks obtained two more years of security. However, Billingsley signed his deal (it's a team-friendly one) two full seasons before free agent eligibility, while Danks was just one season away from the open market. Danks and Billingsley are similar pitchers who have been compared to one another for years through the arbitration process.
Danks posted a 4.33 ERA with 7.1 K/9, 2.4 BB/9 and a 43.8% ground ball rate in 170 1/3 innings for the White Sox this past season. Only 16 pitchers in baseball have produced more wins above replacement since 2008 (15.6).
Cole Hamels, Matt Cain, Zack Greinke, Jeremy Guthrie, Francisco Liriano, Shaun Marcum, Jonathan Sanchez and Anibal Sanchez are among the 2013 free agents who might look to use Danks' recent deal as a point of reference should they discuss possible extensions with their current teams.
Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com reported the news (Twitter links). Doug Seyller reported the agreement on Twitter and appears to have broken the story. Photo courtesy Icon SMI.
Quick Hits: Fielder, Rangers, White Sox, Danks
On this date in 1995, the Orioles acquired David Wells from the Reds for Curtis Goodwin and minor leaguer Trovin Valdez. This marked the second time Boomer was traded that year as he was shipped from the Tigers to Cincinnati at the July deadline. Today's links..
- As Prince Fielder continues to look for his next home, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch takes a good look inside agent Scott Boras' infamous binder to see how he is framing his client. The book on Fielder not only compares him to the best sluggers from today but also puts him side-by-side with some of the best hitters of all-time.
- Richard Justice of MLB.com takes a look back at some of Boras' best deals and tacticts that the agent has used in years past. Justice wonders aloud if the agent will employ "mystery teams" to drive up the bidding.
- Even though the Rangers have a great deal of rotation depth with the expected addition of Yu Darvish, it's not a certainty that they will deal one of their starters, writes Buster Olney of ESPN.com (Insider req'd). Even after the departure of C.J. Wilson, Olney rates the club's rotation as the sixth-best in baseball.
- The John Danks extension seems to indicate that the White Sox aren't ready to rebuild, but MLB.com's Scott Merkin isn't yet sure of the club's intentions. Merkin says that the futures of Carlos Quentin, Gavin Floyd, and Matt Thornton will be telling.
Quick Hits: Dobbs, Pitching, Floyd, Marshall, NPB
On this date in 1994, the owners implemented a salary cap and revenue sharing as the players were on strike. Those provisions were never put in place though, as the judge who ended the labor dispute ruled that the next two seasons must be played under the previously existing labor conditions. We do have revenue sharing nowadays, but a salary cap isn't going to happen anytime soon. Here's the latest from around the league…
- The Nationals are now focused on improving their bench, but MLB.com's Bill Ladson says (on Twitter) that it seems as though they are unlikely to sign Greg Dobbs. Washington expressed interest in Dobbs last week.
- Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com listed (on Twitter) the Rockies, Marlins, Tigers, Red Sox, Yankees, Orioles, and Blue Jays as clubs looking to add a starting pitcher. Earlier today we heard that both the Yankees and Red Sox are pursuing Hiroki Kuroda.
- Even after signing John Danks to an extension, Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com reports that the White Sox could look to trade Gavin Floyd this offseason. The Red Sox expressed interest in the righty during the winter meetings. Floyd will make $7MM in 2012, then a $9.5MM club option for 2013 comes into play.
- In an Insider-only column, ESPN's Keith Law calls the Sean Marshall trade a win for the Cubs. "The Reds, meanwhile, continue what I can only assume is a rapid emptying of their farm system to try to win again in the two years before Joey Votto reaches free agency," he added.
- With several Japanese players slated to join MLB next season, Patrick Newman of NPB Tracker takes a look at the players who will replace them on their former club in Japan.
AL East Links: Red Sox, Cespedes, Danks, Beltran
The Red Sox were one of the finalists for Gio Gonzalez, but GM Ben Cherington was "not motivated" to deal four prospects for Gonzalez, tweets Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe. With Gonzalez now on his way to Washington, the Sox will look at other pitching targets like Gavin Floyd, Roy Oswalt, Hiroki Kuroda and Andrew Bailey, all of whom have drawn some interest from Boston this winter.
Here's the latest from the AL East…
- The Red Sox will hire Bob McClure as the club's new pitching coach, reports Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe. McClure has spent the last six seasons as the Royals' pitching coach and was hired by Boston last month as a minor league instructor and special assignment scout.
- The Yankees' chances of signing Cuban outfielder Yoenis Cespedes are "slim to none," according to Marc Carig of the Star-Ledger (Twitter link).
- The Yankees weren't close to a deal for John Danks, a source tells Andrew Marchand of ESPN New York. Brian Cashman and Kenny Williams "haven't spoken in weeks" after some initial contact, but the Yankees weren't interested in meeting Chicago's demands for their left-hander. Danks and the White Sox agreed to a five-year contract extension yesterday, ending the Danks trade rumors for the foreseeable future.
- The Yankees and Red Sox were the only teams that paid a luxury tax penalty for 2011, reports The Associated Press. New York paid a $13.9MM penalty (the team's lowest since 2003) while Boston paid $3.4MM.
- The Rays fell out of the race for Carlos Beltran due to Beltran's concerns about playing on turf and spending too much time as a designated hitter, tweets Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times. The Cardinals, Indians and Blue Jays appear to be the finalists for Beltran, though the Jays could be similarly hampered by the turf and DH issues.
- The Blue Jays are looking for bullpen help in the form of a lefty specialist and a right-handed setup option, reports MLB.com's Gregor Chisholm. Also as part of this mailbag piece, Chisholm answers a reader question about Prince Fielder by noting that the Jays are "extremely unlikely" to pursue the free agent slugger unless his "market completely collapses." The major stumbling block is the Jays' club policy against not giving a player more than five guaranteed years on a contract, while Fielder is looking for a 10-year deal.
AL Central Notes: Cespedes, Darvish, Twins
The White Sox agreed to sign John Danks to a five-year, $65MM extension yesterday. MLBTR has you covered if you’re wondering what the deal means for similar pitchers, trade candidates and Danks himself. Here are more details from around the AL Central…
- The White Sox may be “in strong” on Yoenis Cespedes, reports Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com. One White Sox person forcefully told Knobler "we are not rebuilding," despite Kenny Williams' statements to the contrary.
- Tigers GM Dave Dombrowski confirmed to James Schmehl of MLive.com that the team didn't submit a bid on Yu Darvish.
- The Twins, who announced a one-year, $3MM deal with Jason Marquis today, likely have $1-2MM remaining for a relief pitcher, tweets Phil Mackey of 1500 ESPN.