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Rosenthal’s Latest: Morneau, Ruiz, Upton, Hamilton

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Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports has a new Full Count video up, so let's recap…

  • Don't be surprised if the Twins consider trading Justin Morneau. The first baseman is owed $14MM both this season and next, and Minnesota likely needs the position for Joe Mauer long-term. Denard Span, Matt Capps, and Carl Pavano could also be on the block, but Morneau offers hard-to-find power. He has a no-trade clause but the extent is unknown.
  • The Phillies hold a $5MM option for 2013 on catcher Carlos Ruiz and an extension is warranted, but at 33 years old, Chooch is three years older than Yadier Molina and four years older than Miguel Montero. They aren't contract comparables.
  • This year's crop of free agent center fielders stand to benefit from Adam Jones' new six-year, $88.5MM extension, but age will again be a factor. B.J. Upton will be 28 next season and is two years younger than Michael Bourn and four years younger than Shane Victorino. All three will hit the open market after the season.
  • Josh Hamilton is unlikely to sign a contract extension with the Rangers, and the lack of comparable players (both on and off the field) make him even more likely to hit the open market. It's possible the only way to determine his actual value is to let other teams bid for his services as a free agent.

Poll: Mike Napoli’s Next Contract

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The catching market has changed substantially over the last several months. Yadier Molina paved the way with his five-year, $75MM contract, and yesterday Miguel Montero reaped the rewards. He agreed to a five-year, $60MM extension with the Diamondbacks, leaving Mike Napoli as the top catcher on the free agent market after the season.

Napoli, 30, is said to be seeking a deal somewhere between Victor Martinez’s (four years, $52MM) and Molina’s. He’s hitting just .233/.325/.436 in 154 plate appearances this season following last year’s breakout .320/.414/.631 campaign. Furthermore, Napoli has only started behind the plate in 25 of his team’s first 46 games.

Quality catching is very hard to find, which is why Molina and now Montero have cashed in so handsomely. Napoli is next in line for a huge contract despite his slow start to the season.

Quick Hits: McLouth, Padres, Oswalt, Hamilton

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It's never a good sign for a team when its catcher has the game's best pitching line.  Jeff Mathis' scoreless inning of mop-up work made him the only Blue Jay hurler to not allow a run in the Rangers' 14-3 drubbing of the Jays.  Nelson Cruz swung the hottest Texas bat, going 4-for-5 with a home run and eight RBIs.

Here's some more news from around the majors…

  • The Angels have "no real interest" in Nate McLouth, reports MLB.com's Alden Gonzalez (Twitter link).  McLouth was designated for assignment by the Pirates earlier today.
  • Major League Baseball has given approval for three ownership groups to review the Padres' financial records as a step towards possibly buying the team, reports MLB.com's Barry M. Bloom.  The groups are respectively headed by Thomas Tull, Peter O'Malley and Steve Cohen.  Tony Gwynn is affiliated with Tull's group, while O'Malley and Cohen also recently bid to buy the Dodgers.
  • Roy Oswalt needs to show some compromise if he really wants to pitch for the Rangers, writes Evan P. Grant for the Dallas Morning News (subscription required).
  • The Rangers should be willing to pay Josh Hamilton $180MM+ to keep him from leaving as a free agent, opines Randy Galloway of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.  "You don't let immense talent walk. Immense talent always stays. Even if you overpay, immense talent, the best talent in baseball, stays — warts, demons and all," Galloway says.
  • Juan Carlos Oviedo has received his visa and will arrive at the Marlins' minor league headquarters on Monday, reports Juan C. Rodriguez of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel.  Oviedo and his representatives have not decided if they will appeal Oviedo's eight-week suspension for playing under a false identity as Leo Nunez.
  • The week's minor league transactions are recapped by Matt Eddy of Baseball America.

The Latest On Roy Oswalt

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Free agent right-hander Roy Oswalt hasn't discussed a contract with the Red Sox or Rangers, according to the latest rumors. The Phillies have also been linked to Oswalt, who is expected to sign a new contract midseason. Here are the latest rumors:

  • Oswalt's preference is to play for the Rangers, Cardinals, or Braves according to ESPN's Jayson Stark, but there's no indication either St. Louis or Atlanta has interest. Stark hears that money is the most important factor, but Oswalt also doesn't not want to be a major media storyline wherever he goes.
  • Oswalt is on the Orioles' radar, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com writes. Orioles executive VP of baseball operations Dan Duquette said this week that he's looking for ways of adding pitching depth, so it's not surprising they're eyeing Oswalt. Teams other than the Orioles, Red Sox, Phillies and Rangers may be involved, according to Heyman.

Rangers Claim John Gaub

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The Rangers claimed left-handed pitcher John Gaub off of waivers from the Rays, Roger Mooney of the Tampa Tribune tweets. The Rays had designated Gaub for assignment three days ago to create roster space for Drew Sutton.

Gaub, 27, appeared in four games for the Cubs last season and has a 3.81 ERA with 11.8 K/9 and 6.3 BB/9 across parts of four Triple-A seasons. The Rays claimed him off of waivers from the Cubs in April then stashed him at Triple-A. Robbie Ross is the Rangers' lone left-handed reliever at the moment, so Gaub provides some depth.

Roy Oswalt Rumors: Wednesday

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The Red Sox haven't discussed a contract with Roy Oswalt, but GM Ben Cherington didn't deny that the team watched the free agent right-hander work out. That's the essence of yesterday's Oswalt rumors; now on to today's…

  • Some rival executives fully expect Oswalt to sign with the Rangers, ESPN.com’s Buster Olney reports (Twitter links). The Rangers play relatively close to Oswalt’s home state of Mississippi and he might want to join pitching coach Mike Maddux and CEO Nolan Ryan in Texas. To this point the Rangers haven’t made Oswalt a formal offer, Olney notes.
  • Manager Ron Washington said on ESPN Dallas 103.3 FM's Ben & Skin Show that GM Jon Daniels and the front office will make the final decision regarding the right-hander. "Oswalt has to want to come to Texas and we have to get him ready. The guy is a quality pitcher. But I'm more than certain there are other teams trying to do the same things," Washington said, according to Richard Durrett of ESPNDallas.com.
  • Keep in mind that the Phillies have also been linked to Oswalt.

Rangers Will Consider Roy Oswalt

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Rangers General Manager Jon Daniels said the club will consider signing pitcher Roy Oswalt in the wake of Neftali Feliz’s elbow injury, writes T.R. Sullivan of MLB.com.  The Rangers watched the veteran throw on Friday.

Texas has long been linked to Oswalt but there was no room for the 34-year-old in the starting rotation.  Feliz's injury could create an opening for Oswalt as the club isn't ready to ready to promote Martin Perez or Neil Ramirez from Triple-A.  Scott Feldman is set to replace Feliz in the rotation and while Alexi Ogando is also a candidate he is not stretched out like Feldman.

Oswalt wouldn't be ready to step in to the rotation immediately for the Rangers but could provide depth in the event of another injury.

Quick Hits: Colon, Litsch, Rangers

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Cory Luebke will undergo reconstructive elbow surgery on Wednesday, Dan Hayes of the North County Times tweets. The Padres left-hander hasn’t pitched in the Major Leagues since April 27th and had been undecided as to his next step. Here are the rest of today’s links…

  • Jim Callis of Baseball America says Royals infield prospect Christian Colon will eventually move from shortstop to second base, where he can be a solid regular.
  • Blue Jays right-hander Jesse Litsch says he has a "career threatening" infection in his shoulder, Barry Davis of Sportsnet.ca tweets. Litsch, 27, has spent the entire season on Toronto's disabled list. He posted a 4.44 ERA with 7.9 K/9 and 3.4 BB/9 in 75 innings last year.
  • Former MLB outfielder Bobby Kielty told MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes that he signed with the York Revolution of the independent Atlantic League. The 35-year-old has a career .296/.379/.503 batting line against left-handed pitching, but hasn't played in the Major Leagues since 2007.
  • There's still no resolution in the Jairo Beras–Rangers case, Ben Badler of Baseball America writes. Texas agreed to sign the prospect for $4.5MM, but MLB's questions about his age remain unanswered. International sources tell Badler MLB can't sign off on the deal if it wants to seem serious about rule enforcement in Latin America.
  • Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com wonders if the Rangers could be a fit for Roy Oswalt now that starter Neftali Feliz is on the disabled list (Twitter link). Click here for the latest Oswalt rumors.

2013 Contract Issues: Texas Rangers

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The Rangers are next in MLBTR’s 2013 Contract Issues series:

Eligible For Free Agency (7)

  • Josh Hamilton - Hamilton will be the best and most discussed position player available in free agency this offseason. He's a superstar when healthy, but his injury issues will deter some suitors and his past off-field troubles may scare others. Even so, Hamilton figures to sign for at least $20MM per season on a long-term deal. The Rangers will make him a qualifying offer if they don't lock him up first.
  • Mike Adams - It's early, but Adams' strikeout rate, swinging strike rate and average fastball velocity are down so far in 2012. He still limits walks and generates ground balls, so he adds value out of the bullpen even when he's not striking out a batter per inning.
  • Mike Napoli -  Napoli appears to seek a contract in the $50-75MM range and the Rangers haven't met his asking price so far. However, they'll presumably be comfortable making him a qualifying offer after the season.
  • Colby Lewis - Lewis has been an effective starter despite his league-leading 13 home runs allowed. The Rangers need someone to eat innings at the back of their rotation, and the right-hander has been up to the task these past two-plus seasons.
  • Yorvit Torrealba - The Rangers are an exceptional team in many ways, but like everyone else they need a backup catcher.
  • Koji Uehara - Uehara has struck out 7.56 times as many hitters as he has walked in his career, and no pitcher in MLB history can match that ratio (minimum 150 career innings per Baseball-Reference).
  • Mark Lowe - Lowe is off to an excellent start in 2012. As with Adams and Uehara, it's too early to say whether he'll re-sign this offseason.

Contract Options (2)

  • Scott Feldman: $9.25MM club option with a $600K buyout. Feldman has become a spot starter for the Rangers, so it's safe to assume they'll decline this option.
  • Yoshinori Tateyama: club option for an unknown amount (his 2012 option was valued at $1MM). Tateyama is pitching effectively at Triple-A, and appears to be on his way up to join the big league team. He could earn a spot on the '13 team with a strong finish.

Arbitration Eligible (4)

The Rangers face a relatively small arbitration class, partly because they already extended Elvis Andrus and Nelson Cruz. Feliz, the converted reliever, will have an unusual arbitration case given his change in roles. Harrison and Murphy are on track for raises as second and third-time eligible players.

2013 Payroll Obligation

The Rangers have increased payroll steadily in recent years and the 2012 club will cost more than $120MM. They've already committed $84MM to next year's team, so another payroll increase could be forthcoming.

Roy Oswalt Rumors: Saturday

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Free agent right-hander Roy Oswalt popped back up on the rumor radar yesterday, as he recently auditioned for the Red Sox and Phillies. He also plans to throw for two more teams and is reportedly looking to sign relatively soon so he can be back on the mound by next month. Let's keep track of the day's Oswalt rumors right here, with the latest up top…

  • Oswalt threw for the Rangers yesterday, reports Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (Twitter links). The situation is the same as it was this offseason, however. Oswalt wants to start but Texas doesn't have a spot for him with both Scott Feldman and Alexi Ogando serving as extra starters in the bullpen. Rosenthal thinks the Rangers could trade Colby Lewis to make room for Oswalt, but there's no indication they're considering it, and there's no guarantee Oswalt would be better than Lewis (Twitter).
  • Oswalt's return to the Phillies is possible but not probable, explains Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com.
  • The Rangers were simply doing their due diligence with Oswalt, a source told Jeff Wilson of the Star-Telegram (via Twitter).
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