Latin Links: Tejada, Uribe, Feliz, Cuban Players
Links from Spanish-language news sources…
- Sources close to Miguel Tejada and Juan Uribe said the infielders will wait and see what kind of contract Derek Jeter signs before committing to anything on their own, according to ESPN Deportes' Enrique Rojas. Neither player is aspiring to Jeter-like money, Rojas writes, but they think Jeter will "establish the market value of veteran shortstops" and give their own respective values a boost. The Cardinals are supposedly interested in both players.
- Neftali Feliz told Jose Caceres of Hoy he's heard rumors about the Rangers planning to move him to the rotation, but on the team's end, "Nobody has said anything to me." SI's Jon Heyman tweeted earlier today that the team would consider the move if they can't sign Cliff Lee.
- Victor Mesa, a former Cuban National Team manager and one of the all-time greats of Cuban baseball, told the official government newspaper Trabajadores that the time has finally come for those in power to allow Cuban players to sign with foreign teams, conveys Diario de Cuba. "I think there could be incorporation [into foreign teams], so that they could spend eight years playing in our National Series and [sign] with our involvement, not independently," Mesa said. The most recent prominent player to flee the country is a speedy teenaged outfielder in the mold of Mesa himself: 17-year-old centerfielder Yasiel Balaguer, who arrived in Nicaragua a few days ago.
Odds & Ends: Jones, Mets, Yankees, Guerrero, Greinke
A few more links for Wednesday night…
- In addition to all the other trade targets and free agents they've been eyeing lately, the Rockies have inquired on Andruw Jones, tweets SI.com's Jon Heyman.
- The Mets completed two of their four second-round managerial interviews today. Adam Rubin of ESPNNewYork has extensive post-interview remarks from Bob Melvin and a briefer comment from Chip Hale, with Terry Collins and Wally Backman due up tomorrow. Rubin tweets that Sandy Alderson expects to announce the team's new skipper by next Tuesday.
- The Yankees hope to further their discussions with Derek Jeter and Cliff Lee this week, writes Marc Carig of the Star-Ledger. Lee is "about ready to entertain offers," Nolan Ryan tells Heyman (Twitter link).
- Some opinions from past and present Red Sox players: David Ortiz guarantees Vladimir Guerrero will return to the Rangers, while Lou Merloni argues that the Sox need to trade Jonathan Papelbon. The Dallas Morning News and WEEI.com have the details.
- A baseball official tells Danny Knobler of CBS Sports that he could see the Rangers, Brewers, and Blue Jays becoming involved in trade talks for Zack Greinke.
- They've made plenty of moves already this offseason, but the Marlins may not be done yet. Joe Capozzi of the Palm Beach Post passes along a quote (via Twitter) from Larry Beinfest that suggests the team will pursue a starting pitcher.
- MLive's Steve Kornacki thinks Joaquin Benoit is "absolutely" worth the $16.5MM the Tigers spent on him.
- Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports considers Ken Williams' offseason plans – A through E.
Rangers, White Sox, Blue Jays Interested In Olivo
Miguel Olivo is drawing "varying levels of interest" from several clubs, including the Rangers, White Sox, and Blue Jays, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. Morosi adds that the Red Sox could also be interested if Victor Martinez signs elsewhere.
Olivo is seeking a two-year contract, so it appears likely that he would turn down an arbitration offer from the Jays, who acquired him from the Rockies earlier this month. In that case, perhaps Toronto's interest would dwindle, since they'd earn a supplemental pick if Olivo signed with another team.
With John Buck and Ramon Hernandez already locked up to deals, the catching market behind V-Mart is thinning rapidly. Check out our list of remaining free agent backstops here.
At Least Four Teams After Brandon Webb
The Dodgers, Pirates, Twins, and Rangers are interested in free agent righty Brandon Webb, tweets ESPN's Jerry Crasnick. He adds that we should not rule out the Nationals, Reds, and Cardinals.
MLBTR speculated on the Cards recently, though they just tied up decent money in Jake Westbrook. The Reds have an advantage in their proximity to Webb's Kentucky home. On Monday, Webb's agent Jonathan Maurer provided MLBTR with a detailed look at Webb's late season throwing sessions. Maurer said Webb is "ready to start 30 plus times in 2011" after shoulder surgery knocked him out for 2009 and '10.
Minor Deals: German, Carroll, Moore, Tracy
A look at the minor deals struck today…
- Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports tweets that Esteban German is returning to the Rangers on a minor league deal. German, 33 in January, hit .280/.371/.388 in 567 Triple-A plate appearances this year, playing all around the diamond. He was outrighted on November 5th and chose to become a free agent.
- The Royals signed outfielder Brett Carroll to a minor league contract, reports Juan C. Rodriguez of the South Florida Sun Sentinel (Twitter link). The 28-year-old is a .205/.284/.325 career hitter in 319 plate appearances with the Marlins.
- Infielder Scott Moore signed a minor league deal with the Cubs, reports Jeff Zrebiec of The Baltimore Sun. He originally broke in with the Cubs back in 2006, but was later traded to the Orioles for Steve Trachsel.
- Infielder Chad Tracy signed with the Hiroshima Carp for about $1.3MM according to a report passed along by NPB Tracker's Patrick Newman (Twitter link).
Mike Axisa contributed to this post.
Torrealba Cutting Ties With Padres
The Padres view Nick Hundley as their starting catcher of the future, and Yorvit Torrealba isn't looking to take a diminshed role or salary. While the 32-year-old had already declined his side of a $3.5MM mutual option, he further confirmed his bachelorhood in a phone interview with Carlos Alberto Gonzalez of Lider en Deportes (link in Spanish) yesterday, saying:
"It's not very likely that I'll continue with the Padres, because they want to reduce payroll and they're offering me much less than I had hoped; in fact, they want to give me less than I made this year."
And it's not just his own case that soured Torrealba on the Padres. He also questioned the team's approach to its star players, saying, "It seems like they want to get rid of Adrian Gonzalez and Heath Bell." In the short term, Torrealba said his agent will be at the winter meetings this week trying to wrangle a two-year deal, preferably from a National League team. His former team the Rockies are the only NL team he noted as having called him thus far, while from the American League he has received queries from the Mariners, Rangers, and Red Sox.
In platoon duty with the Rockies and Padres over the last two years, Torrealba has shown he can still get on base at around a .350 clip and respectably control the running game. He threw out 37% of would-be base stealers last season in just under 800 innings, his best marks in both categories since 2007 and 2006, respectively. Torrealba generally shows more power against right-handed pitching, but his OBP has actually been higher against left-handers in three of the last four seasons, and his .698 OPS against lefties this season was higher than a number of higher-profile regulars, including fellow free agent A.J. Pierzynski.
MLBTR's Tim Dierkes sees Torrealba taking over first-string catching duties from Russell Martin in Los Angeles, though a reuinion of the Torrealba/Chris Iannetta platoon that put the Rockies near the top in catcher OPS leaguewide in 2008 and 2009 could also be interesting. However, if the catcher has his eyes on something closer to a full-time role than he had in San Diego, one of the AL squads he mentioned could be his best bet. On the Padres' side, they have one more week to offer Torrealba arbitration and potentially earn another draft pick if the catcher—who is a type B free agent—follows through and signs elsewhere.
Vlad Looking For Multi-Year Deal
Vladimir Guerrero was hoping to sign a two-year contract last winter, but after finding surprisingly limited interest, found himself settling for one year, $5.5MM plus incentives. As MLBTR's Ben Nicholson-Smith noted last week, Guerrero made the Rangers look quite the clever shoppers, but the 35-year-old slugger told Hector Gomez at the Dominican paper Listin Diario (link in Spanish) yesterday that his resurgent year at the plate has once again raised his expectations for the offseason.
"I want a two-or three-year contract," Guerrero said, "but I'm not going to say the amount of money I want, just that I want a contract in line with the type of season I had." The first half of that season saw Guerrero looking like the beast of old, putting up a .319/.364/.554 line, and even after his .278/.322/.426 second half, he joins Jim Thome at the head of the free agent DH class this offseason. Guerrero told Gomez his primary remaining goal in baseball is to hit the 64 home runs he needs to reach 500, which would be feasible over a three-year deal. However, a glance at this year's free agents reveals all the same names that Guerrero was up against last winter, showing how rare multi-year deals have become at the position.
Rangers Met With Cliff Lee Yesterday
Rangers executives Chuck Greenberg, Nolan Ryan, and Jon Daniels flew to Little Rock, Arkansas yesterday and met with free agent lefty Cliff Lee for about two hours, reports Anthony Andro of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. Yankees GM Brian Cashman made the same trip by himself on Wednesday of last week.
Last we heard, Lee's agent Darek Braunecker was leaning against making the trip to Orlando for the GM Meetings. Braunecker told ESPN's Andrew Marchand "there has been significant interest from a multitude of teams," and he doesn't feel it's necessary for Lee to visit various cities.
Odds & Ends: Shell, Kuroda, V-Mart, Okajima, Davies
Links for Monday evening…
- Jon Paul Morosi of FoxSports.com tweets that the Royals have signed reliever Steven Shell to a minor league deal. Shell, 27, had a 3.59 ERA in 72.2 innings with the Mariners' Triple-A affiliate last season.
- Troy Renck of The Denver Post lists the Cardinals, Phillies, and Rockies as some of the teams that were interested in Hiroki Kuroda before he re-signed with the Dodgers (Twitter link). Kuroda, however, re-signed without fielding offers from other teams according to Dylan Hernandez of the L.A. Times.
- Add the Rangers to the list of teams showing interest in Victor Martinez says SI.com's Jon Heyman (via Twitter).
- WEEI.com's Rob Bradford tweets that Hideki Okajima is subject to a normal arbitration calendar this offseason. In the past the Red Sox had to offer him a contract by November 20th.
- Non-tender candidate Kyle Davies hopes to remain with the Royals, says MLB.com's Dick Kaegel. Davies hasn't heard anything from the team regarding his future.
- Alden Gonzalez of MLB.com reports that Cliff Lee's agent Darek Braunecker is still unsure if he will attend this week's GM Meetings.
- MLB.com's Jane Lee provides a list of power bat the Athletics could potentially pursue as free agents this offseason.
- The Yankees don't believe that Derek Jeter will ultimately leave New York, but they're prepared for a long negotiation according to Heyman (Twitter link).
- Meanwhile, Jon Paul Morosi of FoxSports.com tweets that there is still no word whether or not Andy Pettitte will return to pitch in 2011.
- Cardinals GM John Mozeliak doesn't expect any roster moves at this week's meetings according to MLB.com's Matthew Leach. Ken Rosenthal of FoxSports.com says the team is growing more optimistic about re-signing Jake Westbrook, however (Twitter link).
- Indians GM Chris Antonetti told Paul Hoynes of The Cleveland Plain Dealer that it's too early in the offseason to tell whether his team's needs will be filled through trades or free agency.
- MLBTR's Ben Nicholson-Smith is on location at this week's GM Meetings in Orlando, and you can follow him on Twitter at @mlbtrorlando for the latest breaking news and analysis.
- There is mutual interest between the Marlins and free agent catcher A.J. Pierzynski, reports Joe Capozzi of The Palm Beach Post. Capozzi says the team might not be able to afford him, though they could free up payroll space by dealing Dan Uggla.
- FoxSports.com's Ken Rosenthal says that the Dodgers are looking to add power to their lineup, and James Loney is the player they're most most willing to trade. They would then turn around and sign one of the many power-hitting first baseman available on the free agent market.
- Mets GM Sandy Alderson said that the first round of manager interviews includes one or two more candidates while the second round will consist of three or four candidates according to Andy Martino of The New York Daily News (all Twitter links). The second set of interviews could begin in Orlando this week, and Alderson said his father's death on Sunday will not slow things down.
- ESPN's Jerry Crasnick profiles Giants GM Brian Sabean and the work that lies ahead following his team's World Series victory.
- Joe Pawlikowski of River Ave. Blues looks at how signing Lee would impact the Yankees' future payroll. Meanwhile, Brian Cashman told MLB.com's Bryan Hoch that he doesn't expect to get any deals done this week.
- Best of luck to MLB.com's Jordan Bastian. He's trading in the Blue Jays' beat for the Indians' beat.
Buster Posey, Neftali Feliz Win ROY Honors
Giants catcher Buster Posey took home the National League Rookie of the Year award today, while Rangers closer Neftali Feliz won it in the AL.
After Posey, Jason Heyward, Jaime Garcia, Gaby Sanchez, Neil Walker, Starlin Castro, Ike Davis, Jose Tabata, and Jonny Venters received votes in the NL. After Feliz it was Austin Jackson, Danny Valencia, Wade Davis, John Jaso, Brennan Boesch, and Brian Matusz in the AL. Click here to see the full voting results.