Rangers Acquire Broussard, Non-tender Otsuka
Quick note from Geoff Baker – the Mariners sent first baseman Ben Broussard to the Rangers for minor league infielder Tug Hulett. Makes sense; the Mariners clear $3.5MM+ from the payroll and actually get something in return. The Rangers get a cheap stopgap first baseman who won’t embarrass them.
We may never hear from Hulett again, but he’s better than the nothing the Mariners would’ve gotten for non-tendering Broussard.
The Rangers also non-tendered Akinori Otsuka. Last we’d heard he was throwing pain-free in October, but maybe the Rangers learned he needed Tommy John after all. (Hat tip to Rangerfans.com).
Padres Deep In Talks For Bay
UPDATE, 12-12-07 at 3:56pm: Krasovic jumps in to say that the Padres definitely won’t be trading Headley to the Bucs (and probably not at all). The Pirates and Padres have been talking a lot, and some kind of deal involving some of the players below could definitely happen.
UPDATE, 12-12-07 at 12:01pm: Buster Olney is reporting that the Padres are "deep into discussions" with the Pirates about a multiplayer trade in which Bay would be the centerpiece.
FROM 12-12-07 at 9:30am:
Tom Krasovic checks in with all sorts of fresh Padres rumors, as he often does. Below are the ones that haven’t come up elsewhere on the site today.
- The Padres and Pirates might have mutual ground for some kind of multiplayer deal. Names like Matt Morris, Jason Bay, Xavier Nady, and/or Nate McLouth are possible future Padres. The Bucs could go for Michael Barrett and/or Padres’ top prospect Chase Headley. My challenge to you: create a reasonable multiplayer trade scenario between these two clubs in the comments.
- Krasovic says the Padres "explored a trade" for the Cardinals’ Anthony Reyes. The Indians and Phillies have also been linked to the youngster before.
- As you might expect, Morgan Ensberg will probably be non-tendered today. He made $4.35MM in ’07, and the Friars don’t want to pay him anything like that.
- Akinori Otsuka is another non-tender candidate, and the Padres could seek to bring him back if so. Otsuka has been throwing pain-free since late October, though, so the Rangers will probably retain him.
Levine On Fukudome
Interesting stuff from ESPN 1000’s Bruce Levine this morning regarding Kosuke Fukudome.
- The Rangers offered the most money.
- The White Sox were not outbid – they offered about the same as the Cubs. However, Fukudome did not want to displace Jermaine Dye from right field.
- Fukudome was just intrigued by the Cubs, and liked the idea of being their first Japanese player.
Latest Johan Santana Rumors
UPDATE, 12-11-07 at 2:54pm: Jon Heyman puts the Red Sox, Yankees, and Mets as the three leading suitors for Johan. Matthew Cerrone, however, believes the Rangers, rather than the Yanks, are the third leading suitor.
FROM 12-11-07 at 8:52am:
Joe Christensen of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune has the latest buzz surrounding the Johan Santana trade talks.
The Red Sox and Twins talked yesterday, and the Twins are leading toward Jacoby Ellsbury rather than Jon Lester. Jed Lowrie and Justin Masterson would also be included, and the sides are trying to figure out a fourth player.
The Yanks and Twins haven’t talked much lately, but apparently Kei Igawa‘s name has come up in the talks. He can’t have much trade value in the Twins’ eyes.
Christensen implies that the Mets might be trying to finish second here, staying involved for the sake of PR.
Christensen also notes that the Twins are fond of Jered Weaver, and the Angels could jump in if they decide to use their trade chips on another starter.
Also, the idea of the Twins including another player on their end has come up. In the past Joe Nathan has been mentioned, but Christensen is referring more to Twins’ prospects. They don’t have much in the system though.
Wise DFA’d, Brewers Look At Blalock
UPDATE, 12-11-07 at 1:56pm: It’s official, Wise has been DFA’d. If the Brewers aren’t able to trade him then he’ll hook on somewhere as a free agent.
FROM 12-10-07 at 10:20pm:
Tom Haudricourt has some quality stuff tonight, aside from the aforementioned return of Salomon.
- 32 year-old reliever Matt Wise is looking like a non-tender candidate for Wednesday. Eric Gagne took his uniform number. Wise hasn’t been too bad while eating up relief innings the past few years. He only made a million bucks in ’07. The Brewers tended to use him in low-leverage situations in 2007.
- Some other non-tender candidates are listed here.
- Haudricourt is "starting to get some vibes" that the Brewers have their eye on Hank Blalock. The 27 year-old third baseman hit .293/.358/.543 in limited duty this year. He’s locked up affordably – $5.95MM in ’08 and a $6.2MM club option for ’09. Would Dave Bush and a decent pitching prospect cut it?
Padres May Learn Today About Fukudome Offer
Tom Krasovic of the San Diego Union-Tribune has a new column up, chock full of Padres rumors. Let’s discuss.
- The Padres have a three-year offer out to Kosuke Fukudome that may make him the highest paid Padre ever, aside from Jake Peavy. Kevin Towers expects to get an answer today from Fukudome’s agent, Joe Urbon. Urbon basically said that geography would only come into play if offers from competing teams were similar. Towers admitted he sees the Cubs as the lead horse in this race.
- San Diego has a strong need for an outfielder or two, especially now that Milton Bradley went to the Rangers for an extra million bucks. There was some sentiment from Bradley that the Padres were glad they were outbid, maybe even planned it that way. It would seem more clever if they’d offered Bradley arbitration, though.
- Mike Cameron, Geoff Jenkins, and Jason Bay remain on Towers’ radar as alternatives to Fukudome. Krasovic recently suggested the Reds could jump in on Cameron if they trade Josh Hamilton.
Rangers Reach Deal With Bradley
MLB.com is reporting that the Rangers have come to terms with outfielder Milton Bradley on what appears to be a one-year deal. Its base worth is $5 million, though Bradley can earn a few incentives.
Of course, there’s still the issue of Bradley’s knee. He suffered a torn ACL towards the end of the season in that strange scuttle with Mike Winters and Padres manager Bud Black. Some reports have Bradley being ready by Opening Day, some have him sitting out the first month of the season.
Not that we could have expected it, but this report gives us no further insight into Bradley’s health condition. It does mention, though, that Bradley has to take a physical. I would certainly hope so.
–Joe
Odds And Ends: Inge, Gagne, Pavano
Couple of findings around the Internets:
- Drew Sharp argues that Brandon Inge should stay with the Tigers. His argument is that Inge would still get 300 or so at bats and would be playing for a surefire contender. If he was to be traded, he likely wouldn’t land with a team nearly as good. Plus, with some of the injury histories of current Tigers, it might be best for Inge to wait around for playing time.
- Though the Rangers were interested in Eric Gagne, they were only $6 million interested. For a one-year deal with an option, there was little chance of that happening. Gagne likely would have sooner accepted the Red Sox arbitration offer.
- Carl Pavano will accept a minor league assignment after the Yankees release him this week. They need 40-man roster spots for Alex Rodriguez and Mariano Rivera. They’ve already released Bronson Sardinha to make room for Andy Pettitte.
- Monte Pool dislikes the idea of the A’s signing Barry Bonds. He mentions what you’d expect: The trial, his health, and the money.
–Joe
Odds and Ends: Fukudome, Mahay, Santana
Rounding up some odds and ends for you…
- I’d read that Akinori Otsuka recommended the Padres to Kosuke Fukudome, kind of glossed over the fact. But Jamey Newberg has is rightly disappointed in the Rangers reliever. After all, the Rangers have Fukudome in their sights, and Otsuka plays for the Rangers.
- A good source tells me the Yankees believe they are in the lead for Ron Mahay, and think it can be done this upcoming week. If it’s true that Mahay has narrowed his choices to the Yanks and Royals, and the Royals have little interest, this makes sense.
- MetsBlog reports that Johan Santana prefers to pitch for the Mets. He likes the idea of moving to the NL.
Dontrelle For Josh Hamilton Was Discussed
UPDATE, 12-8-07 at 2:47am: More excitement…throw Abraham Nunez into the mix of Marlins third base targets. This team is going places.
FROM 12-7-07 at 11:27am:
MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro posted a new column last night full of good Marlins hot stove chatter.
- The most interesting note is that the Marlins talked to the Reds about swapping Dontrelle Willis for Josh Hamilton, prior to the blockbuster with Detroit.
- With Miguel Cabrera, the White Sox and Rangers were involved during the Meetings before the Tigers jumped in. The Rangers backed out when they couldn’t get an extension window for Cabrera. The Tigers wanted the same but obviously it wasn’t the dealbreaker. The Angels, Dodgers, and Giants were involved before the Meetings, with the Giants offering Noah Lowry.
- Frisaro says there are "strong indications the Marlins will sign Jorge Cantu. He’ll be in the mix at third base.
- The Fish are offering the Phils Scott Nestor for Wes Helms, who’d also compete at the hot corner.
- The Mets have some interest in Alfredo Amezaga, though the Marlins are inclined to keep him.
- Miguel Olivo will be released soon, so throw him into the catcher market with Michael Barrett.