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Blue Jays Close To Signing Darren Oliver

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3:11pm: The two sides are still finalizing terms according to Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca (on Twitter). He says it's unlikely anything will get done before next week given the holiday and the need for a physical.

1:07pm: The Blue Jays are close to signing Darren Oliver, reports Evan Grant of The Dallas Morning News. Both Oliver and the Rangers were interested in a reunion, but the team wouldn't make any commitments due to the potential outlay for other players, namely Yu Darvish.

Oliver, 41, is a modified Type-B free agent per the new collective bargaining agreement, meaning the Rangers will receive a supplemental first round draft pick as compensation (tentatively #51 overall). The Jays would not forfeit a pick. The left-hander has pitched to a 2.40 ERA in 112 1/3 innings for Texas the last two years, holding lefty batters to a .212/.250/.306 batting line during that time. The Angels also expressed some interest in his services.

This post was originally published on December 30th.

Matt Garza Talks Heating Up

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5:12pm: The Cubs and Blue Jays continue to discuss a Garza deal, Jim Bowden of MLB Network Radio and ESPN.com tweets.  The Cubs seem to be prioritizing young starting pitching in talks about Garza, tweets Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com. One executive told Heyman that the Yankees and Blue Jays have what it takes to acquire Garza.

12:53pm: Trade talks for Cubs starter Matt Garza are heating up, writes David Kaplan of Comcast Sportsnet Chicago.  Kaplan says the Blue Jays, Yankees, and Red Sox are involved, but the Cubs' asking price is "incredibly high."

Yesterday, MLBTR's Ben Nicholson-Smith took an in-depth look at Garza's contract situation; he's under team control through 2013.  Cubs president Theo Epstein said on Friday that Garza is "exactly type of pitcher we want to build around," but he'll listen on everybody.  So far this winter trade values have been established for Gio Gonzalez, Mat Latos, and Trevor Cahill, but all of them came with at least four years of team control.

Morosi On Blue Jays, First Base, Starters, Cespedes

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The baseball world figures to remain relatively quietly until after the New Year, but as Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports writes, there is still a lot of work to be done before the season begins. Let's round up Morosi's rumors…

  • The Blue Jays are saying they will not give a hitter a contract of more than five guaranteed years, though they'll likely have to violate that policy if they want to sign Prince Fielder.
  • The Brewers, Cubs, Nationals, Indians, Mariners, Orioles, Rangers, Rays, and Pirates are all considering non-Fielder upgrades at first base. Carlos Pena, Casey Kotchman, and Derrek Lee remain unsigned, among others.
  • Some within the game believe that Joakim Soria and Carlos Marmol could be had at the right price. The Cubbies are said to be planning a "complete and total rebuild."
  • Both Kyle Lohse and Jake Westbrook remain available, and the Rangers may be willing to trade Matt Harrison for a more established starter.
  • Most believe Yoenis Cespedes will sign for more than the $30.25MM Aroldis Chapman received because as a position player, he carried less risk. A larger number of interested teams and the new collective bargaining agreement will also help his cause.

Quick Hits: Dobbs, Pitching, Floyd, Marshall, NPB

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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, Blue Jays, Jones, Beltran

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Two years ago today, the Blue Jays traded Brandon League and Johermyn Chavez to the Mariners for Brandon Morrow. Morrow has pitched to a 4.62 ERA as a starter in his two seasons with Toronto while League became an All-Star closer last season. Here's the latest from the AL East…

  • In an ESPN Insider-only piece, Jim Bowden reports that the Red Sox offered a position player heavy package to the Athletics for Gio Gonzalez before he was traded to the Nationals. Bowden adds that the Blue Jays were only willing to part with risky low-level minor leaguers for the southpaw.
  • Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports says the Red Sox's pursuit of both Gonzalez and Andrew Bailey was "very much part of conversation for majority of the time," but they shifted their attention to solely Gio after they learned they were competing with the Nats (Twitter links). The Blue Jays jumped into the bidding late, adds the FOX scribe.
  • Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports that the Orioles are not shopping Adam Jones, but GM Dan Duquette will listen to offers and make counter proposals. We recently learned that the Orioles wanted Jair Jurrjens, Martin Prado, and at least two of the Braves' young pitchers in return for their center fielder.
  • The Yankees considered pursuing Carlos Beltran earlier this offseason according to Bob Klapisch of The Bergen Record (on Twitter), but ultimately decided against it because of his balky knees. Beltran agreed to a two-year deal with the Cardinals yesterday.
  • MLB.com's Mike Bauman writes that the Red Sox's makeover – from the front office to the manager to the roster – will be heavily scrutinized this season.

AL East Links: Red Sox, Cespedes, Danks, Beltran

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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.

Carlos Beltran Rumors: Thursday

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Carlos Beltran may choose his next team by the weekend and he has many suitors to consider. The Cardinals, Blue Jays, Red Sox, Rays and Indians are all "seriously in the mix" for Beltran, according to Scott Miller of CBSSports.com. Here’s the latest on Beltran, who’s open to DHing part-time…

  • Though the Indians are in the mix for Beltran, they're more likely to obtain a first baseman, tweets Heyman.
  • The Cardinals view Beltran as the best, most cost-efficient option, according to Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com. The Cardinals are believed to have offered a two-year deal worth at least $8MM per season at one point, Heyman writes.
  • Beltran is down to the Cardinals, Indians and Blue Jays, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. Miller names the same three teams and says the Beltran talks appear to be coming to a head. (Twitter link).
  • The Red Sox are out on Beltran, tweets Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe.
  • The Cardinals intensified their talks with Beltran last night and into this morning, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch writes. One of Goold's sources says the Cardinals are the "leading candidate" to sign Beltran.
  • MLB.com's Jordan Bastian hears nothing has changed regarding the Indians' projected 2012 payroll (Twitter links). This means adding someone like Beltran would likely require the club to shed payroll elsewhere, but Cleveland’s interest in Beltran is legitimate.
  • Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports explains how Beltran would fit on the Indians' roster. Cleveland jumped into the bidding for the switch-hitting free agent yesterday.
  • Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com reminds us that Beltran declined to be traded to the Indians in July, when he said he’d only join the Phillies or Giants (Twitter link).

Olney On Blue Jays, Fielder, Danks

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The Blue Jays appeared to be favored to win the bidding for Yu Darvish, but ultimately lost out to the Rangers. ESPN.com’s Buster Olney takes a close look at what Blue Jays GM Alex Anthopoulos has said about the process and repeats that the Blue Jays don’t appear to have come close to matching Texas’ $51.7MM bid. Here are more of Olney’s notes from around MLB…

  • Rival executives say the Blue Jays have been engaged in lots of trade talks for cheaper options.
  • Some executives say Prince Fielder wants a ten-year deal, but a number of clubs are interested in something closer to a six-year contract, Olney reports.
  • Chicago’s asking price for John Danks was “extraordinarily high” before yesterday’s extension, MLB executives tell Olney. The White Sox were looking for a return like the one the Rockies obtained from the Indians for Ubaldo Jimenez in the summer. No teams were willing to match GM Kenny Williams’ asking price, so the White Sox talked extension with Danks.

Pitching Rumors: Red Sox, Felix, Giants, Jurrjens

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The Nationals, Red Sox, Marlins, Blue Jays, Royals, Tigers, Mariners, Yankees and Orioles are among the teams still looking to add one or more starting pitchers this offseason, according to Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com. Here are more details on the market for starting pitching:

  • The Red Sox are “in on everybody,” Knobler reports. Peter Gammons of MLB Network confirms that the Red Sox are still looking for starters (Twitter link).
  • Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports makes the case that the Mariners should trade Felix Hernandez this offseason, but Mariners GM Jack Zduriencik disagrees. “I still say, as I’ve said all along, we’ve still got the best young pitcher in the game, and that’s pretty darned good,” Zduriencik said. Rosenthal pointed to the prospects the Padres obtained for Mat Latos and the fact that the AL West has become tougher this offseason.
  • The Giants aren’t looking for a free agent to replace Jonathan Sanchez, but are interested in adding pitchers who are willing to accept minor league contracts, tweets Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle.
  • The Orioles, Red Sox, Blue Jays, Rockies, Tigers and Rangers are among the teams that have expressed some interest in Jair Jurrjens, according to Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com. The Braves have suggested they won’t trade the right-hander within their division.

Indians In On Carlos Beltran

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11:17pm: The Cardinals, Blue Jays, Red Sox, Rays and Indians are all "seriously in the mix" for Beltran, according to Scott Miller of CBSSports.com. There could be another team involved.

10:40pm: The Indians have jumped into the Carlos Beltran negotiations, according to ESPN.com's Buster Olney (on Twitter). Though GM Chris Antonetti has been on the lookout for offense this offseason, this is the first time the Indians have been publicly linked to Beltran.

Beltran has two and three-year offers and hopes to decide on a new team this week, according to Scott Miller of CBSSports.com (all Twitter links). The Blue Jays and Cardinals are among Beltran’s most aggressive suitors, Miller reports. The switch-hitter appears to be weighing a more substantial contract offer against a city he prefers. He is open to DHing on a part-time basis.

Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com reported tonight that Indians people are considering “everyone but Prince [Fielder]” as they hunt for upgrades at first base and in the outfield. The Indians now have Michael Brantley, Grady Sizemore, Shin-Soo Choo, Ezequiel Carrera, Shelley Duncan and the newly-acquired Aaron Cunningham in the outfield mix. Beltran would be a welcome addition to an offense that ranked 16th in MLB in runs scored in 2011.

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