Nationals Rumors

Nationals Notes: Madson, Hernandez, Norris

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | November 9, 2011 at 4:20pm CDT

The Nationals are looking to return to the .500 mark for the first time since 2005, their inaugural season in Washington. Here's the latest on the team:

Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports suggests the Nationals might become serious bidders for Ryan Madson if the Phillies don't lock the closer up.
Nationals GM Mike Rizzo joined Jim Bowden on MLB Network Radio and said he’s still looking for a center fielder (all Twitter links via MLB Network Radio). The Nationals will "probably" trade from minor league or Major League depth for a center fielder, Rizzo said. The GM added that the Nationals are set at second, shortstop and first.
The Nationals expressed interest in B.J. Upton, Denard Span and others over the course of the summer and Bowden suggests the Twins are a possible trade partner again (Twitter link).
Free agent right-hander Livan Hernandez won't return to the Nationals, according to Rosenthal, who won't be surprised if the Marlins turn to Carlos Zambrano or Hernandez if their pursuit of Mark Buehrle comes up short. MLBTR's Tim Dierkes rounded up all of the latest Marlins rumors earlier today.
The Nationals must place catcher Derek Norris on the 40-man roster or risk losing him in the Rule 5 Draft, according to Amanda Comak of the Washington Times. The Nationals now have 32 players on their 40-man roster, so there’s room for Norris, who hit .210/.367/.446 at Double-A in 2011.

Quick Hits: Yankees, Rodriguez, Ankiel

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | November 8, 2011 at 10:20pm CDT

Links for Tuesday night as CBA talks progress and the Phillies work toward a deal for Ryan Madson…

Keith Law of ESPN.com previews the free agent market for outfielders. Law likes Carlos Beltran, isn't optimistic about Michael Cuddyer and suggests avoiding Raul Ibanez, Rick Ankiel and Ryan Ludwick.
Though the Yankees have reached out to many agents, including Mark Buehrle’s representative, GM Brian Cashman says they have yet to make formal offers, according to Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News (on Twitter).
Dave Cameron of U.S.S. Mariner outlines his offseason plan for the Mariners, assuming Seattle doesn't trade for Reds first baseman Joey Votto.
Agent Scott Boras says a lot of teams have inquired on free agent catcher Ivan Rodriguez, according to Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post.
Rick Ankiel, another free agent Boras client, is still developing as a Major Leaguer, according to the agent. “We have not seen his best years," Boras said. "It’s certainly clear the Nats liked what they saw. It’s just pretty hard to find guys who can play center field, who have that arm strength and who can hit for power.”

Rosenthal On Oswalt, Giants, Kuroda, Chen

By Tim Dierkes | November 8, 2011 at 8:38am CDT

Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports dishes the latest on several free agents…

The Nationals "plan a major push" for free agent righty Roy Oswalt, and Rosenthal considers the Rangers another potential player. Nats GM Mike Rizzo explained his interest earlier this month. Oswalt's agent Bob Garber told Jon Paul Morosi, "With Roy, home and family are very important to him. It would be a bonus to be close to home, but nothing is off limits, in terms of either coast or the Midwest. Ideally, yes, it would be great to be close to home, but it's not going to stop us, if it's the right situation. His goal is to get the ring. He doesn't have any jewelry right now. He's made a lot of money. At this point, it's about the ring. That's what he wants to take with him." Oswalt lives in Mississippi.
Rosenthal doesn't see the Giants having the money to afford Carlos Beltran or Jose Reyes this winter. This math was apparent in September, when GM Brian Sabean told reporters payroll would remain about the same, around $125MM. The Giants currently have $81.683MM in contractual commitments for 2012, and if they tender the most likely nine of their 13 arbitration eligible players that's another estimated $38.7MM for a total of $120.383MM before minimum salary players are considered. A few million for 2012 could be freed up by trading Jeff Keppinger and signing Tim Lincecum to a multiyear deal.
Rosenthal feels that Hiroki Kuroda "might be more open to playing elsewhere, having gone through the experience of considering another team." I ranked Kuroda 15th on my top 50 free agents list.
Wei-Yin Chen of the Chunichi Dragons is a likely free agent, writes Rosenthal. Agent Alan Nero told Rosenthal Chen and Tsuyoshi Wada are drawing significant interest. Last week, Chen said he was 50/50 on moving to MLB (link in Japanese, thanks to Patrick Newman of NPB Tracker for the translation). Chen controls the process due to a free agency clause in his contract, and he's only 26. Newman tells me Chen topped out around 91 miles per hour this year, short of the 95 he reached a few years ago, but he's still interesting enough to fit in the middle of our top 50 list. I ranked Wada 34th.

Nationals Interested In Tsuyoshi Wada

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | November 7, 2011 at 7:57pm CDT

The Nationals have expressed interest in Japanese left-hander Tsuyoshi Wada, according to MLB.com's Bill Ladson. Wada, 30, is eligible for free agency and appears to be eyeing MLB.

Wada posted a 1.51 ERA with 8.2 K/9 and 1.9 BB/9 in 184 2/3 innings for the Fukuoka Softbank Hawks in 2011. Washington has scouted Wada quite a bit, according to Ladson, and the Dodgers also appear to have scouted him.

Wada is a Dallas Braden type with "a 86-87 mph fastball, a good circle change, and a solid slider," according to Patrick Newman of FanGraphs. Newman has expressed doubts about Wada's ability to handle an MLB workload, but the Nationals have publicly expressed interest in durable starters.

Yoenis Cespedes To Gain Free Agency

By Tim Dierkes | November 7, 2011 at 7:15pm CDT

7:15pm: The Red Sox are "sending everyone" to the Dominican to evaluate Cespedes, according to MLB.com's Peter Gammons. The Rangers are also interested, along with the many teams named below, according to Gammons, who confirms that small-market teams like the A's, Pirates and Indians will be involved.

Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports names the Marlins, Yankees, Red Sox, Tigers, and Nationals as teams with a significant presence at the Friday workout.

5:49pm: Yankees GM Brian Cashman confirmed that he saw the Cespedes video, but wouldn't say whether the Yankees are interested, according to Marc Carig of the Star-Ledger (link on Twitter; the video has been removed). Meanwhile, Braves GM Frank Wren told David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that he doesn't expect to sign the center fielder, though they're checking in on him (Twitter link).

2:25pm: The Yankees, Phillies, Blue Jays, Giants, Marlins, Nationals, Indians, Athletics, and Pirates have had a presence at Cespedes' workouts, reports Yahoo's Tim Brown. Giants GM Brian Sabean told reporters today that his team will not be involved on Cespedes, however (via Andrew Baggarly on Twitter).

Agent Adam Katz tells Brown he'll wait until his client is technically declared a free agent before discussing contract terms with teams. The Yankees, Phillies, and Marlins will have private workouts with Cespedes within the next few weeks, with a Marlins contingent heading to the Dominican Republic this week.

8:30am: Cuban center fielder Yoenis Cespedes defected mid-summer and is expected to be cleared for free agency within a matter of weeks, reports Yahoo's Jeff Passan. The 26-year-old is "arguably the best all-around player to come out of Cuba in a generation," according to Kevin Goldstein of Baseball Prospectus, who describes Cespedes as "a legitimate centerfielder with plus power and speed." Both Passan and Goldstein expect the 26-year-old to receive a deal in the range of the $30.25MM Aroldis Chapman received in January of 2010. MLBTR first told you about Cespedes' escape from the Cuban National Team in July.

If you really want to get to know Cespedes, though, you need to watch the 20-minute YouTube video sent by his trainer to MLB teams. Goldstein's column provides a full breakdown of this bizarre production, but I'll just note that it includes Cespedes making a 45-inch vertical jump, leg-pressing 1,300 pounds (with two friends atop the weights), catching a flyball behind his back while facing the batter (twice), a thank you to Ahman Green, and the player roasting a pig. Some of the songs used may not be appropriate for your workplace, except for Christopher Cross' 1980 hit "Sailing," which was deemed too tame even for your office's elevator.

Cespedes is represented by Adam Katz of Wasserman Media Group. Passan says the Yankees are "particularly hot" for the center fielder. Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post says the Nationals had multiple talent evaluators on hand at Cespedes' workout last week in the Dominican Republic, and a team official said they'd "love to have him." Ownership has been informed about Cespedes and what it would take to sign him. The Marlins and Phillies are also in the mix for Cespedes, writes Kilgore. As with Chapman, this type of player in his prime will draw the interest of almost every club.

The Marlins have the inside track, one American League source who attended the showcase told Juan C. Rodriguez of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel. A Marlins contingent including owner Jeffrey Loria will visit Cespedes in the Dominican Republic later this week, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.

Nationals Interested In Roy Oswalt

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | November 4, 2011 at 2:44pm CDT

The Nationals have expressed interest in Roy Oswalt, according to MLB.com's Bill Ladson. Earlier today, Rizzo explained to reporters that he's looking for a veteran starter this offseason.

"We want a guy that has shown he's a good leader, that can win in the big leagues," Rizzo said. "It's not about having the best stuff. It's about being able to pitch 200 innings many, many times in your career.”

Agent Bob Garber said Oswalt feels “great,” even after two back-related stints on the disabled list in 2011 and the 34-year-old right-hander is seeking a multiyear deal. Oswalt made 23 starts and completed 139 innings this past season, posting a 3.69 ERA with 6.0 K/9, 2.1 BB/9 and a 45.1% ground ball rate. His average fastball velocity dropped to 91.4 mph, however. Oswalt is a Type A free agent, but it would be a surprise if the Phillies offer arbitration, so it seems unlikely that Oswalt will cost teams a draft pick.

NL East Notes: Wang, Buehrle, Ankiel, Braves

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | November 4, 2011 at 2:29pm CDT

The Mets are losing confidence that Jose Reyes will return in 2012. Here are some more hot stove notes from the NL East…

Nationals GM Mike Rizzo told reporters, including Ben Goessling of MASNsports.com, that the team discussed possible 2013 options with Chien-Ming Wang's representatives before agreeing to a simple one-year deal.
The Nationals will continue searching for pitching. "We want a guy that has shown he's a good leader, that can win in the big leagues," Rizzo said. "It's not about having the best stuff. It's about being able to pitch 200 innings many, many times in your career.” As Goessling and a number of other Nationals reporters have noted, that describes Mark Buehrle quite well.
Scouts tell ESPN.com's Buster Olney that they like what Buehrle offers, even though the 32-year-old southpaw doesn't light up any radar guns. Meanwhile, the Marlins are concerned about the command issues C.J. Wilson had in the postseason, according to Olney.
The Mets haven’t ruled out free agent Rick Ankiel as a center field option, according to Andy Martino of the New York Daily News. They still have arbitration eligible center fielder Angel Pagan, but they may trade or non-tender him instead.
Royals GM Dayton Moore acknowledged that he has had preliminary trade talks with the Braves, according to Carroll Rogers of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. The Braves are open to moving Jair Jurrjens or Martin Prado and the Royals are looking for starting pitching.

Nationals Finalize Deal With Chien-Ming Wang

By Mark Polishuk | November 3, 2011 at 4:31pm CDT

The Nationals have finalized a new one-year contract with Chien-Ming Wang, reports Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post. The deal is worth $4MM plus incentive clauses, and it will be official once Wang passes a physical. We heard yesterday from Wang's agent Alan Nero that the two sides had "conceptually" agreed to a new deal.

Wang signed one-year contracts with Washington in each of the last two offseasons, and finally made his return to the majors in 2011 after missing the entire 2010 campaign while recovering from shoulder surgery. Wang posted a 4.04 ERA, a 1.92 K/BB rate and a 53.4% ground ball rate in 11 starts with the Nats last year.

Kilgore was the first to report the deal was completed, with Mark Zuckerman of CSNWashington.com and Jim Bowden of MLB Network Radio (both Twitter link) also providing contract details.

NL East Links: Sizemore, Vazquez, Nationals

By Mike Axisa | November 3, 2011 at 1:50pm CDT

Three years ago today, the Marlins claimed Dan Meyer off waivers from the Athletics. The left-hander went on to enjoy a strong season out of Florida's bullpen in 2009 (3.09 ERA with 8.6 K/9 in 58 1/3 innings) before struggling in 2010. Here's the lastest from the NL East…

The Mets are unlikely to target Grady Sizemore as a center field solution according to Andy McCullough of The Star Ledger (on Twitter). He says it's not much of a surprise given Sizemore's injury problems over the last three seasons.
It's "50-50" as to whether former Expos and Marlins hurler Javier Vazquez will play in 2012, reports Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (on Twitter). The right-hander strongly prefers the east coast, and his return would depend on the team and its competitive environment.
Adam Kilgore of The Washington Post broke down the Nationals' current payroll commitments. Tim Dierkes did the same and more in his Offseason Outlook post.

Astros Claim Brian Bixler

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | November 3, 2011 at 12:38pm CDT

The Astros announced that they claimed utility player Brian Bixler off of waivers from the Nationals. Houston's 40-man roster now includes 38 players.

Bixler, 29, appeared in 79 games for the Nationals, playing all three outfield positions, shortstop, third base and first base. He posted a .205/.267/.265 line in 94 plate appearances. The Pirates selected Bixler in the second round of the 2004 draft and sold him to the Nationals in 2010.

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