Odds & Ends: Darvish, Feliciano, D’Backs, Blue Jays
As the Padres face a big uphill battle in San Francisco this weekend, we look at some news items….
- Yu Darvish's likely posting fee could be around $25MM and the right-hander might look for a five-year deal from an MLB club, suggest sources of Matt Cerrone of Metsblog.com. The Mets, Yankees, Rangers and Braves are listed as four of the eight teams who have shown an interest in Darvish, and we know the Rays have watched him pitch as well.
- Pedro Feliciano's struggles against right-handed hitters will prevent the reliever from earning a big contract this winter, writes David Brown of Yahoo Sports. The fact that Feliciano is a Type A free agent will also hurt his cause, since teams will shy away from losing a draft pick to sign a limited relief pitcher.
- Rafael Soriano, Cody Ross, David DeJesus and Francisco Rodriguez are among several free agents or trade candidates that Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic thinks the D'Backs might consider acquiring.
- Bob Gebhard, the Diamondbacks' vice-president and special assistant to the GM, will survive the expected front office changes in Arizona this winter, tweets Bob Nightengale of USA Today.
- Nightengale also tweets that Tim Wallach is "picking up plenty of steam" in regards to the Toronto manager's job. The Rockies have granted hitting coach Don Baylor permission to interview for that same position, reports Jordan Bastian of MLB.com.
- The Everett Daily Herald's Kirby Arnold lists several Mariners who might not be with the team next season, including Jose Lopez, David Aardsma and Casey Kotchman.
- Dodgers assistant GM Logan White told Baseball America's Jim Callis that he hasn't been fired by L.A., and is "working for the team until…told otherwise" (both Twitter links). Kevin Goldstein of Baseball Prospectus tweeted about "rumors starting to swirl" that White and the Dodgers were parting ways earlier in the day. White was one of several candidates interviewed for the Arizona general manager's job that eventually went to Kevin Towers.
- The Washington Post's Adam Kilgore lists five possible replacements for Adam Dunn if the Nationals don't re-sign the slugger.
- In a chat with fans on Thursday, Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News predicted that the Rangers would announce contract extensions for manager Ron Washington and GM Jon Daniels within a week of Texas' final playoff game.
- Trevor Hoffman hasn't decided if he will play next year yet, but if he does, MLB.com's Adam McCalvy predicts Hoffman will look for "a situation in which he at least has a chance to be the closer."
Nationals Seek Top Starting Pitcher
The Nationals would like to add a leadoff hitter and re-sign Adam Dunn this offseason, but their main priority is starting pitching. GM Mike Rizzo told reporters, including MLB.com's Bill Ladson, that the team will be monitoring the pitching market this winter (Twitter link).
"We need a front-of-the-rotation guy to put everybody in their proper place in the rotation," Rizzo said. "That's the number one priority going into the offseason. We definitely have depth – prospect wise – to pull off a deal for a pitcher."
James Shields, Matt Garza, Zack Greinke, Kenshin Kawakami, Derek Lowe and Carlos Zambrano are among the starters who could become available on the trade market this winter. Lowe and Kawakami can't be considered top-of-the-rotation pitchers at this point, but Shields, Garza and Greinke are hard to beat.
The Nationals seem likely to have some interest in Cliff Lee this offseason. Lee will be a free agent, along with Ted Lilly, Hiroki Kuroda and others.
The Nationals will start next season with some combination of Livan Hernandez, Jason Marquis, Jordan Zimmermann, John Lannan, Chien-Ming Wang, Craig Stammen, Luis Atilano, J.D. Martin, and Ross Detwiler in their rotation depending on trades and non-tenders. Stephen Strasburg, who wowed fans and opponents alike in his brief big league debut, will miss most or all of the 2011 season as he recovers from Tommy John surgery.
Poll: Will The Nationals Re-Sign Adam Dunn?
Adam Dunn is what he is: one of the few hitters in baseball capable of reaching 40 homers annually and a consistently below average defender. He knows it, the Nationals know it and so do all of Dunn’s other potential suitors. His game hasn’t changed much recently and his strengths and weaknesses will likely remain constant for the next few seasons.
The Nationals would like to build a better defensive team and, with no DH slot, must find room for Dunn on the field if they re-sign him this offseason. Any team would love to add 40 homers to its lineup, but after two years, the Nationals realize that Dunn’s defense is a liability. They are said to like Carlos Pena, another powerful first baseman on the brink of free agency, partly for his glovework.
Despite Dunn’s defense, the Nationals have had interest in re-signing him all season long. At this point it seems likely that Dunn will reach free agency, but the 30-year-old could be a fit in Washington in 2011. Ryan Zimmerman wants the slugger back and so do the Nats fans who have been encouraging the team’s front office to keep him. But their wish won’t necessarily come true…
Will the Nationals re-sign Adam Dunn?
Click here to vote and here to view the results.
Cubs Rumors: Ramirez, Dunn, Payroll
The Cubs are finishing up their first losing season since 2006; of course the focus is on next year. The latest:
- The Cubs "remain intent on taking a run at Joe Girardi," tweets ESPN's Buster Olney.
- The Red Sox "have a lot of interest" in Cubs third baseman Aramis Ramirez, reported ESPN's Bruce Levine in a chat yesterday. It is assumed Ramirez will exercise his $14.6MM player option for 2011, and the clubs would have to work around issues of a no-trade clause and an assignment bonus. Plus, I imagine the Cubs would have to swing another trade to find someone to replace Ramirez at the hot corner.
- Levine writes that "Adam Dunn is a top priority for the Cubs if they can afford him." We learned last month that Dunn likes Wrigley Field and Jim Hendry, but the slugger made it clear yesterday he's tired of discussing his future.
- Levine notes that Cubs ownership has indicated there will be a slight decrease in payroll for next year. Hendry might have to move a current contract or two to create flexibility.
- Cubs starter Ryan Dempster endorsed Mike Quade as manager, saying to CSNChicago's Patrick Mooney and others, "He’s done a great job and I hope that he’s here longer than just this year (and) managing for us next year because he deserves it." Mooney also spoke to hitting coach Rudy Jaramillo, who's intent on honoring his three-year contract regardless of the team's manager changes.
Nationals Unlikely To Re-Sign Dunn?
The Nationals are unlikely to re-sign slugger Adam Dunn, according to MASN's Ben Goessling. Goessling's sources say GM Mike Rizzo and manager Jim Riggleman find Dunn's defense untenable, and the team will seek a better defensive first baseman like Carlos Pena. Goessling also hears that outfielder Jayson Werth "could be a possibility" for the Nationals this offseason.
On September 19th, Dunn told Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post that extension talks "have picked back up." At that time Dunn expected to reach free agency in November, but still re-sign with Washington.
Dunn is known to be seeking four years but would be open to three with the Nationals. Goessling expects the Nats to offer arbitration to the Type A free agent. If they do, Dunn will have to decide whether to accept on November 30th. As I mentioned earlier today, Dunn's low Elias number (projected at 75.000 currently) increases the chances of the Nationals failing to snag a first-round pick as part of the compensation.
Nats Seeking Leadoff Hitter
Nationals manager Jim Riggleman says that he would like to get a leadoff hitter for next season, writes Bill Ladson of MLB.com. While there are already several candidates in-house such as Nyjer Morgan, Roger Bernadina, Ian Desmond, and Danny Espinosa, the club may look to the free agent market or the trade block to get someone for the top of the order.
As we learned last month, Washington has strong interest in Carl Crawford who figures to be one of the biggest draws on the open market this winter. Obviously, there will be plenty of suitors for the 29-year-old and the Nats may not be able to beat out teams with deeper pockets.
Our own Ben Nicholson-Smith sees another free agent left fielder, Corey Patterson, as another potential fit. With a glut of outfielders, the Orioles may not bring the 31-year-old back in 2011. Patterson could have some appeal to the Nats as a fourth outfielder who can lead off. There could also be some interesting options available via trade such as Jacoby Ellsbury, Reggie Willits, and Kosuke Fukudome.
Odds & Ends: Miller, Laird, Fielder, V-Mart
As the Giants pick up a major win over the Rockies tonight, here are some news items….
- The Marlins face a tough decision with the out-of-options Andrew Miller, writes Joe Capozzi of The Palm Beach Post.
- Gerald Laird is looking for regular playing time next season, so it could mean the end for his time in Detroit what with Alex Avila having locked down a regular catching job, reports MLB.com's Jason Beck.
- "I think there’s probably a better chance that [Prince Fielder]’s not with us than he is [next season]," Ryan Braun said to Anthony Witrado of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel before what could be Fielder's last home series as a Brewer.
- Troy Renck of the Denver Post (via Twitter) predicts that Miguel Olivo will return to Colorado next season even if he doesn't reach his vesting option.
- C.C. Sabathia doesn't think his friend and former Indians teammate Victor Martinez will re-sign with Boston this winter, tweets Sports Illustrated's Jon Heyman.
- Matt Cerrone of the MetsBlog would like to see Bobby Valentine managing the Mets next season, with Wally Backman (who's been rumored as another managerial candidate) as the team's bench coach.
- Now that we know Stan Kasten won't be back as Washington's president next season, MASNSports.com's Phil Wood thinks Kasten would be a prime candidate to be baseball's next commissioner. Wood also thinks the Nationals will promote their next president from within the organization.
- With Yadier Molina shut down for the rest of the season with a knee injury, Bernie Miklasz of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch thinks the Cardinals should look for a veteran backup for the workhorse catcher over the winter.
- A number of Padres coaches are being interviewed for open managerial jobs, writes MLB.com's Corey Brock.
Odds & Ends: Kasten, Pirates, Rolen
Links for Thursday as we congratulate Jose Bautista and Ichiro Suzuki. Bautista hit his 50th homer of the season in Toronto today and soon afterwards, Ichiro reached the 200-hit plateau for the tenth time in his ten-year career…
- Nationals president Stan Kasten will not return to the team after the season, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (Twitter links). Owner Ted Lerner released a statement saying the organization respects Kasten's decision and "will continue to call upon him for his vast knowledge of the game."
- Pirates manager John Russell tells MLB.com's Jenifer Langosch that the Pirates are closer to respectability than some think. Russell, who faces speculation that he could be dismissed, says he isn't worried about his job security.
- Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports admits that his initial assessment of the Scott Rolen trade was off-base. Like many analysts, Morosi questioned the Reds' decision to give up top prospects (Zach Stewart and Josh Roenicke) for a third baseman who appeared to be past his prime.
Odds & Ends: Stairs, Diamondbacks, Blue Jays, Nats
Links on a very rainy evening in the Bronx..
- Matt Stairs nearly retired this winter but now he tells Corey Brock of MLB.com (via Twitter) that he wants to play for another year or two.
- The Diamondbacks will decide interim manager Kirk Gibson's fate soon, writes MLB.com's Steve Gilbert.
- Toronto could give their entire staff a makeover upon hiring a new manager, writes Shi Davidi of The Canadian Press.
- Stan Kasten told Thomas Boswell of the Washington Post that he's still not sure if he'll return to the Nats next season.
- The Mets may already have their 2011 second baseman in Daniel Murphy, writes Adam Rubin of ESPNNewYork.com.
- The Reds won't be auditioning Yonder Alonso for a potential deal as Joey Votto is set to return to action on Friday, tweets John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer.
- Mets GM Omar Minaya told Anthony DiComo of MLB.com (via Twitter) that he's not concerned about speculation over his job security.
- It's a good time for ex-Mariners managers, tweets Larry Stone of the Seattle Times.
Odds & Ends: Sandberg, Nationals, Padres, Bautista
On this date in 1978, the Pirates purchased Cito Gaston from the Braves and the outfielder went on to play his last two major league games in a Pirates uniform (believe it or not, future managers Ken Macha, Phil Garner and Jim Fregosi also played on that Pirates team). When this season ends, Gaston will step down as Blue Jays manager, but he'll do so with a pair of World Series rings and at least 885 wins to his name. Here are today's links…
- Ryne Sandberg is a candidate for the Blue Jays' managerial opening, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports (on Twitter).
- Later this week the Nationals will likely announce that they're retaining manager Jim Riggleman in 2011, according to MLB.com's Bill Ladson.
- The Padres will at least look outside of the organization for infielders, according to MLB.com's Corey Brock (on Twitter). The Padres lost some depth when Jerry Hairston hit the disabled list again.
- The Mets won't discuss deals with prospective free agents like Jose Reyes and Pedro Feliciano until after their front office is more settled, according to Adam Rubin of ESPNNewYork.com.
- ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick looks back at this year's moves from the ones that have worked out (the Roy Oswalt deal) to the ones that haven't (the Manny Ramirez claim).
- The Pirates lost Jose Bautista because they "reacted rashly to a rather innocuous situation," according to Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post Gazette.
- The Red Sox claimed Bautista when the Blue Jays put him on waivers last summer, according to Alex Speier of WEEI.com.
- One MLB executive tells Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe that Red Sox bench coach DeMarlo Hale is on at least two short lists of managerial candidates.
- Dave Bush is open to returning to the Brewers and curious about the offers he'll see as a free agent, according to MLB.com's Adam McCalvy.