Boras Seeking Teixeira-Varitek Package Deal?
Halfway through his column on free agents expected to decline arbitration, Ken Rosenthal buries this interesting nugget:
Some rival agents**…believe that Boras might be offering [Jason] Varitek in a "package deal" with the catcher’s friend and fellow Georgia Tech alum, free-agent first baseman Mark Teixeira. The Red Sox are pursuing Teixeira, and the Nationals are among the other teams that might have interest in both players.
It’s not the first time that Boras has been accused of packaging his players, and it’s not the first time those rumors have concerned the Red Sox: when Boston signed J.D. Drew, there was a raft of unsubstantiated talk that Drew had been packaged with Daisuke Matsuzaka — in whom the Red Sox had already sunk $51.1MM for negotiating rights.
**As always, consider the source.
Sarah Green writes for UmpBump and the Boston Metro.
Zimmerman Extension Talks Likely After Meetings
MLB.com’s Bill Ladson has the latest on the possibility of a long-term extension for Nationals third baseman Ryan Zimmerman. Zimmerman’s agent hasn’t had serious dialogue with the Nats since spring training, but talks are likely to occur after the Winter Meetings.
Zimmerman is arbitration-eligible for the first time, but he said in October that he didn’t expect to go to arbitration. He believes they can reach an agreement on an extension. The Nationals were apparently willing to do something in the range of Troy Tulowitzki‘s six-year, $31MM deal, but Zimmerman wanted more.
Tulo will earn $17.5MM over his three arbitration years, $10MM in his first free agent year, and then has a $15MM club option for the second free agent year. Recently-signed Dustin Pedroia got $17MM over his arb years, gave up two free agent years at $10MM per, and added an $11MM club option. There are plenty of models out there; Zimmerman probably does not deserve to be paid as well as Hanley Ramirez or Chase Utley.
Rosenthal’s Latest: Byrd, Putz, Wilson
Rumor machine Ken Rosenthal has a new column…
- Free agent starters C.C. Sabathia and A.J. Burnett are in no hurry to sign. Makes sense; they’re obviously special compared to the other starters on the market.
- Nationals owner Ted Lerner "has spent extensive time" with Scott Boras, presumably in regard to Mark Teixeira.
- The Cubs want to acquire their left-handed hitting outfielder before worrying about Jake Peavy. Rosenthal says the trade market is bleak, suggesting free agents such as Raul Ibanez and Milton Bradley might make sense. As we’ve said, there is no perfect fit for the Cubs’ right field vacancy (unless Brian Giles will waive his no-trade clause).
- Paul Byrd is "virtually certain" to decline Boston’s offer of arbitration. He aims to pitch near his Atlanta home – the Braves, Marlins, or Rays could work for him.
- A Rosenthal source pegged Jon Garland‘s chance of accepting arbitration at less than 50-50. ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick recently indicated it was 75-25 he’d decline. Buster Olney says "some executives are stunned" that Garland will seemingly not accept.
- Rosenthal spoke to officials from two teams interested in Mariners closer J.J. Putz. The Ms haven’t decided yet whether to make him available, contrary to a previous report. Jack Zduriencik apparently doesn’t consider his club in rebuild mode.
- The Giants’ signing of Edgar Renteria: "widely panned in industry circles." Joel Sherman found the same consensus. This differs from the web, where Keith Law and Dave Cameron liked it.
- Rosenthal says the Dodgers are not pursuing Jack Wilson; those talks broke down earlier in the offseason. Who to believe? He says the Tigers are making a "more serious push."
- Phillies shortstop prospect Jason Donald is a popular trade target, but the Phils might need him to fill in for Chase Utley at the start of the season.
Rosenthal’s Latest: Johnson, Cano, Peavy
4:54pm: The Big Unit is open to the Giants or A’s, not a big surprise. Johnson’s agent says about ten teams have expressed interest, Giants included.
11:49am: Ken Rosenthal is working overtime; here’s his latest.
- The A’s remain the frontrunners for Rafael Furcal. Also, they’re targeting starter Randy Johnson to add a veteran presence to their rotation. Rosenthal adds that the A’s may prefer Nick Johnson over Jason Giambi.
- The Phillies made an offer to Derek Lowe, who seems to be their backup plan if they can’t sign Jamie Moyer. Rosenthal speculates that the Dodgers could consider Moyer. If the Phils sign Lowe, they may have to go cheap in left field.
- Oliver Perez and Randy Wolf are on the Yankees’ radar.
- The Braves haven’t ruled out five guaranteed years for A.J. Burnett. Rosenthal agrees with Mark Bowman that the Braves actually have little interest in Adam Dunn. He adds that Raul Ibanez might be out of their price range. Instead, the Braves could choose to trade Kelly Johnson for an outfielder.
- Rosenthal believes the Dodgers will renew talks for Robinson Cano at the Winter Meetings, and the Yankees will again ask for Matt Kemp.
- The Cubs are speaking daily to the Padres about Jake Peavy. Rosenthal says the Orioles do not seem to be the third team at this time.
- Rosenthal believes the Royals could make a run at Kyle Farnsworth.
Royals Rumors: Greinke, Francoeur
2:55pm: There was one other Greinke rumor; we missed it in ESPN’s Rumor Central. Jayson Stark said the Braves inquired but didn’t get far. He added at the time that the Royals may at least listen on him during the Winter Meetings.
1:12pm: Yesterday, ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick said the Nationals explored trading for Royals starter Zack Greinke. Of course, that could’ve just been a phone call inquiry from Jim Bowden to Dayton Moore that went nowhere. That’s pretty much the only Greinke rumor we’ve heard in recent weeks.
Today Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com wrote that Moore has grown more fond of Greinke, and is more likely to sign him to an extension than trade him. We know that’s Moore’s preference, but Greinke is comfortable going year to year. He’s under team control for two more seasons.
Knobler adds that Moore’s interest in Jeff Francoeur has waned, as the Royals already have a crowded outfield.
Rosenthal’s Latest: Dunn, Burrell, Manny
6:16pm: MLB.com’s Mark Bowman says the Braves are not interested in Dunn because they seek a right-handed bat. Does that rule out Raul Ibanez as well?
1:51pm: The latest from Ken Rosenthal:
- The Yankees, Rays, Red Sox, and Phillies are pursuing free agent outfielder Rocco Baldelli.
- Now that Adam Dunn wasn’t offered arbitration, the market is starting to take shape. The Braves, Mariners, and Nationals are interested, and the Dodgers and Angels consider him a fallback option. How about Dunn and Russell Branyan in the same lineup? Rosenthal considers the Yankees another possibility.
- Teams considering Pat Burrell, who was also not offered arb: the Mariners, Angels, and Giants.
- Rosenthal considers the Giants a darkhorse for C.C. Sabathia. Tim Brown says the Giants may be closing in on Edgar Renteria; Rosenthal has the Dodgers and Cardinals as other suitors.
- The Brewers will need to increase their offer to Sabathia to six years to have a shot.
- Rosenthal believes Jason Varitek will accept his offer of arbitration. He also wonders if Orlando Cabrera could accept. He expects Ben Sheets to decline (I made an error on this eariler).
- Rosenthal ponders the chances of Manny Ramirez accepting the Dodgers’ offer of arbitration. Buster Olney says three GMs wondered the same. I was under the impression Manny declining arbitration was a condition of his trade.
- The Cardinals want to add a young starter with upside. They also may go after a closer like Brian Fuentes or Kerry Wood if prices drop.
- Rosenthal believes the Reds could discuss a two-year deal with David Weathers.
Nationals Rumors: Dunn, Votto, Greinke
ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick talks about the Nationals in today’s column. A few hot stove nuggets:
- Crasnick talked to several agents and execs who just can’t see the Nationals ponying up $20MM+ per year for Mark Teixeira.
- The Nats crave a lefthanded slugging first baseman, so Adam Dunn could fit the bill. Crasnick talked to a couple of officials who suggested Dunn might have to settle in the three-year, $36MM range. However, the Nationals may have to pay a premium to convince any prominent free agent to sign.
- Crasnick says the Nationals have explored many interesting names: Prince Fielder, Adrian Gonzalez, James Loney, Joey Votto, and Zack Greinke. They may not have the young talent to pull off that kind of deal though.
- The Nats are "looking forward to the opportunity" to select Scott Boras client Stephen Strasburg in next June’s draft.
Braves Preparing Five-Year Offer For Burnett
2:07pm: Dave O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution believes the Braves will probably guarantee a fifth year to Burnett, at a salary of $15-16MM per.
9:56am: Will the Braves be the team to commit five years to A.J. Burnett? According to Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News, they’re preparing such an offer. Feinsand wonders if Burnett will jump at this offer without waiting to see what C.C. Sabathia does.
SI.com’s Jon Heyman seems to agree with Feinsand’s report. He learned from Braves GM Frank Wren that the Braves are in on Burnett but not Jake Peavy, and heard talk that the Braves might consider a fifth year. Wren described talks for Peavy as "pretty much" over.
Dave O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution says the Braves are one of six teams in negotiations with Burnett. Heyman believes the other teams to be the Yankees, Red Sox, Blue Jays, Orioles, and Nationals.
Dunn Won’t Cost A Draft Pick
The Diamondbacks’ decision not to offer arbitration to Adam Dunn yesterday was an interesting development. Now, the top home run hitter on the free agent market will not cost a draft pick to sign. Ken Rosenthal says Dunn is sitting pretty, and should find increased interest. He certainly makes more sense for the Nationals now, though they wouldn’t want to go beyond two years.
Rosenthal says the D’Backs made a late run at signing Dunn to a two-year deal shortly before the arbitration deadline. D’Backs GM Josh Byrnes said getting two draft picks for Dunn was a premise of the July trade, but since then "the poor economy has affected some things." The Astros had a similar situation with Randy Wolf. They chose not to offer arbitration to the Type B free agent, who earned $8.5MM this year.
The D’Backs expect the market for Orlando Hudson to be strong, and they were willing to accept the risk of offering arbitration to Brandon Lyon and Juan Cruz as well.
A’s Interested In Nick Johnson, Jason Giambi
3:06pm: Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle has more. She says the A’s checked in on Johnson a month ago, and they’re looking into multiple first base/DH types that fit the affordable/solid OBP mold. Slusser believes Jason Giambi remains the A’s top target, assuming he backs off his three-year demand. She adds that the A’s want to keep Daric Barton and get him back on track.
12:59pm: MLB.com’s Bill Ladson talked to a baseball source who says the A’s received Johnson’s medical records but trade talks have not yet begun. Ladson’s source added that several other teams have Johnson’s records as well.
9:33am: I missed this nugget in Ken Rosenthal’s column last night, but fortunately DRays Bay found it:
The A’s have requested and received the medical records of Nationals first baseman Nick Johnson, who underwent season-ending wrist surgery last June.
On paper, adding Matt Holliday, Rafael Furcal, and Johnson would transform Oakland’s offense. Of course, Furcal and Johnson are injury risks. Johnson is set to earn $5.5MM in ’09 after missing most of the ’08 season. The asking price for him can’t be terribly high, yet he’s capable of a .400 OBP and would benefit from the chance to DH occasionally.
I initially had a note here about Jim Bowden and Billy Beane matching up in ’03 on the Jose Guillen–Aaron Harang trade, but I just read that Bowden was fired a few days before the deal.