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Archives for January 2011

Rickie Weeks Has Deadline For Extension Negotiations

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Rickie Weeks, who is eligible for free agency after 2011, does not want to talk about a multiyear extension once Spring Training begins, according to Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. "Once I get to Spring Training, I want to focus on baseball," the second baseman told Haudricourt.

Weeks, 28, is still without a contract for 2011, though we heard this morning that the Brewers are optimistic about working out a one-year deal rather than going to a hearing. Arbitration eligible for the last time, Weeks filed for $7.2MM, while the Brewers countered with $4.85MM.

The Brewers have expressed a desire to sign Weeks to a multiyear deal, but tabled those talks for the time being, while they work on a one-year contract. Even if the two sides agree on a salary for 2011 soon, the Brewers will have to re-open multiyear discussions fairly quickly if they hope to lock Weeks up long-term before his Spring Training deadline. Given how far apart the two sides were when they talked before, Haudricourt says an extension before Spring Training "sounds almost impossible."

Arbitration Rumors: Marcum, Weeks, Liriano, Young

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17 arbitration eligible players remain unsigned, according to MLBTR's Arbitration Tracker, and only four teams have more than one outstanding case. Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and MLB.com's Kelly Thesier provide negotiation updates on two of those clubs with multiple cases, the Brewers and Twins….

  • Brewers negotiator Teddy Werner is optimistic that the team will reach agreements with both Shaun Marcum and Rickie Weeks without going to a hearing.
  • Both players are exclusively discussing one-year deals with the Brewers, though Werner conveyed the club's desire to work out a long-term extension with Weeks later this year.
  • Like the Brewers, the Twins appear to be focusing on one-year deals, rather than multiyear extensions, with their arbitration eligible players, Francisco Liriano and Delmon Young. "Right now, we're focused on trying to get them signed for 2011, and we'll go from there," Minnesota GM Bill Smith told Thesier.
  • Smith appears willing to go to a hearing with either player if they can't settle on a figure the Twins like: "We'll continue to work on these two guys, and if we can reach agreement, we will. If not, then there's an arbitration panel that will do it."

Cafardo On Sizemore, Carmona, Delcarmen, Milledge

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Rocco Baldelli tells Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe that, despite having to retire at age 29, he considers himself fortunate to have had as much time as he did in the majors. "I have no regrets," Baldelli said. "I played major league baseball. I got to the big leagues and I had some moments I'll never forget." Cafardo opens this week's column by wondering what might have been, had Baldelli stayed healthy throughout his career. The Globe writer also shares a handful of hot stove notes….

  • Although recent trade rumors involving Grady Sizemore and Fausto Carmona were quickly shot down, Cafardo says if both players are healthy and playing well this year, they could be "major trade deadline chips."
  • Four teams are in discussions with agent Jim Masteralexis, regarding client Manny Delcarmen. We heard earlier this month that the Rays had interest in the ex-Red Sox, so they're likely one of the four.
  • One executive told Cafardo that he's surprised Lastings Milledge is still available. While the exec's team doesn't need another outfielder, he argued that "you just don't give up" on a talent like Milledge.
  • Scott Schoeneweis, who hopes to play this season, is being considered by the Diamondbacks.
  • Friends of Pedro Martinez say the right-hander has yet to get pitching out of his system. Pedro will turn 40 later this year, and didn't pitch in the bigs in 2010, but he had success for the Phillies in 2009, compiling a 3.63 ERA, 7.5 K/9, and 1.6 BB/9 in nine starts.
  • Cafardo speculates that Boston could be a good fit for Jeremy Bonderman on a minor league deal.

AL East Notes: Scott, Chavez, Pettitte, Rays

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Last season, the AL East produced two 95-win teams and two more who won at least 85 games. However, according to Joel Sherman of the New York Post, the division has seen recent success off the field as well as on it. Three AL East teams – the Blue Jays, Red Sox, and Rays – rank among the top five in Sherman's list of baseball's best offseasons. Here are a few other division-related items:

Russ Springer Retires

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Russ Springer has pitched in 740 total games for ten different teams since making his big league debut in 1992, and is finally ready to hang up his cleats. The 42-year-old tells Bob Tompkins of the Alexandria Daily Town Talk that for the first time in his career, retirement "feels right."

"Last year when I thought I was going to retire," Springer said. "I had a desire to go to the gym. This year, I've had no pull towards going to the gym. I'm totally content to be with the family. There comes a time when you can ask only so much of your body physically, and you've got to stop beating it up."

Springer enjoyed the best stretch of his career pitching for the Cardinals in 2007 and 2008, recording a 2.24 ERA and 8.6 K/9 in 116 1/3 innings over the two years. The right-hander signed with the Reds last summer, but only appeared in two games before a hip injury ended his season prematurely. For his career, Springer posted a 4.52 ERA and earned over $15MM, according to Baseball-Reference.

New York Notes: Dickey, Murphy, Posada

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SI.com's Jon Heyman tweets that the 2013 All-Star Game will be played at Citi Field, making it very possible the stadium will host an All-Star Game before it hosts its first playoff game. Let's check out the rest of today's Mets- and Yankees-related links….

Troy Glaus May Sit Out 2011 Season

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With most of this year's free agent first basemen off the market, Troy Glaus is one of the few remaining names who could intrigue teams in need of power. However, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports, the former World Series MVP will sit out at least the start of the 2011 season, and perhaps longer. While Glaus isn't officially retiring, agent Mike Nicotera tells Rosenthal that his client has passed on the offers he's received so far this winter.

"Troy had opportunities to sign with more than one club this offseason and each time he was presented with a particular opportunity, he weighed it against spending more time with his wife and family," Nicotera said. "After a good deal of thought and discussion in each instance, he decided to pass on playing."

Glaus signed a one-year deal with the Braves last January, and turned in a strong first half, posting an .802 OPS and 14 homers before the All-Star break. However, wrist and knee injuries derailed the 34-year-old's season, leading to a .598 OPS in 134 second half plate appearances.

MLBTR's Ben Nicholson-Smith discussed potential suitors for Glaus a month ago, but many of the teams mentioned in the piece have signed similar players since then.

Padres Claim Samuel Deduno

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After being designated for assignment by the Rockies earlier this week, Samuel Deduno has been claimed on waivers by the Padres, according to MLB.com. Colorado had designated the right-hander to make room for the newly acquired Clayton Mortensen.

Deduno missed part of last season due to injuries, but made his big league debut with the Rockies late in the year. Heading into 2010, Baseball America ranked the 27-year-old as Colorado's 11th-best prospect, writing that he "can be a solid major league starter if he sharpens his command and develops a changeup. His two strikeouts pitches should make him a good bullpen arm regardless."

Although he has struggled with his control throughout his minor league career (5.1 BB/9), Deduno has averaged 10.0 K/9 as a starter in 120 outings. San Diego could be a good fit for the righty, given the team's knack for finding and developing relievers.

Chone Figgins: “I’m A Seattle Mariner”

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7:06pm: Regardless of whether or not Figgins would allow a trade to the A's, talks appear to be dead. Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (Twitter link) hears from a source that "nothing is going to happen," and ESPN.com's Buster Olney says (via Twitter) that the Mariners, who talked to Oakland three weeks ago, aren't motivated to move Figgins.

3:47pm: We heard yesterday about a proposed trade that would've sent Chone Figgins from Seattle to Oakland, but the rumored deal would have hinged on Figgins accepting the move, given that the A's are one of the teams on his no-trade list.  Speaking to fans and media — including Larry Stone of the Seattle Times — at the Mariners' FanFest event on Saturday, Figgins said he didn't want to be traded anywhere.

"I always said, it's a great thing to be wanted,'' Figgins said. "But I want to win here. I've said all along, this has been one of the best places I've ever played — the city, the fans. I'll always love playing here. This is where I want to be, and until they force me out of here, this is where I'm going to be.''

"I've been on the trade block for years, even with the Angels. Like I said, it's always a great thing to be wanted, but I'm a Seattle Mariner. I'm going to play third base unless they rip the jersey off me.''

Figgins briefly spoke to Seattle GM Jack Zduriencik at the event, and Zduriencik told reporters that their chat was the first time the two had spoken since the trade rumors broke yesterday.

"I just let Chone know how things get started," Zduriencik said.  "In this game, it's interesting how things get started. It happens all the time. You have general managers talk, agents talk about players – I'm not referring to this particular situation, but the next thing you know, someone is putting two and two together and coming up with five."

This would seem to put an end to this trade speculation for the time being, unless the rumors about the Blue Jays as a third team involved in the deal develop into a seperate Toronto-Oakland swap involving Kevin Kouzmanoff.  The Jays are in the market for a third baseman, though it's hard to see why the Athletics would create their own hole at third by moving Kouzmanoff without getting another third baseman (like Figgins) in return.

Rangers Sign Ruiz, Taubenheim

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The Rangers have added a pair of players on minor league deals, inviting one of the two, Jose Julio Ruiz, to Spring Training. MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan tweets news of the Ruiz signing, while Richard Durrett of ESPNDallas writes that right-hander Ty Taubenheim also inked a minor league contract with the club.

Ruiz, 25, signed with the Rays last summer, spending the remainder of the season in the minors. Tampa Bay released the Cuban first baseman in November rather than committing to a four-year, $4MM deal by a November 15th deadline. While Ruiz didn't display much power during his time in the Rays' system, he did hit .331/.416/.468 across two minor league levels.

Taubenheim, 28, has seen major league playing time for the Blue Jays and Pirates. The righty, who spent 2010 in the Phillies' system, has posted a 5.09 ERA in 46 career innings, pitching in the bigs most recently for Pittsburgh in 2008.

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