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Greinke Would Have Cost Texas Five Players

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The Rangers would have had to send five of their top young players to Kansas City to obtain Zack Greinke, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (on Twitter). The Royals were asking for Tommy Hunter, Derek Holland, Michael Kirkman, Jurickson Profar and Engel Beltre.

Holland posted a 4.08 ERA with 8.5 K/9 and 3.8 BB/9 last year in his age-23 season, Hunter posted a 3.73 ERA in 128 innings in 2010 and is under team control for five more years and Profar, Beltre and Kirkman ranked 2nd, 5th and 6th, respectively, on Baseball America's preseason list of top Rangers prospects.

The Royals ultimately obtained Lorenzo Cain, Alcides Escobar, Jeremy Jeffress, and Jake Odorizzi from the Brewers for Greinke, Yuniesky Betancourt and $2MM. Now that Greinke has a cracked rib, the Rangers are probably glad they held onto their players.

Offseason In Review: Chicago White Sox

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The White Sox are next in our Offseason In Review series.

Major League/International Signings

Notable Minor League Signings

Extensions

Trades and Claims

Notable Losses

Summary

White Sox GM Kenny Williams spent lavishly on free agents this offseason.  He brought in Dunn to replace last year's DH rotation, spent big to replace bullpen losses, and retained longtime favorites Konerko and Pierzynski at the last minute.

Dunn

Dunn hit his standard 38-40 home runs in 2010, though he drew about 40 fewer walks than usual.  The slugger wasn't expected to accept a full-time DH job, but National League teams weren't calling and the White Sox offered him a chance to play for a contender without taking a discount.  Power always comes at an inflated price on the free agent market, but Dunn should provide a reliable middle of the order bat for Chicago.  Keep in mind that the signing came before the Sox knew they'd be able to retain Konerko.  Dunn came with the added cost of the #23 overall draft pick, which perhaps the White Sox could stomach because they are starting to build up depth in the lower minors.

The White Sox came close to losing Konerko to the Diamondbacks but ultimately compensated him well for a season that saw him place fifth in the AL MVP voting.  That Konerko's monster year came at age 34 made the term a tricky issue, as the Sox probably would have preferred not to guarantee three years.  Konerko was able to rest by playing 23 games at DH last year, a luxury he'll continue to have when Dunn plays first base on occasion.  That was not an option when Jim Thome was on the club and healthy.

Similarly, the White Sox retained Pierzynski at the last minute.  He nearly signed a deal with the Dodgers, which would have caused Williams to turn to Miguel Olivo.  I don't mind the signing, as reliable everyday veteran catchers are a rare commodity.  The White Sox could have reduced Pierzynski's free agent leverage by offering arbitration to the Type A free agent, but given the value of the relationship and their desire to re-sign him, plus his potential large one-year salary from the process, I can understand the choice.

Faced with the major bullpen losses of Jenks and Putz, Williams committed a hefty $17MM for five seasons of Crain and Ohman.  They made the Crain commitment even while acknowledging the burden Linebrink had become by assuming over 60% of the latter's salary to convince the Braves to take him.  The key members of last year's bullpen – Jenks, Putz, Thornton, and Sergio Santos, were all acquired on the cheap, so it was odd to see the Sox open the checkbook here – especially since they'll have an added weapon in a full season from Chris Sale.  Still, perhaps the team's thinking was that they were simply re-allocating Jenks' money to other relievers.    

Ramirez is an underrated player, a rare shortstop who contributes offensively and defensively.  Locking him up at a reasonable price for potentially three free agent seasons looks like a strong move.  Thornton's extension was more of a necessary evil, with the club option making it more palatable.

Even if Konerko regresses, the Sox could have an improved offense given the addition of Dunn and possible improvement from Gordon Beckham.  The team's success may hinge on the health of the rotation, particularly Jake Peavy.  The Sox don't have much depth if a starter or two has to miss significant time, though they're not alone in that regard.

Photo courtesy of Icon SMI.

Regular MLBTR Features

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If you're a regular MLBTR reader, you'll be familiar with our chats, our Week In Review posts and Mike Axisa's Baseball Blogs Weigh In feature. Here's some more detail on when you'll see our weekly features and exactly what to expect from them:

  • MLBTR Chats – Come by every Wednesday at 2pm CDT to chat about the latest trades, signings and rumblings around the major leagues.
  • Baseball Blogs Weigh In – Every Friday morning, Mike Axisa directs you to some of the best writing on baseball blogs around the web. Whether it's opinion, stats or something else entirely, you can connect to the best of the blogosphere once a week on MLBTR. If you want to send Mike a post of yours, reach him at: mike@riveraveblues.com.
  • Week In Review – It's amazing how much happens in seven days. Every Sunday night, we summarize the week's biggest stories in our Week In Review posts.
  • MLBTR Originals – We gather all our original analysis and reporting in one place every Sunday night.

Royals Seek Young Catcher

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The Royals are looking for a young catcher, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (on Twitter). One possible trade chip, Alex Gordon, is drawing interest, but the Royals expect a lot in return.

Though Kansas City boasts the game's best farm system, they don't have a clear-cut catcher of the future now that the powerful Wil Myers has moved to the outfield. Salvador Perez, a 20-year-old backstop who placed 17th among Baseball America's preseason list of top Royals prospects, hasn't played above Class A, so the Royals are looking elsewhere for catchers.

As Rosenthal notes, the Rangers and Nationals have a number of catchers and could be potential trading partners for Kansas City. The Royals have had interest in Taylor Teagarden before, according to Rosenthal, and since the Rangers already have Yorvit Torrealba, Matt Treanor and Mike Napoli at the Major League level, it would not be a surprise to see them listen to offers for Teagarden.

Meanwhile, the Nationals have a surplus of catchers and are open to dealing one of them. The Nats have Ivan Rodriguez, Jesus Flores, Wilson Ramos, and Derek Norris and would consider trading catching for pitching.

The Padres and Astros are among the other teams that could have interest in trading for a catcher this spring.

Teams Inquiring On Alex Gordon

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Other teams have asked the Royals about Alex Gordon, according to ESPN.com's Buster Olney (on Twitter). And although the hype around Gordon has faded and shifted to a new group of Royals prospects, the team is still invested in him and its asking price remains high. Kansas City wants a "prime prospect" in exchange for Gordon, according to Olney.

Gordon, 27, has a .244/.328/.405 line in parts of four MLB seasons as a third baseman, first baseman and left fielder. Baseball America ranked him second among all prospects before the 2007 season, two years after the Royals selected him second overall in the draft. Gordon had 50-plus extra base hits in both of his first two MLB seasons, but slowed down in 2009-10, when he missed time with hip and hand injuries and spent more time in the minor leagues.

He earns $1.4MM through arbitration this year and won't be eligible for free agency until after the 2013 season. The Blue Jays were one of the teams to express interest in Gordon this fall.

Rangers, D’Backs Discussed Michael Young Again

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The Diamondbacks made another attempt to acquire Michael Young from the Rangers last week, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. Though Young has asked to be traded, there’s no guarantee that he would approve a move to the D’Backs, one of the teams to which he can veto trades. However, one source told Rosenthal that Young would be willing to join the D’Backs and play third base.

Young has a list of ten teams to which he would approve a trade, according to Rosenthal: the eight teams that can acquire him without approval plus the Phillies and the Cubs. Young can’t block trades to the Rockies, Angels, Dodgers, Padres, Cardinals, Twins, Yankees and Astros, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. 

Young is expensive – he’ll earn $16MM for each of the next three seasons – but the Rangers don’t want to compromise their chances of winning in 2011 by dealing him. Young’s contract makes him unattractive to both the Phillies and the Cubs. The Phillies don’t have much room in their budget, so acquiring a $16MM player is unrealistic. The Cubs wouldn’t find it much easier to make the financial side of the deal work.

Phillies, Charlie Manuel Sign Two-Year Extension

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The Phillies signed a two-year deal with manager Charlie Manuel, the team announced. Manuel, who was already under contract for 2011, is now signed through 2013 on a two-year extension that is expected to be worth $7-8MM, according to Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com. Phillies GM Ruben Amaro Jr. says Manuel has been "an integral part" of the team's recent success.

The Phillies are 544-428 since Manuel took over in 2005, best among National League teams during that period. Philadelphia has won four consecutive division titles (2007-10), two pennants (2008-09) and the 2008 World Series title under Manuel.

Manuel has four aces helping him bid for a fifth consecutive NL East title, but Chase Utley's injured right knee has dampened the mood in Clearwater.

AL East Links: Yankees, Anderson, Slowey

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The Yankees aren't actively pursuing pitching help now, but GM Brian Cashman told Chad Jennings of the Journal News that pitchers with no options remaining and/or bad contract tend to become available later in the spring. Here's the latest on the Yankees' rotation plus other notes from the AL East…

Heyman On Phillies, Davis, Molina, Mets

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The Phillies are concerned about Chase Utley's injured right knee but, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com they hadn't called the Rangers about Michael Young as of this morning. Here's the latest on the Phillies and notes from around the league:

  • Phillies scout Charley Kerfeld had been watching the Rangers and may have been scouting Young.
  • Chris Davis has an option left, so the Rangers are expected to send him down to start the season in the minors, despite his strong spring performance so far.
  • 22-year-old Dodgers prospect Rubby De La Rosa is impressing with his upper-90s fastball and command.
  • Though the Padres would like Bengie Molina to return to action at a bargain price, they're under the impression that the backstop is in "retirement mode." The Padres expressed interest in Molina earlier in the week, after Gregg Zaun retired, but they don't have much left in their budget.
  • It remains unlikely that Oliver Perez or Luis Castillo will break camp with the Mets, even though the team doesn't have tremendous depth from the left side out of the bullpen or at second base.

Adam Wainwright & Other Similarly Priced Players

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The Cardinals will have the option of voiding Adam Wainwright's 2012 and 2013 options after the coming season, since he'll still be on the disabled list recovering from Tommy John surgery. Though the two options, which are worth a combined $21MM, became guaranteed when Wainwright finished second in the NL Cy Young Award voting last fall, the Cardinals will have the choice of setting the right-hander loose on the free agent market because of a clause in his contract.

Barring unexpected setbacks, it appears likely that the Cardinals will exercise Wainwright's options. They'll want to bid on Albert Pujols and address other needs after the season, but you can't sign ace pitchers for $21MM. Here's a look at what teams have bought with $17-22MM, starting on January 1st, 2008:

The list includes some quality players, but they don't compare with Wainwright, one of the best pitchers in the league. The right-hander averaged 232 innings, 212 strikeouts and a 2.53 ERA from 2009-10 and is still just 29. Considering what $21MM or so buys on the free agent market, it's hard to imagine St. Louis obtaining anything more valuable than Wainwright's age-30 and 31 seasons for that sum.

Contract info courtesy of Cot's Baseball Contracts.

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