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Archives for January 2012

Indians Likely To Sign Ryan Spilborghs

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Free agent outfielder Ryan Spilborghs is likely to sign with the Indians, Troy Renck of the Denver Post tweets. The Indians are reviewing Spilborghs' medicals, Yahoo's Tim Brown tweets. The Boras Corporation represents the outfielder, who was non-tendered in December.

Spilborghs posted a .210/.283/.305 line in 223 plate appearances for the Rockies in 2011, appearing at all three outfield positions. The 32-year-old has a career .273/.357/.443 line against left-handed pitching and could add balance to Cleveland's lefty-heavy lineup. The Rangers also have some interest in Spilborghs, who has an overall career line of .272/.345/.423.

Quick Hits: Garza, Braun, Tigers, Jackson

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The Rangers are set to introduce the recently signed Yu Darvish at a press conference tomorrow night, reports Jeff Wilson of The Fort Worth Star-Telegram (on Twitter). Here's the latest from around the league…

  • Some MLB executives say Matt Garza’s filing number of $12.5MM “greatly complicates” interest in him as a trade target, ESPN.com’s Buster Olney tweets. The right-hander filed for $12.5MM and the Cubs countered at $7.95MM as our Arbitration Tracker shows.
  • Ryan Braun's appeal hearing for his failed drug test was today, reports Bill Madden, Andy Martino, and Teri Thompson of The New York Daily News. The three-person panel consists of union head Michael Wiener, MLB executive Rob Manfred, and independent arbitrator Shyam Dos. A decision is not expected this weekend, and no player has ever successfully appealed a positive test.
  • "Of course we'd consider Prince Fielder," said Tigers GM Dave Dombrowski to Angela Wittrock of MLive.com in the wake of Victor Martinez's torn ACL. "But realistically, it's probably not a good fit … I would just say that the fit is really not there at this point."
  • ESPN's Jerry Crasnick wrote about the abundance of aging hitters still available on the free agent market. "Some of these guys have made so much money in their careers, the $2 million-and-less contracts don't sound very appealing,'' said an AL exec. "It's a supply and demand issue. When you have a lot of guys out there, the prices are going to get driven down.''
  • Patrick Mooney of CSNChicago.com checks in with top Cubs prospect Brett Jackson and hears that the 2009 first rounder doesn’t get rattled by the possibility of a trade. “All players are tradable at any time,” Jackson said. “That doesn’t put me on edge." People in the Cubs organization have lots of good things to say about Jackson and the Cubs made him untouchable in compensation talks regarding president Theo Epstein, Mooney writes.

Mike Axisa contributed to this post.

Rangers To Sign Yu Darvish

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THURSDAY, 10:41pm: Jeff Wilson of The Fort Worth Star-Telegram has the year-by-year breakdown of Darvish's contract. The right-hander will earn $5.5MM in 2012, $9.5MM in 2013, $10MM annually from 2014-2016, and $11MM in 2017.

WEDNESDAY, 6:41pm: Even if they’d had a relatively quiet offseason, the two-time defending American League Champions could have been a playoff-caliber team in 2012. Yet they spent aggressively on one of the top available arms and became a little scarier in the process. The Rangers have agreed to sign Yu Darvish to a six-year deal in the $60MM range. Agents Don Nomura and Arn Tellem represent the 6'5" 25-year-old and negotiated for bonuses that could be worth another $10MM. 

Darvish can opt out of the contract after the fifth year, Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram tweets. However, Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports adds (on Twitter) that Darvish must hit certain "high-end award levels" to be able to opt out of the contract. The deal is worth just $56MM guaranteed, Wilson tweets. Wilson says the deal includes $4MM in bonuses with the potential to reach even more incentives by winning Cy Young Awards. 

GM Jon Daniels liked what he saw when he watched Darvish pitch in June, and the Rangers committed a record-setting amount for the right to negotiate with the right-hander. The Nippon Ham Fighters obtain a $51,703,411 posting fee from the Rangers, who topped the $51.1MM Boston paid for the rights to speak with Daisuke Matsuzaka five years ago.

Darvish posted a 1.44 ERA with 10.7 K/9 and 1.4 BB/9 in 232 innings this past season and he hasn't posted an ERA above 2.00 since 2007. He'll join a Rangers rotation that looks considerably different than it did a year ago. C.J. Wilson is gone, but Neftali Feliz will move to the rotation and Colby Lewis, Derek Holland, Matt Harrison, Scott Feldman and Alexi Ogando provide manager Ron Washington with an abundance of alternatives for the rest of the rotation.

The Angels finished ten games behind the Rangers in both 2010 and 2011, but GM Jerry Dipoto has signed Wilson and Albert Pujols, so the Angels are considerably more threatening entering the 2012 campaign.

Prince Fielder may have lost a suitor this afternoon. It's been reported that the Rangers are unlikely to sign both him and Darvish, so agent Scott Boras may turn elsewhere as he looks to find a deal for the 27-year-old free agent. ESPN.com's Jayson Stark tweets that the Rangers feel "less urgency" to sign Fielder, though a deal is still possible.

Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com first tweeted news of the agreement, Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News tweeted the value of the deal and Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports tweeted news of the incentives. The Rangers have confirmed the deal.

Cubs Sign Rodrigo Lopez

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10:21pm: Bruce Levine of ESPN Chicago reports that Lopez will earn $900K if he is on the big league roster or $235K in the minors.

4:06pm: The Cubs have signed Rodrigo Lopez to a minor league deal with an invitation to spring training, according to Fernando Ballesteros at the Mexican baseball magazine Puro Béisbol (via Twitter). The team had been reported to be interested in bringing back the journeyman pitcher, and Ballesteros reported on Monday that rumors of the signing began circulating in the Mexican media over the weekend.

Lopez, 36, signed a minor league deal with the Braves last January but didn't make the roster out of spring training. After being traded to the Cubs in May, he played the role of a softer-tossing version of new Red Sox swingman Vicente Padilla, working in long relief and occasionally closing while waiting out a spot in the rotation. Lopez ended up logging 16 starts over the late summer, earning a 4.42 ERA with 5.0 K/9 and 2.7 BB/9 over 116 innings.

Mike Axisa contributed to this post.

AL East Links: Montero, Kuroda, Red Sox, Yankees

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Here's the latest from the AL East, starting with an update on two pending moves involving the Yankees…

  • Jesus Montero is dealing with a passport or visa issue at the moment and is unable to travel to Seattle for his physical, reports Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. Once that is resolved, the trade sending him and Hector Noesi from the Yankees to the Mariners for Michael Pineda and Jose Campos will be made official.
  • Bob Klapisch of The Bergen Record says (on Twitter) that Hiroki Kuroda is still in Japan, so he has yet to take his physical and finalize his one-year contract with the Yankees. Klapisch adds that like Montero, Campos is stuck in Venezuela at the moment.
  • Red Sox GM Ben Cherington indicated to MLB.com's Ian Browne that the team is unlikely to make any big changes to the roster before Spring Training. "If Spring Training were to start tomorrow, we'd feel good about where we are and [we'd be] ready to put the team together," said the GM.
  • Though the Yankees currently have $1-2MM to spend on a designated hitter, they could free up cash by dealing A.J. Burnett, Jon Heyman of CBS Sports tweets. Burnett has $33MM remaining on his contract, and it would be a surprise if the Yankees free up more than $10MM via trade.
  • Newsday's Ken Davidoff suggests Raul Ibanez might be the best DH option for the Yankees, assuming Johnny Damon signs with a team that can offer more plate appearances.
  • Steve Melewski of MASNSports.com reports that former Oriole Brady Anderson was named special assistant to Orioles GM Dan Duquette today. Melewski also lists some changes in the responsibilities handled by other front office employees.

Ben Nicholson-Smith contributed to this post.

Brewers Sign Norichika Aoki

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FRIDAY: Aoki is guaranteed to make $2.5MM in the first two years with Milwaukee, according to Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com (via Twitter).  With incentives and bonuses, Aoki can make a a little over $8.6MM over three years.

THURSDAY: Aoki will earn $1MM in 2012 and $1.25MM in 2013, Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel tweets. The deal includes lots of incentives.

TUESDAY: The Brewers announced that they signed outfielder Norichika Aoki to a two-year deal that includes a club option for 2014. Earlier today, Jon Heyman of CBS Sports reported that the Brewers and the three-time NPB batting champion were finalizing an agreement.

The Brewers won the rights to negotiate with Aoki with a $2.5MM bid in December. The 30-year-old outfielder hit .292/.358/.360 for the Yakult Swallows last year and would assume a bench role for Milwaukee.

MLBTR's Tim Dierkes contributed to this post.

Melvin: Brewers “Way Over” Projected Budget

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Coming off their first NLCS appearance in 29 years, the Brewers are looking at the first nine-figure payroll in franchise history heading into 2012. Tom Haudricourt of The Journal Sentinel spoke to GM Doug Melvin, who confirmed that the team will outspend its projected budget next year.

“We’re way over what we projected our budget to be at this point,” said Melvin. “It’s over $100 million. We hoped to be in the low 90s.”

There's no indication that the Brewers will need to move some players to shed payroll, and Haudricourt notes that the $100MM+ figure includes players who under team control but remain unsigned. That includes the arbitration-eligible Shaun Marcum and Jose Veras, who filed for $8.7MM and $2.375MM earlier this week, respectively. The team countered with $6.75MM and $2MM.

Melvin also said it's unlikely the Brewers would be able to re-sign Prince Fielder even if the slugger was willing to take a one-year deal. Milwaukee agreed to sign Norichika Aoki for two years and $2.25MM yesterday, but their biggest additions came earlier this offseason: Aramis Ramirez (three years, $36MM) and Alex Gonzalez (one-year, $4.25MM).

Ortiz Doesn’t Expect Deal Before Arbitration Hearing

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It's no secret that David Ortiz was looking for a multiyear contract this offseason, but now the long-time Red Sox DH isn't optimistic about getting one. Ortiz told reporters (including WEEI.com's Rob Bradford) at tonight's Boston BBWAA dinner that he doesn't expect the two sides to reach a deal before an arbitration hearing.

"It doesn't seem like it right now," said Ortiz when asked about a potential contract. "From a business standpoint, that's how it goes … I've been watching from the outside."

Ortiz also downplayed the arbitration process, saying "it doesn’t seem like [a big deal] to me." The 36-year-old slugger accepted arbitration last month rather than try his luck on the open market, and earlier this week he filed for a $16.5MM salary while the team countered with $12.65MM. He hit .309/.398/.554 with 29 homers while earning $12.5MM in 2011.

Earlier this offseason we learned that the Sox did offer Ortiz a two-year contract, though it was only worth $18MM. Arbitration hearings start in February, though the two sides can come to an agreement on a contract of any size before then.

AL Central Notes: Twins, Royals, Pena, Kotchman

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Earlier today we learned that 28-year-old Fausto Carmona is actually 31-year-old Roberto Hernandez Heredia, and that the right-hander might not be able to secure a visa to the United States anytime soon. MLB.com's Jordan Bastian says (on Twitter) that it's unclear if the Indians will be able to void Heredia's contract, plus he's not sure they would do that even if it is an option. Here's the latest from the AL Central…

  • Twins GM Terry Ryan told MLB.com's Rhett Bollinger that he's not ruling out the possibility of adding some more pitching (Twitter link). "I don't think you should ever say you're set to go," said Ryan.
  • A top Royals official told Bob Dutton of The Kansas City Star that he'd "be really surprised" if the team signs or trades for another starting pitcher before Spring Training (Twitter link). Dutton says the team wants to get a look at its in-house options.
  • Royals GM Dayton Moore confirmed Dutton's report, telling Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports: “We could have probably jumped in there on some pitchers who were traded, but we need another year to find out what we have here with guys like Chris Dwyer, Jake Odorizzi and [Mike] Montgomery … We may be more receptive to a deal like that next year"
  • The Indians remain interested in Carlos Pena and Casey Kotchman, reports Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com (on Twitter). We've heard about their interest in both players throughout the offseason.
  • The Indians signed Jeremy Accardo to a minor league contract earlier today, and Tom Withers of The AP has the details (on Twitter). Accardo will make $825K if he's on the 40-man roster, with another $300K in incentives.
  • Phil Mackey of 1500 ESPN provides the details of Joel Zumaya's contract with the Twins (on Twitter). The right-hander is guaranteed $400K of his $850K base salary, and he'll get all of it if he makes the team to start the season.

Athletics, Jonny Gomes Nearing Deal

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The A's are nearing a deal with free agent outfielder Jonny Gomes, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports. A deal with the ACES client could be completed by Monday.

Conor Jackson and Johnny Damon were also considerations for the A's, who were looking for an outfielder capable of hitting left-handers, according to Slusser. GM Billy Beane has traded for Seth Smith and Josh Reddick and re-signed Coco Crisp this offseason to build his 2012 outfield.

Gomes, 31, posted a .209/.325/.389 line with 14 homers in 372 plate appearances for the Reds and Nationals in 2011. The Petaluma, California native has a career .311/.407/.456 line against left-handed pitching, so his skillset should complement left-handed hitting outfielders such as Smith and Reddick.

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