It's time to take a look back at the week that was here at MLBTR..
- A year after retiring, 39-year-old Andy Pettitte is back with the Yankees on a minor league contract. Pettitte, a Hendricks Sports client, can potentially earn $2.5MM on the deal, which doesn't include incentives.
- The Royals signed shortstop Alcides Escobar to a four-year extension through 2015. The deal includes club options for 2016 and 2017. The contract guarantees Escobar $10.5MM through 2015 and the shortstop could earn a total of $21.75MM if the Royals exercise both of their options.
- John Lannan has drawn interest from the Red Sox, Tigers, and Astros and a deal involving the left-hander is "likely".
- The Indians and Roberto Hernandez (a.k.a. Fausto Carmona) have restructured the right-hander's contract and his 2012 salary will now be "far less" than the $7MM he was scheduled to earn. An option year in his contract has also been eliminated.
- Blue Jays hurlers Brett Cecil and Kyle Drabek are drawing attention from scouts of other teams, though the team is reluctant to move Drabek while his value is down.
- The Orioles are considering possible trades for Kyle McClellan but t's not clear if the Cardinals are ready to move the right-hander.
- The Red Sox agreed to sign Dominican right-hander Simon Mercedes to a deal including an $800K bonus. For the agreement to become official, Mercedes must pass MLB’s investigation into his age, identity and visa. Mercedes formerly presented himself as two years younger and went by the name of Jeffrey Tapia, so he has a history of identity issues.
- Extension talks between the Padres and catcher Nick Hundley have heated up this week, and an agreement could be close.
- The Royals reportedly offered Ivan Rodriguez an invitation to camp this spring. The Rays aren't considering Pudge.
- The Red Sox announced that they released pitcher Carlos Silva.
- The Rockies are on the lookout for pitching and considering Dontrelle Willis. Willis was released by the Phillies earlier in the week.
- Mets reliever D.J. Carrasco could be a trade candidate.
- The Cubs claimed right-hander Frankie De La Cruz off of waivers from the Brewers, leaving Milwaukee with one open spot on their 40-man roster.
- The Astros signed catcher Landon Powell to a minor league deal and invited him to big league camp. The A's recently released the 29-year-old SFX client.
- The A's claimed infielder Brandon Hicks from the Braves.
- The Indians re-acquired left-hander Kelvin De La Cruz from the Rangers for cash considerations.
Baseball-Reference’s link for Roberto Hernandez is still the old Hernandez and not the pitcher formerly known as Fausto Carmona.
Did anyone read the article from about a month ago where Dontrelle Willis had no clue that his deal with the Phillies was NOT guaranteed? He talked about firing his agent if it wasn’t guaranteed. Rockies…do you want this guy? Really?