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Brandon Phillips Extension Unlikely

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7:42pm: Talks between the Reds and Phillips continue following the Joey Votto extension, reports ESPN's Jim Bowden (on Twitter).

1:19pm: The Reds are nearing a long-term deal with their star first baseman, but it doesn't look like their second baseman will obtain an extension of his own this offseason. Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reports that a deal between Brandon Phillips and the Reds is unlikely (Twitter link).

Rosenthal reported last week that the likely asking price for Phillips is a raise from his current $12MM salary on a four or five-year deal. Phillips posted a .300/.353/.457 line with 18 home runs and 38 doubles in 675 plate appearances last year. He won his third Gold Glove in 2011, and deserved it based on advanced assessments of his fielding. The 30-year-old is set to hit free agency after the 2012 season.

Giants To Extend Matt Cain

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7:16pm: Shea hears that the sixth year option will not vest if Cain finishes the fifth year of the contract on the disabled list with an elbow or shoulder injury (Twitter link).

2:04pm: The Giants announced that they have agreed to a five-year extension with Matt Cain. Cain's deal guarantees him $112.5MM in new money through 2017, Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com reports (on Twitter). The deal, which establishes a record for right-handed pitchers, includes a club/vesting player option for 2018. Landon Williams, Rick Landrum and Jeff Berry of CAA Sports represent Cain, who had been scheduled to hit free agency following the 2012 season.

“Ensuring that Matt remained a Giant beyond this season was a top priority for the organization," Giants GM Brian Sabean said via press release. "Matt is an integral part of the team whose performance on the mound will be one of the keys to our success for years to come.”

Cain has emerged as a frontline starter in recent years. The 27-year-old has completed 200 innings in five consecutive seasons, and has impressive career rate stats. He consistently outperforms his strong peripheral stats to post low ERAs. Most recently, he posted a 2.88 ERA with 7.3 K/9, 2.6 BB/9 and a 41.7% ground ball rate in 221 2/3 innings last year. 

The deal figures to affect at least two other ace pitchers: Tim Lincecum and Cole Hamels. Lincecum is on track for free agency following the 2013 season and Hamels will be eligible for free agency this winter. Should Hamels reach a deal with the Phillies, it will presumably mirror Cain's contract. Zack Greinke could also use Cain's deal as a reference point in talks with the Brewers.

If Cain had tested the market next offseason, teams such as the Dodgers and Yankees could have entered the bidding. Instead teams seeking pitching in free agency will turn their attention to the likes of Hamels, Greinke and Anibal Sanchez.

Today's deal breaks Kevin Brown's long-standing record for right-handed pitchers. Brown signed a seven-year, $105MM contract following the 1998 season.

Cain obtains a signing bonus of $5MM and his 2012 salary of $15MM remains unchanged, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reports (Twitter links). The right-hander will earn $20MM annually from 2013-17 and the deal includes a $21MM option with a $7.5MM buyout for 2018, according to Rosenthal. The 2018 option will vest if Cain is healthy in 2017, according to Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com (on Twitter). Otherwise it becomes a club option. Cain has full no-trade protection, according to Jim Bowden of ESPN.com and MLB Network Radio (Twitter link).

Luke Adams of MLBTR anticipated the terms of the upcoming extension with considerable accuracy in December. John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle first reported that the sides would agree to terms.

Reds Agree To Extend Joey Votto

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Prince Fielder and Albert Pujols won't be the only first basemen to cash in with historic contracts this offseason. Joey Votto and the Reds have agreed to a ten-year, $225MM contract extension according to Bob Nightengale of USA Today. The deal includes full no-trade protection. Dan Lozano of Icon Sports Group represents Votto.

Joey Votto - Reds (PW)

The ten-year deal will keep Votto in Cincinnati through 2023 according to Nightengale, indicating that it's ten years on top of the two years left on his current deal. Votto signed a three-year, $38MM extension prior to last season. With this new deal, he is now under contract for the next 12 years at a total price of $251.5MM.

This is the fifth deal in MLB history to surpass the $200MM mark. Prince Fielder, Alex Rodriguez (twice), Albert Pujols, and now Votto make up the select group. This is also the largest contract ever signed by a non-free agent, surpassing Derek Jeter's ten-year, $189MM deal with the Yankees. Ben Nicholson-Smith suggested in January that an additional $161MM could be enough to keep Votto in place long-term. Though not directly related, the Dodgers' sale price of $2.15 billion can't have hurt Votto's leverage.

Votto, the 2010 NL MVP, has evolved into one of the game's elite players since debuting in 2007. He followed up his MVP season with a .309/.416/.531 line, 29 homers and 40 doubles. The 28-year-old has been a seven win player each of the past two seasons, according to FanGraphs' version of wins above replacement.

MLBTR's Tim Dierkes and Ben Nicholson-Smith first reported that the two sides were nearing an agreement. John Fay of The Cincinnati Enquirer, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com, and Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports all added details (all four Twitter links).

Photo courtesy of US Presswire.

Boras: Johnny Damon Will Sign By May

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Johnny Damon will sign within a month, ESPN.com's Buster Olney reports (on Twitter). The free agent outfielder/DH is looking for an opportunity with 450 plate appearances, according to agent Scott Boras.

"Damon will be signed by May 1st; just don't know where," Boras said.

The Braves are looking for outfield help, but the Indians, Yankees, Tigers and Orioles don't appear to be fits for the 38-year-old Damon. He hit .261/.326/.418 with 16 homers and 29 doubles in 582 plate appearances for the Rays in 2011. He was Tampa Bay's primary DH last year, but maintains he could still play the field if necessary. Boras suggested to MLBTR's Tim Dierkes a month ago that the market for his client would pick up toward the end of Spring Training.

Quick Hits: Rodriguez, Spilborghs, Votto, Hamels

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Matt Cain signed a five-year extension today and Joey Votto is nearing a long-term deal of his own. Here are some more links from around MLB…

  • Alex Rodriguez spoke glowingly about Miami and the Marlins' new stadium this weekend, as Steve Henson of Yahoo Sports writes. The Miami native didn't hold back, uttering phrases like "such a beautiful stadium," "I get chills," "a very special day" and "the Marlins do a phenomenal job." Henson wonders if the Marlins could trade for Rodriguez at some point before 2017, when his contract with the Yankees expires.
  • Indians outfielder Ryan Spilborghs will report to Triple-A tomorrow, unless he finds a job in the Major Leagues today, MLB.com’s Jordan Bastian tweets.
  • Dave Cameron of FanGraphs discusses the Votto contract talks, writing that "you have to wonder if the Reds got inspired to kick things into high gear after they saw what the new owners were willing to invest in Los Angeles."
  • ESPN.com's Buster Olney points out that Cole Hamels gained tremendous negotiating leverage with Matt Cain's $112.5MM extension (Twitter link).

Indians Release Fred Lewis

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The Indians released outfielder Fred Lewis, according to MLB.com's Jordan Bastian (on Twitter). They had signed Lewis to a minor league contract in January.

Lewis posted a .230/.321/.317 line in 210 plate appearances for Cincinnati last year, but he spent time on the disabled list with a strained right oblique muscle. The 31-year-old played both corner outfield positions for the Reds, who signed him for $900K. Lewis, a left-handed hitter, has a track record of success against right-handed pitching (.780 career OPS).

Minor Moves: Jason Michaels

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The latest minor moves from around the Major Leagues…

  • The Nationals announced that they signed outfielder Jason Michaels to a minor league contract. The Nats released Michaels last week, but had been expected to re-sign him to a minor league deal. He posted a .199/.256/.295 line in 169 plate appearances for the Astros in 2011.

Offseason In Review: Los Angeles Dodgers

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The Dodgers spent aggressively on veteran free agents and locked up their top position player in their final offseason under the ownership of Frank McCourt.

Major League Signings

Notable Minor League Signings

Fernando Nieve, Ryan Tucker, Wil Ledezma, John Grabow, Josh Bard, Alberto Castillo.

Trades and Claims

Extensions

Notable Losses

Going from Frank McCourt to Magic Johnson and Stan Kasten represents the biggest upgrade of the offseason for the Dodgers. McCourt agreed to sell the Dodgers to a group including the NBA star and the longtime MLB executive for $2.15 billion. The change in leadership promises to turn the Dodgers into a West Coast superpower capable of outdrawing, outspending and outplaying the competition.

Matt Kemp - Dodgers

The team also has some hope in the short-term, even though Dodgers GM Ned Colletti didn't add much star power to the roster this winter. Toward the end of the 2011 season, Colletti said he was hoping to find "the most dramatic way [to] improve the offense" this offseason. The Dodgers appear to have offered Prince Fielder a seven-year deal in the $160MM range and, were it not for the torn ligament in Victor Martinez's knee, Fielder might have signed in Los Angeles. Instead, the Dodgers signed a number of veteran position players to deals that will fill out the lineup without radically improving the offense.

The Matt Kemp extension was Colletti's biggest offseason accomplishment. They're paying him like a superstar, but Kemp (pictured) earned his $160MM after putting up MVP-caliber numbers in 2011. While 2011 was in all likelihood a career-year, it was no fluke. The deal will expire after Kemp's age-34 season, so the Dodgers locked him up for his prime seasons. Not all teams can afford to make $160MM commitments, but the Dodgers can and should retain their elite players.

The Dodgers also extended Clayton Kershaw, but his contact couldn't be much more different from Kemp's in terms of magnitude and purpose. Kershaw's two-year, $19MM contract should provide the Dodgers a discount on the left-hander's 2013 salary, but it doesn't lock him up through any free agent seasons. For me this type of deal favors the player, not the team. The Dodgers will worry about delaying Kershaw's free agency with his next extension, when they discuss a potentially record-setting contract one or two years from now.

Joining Kershaw in the rotation are Aaron Harang and Chris Capuano. The pair cost $22MM in total, which is a lot for back-of-the-rotation pitchers. But there's value in innings eaters and Nathan Eovaldi will still get the chance to start his share of games if an injury emerges. It's surprising the team let dependable right-hander Hiroki Kuroda walk, since he offers more upside than Harang or Capuano and seemed interested in returning to Los Angeles.

Mark Ellis signed a two-year, $11MM that provides the Dodgers with a steady defender at a premium position. The Dodgers are counting on the 34-year-old for his glove and if replicates his career line of .266/.331/.397 it'll be a bonus. This deal doesn't have much upside, but going with Ivan De Jesus Jr. would have been risky. A veteran addition was in order and given the free agent options, the decision to sign Ellis seems defensible.

Juan Rivera, a low-OBP 33-year-old who's losing his power, signed a $4.5MM deal with the Dodgers early on in the offseason. Rivera has been below replacement level in three of the past five seasons, according to Baseball Reference's version of the metric, so Jerry Sands, a powerful 24-year-old earning the league minimum, seemed like the better, cheaper choice.  Even if the Dodgers don't believe in Sands quite yet, more affordable ways of obtaining below average hitters with minimal defensive value exist.

Jonathan Broxton left via free agency and if the Dodgers were at all tempted to spend big on a replacement closer, they resisted, choosing instead to rely on internal candidates and make modest additions to the 'pen. The Dodgers signed Todd Coffey and re-signed Mike MacDougal to deals that should strengthen the bullpen for a relatively low price. Most teams enter the season with more left-handed relief than the Dodgers, who are hoping Scott Elbert can build on a promising 2011 season.

The club also added veteran backstops Matt Treanor and Josh Bard to complement the high-OBP duo of A.J. Ellis and Tim Federowicz. The additions of Jerry Hairston and Adam Kennedy will also deepen the bench.

The Dodgers didn't add a dynamic offensive player this offseason, but they extended their franchise center fielder and added complementary pieces. Health-permitting, there's no reason Los Angeles shouldn't remain in the hunt for postseason spots this year, though they're by no means favored to win anything. At the very least, the ownership of the franchise will change hands in the near future, ending the Frank McCourt era and ushering in an L.A. icon who aims to turn the Dodgers back into the National League's marquee franchise.

Photo courtesy of US Presswire.

Mets Notes: Niese, Bay

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The Mets are nearing a five-year extension with left-hander Jonathon Niese. Here’s an update on the contract talks and some more notes on New York’s National League team…

Week In Review: 3/25/12 – 3/31/12

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By this time next Sunday, the regular season will be in full swing! Let's take a look back on the final week of Spring Training (even though the season technically started on Thursday)…

  • A group headed by Stan Kasten and Magic Johnson agreed to purchase the Dodgers for a whopping $2.15 billion — more than double the price of the previous record sale price of an MLB team.
  • The Royals and Alex Gordon agreed to a four-year extension that will guarantee him $37.5MM. The deal contains a player option at $12.5MM. He'll earn $6MM, $9MM, $10MM, and $12.5MM over the next four seasons.
  • The Padres locked up Cory Luebke through the 2015 season for a $12MM guarantee. Luebke's new contract contains a pair of club options that could raise the total value to $27.75MM.
  • The Indians and Angels appeared to be on the verge of a trade that would send Bobby Abreu to Cleveland before the talks fell apart.
  • Jonathan Lucroy signed a five-year extension with the Brewers that guarantees him $13MM if he qualifies as a Super Two player, or $11MM if he falls short. His contract also contains an option for a sixth season.
  • In a more surprising (and albeit, smaller scale) extension, the Blue Jays signed Dustin McGowan to a two-year deal that guarantees him $3.5MM between the 2013-13 seasons and contains a $4MM club option.
  • Following his release from the Astros, veteran righty Livan Hernandez signed a one-year Major League deal with the Braves that guarantees him $750K.
  • The Brewers will let Shaun Marcum play out the rest of the season and reach free agency.
  • The Giants and Matt Cain continue to talk about a contract extension as Opening Day approaches and CEO Larry Baer insists that the club is not lowballing the pitcher.
  • The Cubs and Red Sox finalized the Theo Epstein compensation situation this week. Chicago will receive 19-year-old minor league first baseman Jair Bogaerts as the player to be named later.
  • The Diamondbacks worked out a trade with the Pirates to retain Rule 5 pick Brett Lorin by sending 2010 third-rounder Robby Rowland.
  • Former Yankees left-hander Kei Igawa signed a two-year deal with the Orix Buffaloes worth ¥200M, which is roughly $2.5MM USD.
  • The Yankees signed Jack Cust to a minor league contract.
  • The Nationals announced that they signed left-hander Zach Duke to a minor league deal.
  • Tony La Russa joined Major League Baseball as a special advisor.
  • The Twins officially released right-hander Joel Zumaya as the pitcher will miss the 2012 season while recovering from Tommy John surgery.
  • Vladimir Guerrero worked out in front of Indians scouts at the team's Dominican Republic academy.
  • Magglio Ordonez is close to retiring.
  • The Giants placed infielder Mike Fontenot on waivers.  San Fran agreed to a one-year, $1.05MM deal this offseason with the veteran and will now save three quarters of that.
  • The Rangers released veteran outfielder Brad Hawpe.

Zach Links contributed to this post.

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