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Lucchino On Payroll, Ortiz, Wakefield, Varitek

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Red Sox president and CEO Larry Lucchino appeared on SiriusXM Sports radio today to discuss a handful of topics, including payroll and David Ortiz's impending arbitration hearing. WEEI.com provided a transcript of his quotes, so let's dig in.

  • Not surprisingly, Lucchino scoffed at recent criticism that the Sox have been too frugal this offseason: Now, this year, if you want to talk specifically about 2012, we will have the highest payroll in the history of the Boston Red Sox in 2012. Will we eclipse the luxury tax threshold? To be sure, we will — once again. So I think the talk of us not spending needs to be viewed in the context of real facts and in comparisons to real dollars.
  • There will be no hard feelings against DH David Ortiz regarding his arbitration hearing, Lucchino said, adding that the sides will "move on" after the hearing barring an unforeseen settlement before then. Check out MLBTR's Arbitration Tracker for details on Ortiz's case.
  • Regarding outstanding offers of minor league contracts to Tim Wakefield and Jason Varitek: "The decisions are now kind of in their hands as to what they’d like to do in this particular season.”
  • Lucchino has no regrets about signing Carl Crawford to a seven-year, $142MM contract last offseason: "Don’t take a still photograph of year one of a seven-year deal and use it to conclude that the deal has been a success or been a failure."

West Notes: Villalona, Darvish, Mariners

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A few notes to pass along out of baseball's West divisions …

  • Former Giants top prospect Angel Villalona is expected to report to Spring Training after missing the entirety of the past two seasons while dealing with legal issues in his native Dominican Republic, writes Andrew Baggarly of the San Jose Mercury News. Villalona, a first baseman, has been on the Giants' 40-man roster since last fall. He's 21 now, so he's hardly beyond old, but he'll have plenty of catching up to do.
  • The Rangers have a plan in place to ease Yu Darvish's transition from NPB to MLB, writes Tom Verducci of SI.com. Essential to their strategy is to ween Darvish off the high-pitch-count outings he frequently posted in Japan in favor of more efficient pitch counts. As well, the Rangers will limit Darvish's exposure to AL West opponents during Spring Training, and they could skip a couple of his starts in the second half.
  • Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times has a look at how the Rangers and Angels positioned themselves shrewdly for their recent TV contracts, and cautions that it won't necessarily play out the same way for the Mariners — or other teams, for that matter.

Orioles Notes: Manny, Roster, Kim

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The Orioles were busy earlier today. They signed reliever Luis Ayala to a one-year contract and then designated outfielder Matt Angle for assignment to make room for the right-hander on the 40-man roster. Here's the latest on the O's …

  • GM Dan Duquette told reporters he doesn't see a fit for Manny Ramirez with Baltimore, tweets Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com. We heard last week that the O's, A's and Blue Jays were among the suitors for Manny, so it looks like that pool has been diminished by one.
  • Duquette also said it's unlikely that he'll add any more players between now and the beginning of Spring Training, tweets Kubatko. So, it looks like the roster is set for now, and with Manny out of the picture, Wilson Betemit will likely have DH duties all to himself.
  • The Orioles also issued an apology, via press release, to Korea Baseball Organization and Korea Baseball Association for "the club’s unintentional breach of protocol in failing to tender a status check in the process of signing Seong-Min Kim." Kim is the 17-year-old left-hander whom the O's signed last month — prior to him graduating high school — much to the dismay of KBO. The southpaw has been suspended from playing or coaching in South Korea, while the Orioles have been banned from scouting KBO games.
  • To stay on top of Orioles news, be sure to follow their MLBTR Facebook, Twitter and RSS feeds.

Central Notes: Qualls, Luhnow, Indians

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A few items to pass along from the Central divisions as Tuesday becomes Wednesday …

  • The Cubs were interested in Chad Qualls before the right-hander eventually signed with the Phillies, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports.com. As it stands now, the back end of the Cubs' bullpen features setup men Jeff Samardzija and Kerry Wood, and closer Carlos Marmol.
  • Astros GM Jeff Luhnow has begun the process of overhauling Houston's identity during a time of transition, writes Anthony Castrovince of MLB.com. Luhnow has already made several key hires toward the goal of shifting the organization's focus to a combination of better scouting and more advanced statistical analysis. A reputed ideas man, Luhnow pitched Astros ownership a 25-page plan for repairing the organization before getting the job, according to Castrovince.
  • With arbitration hearings scheduled with two players – Asdrubal Cabrera and Rafael Perez – the Indians' 20-year streak of avoiding arbitration could come to end, writes Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain-Dealer. However, Indians assistant GM Mike Chernoff told Hoynes that "both parties are clearly trying to get things done." Check out MLBTR's Arbitration Tracker to see where the Tribe stands with their arbitration eligibles. 

NL East Notes: Hamels, Chipper, Harper

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A few NL East notes to pass along on the day Livan Hernandez departs the division after spending the past three seasons there, with the Mets and Nats.

  • The Phillies will have a tough time re-signing Cole Hamels at anything less than full market value, writes Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports.com, as GM Ruben Amaro has rewarded big contracts to both under-control players like Ryan Howard, and free agents such as Cliff Lee, Jonathan Papelbon and Jimmy Rollins.
  • Within the same piece, Amaro addressed the signing of Papelbon this offseason, saying the club regarded Pap slightly higher than the incumbent Ryan Madson, who eventually signed with the Reds for far less. “We didn’t just want any closer. The way our team is set up, we wanted the best guy, or one of the top two or three guys. We could have gotten a ‘B’ or ‘B-plus’ closer. But we wanted an ‘A.’ With (Papelbon), as good and as durable as he has been, I felt he was the right fit for us.”
  • Braves third baseman Chipper Jones, 40 in April, said 2012 may not be his final season, according to David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Jones is in the final guaranteed year of his contract, but his deal includes a $7MM club option that will vest to $9MM if he plays in 123 games.  “As long as I stay healthy and I’m having fun, I’m going to keep going. I sit here with three weeks to go before spring training and I’m not ready to say this is it.”
  • Nationals manager Davey Johnson wants Bryce Harper to start the season as Washington's right fielder, hears Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com. That seems like an aggressive approach to me, but it would create quite a bit of buzz in Washington — and in baseball, in general.

Quick Hits: Dodgers, Cruz, Cespedes

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A few odds and ends to pass along as Nolan Ryan (65) and Ernie Banks (81) celebrate birthdays. Jackie Robinson would have turned 93 today …

  • The Magic Johnson-Stan Kasten ownership group could be the leader to purchase the Dodgers, according to Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com, as that group will likely procure the financial backing of billionaire Patrick Soon-Shiong. Soon-Shiong is a close friend of Johnson's and once purchased Magic's minority stake in the Lakers.
  • The Rangers and Nelson Cruz are working on avoiding an arbitration hearing, the outfielder tells Enrique Rojas of ESPN.com. Cruz also said that while the sides are negotiating for a one-year agreement, they are leaving open the door to a multiyear pact.
  • Yoenis Cespedes will likely visit the Marlins within the next week, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports.com. Miami has long been considered among the leaders to sign the 27-year-old outfielder who recently defected from Cuban, although the the Cubs and other teams "remain deeply involved," per Rosenthal.

Padres, Dustin Moseley Avoid Arbitration

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8:12pm: Moseley will earn $2.0125MM, tweets Corey Brock of MLB.com. The righty asked for $2.55MM, while the club originally offered $1.5MM, as MLBTR's Arbitration Tracker shows.

6:09pm: The Padres and right-hander Dustin Moseley have avoided arbitration by agreeing to terms on a one-year contract, the team announced.

Moseley, 30, spent time with the Angels and Yankees before joining the Friars in 2011. The swing man was used exclusively as a starter last season, posting a career-best 3.30 ERA over 120 innings before being lost to season-ending surgery on his non-throwing shoulder in August.

The Yankees non-tendered Moseley after the 2010 campaign, facilitating his move to San Diego, and it was rumored he may get the same treatment from the Padres, but he'll once again call PETCO Park his home ballpark in 2012.

All of the Padres' arbitration eligible players are now under contract for 2012.

AL East Notes: Ortiz, Kim, Longoria

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A few notes to share coming out of the American League East …

  • An arbitration hearing appears likely for the Red Sox and David Ortiz, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOXSports.com. When the sides exchanged salary proposals earlier this month, the Red Sox offered $12.65MM, while Ortiz and his representatives at SFX request $16.5MM, so a pretty sizable gap exists. The 36-year-old DH posted a sharp .309/.398/.554 line and slugged 29 homers in 2011.
  • The Korean Baseball Organization is displeased by the Orioles' signing of 17-year-old lefty Seong-Min Kim to a minor league deal because of his age and is threatening to petition Major League Baseball, according to Eduardo A. Encina of the Baltimore Sun. Orioles GM Dan Duquette said he doesn't understand the complaint, as Kim and his family were both in favor of the move, and he is closer to 18 than to 17. 
  • Rays third baseman Evan Longoria said during an appearance on MLB Network's Intentional Talk that he has no regrets about the club-friendly extension he signed in April 2008, according to Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times. "I can honestly say that I’ve never regretted doing it. I can look at myself in the mirror and say that I made the right decision. You never know, who knows, one or two years in I might’ve hurt myself and not been the player that I am today." The six-year deal includes three club options for what would have been free-agent years for Longoria. It could be worth as much as $45MM and will expire after Longo's age-29 season. 

Minor Moves: Hayhurst, Pettit

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We'll keep track of today's minor league transactions right here …

  • Dirk Hayhurst, formerly of the Padres and Blue Jays, announced that he'll be pitching in an Italian league in 2012 (Twitter links). The right-hander, also an author, has become something of a cult hero the past couple years as he's documented his experiences as a career minor leaguer. Hayhurst spent 2011 in the Rays organization.
  • The Dodgers signed outfielder Chris Pettit to a minor league contract, tweets Jerry Crasnick of ESPN.com. Petit, a 27-year-old right-handed hitter, appeared in one game with the Angels in 2011 and 10 in 2009.

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