Jayson Werth

Werth Thinks Phillies Could Have Had Him & Lee

By Mike Axisa | February 23, 2011 at 10:51am CDT

The Phillies added one $100MM player this offseason in Cliff Lee, but they lost another in Jayson Werth. The former Phillies outfielder told Paul Hagen of The Philadephia Daily News that he believes the team could have had both he and Lee if they'd planned things out better…

"I think if they would have played it right they would have had us both," said Werth. "I mean, they traded Cliff away for prospects and then realized that was probably not what they should have done. They ended up paying him a lot more than they would have if they'd signed him the year before. Then we would have had him. Chances are if they had signed him before they traded him, it probably would have made it a little easier to sign me."

Werth said that there are no hard feelings and he understands that the game is a business. Once he learned of Philadelphia's interest in Lee, he concluded that he wasn't coming back. "[It] kind of made it seem like they were playing us against each other a little bit," he added.

The 31-year-old Werth signed with the Nationals about ten days before the Phillies brought Lee back.

NL East Notes: Werth, K-Rod, Phillies, Nationals

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | February 22, 2011 at 1:56pm CDT

Some notes from the NL East as MLBPA leader Michael Weiner meets with the Mets in Florida…

Jayson Werth told Bob Brookover of the Philadelphia Inquirer that he accepted the Nationals' seven-year, $126MM offer partly because he wanted to help his fellow players. "I think once you get to free agency, you're in a big pool of players and we all really play in one organization and that's MLB," Werth said. "I guess that's how you look at it, so in that respect I was trying to maximize things and also trying to get into a situation I wanted to be in and I think Philly was going in a different direction."
Weiner told ESPNNewYork.com's Adam Rubin that he expects the Mets to honor Francisco Rodriguez's contract, which vests at $17.5MM for 2012 if he finishes 55 games in 2011.
Bobby Bonilla, who is still on the Mets' payroll is meeting with the team today as an MLBPA representative, according to Newsday's David Lennon (on Twitter).
Mike Puma of the New York Post explains that new manager Terry Collins is fiery and ready to get mad. "I give a [expletive] about how this team plays," Collins said.
Cliff Lee tells David Murphy of the Philadelphia Daily News that his side feels fine, though he felt some minor pain earlier.
Brookover points out that "guaranteed money does not mean guaranteed success or perfect health," though the Phillies' investment in Lee was understandable.
Nationals GM Mike Rizzo told Ben Goessling of MASNSports.com that he hopes first overall draft pick Bryce Harper finds out how Spring Training works and learns "what it takes to be a big leaguer" in Nationals camp this year.

Odds & Ends: Lee, Zambrano, Werth, Mets, Uehara

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | December 15, 2010 at 11:01pm CDT

Baseball lost one of its all-time greats tonight; Bob Feller passed away at 92. Rapid Robert won 266 games in his career, every single one of them with the Cleveland Indians. He probably would have cleared the 300 win plateau if he hadn't served in World War II from ages 23-25. Our condolences go out to the Hall of Famer's family…

Baseball America's Matt Eddy posted this week's edition of minor league transactions. Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports adds (via Twitter) that the Twins have signed infielder Mike Hollimon to a minor league deal. He missed all of 2010 recovering from shoulder surgery.
SI.com's Jon Heyman says (via Twitter) that Derrek Lee is telling teams he'd consider a one-year deal. At least six teams are interested in the free agent first baseman.
Carlos Zambrano has not yet given the Cubs his consent to trade him, reports MLB.com's Carrie Muskat. The right-hander has a full no-trade clause.
MLB.com's Bill Ladson looks at the impact the Jayson Werth signing will have on 2010 first overall pick (and right fielder) Bryce Harper. The Nationals plan to play Werth in center at least part of the time going forward.
ESPN New York's Adam Rubin provides the contract details for D.J. Carrasco, Ronny Paulino, and Boof Bonser, while Dan Connolly of The Baltimore Sun does the same for Koji Uehara.
Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports spoke to Phillies' general partner, president, and CEO David Montgomery about a variety of topics, including the Lee signing.
Agent Scott Boras said Werth has a full no-trade clause, according to Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post (Twitter link).
Not surprisingly, Mariners GM Jack Zduriencik has no interest in trading Felix Hernandez, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (Twitter link).
Nationals shortstop Ian Desmond has heard the trade rumors, but wants to stay in Washington, according to MLB.com's Bill Ladson.
Josh Hamilton told Richard Durrett of ESPNDallas.com that he hasn't thought much about a contract extension.
MLB's minimum salary will rise to $414K next year, according to the AP (on ESPN.com).
The A's acquired Jose Rivero, a 20-year-old outfielder selected by the D'Backs in this year's Rule 5 draft, according to Matt Eddy of Baseball America (on Twitter).

Rosenthal On Werth, Bill Hall, Cliff Lee

By Tim Dierkes | December 13, 2010 at 7:50am CDT

Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports leads his latest column by contrasting the value of Zack Greinke and Matt Garza. Though Greinke is widely viewed as the superior pitcher, Garza comes with an extra year of control at similar overall money. Either righty would require a huge trade bounty. On to Rosenthal's other rumors…

Jayson Werth's contract includes decent-sized bonuses for strong finishes in the MVP voting.
The Dodgers are in discussions with Bill Hall to be their primary left fielder. Rosenthal feels that such a signing would be the team's last significant move. Hall's last strong season as a regular was 2006, the 35 home run campaign for the Brewers that earned him a $24MM contract.
Rosenthal tweets that the lack of state income tax in Texas has minimal impact in the Cliff Lee talks, since Lee would reside in Arkansas instead. Rosenthal feels that the income tax-related savings the Rangers could promote would be balanced by a higher salary from the Yankees plus endorsements. George A. King III of the New York Post offers a similar take.

Odds & Ends: Arroyo, Varitek, Angels, Werth

By Mike Axisa | December 11, 2010 at 7:14pm CDT

The Red Sox officially introduced Carl Crawford to Red Sox Nation at a press conference this morning, but that's not the only hot stove news today…

Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports provides the details of Bronson Arroyo's new contract. The righty will earn $6.5MM in 2011, $7MM in 2012, and then $18MM in 2013. All but $3MM of that 2013 salary is deferred, though it all has to be paid up front if he's traded.
Jason Varitek told MLB.com's Evan Drellich that he was considering retirement earlier this offseason, and that he's glad the Red Sox made his decision for him.
MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan looks at some other pitchers that signed long-term contracts, with Cliff Lee obviously in mind.
John A. Tomase of the Boston Herald gives us an inside look at how the Crawford deal went down.
An Angels source denies that the club matched an offer for Crawford, writes ESPNBoston.com's Gordon Edes.
WEEI.com's Rob Bradford tweets that the Angels made Crawford a comparable offer and set a 11pm deadline on Wednesday, but the Red Sox got the deal done at 10:50.
Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports tweets the breakdown of Jayson Werth's contract. His $4MM signing bonus will be paid between January 2011 and January 2012, and his annual salaries are as follows: $10MM, $13MM, $16MM, $20MM, $21MM, $21MM, and $21MM.
Jeff Zrebiec of The Baltimore Sun wonders if there's room for the recently acquired Brendan Harris and re-signed Cesar Izturis on the Orioles. Harris is not on the 40-man roster, so he could start the 2011 season in the minors.
Scott Ostler of The San Francisco Chronicle looks at why the Giants and A's have trouble luring free agents to their teams.
Curious how all of last week's free agent activity affected the 2011 draft order? Then look at the changes here. Once the Kevin Correia and Miguel Olivo signings are made official, two more supplemental first round picks will be added.

Transaction Reactions: Harang, Werth, Marcum

By Steve Adams | December 7, 2010 at 4:44am CDT

As we continue on throughout the night here at MLBTR, here are some reactions from executives and the players themselves to the flurry of moves we've seen over the past few days:

Aaron Harang calls coming home to pitch at Petco Park in San Diego "a blessing," according to Bill Center from the San Diego Union-Tribune. The San Diego native says he had other offers, but this was the best fit and he's looking forward to a fresh start.
Former Philadelphia GM Pat Gillick is happy for Jayson Werth, according to Bob Brookover and Matt Gelb from the Philadelphia Inquirer. Phillies president David Montgomery says he's disappointed, but can't thank Werth enough for the four seasons he gave them.
Shaun Marcum was surprised to learn that he'd been traded to the Brewers, writes MLB.com's Gregor Chisholm. Marcum says Toronto had approached him about an extension just two days prior.

Jayson Werth Signing Reactions

By Tim Dierkes | December 6, 2010 at 7:43am CDT

Yesterday Jayson Werth signed the third-largest contract ever for an outfielder, as the Nationals locked him up for seven years and $126MM. He and Vernon Wells figure to be bumped soon by Carl Crawford, though. Many thought Werth would get five years, a few thought six, but I didn't see anyone predicting seven. Reactions:

ESPN's Keith Law calls the contract "irresponsible" and takes on the "losing teams have to overpay" argument.
Dave Cameron of FanGraphs says this is "not the drastic overpay that it appears to be on the surface."
Yahoo's Jeff Passan says that from Scott Boras' point of view, "This deal wasn’t as much about need as it was capitalizing on eagerness."
Talking to MLB.com's Anthony DiComo, Mets GM Sandy Alderson remarked, "It makes some of our contracts look pretty good. I thought they were trying to reduce the deficit in Washington."
One GM, upon hearing the length of Werth's contract, told Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports it was "absolutely bat—- crazy." CBS Sports' Danny Knobler says one American League GM "nearly fell over when I told him the terms."
The Phillies' offer, which GM Ruben Amaro Jr. deemed "significant," was for three years and about $48MM according to CSNPhilly.com's Jim Salisbury. MLB.com's Todd Zolecki notes that a fourth-year vesting option would have increased the value to $60MM.

Odds & Ends: Red Sox, Werth, Padilla, D’Backs

By Luke Adams 2 | December 6, 2010 at 5:35am CDT

A grab bag of overnight links, as we look forward to updates out of Orlando….

WEEI.com's Alex Speier hears from a source that Adrian Gonzalez has wanted to play for the Red Sox for a "really long time." There is no set deal for an extension in place, but rather an understanding of what it will take, tweets ESPN's Buster Olney.
In a separate piece, Speier notes that the Nationals' signing of Jayson Werth significantly increases Boston's chances of receiving a first round pick from the Tigers as compensation for Victor Martinez.
Though Speier suggests the Red Sox didn't ultimately make a formal offer to Werth, MLB.com's Peter Gammons says Boston's interest affected the Nationals' negotiations.
In a preview of the winter meetings from the Dodgers' perspective, Dylan Hernandez and Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times explain how Vicente Padilla could still fit into the team's plans.
Daniel Bard tells Scott Lauber of the Boston Herald that he'd like to see the Red Sox add some veteran bullpen help.
Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic identifies some potential free agent targets for the Diamondbacks.

Stark On Crawford, Beltre, Lee, Greinke, Bartlett

By Luke Adams 2 | December 6, 2010 at 3:01am CDT

In his latest piece for ESPN.com, Jayson Stark discusses the ripple effect that Jayson Werth's $126MM deal will have on the remaining free agents. One AL official opines that it raises Carl Crawford's price in a "big, big way": "He's looking at maybe eight years, $180 million now, maybe 10 years, $190 million." Here are the rest of Stark's hot stove notes:

Crawford is the clear top target for the Angels, but in the past they've tried to avoid going as high as eight years for any player, let alone ten.
Despite getting Werth's contract done already, Scott Boras often drags out negotiations for his top clients. Stark polled a dozen people across baseball on when Adrian Beltre would sign, and many predicted it wouldn't happen until Christmas or later.
Neither the Yankees or Rangers have made a formal offer to Cliff Lee yet, but many of those baseball people polled by Stark expect a deal to get done within the next week.
There's good news and bad news for the Royals and Zack Greinke's trade value: with many free agent arms coming off the board already, Greinke has become more valuable in a pitching-thin market. However, according to one AL source, "Greinke has been trying to convince the Royals that it's not a great idea if he's there next year," which reduces Kansas City's leverage.
The Diamondbacks haven't totally ruled out trading Justin Upton, though it appears unlikely. Kevin Towers tells Stark "it's going to take somebody a little on the crazy side" to get anything done.
There's a sense that Jason Bartlett is the player most likely to be traded this week. However, Stark has trouble finding a team in need of a shortstop that matches up well with the Rays, who would like a late-inning reliever in return.
With Werth off the market, the Phillies will look to replace him with a complementary player rather than a big name. Stark lists Scott Hairston, Jeff Francoeur, and Matt Diaz as a few possible targets. Philadelphia has also been trying to find a taker for Raul Ibanez, but would likely have to eat a good chunk of salary to do so.

Odds & Ends: Paulino, Beltre, Werth, Thome

By Zachary Links | December 5, 2010 at 10:43pm CDT

Some links on what has been a very busy day in baseball..

Ronny Paulino is on the Rockies' radar after being non-tendered by the Marlins, writes Joe Frisaro of MLB.com.
Don't expect Adrian Beltre in Baltimore, GM Andy MacPhail told Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com.
GM Ruben Amaro says the Phillies offered Jayson Werth a significant contract, writes David Murphy of the Philadelphia Daily News.
The Nationals' offer for Werth was so far beyond what everyone else was offering that agent Scott Boras didn't bother to ask other teams if they wanted to match, tweets Jayson Stark of ESPN.
Not only does Jim Thome plan on coming back in 2011, he wants to play for two more seasons, writes Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.
Mariano Rivera's new deal with the Yanks is for exactly $30MM but deferred payments make it worth $14.7MM per year, tweets Jon Heyman of SI.
The Carl Pavano market should become a little more transparent this week, says Buster Olney of ESPN (via Twitter). Earlier we learned that the Nats are in the mix for the veteran pitcher.

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