Jermaine Dye

Brewers Showed Interest In Jermaine Dye

By Tim Dierkes | April 1, 2010 at 4:23pm CDT

The Brewers made a run at free agent outfielder Jermaine Dye within the last week, report Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports, but the talks reached an impasse for unknown reasons.

The FOX writers say the Brewers are unhappy with Corey Hart, and might've tried trading him if they'd signed Dye. Brewers GM Doug Melvin indicated to WSSP 1250 a few days ago that Hart doesn't have right field locked up. Jim Edmonds is in the mix to start Opening Day. Rosenthal and Morosi say Melvin discussed Hart with the Nationals. Hart is under team control for two more years, but his salary climbed to $4.8MM when he won his arbitration hearing in February. The 28-year-old recovered some OBP last year but saw his SLG slip to a career-worst .418.

Hart's glovework has been below-average the last few years in right field, so maybe the Brewers felt that they wouldn't lose much defensively by going with Edmonds and/or Dye. MLBTR tried to help Dye find a job with this post a few days ago.

Helping Jermaine Dye Find Work

By Tim Dierkes | March 29, 2010 at 4:30pm CDT

Why is Jermaine Dye still a free agent? Let's run through the reasons:

He's 36 years old, leading some to speculate that a permanent decline set in last season. It's true that Dye was useless at the plate for the season's final two months, but we're talking about fewer than 200 plate appearances. Veteran hitters have bounced back from worse.
He's an indisputably poor defender. In a February interiew with Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports, Dye had yet to fully come to grips with this fact: "No doubt, I've probably slowed down a little bit (defensively), but not enough to not be getting (attractive) offers." Dye talked about his willingness to play first base or left field.
He's been asking for too much money. Dye already turned down offers of $2MM and $3MM. Pride may be an issue. In the Rosenthal article Dye talked about how "it's not about money with me" but "there are still guys getting money that I feel I'm better than."

Solutions:

Embrace a designated hitter/fourth outfielder/pinch-hitter role. Dye's former teammate Jim Thome gracefully accepted a reduced role and salary after a season comparable to Dye's.
Dye needs swallow his pride, drop his price, and take a minor league deal. It's not fair, but he probably wouldn't need to spend a ton of time in the minors. Two of his former employers, the White Sox and Royals, could use a good backup plan at DH.

On August 1st, Dye was hitting .281/.357/.533 with 23 home runs in 389 plate appearances. He had an $11.5MM salary and a starting right field job. Eight months later Dye is reportedly considering retirement; that would be a shame.

Odds & Ends: Braun, Reds, Marlins, Washburn

By Luke Adams 2 | March 26, 2010 at 9:33pm CDT

A few more Friday links for your browsing pleasure…

Speaking to Tim Allen of 1250 WSSP in Milwaukee (via SportsRadioInterviews.com), Ryan Braun said he has no regrets about signing an eight-year $45MM deal with the Brewers in 2008.
The Reds haven't been very involved in trade discussions during the spring, tweets Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports.
MLB.com's Joe Frisaro (Twitter link) thinks the Marlins will fill out their bullpen via a waiver claim or trade.
Larry Stone of The Seattle Times would like to see the Mariners get something done with Jarrod Washburn.
Cristian Guzman is making a case to be the Nationals' starting shortstop, writes MLB.com's Bill Ladson. If the Nats named Guzman the starter, Ian Desmond would start the season at Triple-A so he could play every day.
In his latest mailbag, Scott Merkin of MLB.com answers questions about the futures of A.J. Pierzynski and Jermaine Dye. He also gives his opinion on which player would be the ideal big-name trade target for the White Sox.

Odds & Ends: Dye, Arguelles, Royals, Astros

By Mark Polishuk | March 25, 2010 at 9:49pm CDT

Upset over seeing your Syracuse-topped bracket get ruined tonight? Cheer up by reading these news items!

MLB.com's Bill Ladson thinks the Nationals will make a move to bolster their current right-field platoon. He thinks Jermaine Dye would help the team, though Washington denied any interest in the veteran last week.
Noel Arguelles hasn't shown much in camp with Kansas City, but ESPN's Keith Law says it's part of the Royals' strategy to take it easy on the 20-year-old.
Rany Jazayerli of the Rany On The Royals blog looks at how K.C. has only recently gotten back into the habit of drafting local prospects. He also lists some of the local talent that the Royals didn't draft between 1988 and 2003, such as (sorry to mention it again, Royals fans) Albert Pujols.
The Astros are putting a greater emphasis on foreign scouting, writes The Houston Chronicle's Richard Justice.
Tracy Ringolsby of FOXSports.com lists 10 notable scouts who could be future general managers.
The Cubs could wait until the trade deadline before getting their desired set-up man, says FOXSports.com's Jon Paul Morosi.

Indians Notes: Dye, Bixler, Mauer

By Mark Polishuk | March 24, 2010 at 5:37pm CDT

MLB.com's Anthony Castrovince opened up his reader mailbag to answer a number of questions about the Tribe and other AL Central topics…

Jermaine Dye's right-handed bat "would have been a better fit in this lineup" than Russell Branyan, Castrovince notes, but Cleveland needed a first baseman and Dye is a defensive liability in the outfield.
The trade for, and subsequent DFA of, Brian Bixler is described as "wasted energy" by Castrovince. However, he notes that Jesus Brito (who the Tribe dealt to Pittsburgh for Bixler) is "a little old" to still be in the low minors, in spite of his strong numbers last season.
Castrovince discusses Joe Mauer's contract extension and says that it "was a special circumstance" given Mauer's Minnesota roots and the fact that the Twins could afford the deal thanks to their new ballpark. He also warns that the deal might not look so good when Target Field stops being a major revenue stream, such as what happened to the Indians after the novelty of Progressive Field (then Jacobs Field) wore off.
Along those same lines, Castrovince notes that the Tribe didn't have the benefit of a new ballpark to generate revenue when they attempted to re-sign C.C. Sabathia to a long-term deal before the 2008 season.
Castrovince reports the Tribe didn't re-sign LHP Juan Lara, as they have the last two springs to minor-league deals. The team did allow Lara to train at their Dominican Republic facilities over the winter. Lara hasn't pitched in the majors since 2007 due to a car accident suffered in November of that year, but he returned to appear in 15 games for Cleveland's Arizona Rookie League team in 2009.

Nationals Have Not Discussed Jermaine Dye

By Tim Dierkes | March 17, 2010 at 1:35pm CDT

1:35pm: Nationals GM Mike Rizzo told Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post that "the Nationals will consider looking outside the organization for a replacement, although the team has not discussed free agent Jermaine Dye." Those are Kilgore's words, to be clear.

12:58pm: The Nationals strangely released Elijah Dukes for baseball reasons earlier today, opening up their right field job. According to MLB.com's Bill Ladson, they have interest in free agent Jermaine Dye as a potential replacement. The Nats are also mulling platoons involving Justin Maxwell, Willie Harris, and Mike Morse.

Dukes is an injury-prone 25-year-old with a .262/.364/.446 CHONE projection; it's still unclear why the Nationals are giving up on him now. As recently as February 20th, GM Mike Rizzo spoke of hope for "the re-emergence of a productive Dukes." Regardless, it's good news for Dye, who's still out of a job after turning down $3MM and $2MM offers during the winter.

Urban On Lewis, Dye, Calero, Suzuki

By Mark Polishuk | March 10, 2010 at 8:27pm CDT

CSNBayArea.com's Mychael Urban had his weekly A's and Giants-centric chat with fans on Tuesday, and here are the hot stove highlights…

Urban thinks Giants outfielder Fred Lewis will be "cut loose near the end of camp." Lewis is one of several players who are out of options for 2010.
Jermaine Dye isn't an option for the Giants. Urban says the veteran slugger turned down an offer of $2MM from an unnamed team, and San Francisco wouldn't offer Dye anything more than that. We already heard that Dye turned down a $3MM offer from the Cubs earlier this winter, so you have to wonder what kind of deal Dye thinks is still out there for him.
Urban predicts the Giants and Athletics will eventually settle their territorial rights dispute over San Jose and "the San Jose A's will exist within the next 5-10 years." He also wonders why Sacramento has never been seriously considered as a possible new home for the A's.
The Giants made an offer to Kiko Calero over the winter but Calero signed with the Mets last week. Urban agrees with a commenter that "the Giants did miss the boat" on not locking up the veteran reliever who posted a 1.95 ERA in 2009.

In a separate piece about Oakland catcher Kurt Suzuki, Urban said that Suzuki and the A's have had "preliminary talks" about a contract extension. Suzuki is under control through 2013, and will be eligible for arbitration for the first time after this season. Urban quotes an anonymous AL West executive who says, "Billy [Beane] is way too smart to not lock him up at least through his arbitration years.” The deal might not run futher than that, however, since Urban points out that catching prospect Max Stassi could be ready to take over behind the plate by the time Suzuki is ready to hit free agency.

Odds & Ends: Damon, A’s, Beckett, Reynolds, Dye

By Luke Adams 2 | February 21, 2010 at 4:29pm CDT

Sunday links….

Joe Cowley at the Chicago Sun-Times has Kenny Williams' final take on missing out on Johnny Damon to the Tigers. Cowley's piece also expands a bit on the Dye note we've linked to below.
The A's received cash to complete the trades for both Adam Rosales and Dana Eveland, writes Susan Slusser.
Regarding his current contract situation, Josh Beckett says he and the Red Sox "talked about talking," according to WEEI.com's Alex Speier. Beckett says he won't have anything to say about the situation during Spring Training or even after. Speier's piece also contains video highlights of Beckett's press conference, including his take on Mike Lowell's situation.
MLB.com's Steve Gilbert has a series of tweets regarding Mark Reynolds, who hopes to have his contract situation resolved within the next couple weeks. Reynolds says that the deadline for talks is still Opening Day. Gilbert adds that the current discussion is whether to buy out two or three arbitration years.
White Sox GM Ken Williams considered pursuing Jermaine Dye, but felt that the Sox' need for a left-handed bat was more pressing, according to Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune (via Twitter).
MLB.com's Scott Merkin tweets that John Danks and the White Sox did not discuss a multi-year deal this offseason.
Bob Nightengale of USA Today reports, via Twitter, that the Rays were in the mix for Johnny Damon until the end, bidding more than every team but the Tigers.
Jim Leyland says that Damon's arrival in Detroit won't mean any less at-bats for Carlos Guillen, according to John Lowe of the Detroit Free Press.
MLB.com's Jordan Bastian breaks down (via Twitter) the early-round draft picks the Blue Jays will now hold this summer, following the Mets' agreement with Rod Barajas.
Former Brave Greg Norton will head into 2010 as a coach instead of a player for the first time. He'll serve as the hitting coach for the New Orleans Zephyrs, the Marlins' Triple-A affiliate.
WEEI's Alex Speier takes a look at the first impression made in Red Sox camp by slick-fielding shortstop Jose Iglesias. Many felt the Sox overpaid for the Cuban prospect last summer, but according to Speier, the Cubs were willing to pay even more.

Odds & Ends: Dye, Mets, Lincecum, Vazquez, Colon

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | February 12, 2010 at 4:12pm CDT

Some links for your Friday afternoon…

Jermaine Dye mentioned to Frank Thomas that he's considering retirement, according to a tweet from CSN Chicago's Chuck Garfien.
Adam Rubin of The New York Daily News tweets the Mets' players that are out of options: Pat Misch, Anderson Hernandez, Nelson Figueroa, and Fernando Nieve. All four seem to be on the bubble.
ESPN.com's Keith Law says Tim Lincecum left "a lot of money on the table" this morning when he agreed to a two-year $23MM deal.
A number of unnamed GMs tell ESPN.com's Jayson Stark that they haven't figured out how to find good middle relief consistently.
Javier Vazquez tells Carlos Gonzalez of Primera Hora that he doesn't see himself playing until he's 38 or 39. Vazquez, 33, doesn't expect to retire this year or next year, though. (Translated by Nick Collias).
Bartolo Colon's agent tells Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports that the former Cy Young Award winner wants to pitch this coming season (Twitter link).
Tom Glavine tells David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that he won't rule out a future as a pitching coach. Now it would be too much of a time commitment for him.
Ryan Rowland-Smith says via Twitter that he's glad the Mariners re-signed Mike Sweeney.
The Rays signed infielders Angel Chavez and J.J. Furmaniak to minor league deals and invited the pair to Spring Training, according to a team press release.
David Murphy of the Philadelphia Daily News shows that the Phillies have already made major commitments for 2011. They may not be able to re-sign Jayson Werth.
ESPN.com's Buster Olney reports that Russ Springer intends to pitch this coming season.
MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan has details on Khalil Greene's deal with the Rangers. The infielder makes $250K if he spends one day on the team's roster.
Neftali Feliz leads USA Today's list of 100 names we need to know.
Like most, Jack Moore of FanGraphs finds it hard to imagine 2011 free agent Derek Jeter finishing his career with a team other than the Yankees. One reason Moore believes Jeter's a fit in the Bronx: the shortstop's inside-out swing is perfect for Yankee Stadium.
MLB.com's Adam McCalvy guesses that Corey Hart's reps successfully compared their client to Jeff Francoeur and Josh Willingham. Hart won his arbitration hearing with the Brewers.
Jon Heyman of SI.com tweets that the Giants and Tim Lincecum went right to the door of their arbitration hearing this morning before settling.

Heyman On Damon, Braves, Wang, Dye

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | February 12, 2010 at 11:30am CDT

Jon Heyman of SI.com explains that expectations for Johnny Damon were unrealistically high at the beginning of the offseason. Here's Heyman's latest on Damon and others:

Tigers manager Jim Leyland is said to want Damon badly.
Heyman hears that the Braves might have $6MM to spend.
Chien-Ming Wang's agent says his client is still a week or so away from deciding where he'll sign. Competitors still expect the righty to sign an incentive-laden deal with the Nationals.
We've heard that the Indians are considering Jermaine Dye; Heyman says he could play some first base in Cleveland.

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