NL Central Notes: Barmes, Cardinals, Cubs, Garza
Let's take a look at some news out of the NL Central, where the Brewers hold a comfortable 10.5 game lead over St. Louis..
- Astros shortstop Clint Barmes is facing free agency this offseason for the first time in his career and would like to return to the club, writes MLB.com's Brian McTaggart. General Manager Ed Wade thinks so highly of Barmes that he was not made available at the trade deadline.
- The Cardinals can't find room on the 40-man roster for Nick Stavinoha, who is headed for minor league free agency, writes Matthew Leach of MLB.com. It appears likely that the outfielder will wind up elsewhere given the lack of openings in the organization.
- Patrick Mooney of CSNChicago.com examines last winter's Matt Garza trade to see if the Cubs or Rays came out on top in the deal. The eight-player trade sent Garza, Fernando Perez, and Zach Rosscup to Chicago for Sam Fuld, Chris Archer, Brandon Guyer, Robinson Chirinos, and Hak-Ju Lee. Ultimately, Mooney thinks that the trade benefited both parties.
Cubs Notes: Evans, Beane, Garza, Pena
Here’s the latest on the Cubs, including an update on their search for a successor to Jim Hendry…
- Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times says former Dodgers general manager Dan Evans fits all the criteria chairman Tom Ricketts has established for his new GM. Friends and associates of Evans tell Wittenmyer that the executive has always considered the Cubs' GM job his dream position.
- A’s owner Lew Wolff told John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle that he wouldn’t prevent GM Billy Beane from exploring job opportunities elsewhere, though he hopes to retain him for a long time. "I would never inhibit anybody from bettering themselves because of a contract," Wolff said, noting that no teams have called regarding the "indispensable" Beane.
- Wittenmyer says Matt Garza's presence at the front end of Chicago's rotation seems critical to any Cubs turnaround. The Cubs can retain Garza as an arbitration eligible player through 2013, though he won't be cheap.
- Meanwhile, Carlos Pena told Wittenmyer that he was "pleasantly surprised" that the Cubs pulled him off of waivers after the Yankees claimed him earlier in the week.
NL Central Notes: Garza, Astros, Brewers
The Cardinals beat the Brewers in extra innings last night, and Albert Pujols and Ryan Braun got hit by pitches in the process. Here are some NL Central links for Wednesday, before the division rivals take the field again…
- Cubs GM Jim Hendry told Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times that he's glad to have Matt Garza under team control for 2012.
- Matt Eddy of Baseball America looks back at the Astros' forays into free agency and their subsequent trades for prospects in a subscriber-only piece. It's clear, Eddy writes, that the Astros are well-positioned to land the top pick in next year's draft. Houston has an MLB-worst 36-74 record.
- The Brewers announced that they've already sold more tickets for 2011 than they did in 2010, when they drew 2,776,531 fans. More fans mean more revenue for the Brewers, who have already committed $59MM to next year's payroll.
NL Central Rumors: Cubs, Astros, Brewers, Rasmus
The NL Central lead seems to change hands on a daily basis, meaning we can expect plenty of trade talk over the next two weeks as the Brewers, Cardinals, Pirates, and Reds attempt to gain an edge in a tight race. Here's the latest from out of the division:
- Cubs GM Jim Hendry has "no interest" in moving Matt Garza or Ryan Dempster this season, tweets Peter Gammons of MLB.com.
- New Astros ownership would like to cut payroll to $60MM, according to SI.com's Jon Heyman (via Twitter). As such, Wandy Rodriguez and Brett Myers are "being shopped," though Houston will likely hang on to Hunter Pence.
- Discussing those three Houston trade candidates, Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe says the Astros would have to be "completely blown away" to move Pence, but Myers is very much in play, and there could be a decent market for him. Rodriguez falls somewhere in between – the Astros have fielded plenty of inquires, but it would take a big package to get a deal done.
- Heyman thinks that Jamey Carroll would be a good addition for the Brewers (Twitter link).
- Colby Rasmus' father confirmed to Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch that his son has requested a trade in the past. Strauss breaks down some of the reasons why the Cardinals and Rasmus seem to have trouble seeing eye to eye.
Red Sox Notes: Beltran, Ortiz, Papelbon, Garza
The Red Sox kick off the second half on Friday with a big series at Tropicana Field against the Rays. Here are some notes about the club with the AL's best record…
- The Red Sox have contacted the Mets about Carlos Beltran, a Boston team official tells Gordon Edes of ESPN Boston (Twitter link). According to the official, however, the Sox were "just doing [their] due diligence."
- Beltran would certainly fill Boston's hole in right field, an area that GM Theo Epstein admitted is an area of concern, reports MLB.com's Ian Browne. Epstein said he would make a move if necessary, but the GM also noted that the Sox could improve at the position from within, either with Josh Reddick playing more or J.D. Drew breaking out of his season-long slump.
- WEEI.com's Ryan Hannable has a partial transcript of Peter Gammons' appearance on the Mut & Merloni radio show today. Gammons said Boston faces "difficult decisions" on pending free agents David Ortiz and Jonathan Papelbon, particularly Papelbon since Daniel Bard is waiting in the wings as the club's next closer. Gammons believes if Papelbon wants a three-year deal worth $36MM or more, the Sox will let him go.
- Also from Gammons, he doesn't think Boston will trade a number of prospects for a starter like Matt Garza in order to solve its lack of rotation depth.
- The Red Sox face a 40-man roster crunch this winter, reports Brian MacPherson of the Providence Journal. "For that reason, the Red Sox can afford — and, indeed, might be wise — to trade three or four high-level prospects for an impact player," MacPherson writes. "Not only could that impact player help them win the World Series, but the trade could clear the 40-man-roster logjam and allow the Red Sox to retain some of the other prospects they've devoted so many resources to developing."
Quick Hits: Yankees, Riggleman, Fernandez, Orioles
Congratulations to Derek Jeter on career hit No. 3,000. Here are some Quick Hits for Saturday afternoon..
- ESPN's Buster Olney says that rumors are swirling about a managerial change for the White Sox, but a high-ranking source says a change is not being considered and Ozzie Guillen is safe (Twitter link). The ChiSox won today, but had lost four in a row and five of six before that.
- Alex Rodriguez may need knee surgery that could keep him out a month, and Joel Sherman of The New York Post hears that the Yankees will consider outside options to fill in at third base (Twitter link). Their first choice is to use in-house candidates Eduardo Nunez and Brandon Laird.
- MLB.com's Bill Ladson reports that Jim Riggleman has a job interview for an unknown position with the Giants next week. Riggleman resigned as Nationals manager last month.
- The Marlins are not close to signing first-round pick Jose Fernandez, writes Joe Capozzi of the Palm Beach Post. The 14th overall selection is seeking a deal close to $4MM while the Fish offered just $1.6MM.
- The Orioles are confident that they will be able to sign top pick pitcher Dylan Bundy, but they also expect that negotiations will go down to the mid-August deadline, writes Steve Melewski of MASNSports.com.
- The Cubs are likely to pass on requests for starting pitchers Ryan Dempster, Carlos Zambrano and Matt Garza, writes Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times.
- We learned yesterday that Brian Gordon is Korea-bound, and now there are rumblings that Chris Bootcheck is as well, tweets Patrick Newman of NPBTracker.com.
Top Interleague Acquisitions For 2011
Another round of interleague play begins tonight, so let’s take a look at some players who switched leagues last winter and are off to hot starts in 2011. Here are a few of the players thriving in new leagues – and what it cost to acquire them:
Free Agents
- Cliff Lee – It cost $120MM in guaranteed money and a first round pick for the Phillies to reacquire Lee. He has a 3.84 ERA with a 68K/13BB ratio through 58 2/3 innings.
- Adam Dunn – After a slow start, Dunn has been hitting like his usual self this month and now has a .203/.321/.368 line. He cost the White Sox $56MM and the 23rd overall selection in this year's draft.
- J.J. Putz – Putz, one of many relievers to sign multiyear deals last winter, is living up to Arizona's $10MM investment. He has a 2.12 ERA with 9.0 K/9 and 2.6 BB/9 through 17 innings of work.
- Lance Berkman – Berkman wasn't out of the National League for long and he must be happy he's back. Though currently sidelined, the 35-year-old has a .349/.455/.683 line and is among the league leaders in many offensive categories. Well worth the Cards’ $8MM investment.
- Russell Martin – Easily one of the offseason's best bargains, Martin has a .268/.371/.480 line. Not only did he cost just $4MM, he's under team control in 2012.
- Jeff Francis – Francis has a 4.83 ERA with a 27K/10BB ratio through 54 innings and he cost just $2MM.
Trades
- Adrian Gonzalez – Gonzalez has a .314/.370/.560 line back in the American League, but he didn’t come cheap. The Padres obtained top pitching prospect Casey Kelly, former first rounder Reymond Fuentes and Anthony Rizzo, who is tearing through the Pacific Coast League. Rizzo has a .371/.443/.702 line through 174 plate appearances and it won't be long before he's making an impact at Petco Park.
- Shaun Marcum – Marcum is pitching better than ever for the Brewers and the Blue Jays are no doubt pleased with what 21-year-old Brett Lawrie’s doing to Triple-A pitching. The #40 prospect in the game, according to Baseball America, Lawrie has a .335/.395/.607 line with nine homers and as many steals.
- Matt Garza – Garza leads the National League with 11.0 K/9 and has a 3.72 ERA through 55 2/3 innings, though it took Chris Archer, Hak-Ju Lee, Robinson Chirinos, Sam Fuld and Brandon Guyer to acquire him. We've all heard about Fuld’s hot start and Guyer homered in his first MLB game.
Olney On Yankees, Rays, Manny
Zach Britton certainly hasn't been surrounded by as much hype as Stephen Strasburg was last year, but, like the Nationals' youngster, Britton is "must-see TV," according to ESPN.com's Buster Olney (Twitter link). In today's Insider-only blog, Olney says the Orioles lefty looks like the best of 2011's rookie class so far this year. Here are some other items of interest from the piece:
- The Yankees are trying to get 20 to 35 starts from their fourth and fifth spots in the rotation, before the trade market really takes shape. At that point, the team could try to pursue an arm like Brett Myers or James Shields, if they're available.
- Olney is hearing from clubs that they will now "warily approach" making any trades with the Rays, who are considered a "savvy organization." While it's too early for the Cubs to worry about offseason acquisition Matt Garza, particularly given his impressive strikeout rate, the right-hander isn't happy with his first two starts.
- Olney agrees with Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times, who says that the Rays and their fans are the ones who Manny Ramirez's retirement hits the hardest. Not only will the Tampa fans miss out on watching Manny, but continued struggles by the team could result in key players being placed on the trade block.
Players To Avoid Arbitration: Tuesday
Today is the deadline for players and teams to submit arbitration figures. The sides will then settle on a salary between the team's proposed number and the player's proposed number or go to an arbitration hearing. Arbitration eligible players are under team control, so the clubs don't risk losing them – it's a question of how much the players will earn.
Yesterday, 11 players avoided arbitration. We could see just as many agreements trickle in today and we'll keep you posted on them right here and with our Arb Tracker. The latest updates will be at the top of the post:
- The Angels have agreed to terms with Reggie Willits and Howie Kendrick, tweets Bill Shaikin of The Los Angeles Times. Bill Plunkett of The Orange County Register tweets that Kendrick will earn $3.3MM, Willits $775K (on Twitter).
- The Giants agreed to terms with Santiago Casilla on a one-year deal worth $1.3MM with incentives, according to ESPN Deportes' Enrique Rojas (on Twitter). The team also announced that they avoided arb with Jonathan Sanchez and Ramon Ramirez (on Twitter). Sanchez will earn $4.8MM with incentives tweets Hank Schulman of The San Francisco Chronicle while Ramirez will earn $1.65MM according to Janie McCauley of The Canadian Press.
- The Braves agreed to terms with Peter Moylan and Eric O'Flaherty, according to MLB.com's Mark Bowman (on Twitter). Moylan gets $2MM, O'Flaherty gets $895K according to Dave O'Brien of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution (on Twitter).
- The Mariners agreed to terms with Brandon League, David Aardsma and Jason Vargas, the team announced. Aardsma will earn $4.5MM with plenty of incentives, according to Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times (plus Twitter link).
- The Rangers agreed to terms with C.J. Wilson and Nelson Cruz, according to MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan (Twitter links). Cruz gets $3.65MM, and Wilson gets $7.05MM with a chance to earn another $100K according to his agent Bob Garber, via email.
Quick Hits: Garza, Rays, Aardsma, Iwakuma
On this day last year the Rangers agreed to sign Vladimir Guerrero to a one-year, $5MM deal. In 2011, the veteran continues to look for a home with the Orioles, Angels, and Rays said to be interested. Let's take a look at the batch of links for tonight..
- Jamey Newberg of The Newberg Report is glad that the Rangers didn't overpay to land Matt Garza. The right-hander was shipped to the Cubs in an eight-player deal.
- Speaking of the Garza deal, Dave Cameron writes in a piece for Fangraphs that there's a good chance that the Rays got better in the short term by making the trade.
- Mariners GM Jack Zduriencik told Geoff Baker of The Seattle Times that David Aardsma's hip surgery was more extensive than first thought and the hurler might not be ready by Opening Day. The M's were shopping the 29-year-old for quite some time but now they'll wait even longer to move him.
- In an interview on 1500-ESPN, Twins GM Bill Smith revealed that the club finished a distant second in the bidding for Japanese starter Hisashi Iwakuma (information passed along by Aaron Gleeman). Minnesota offered $7.7MM for the hurler while the Athletics won the bidding with $19.1MM. Ultimately, Iwakuma and the A's couldn't agree to terms.