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Miguel Cabrera

Tigers Not Trying To Void Miguel Cabrera’s Contract

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In the aftermath of Miguel Cabrera's DUI arrest late Wednesday night, his second alcohol-related arrest in the last 17 months, Tigers GM Dave Dombrowski told ESPN's Jayson Stark (on Twitter) that "right now there's no language that can void [his contract], and we're not trying to do that." Two days ago we heard that some executives believed Detroit would try to make the contract non-guaranteed as a result of the incident.

Cabrera, 28 in April, signed an eight-year, $152.3MM contract extension before the 2008 season, not long after the trade that brought him to Detroit and before he ever played an official game for them. There are still five years and $106MM left on the deal, between $20MM and $22MM annually through 2015. It was the fifth richest contract in baseball history at the time it was signed.

Despite his off-the-field troubles, Cabrera is one of the game's premier sluggers, hitting .328/.420/.622 with career highs in doubles (45) and homers (38) last season. He's hit .317/.392/.558 in his seven full seasons, and his 247 homers before age 28 are the 12th most all-time. 

Dombrowski told Tom Gage of The Detroit News and SI.com's Jon Heyman that he'd be surprised if MLB sanctioned Cabrera in any way, though his star first baseman will miss the start of camp to be evaluated by doctors (Twitter links). The absence is not expected to spill over into the regular season.

Quick Hits: Vlad, Pujols, Cabrera

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Here are a few items of note for Feb. 17, the day on which Wally Pipp was born 118 years ago.

  • The Orioles will hold a press conference for Vladimir Guerrero on Friday, tweets Enrique Rojas of ESPNDeportes.com, so it's safe to assume that he passed his physical earlier this week and that his one-year deal is now official.
  • The Cardinals at some point offered Albert Pujols a nine-year contract extension worth more than $200MM, tweets Jon Heyman of SI.com. To this point, the value of St. Louis' offer has been consistently around the $200MM range, but the length has been less clear.
  • Tigers slugger Miguel Cabrera, arrested in Florida late Wednesday night and charged with DUI and resisting arrest, will not likely face jail time, writes Jon Paul Morosi of FOXSports.com, who spoke to a "leading criminal defense attorney." Whether Cabrera will enter a treatment program at this time remains unclear, Morosi notes.

Contract Notes: Cabrera, Feliz, Branyan

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Some thoughts and details on contracts around the game…

  • Some executives in baseball wonder if the Tigers will try to make Miguel Cabrera's contract non-guaranteed, according to ESPN.com's Buster Olney (Twitter links). The first baseman, who was arrested and charged with driving under the influence last night, has five years and $106MM remaining on his long-term deal with the Tigers. The Mets unsuccessfully attempted to convert Francisco Rodriguez's contract into a non-guaranteed deal after his legal trouble in 2010.
  • Pedro Feliz can opt out of his deal and become a free agent if he isn't on the Royals' Opening Day roster, according to Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star. Alternatively, he can go to the minors for $75K.
  • Russell Branyan has a similar clause in his deal with the Diamondbacks, according to Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic (Twitter link). 

Cabrera: Ordonez Hopes To Return To Tigers

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While Magglio Ordonez hasn't been seen in the Tigers' clubhouse since he underwent season-ending surgery last month, he has kept in touch with teammates such as Miguel Cabrera.  Earlier this evening, Cabrera told reporters that his good friend wants to remain in Detroit next season, writes Jason Beck of MLB.com.

"I've talked to [Ordonez]," the first baseman said. "He said he feels better. He wants so bad to play, but his injury, he feels bad. He wants to come back next year here. He wants to stay here."

Ordonez seemed likely to return to the club as he needed just 540 plate appearances or 135 starts in order for his $15MM option for 2011 to vest.  However, a broken ankle suffered in late July made it an impossibility.

The 37-year-old slugger hit .303/.378/.474 with 12 homers in 84 games this season.

Cafardo On Suzuki, Cabrera, Griffey, Zambrano

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In Nick Cafardo's latest piece for the Boston Globe, he takes an extended look at the Red Sox' early-season catching issues. He reiterates that if David Ortiz's struggles continue, the logical solution is to move Victor Martinez to DH and acquire a catcher. Cafardo names Kurt Suzuki as a player who would intrigue the Sox, since he can hit as well as play defense. Here are a few of Cafardo's other notes:

  • Other catchers to keep an eye on for the Sox include Chris Iannetta, Miguel Olivo, Chris Snyder, and even Twins prospect Wilson Ramos, though he'd be costly.
  • Cafardo praises the work Miguel Cabrera has put in to improve his image after last year's off-field problems. According to Cafardo, the Tigers "entertained trade proposals for him, but they wanted the farm in return."
  • Ken Griffey Jr. is off to a slow start this year, but the Mariners will give him time to work through it. Seattle may eventually have to limit his playing time if his bat doesn't get hot, but would never release him.
  • Cafardo is skeptical that the Cubs will be able to trade for a setup man and move Carlos Zambrano back into the rotation in the near future, suggesting the relief market is fairly thin.
  • One AL international scout's assessment of Cuban shortstops Jose Iglesias and Adeiny Hechavarria: "Iglesias is certainly the more polished player at this stage, but Hechavarria has more upside…. I’d say Iglesias could play defensively in the big leagues right now, where Hechavarria would need a year or two to refine his game a bit." While the Sox would like to give Iglesias more minor league experience, they could bring him up if something were to happen to Marco Scutaro or Dustin Pedroia.

Largest Contracts In Team History

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We've already looked at the largest contracts by service time and position, so let's now dig up the largest contracts ever given out by each of the 30 teams. These are in terms of guaranteed money only, but some could end up being even larger because of incentives and option years.

Thanks to Cot's Baseball Contracts for the info.

Largest Contracts By Service Time

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When Brewers ace Yovani Gallardo signed his five year, $30.1MM extension earlier today, it marked the largest contract ever signed by a pitcher with less than three years of service time.

Let's look at the richest contracts by service time, in terms of guaranteed money…

Less Than One Year
Position Player: Ryan Braun. Eight years, $45MM
Pitcher: C.C. Sabathia. Four years, $9.5MM.

One To Two Years
Position Player: Chris Young. Five years, $28MM.
Pitcher: Fausto Carmona. Four years, $15MM.

Two To Three Years
Position Player: Hanley Ramirez. Six years, $70MM.
Pitcher: Yovani Gallardo.  Five years, $30.1MM.

Three To Four Years
Position Player: Albert Pujols. Seven years, $100MM. 
Pitcher: Scott Kazmir. Three years, $28.5MM.

Four To Five Years
Position Player: Miguel Cabrera. Eight years, $152.3MM.
Pitcher: Justin Verlander. Five years, $80MM.

Five To Six Years
Position Player: Derek Jeter. Ten years, $189MM.
Pitcher: Jake Peavy. Three years, $52MM. 

Six-plus Years
Position Player: Alex Rodriguez. Ten years, $275MM.
Pitcher: C.C. Sabathia. Seven years, $171MM.

Some thoughts…

  • The most regrettable deals were signed very early in the player's career, Young and Carmona. Might be a lesson in using up those pre-arbitration years before taking the plunge.
  • The largest contract signed by a position player with less than one year of service time after Braun's deal is Evan Longoria's, which will pay him just $17.5MM over six years. Is Braun overpaid, or is Longoria underpaid? I think the answer is clear.
  • Sabathia's four year, $9.5MM deal nearly tripled Roy Halladay's three year, $3.7MM deal with Toronto, which was the previous record for a pitcher with less an a year of service time.
  • One only of the above contracts has expired.

Thanks to Cot's Baseball Contracts for the info.

Detroit’s 2011 Payroll Situation

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Once the Tigers traded Curtis Granderson and Edwin Jackson for four pre-arbitration eligible players, the thought was that owner Mike Ilitch was trimming payroll after the recession hit Detroit especially hard. However, he then approved a massive extension for ace Justin Verlander as well as the signing of Johnny Damon, and now his team's Opening Day payroll is expected to be somewhere around $130MM, up from $115MM last year.

Lynn Henning of The Detroit News wrote about the payroll savings GM Dave Dombrowski will enjoy after the season, which are pretty significant. Here's a look at the money the Tigers have coming off the books after the 2010 season…

That's $57.025MM in savings right there, and the team would be wise to avoid letting Magglio Ordonez reach the 540 plate appearances needed for his $15MM option to vest.

Ilitch isn't shy about spending big on the free agent market, and he'll have the money available to add a big bat to complement Miguel Cabrera (Jayson Werth, Aramis Ramirez if he declines his option?) as well as another elite starter to a rotation that already includes Verlander, Rick Porcello, and Max Scherzer (Josh Beckett, Cliff Lee?) after the season. Keep in mind that I was just throwing some names out there off our 2011 free agents list, and that the Tigers have not been linked to any of those players in any rumors we've seen.

The Tigers are already in a position to compete in the AL Central, and once they shed some dead money after the season, they'll have a chance to jump ahead of the pack if they spend wisely. 

Cafardo On Sheets, Lowell, Pineiro

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Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe wonders why more teams don't take advantage of arbitration hearings. Clubs do have a history of winning cases against their players in recent years. Here are Cafardo's latest rumors:

  • A Red Sox source tells Cafardo that it's unlikely the team signs Ben Sheets. Not a surprise, given Boston's rotation depth.
  • One scout is certain Ron Mahay will be on a major league roster by the time Spring Training starts. 
  • An NL scout considers Miguel Batista a "very serviceable piece."
  • Since Miguel Cabrera was in rehab for alcoholism this offseason, teams weren't eager to trade prospects for the first baseman and pay his $20MM salary.
  • As we heard last week, the Twins are interested in signing Jim Thome. 
  • The Red Sox and Angels considered swapping Mike Lowell for Gary Matthews Jr. before concerns about Lowell's thumb emerged. 
  • An AL GM considers Joel Pineiro "another middle-rotation guy." 

Cafardo On Damon, Hernandez, Delgado

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In his new column, Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe discusses the Red Sox' decision to move Jacoby Ellsbury from center field to left field, concluding that the 26-year-old should excel in left. Here are some other notes from Cafardo's piece:

  • Despite having a productive season, Johnny Damon acknowledges that he's expecting to take a pay cut. Right now though, he isn't willing to slice his earnings in half, which is what he'd be doing if he accepted a deal worth $6-7MM annually, after making $13MM in each of the last four years. Is returning to the Bronx still a possibility for Damon? "I don’t know. I haven’t had any conversations with them recently. Nothing would surprise me, but there’s nothing there right now."
  • Talks between Felix Hernandez and the Mariners are "getting serious" and there's a chance that they could work out a long-term deal before the season begins.
  • The Mets and Orioles are the primary suitors for Carlos Delgado. Baltimore is more interested in Delgado as a first baseman than a designated hitter, since they'd prefer a right-handed DH.
  • Gary Sheffield still feels he can be an everyday player, but says a market hasn't developed for him yet this offseason.
  • Cafardo describes the lack of interest in Miguel Tejada so far as "baffling."
  • Although Miguel Cabrera's name popped up earlier in the winter as a possible trade candidate, it looks like the enormous price tag (in terms of both his salary and the required return) has quieted those rumors for now.
  • Colby Lewis' impressive numbers in Japan over the past two seasons could earn him a multi-year contract. Cafardo says that at least six teams are interested, and that the Red Sox aren't one of them.
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