• Several teams are kicking the tires on acquiring A.J. Burnett, but the Yankees will have to absorb significant salary to make a deal and Burnett can veto trades to ten teams per year, according to George A. King III of the New York Post.
• The Yankees bid less than $20MM for Darvish, according to Andrew Marchand of ESPNNewYork.com.
• Orioles GM Dan Duquette explains the team's shrinking pro scouting department to MLB.com's Brittany Ghiroli. "In an effort to make an impact on the franchise, I can argue that the scouts are most valuable to a team at the amateur level,” Duquette said. “They can have a bigger impact on this organization.”
• Former Rays catcher Toby Hall has decided to retire, according to Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times. The 36-year-old spent seven seasons with the Rays and last played in the Major Leagues in 2008. 
• Dan Hayes of the North County Times hears the Rays are one of the teams that has asked the Padres about Anthony Rizzo (Twitter link). However, the Padres, who have been flooded with interest, aren't matching up that well with the Rays at this point, according to Jim Bowden of MLB Network Radio and ESPN.com (on Twitter).
• MLB executives expect Gio Gonzalez to be traded relatively soon now that Darvish is no longer available, according to Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com (on Twitter). The Red Sox are among Gonzalez’s suitors.

• The Nationals re-signed Ron Villone, according to Matt Eddy of Baseball America (on Twitter). As Eddy points out, the 18-year veteran has been traded for Greg Vaughn and Andy Benes.
• The Camden Riversharks of the Atlantic League signed Mike Lamb, Toby Hall and Jason Johnson, according to Mike Ashmore of the Hunterdon County Democrat (on Twitter). Lamb, 35, was a pinch hitter for the Marlins last year after missing the 2009 season; Hall, a nine-year veteran, hasn't spent time in the majors since 2008 and Johnson, a 37-year-old right-hander with 11 years of MLB experience, has been out of the majors for two years as well.
• The Dodgers signed right-hander Steven Jackson to a minor league deal, according to Eddy (on Twitter). He appeared in 11 games for the Pirates last year, but got much more exposure in 2009 when he posted a 3.14 ERA in 40 relief appearances despite walking more batters than he struck out.
• The Reds signed right-hander Tyree Hayes, the son of former MLB third baseman Charlie Hayes, according to Eddy (on Twitter). Hayes, 22, has yet to advance past Class A in five pro seasons.
• The Twins signed former Royals prospect Joe Dickerson, according to Kevin Goldstein of Baseball Prospectus (on Twitter). The 2005 fourth rounder didn't play last year.
• The Angels signed former A's prospect Jeff Baisley, according to Goldstein (on Twitter). The 28-year-old played in 14 games for the 2008 A's and posted an .845 OPS in the upper minors of their system last year.

• The Rangers released Toby Hall, according to MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan (via Twitter). The catcher, who last played in the majors in 2008, was in extended spring training.
• Peter Gammons wouldn't be surprised to see Bobby Valentine managing the Marlins by this weekend (Twitter link).
• MLB.com's Anthony Castrovince explains that big league players such as Rod Barajas, Daniel Nava and Frank Herrmann were not drafted at all.
• The Red Sox are expected to put Mike Lowell on the DL to make room for Daisuke Matsuzaka, according to Rob Bradford of WEEI.com. The Red Sox have not used Lowell much, leading to trade speculation, but the DL stint won't do much for his value.
• One GM tells ESPN.com's Buster Olney that he finds D'Backs hitters hard to evaluate because Chase Field is so hitter-friendly.
• Dave Cameron of FanGraphs wonders if Brett Myers might be a better trade chip than Roy Oswalt.
• Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News hears from a source who believes that there's a 95% chance Valentine becomes the Marlins' next manager.
• Larry Stone of the Seattle Times says Cliff Lee is becoming the "rock-solid, no-questions-asked, No. 1 trade target in baseball."
• Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times says the Mets and Twins are frontrunners for Lee right now.
• Michael Cuddyer expressed confidence in Minnesota's front office and said Lee would look good in a Twins uniform, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports.

Molina could also be holding out for a situation where he would have a better chance at a steady role, given that he would be one of seven catchers in the Rangers camp.  Taylor Teagarden and Jarrod Saltalamacchia are the favorites to win or share the starting job, but Saltalamacchia's September shoulder surgery has left Texas looking for a veteran backstop in case their young star isn't ready for Opening Day.  Wilson points out that Toby Hall (another experienced catcher signed to a minor-league deal by Texas last month) and Molina share the same agent.

Molina .217/.292/.268 in 155 plate appearances for the Yankees last season.  He has a career OPS of .609 in 10 major league seasons.

Hall has played in 686 major league games, mostly for the Rays and White Sox with a short Dodgers stint in between.  His last season in the big show was in 2008, when he played in 41 games for the White Sox, posting an OPS of .634.

Hall elected to undergo shoulder surgery roughly eleven months ago, which resulted in the Astros voiding his minor league deal.

Hall’s shoulder requires surgery, which will keep him out of the game for nearly four months. The Astros had expected Hall to recover from his injury via rehab over a timeframe closer to one month.

Presumably, Hall will re-enter the market once his health is firmly established. It’s not a stretch to suggest some competitive team might need catching help in the middle of the 2009 season, so Hall may find a job yet.

As for the Astros, their catcher competition going forward consists of a battle for two spots between Humberto Quintero, J.R. Towles, and Rule 5 pick Lou Palmisano.

• GM Ken Williams wants a younger, more athletic club, but still expects to compete in 2009.  Players such as Chris Getz, Josh Fields, Jayson Nix, Jerry Owens, Brian Anderson, and Clayton Richard could play prominent roles on next year’s team.  Sox Machine offers their take on Williams’ comments.
• Chris De Luca of the Chicago Sun-Times lists Brian Roberts, Coco Crisp, Chone Figgins, and Orlando Hudson as potential Sox targets.  Williams didn’t talk much about his wish list yesterday, suggesting that last year’s openness hindered his progress.  If the Sox sign Hudson, they’ll give their #24 pick in next year’s draft to the D’Backs.
• Joe Cowley of the Sun-Times says trading starter Javier Vazquez is Williams’ top offseason priority.  Cowley believes Williams could look for an infielder in return.  Vazquez will earn $23MM over the next two seasons, and has a limited no-trade clause to block trades to NL and AL West teams.
• Also in Cowley’s article – free agent catcher Toby Hall seems likely to re-sign.

The Sox chose Griffey’s $4MM buyout over his $16MM option (they’ll split the buyout with the Reds).  For Hall, they chose a $150K buyout over his $2.25MM option.  Hall may still be re-signed.

Gonzales sees Juan Uribe and Toby Hall as two players the White Sox hope to re-sign, with Hall at a lower salary than his $2.25MM option.  Orlando Cabrera, Ken Griffey Jr., and Joe Crede will be gone.  Cabrera is good for two draft picks if the Sox offer arbitration and he signs elsewhere.

Gonzales wonders if a Paul Konerko for Chone Figgins trade could take shape, but only if the White Sox add players.  Konerko is owed $24MM for 2009-10, with full no-trade rights. Figgins should earn $5MM+ in ’09 before he hits free agency for the first time.  It may be hard to get the Angels interested – Figgins fits their club, and they’ll try to re-sign Mark Teixeira.  Kendry Morales may be the backup plan at first.

Gonzales sees the Rockies as another potential trade partner for Sox GM Ken Williams, naming Garrett Atkins and Willy Taveras as potential matches. Taveras may be had for a song, but Atkins should require young pitching.

A few free agents to consider: Orlando Hudson, Dennys Reyes, and Alex Cora.

• Cubs GM Jim Hendry didn’t consult the prospective new owners before picking up Rich Harden’s option, and that’s fine by Mark Cuban.
• The Blue Jays are expected to pick up Rod Barajas’ option; there’s still a possibility that Gregg Zaun will return. The 37-year old Zaun is eligible to become a free agent.
• Speaking of catchers, Sox Machine analyzes the pros/cons of the White Sox keeping or moving backup catcher Toby Hall.
• The Yankees are correctly focusing on their rotation and will sign one or two free agent pitchers, thinks the LoHud Journal News’ Peter Abraham, which in turn may prohibit them from going after Mark Teixeira.
• A’s assistant GM David Forst will not interview with the Mariners for their vacant GM position.

Alejandro A. Leal writes for UmpBump.com and can be reached hre: alexo05 *at* umpbump *dot* com.

• Scot Gregor of the Daily Herald says GM Kenny Williams wants to add speed to the top and bottom of his order.  Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune hints at the same.
• The speedy and available: Brian Roberts, Ichiro Suzuki (maybe), Coco Crisp, Nick Punto, Willy Taveras, Jerry Hairston Jr., Juan Pierre, Randy Winn, Bobby Abreu, Luis Castillo, Corey Patterson, Julio Lugo, and Cesar Izturis.
• Gonzales says Juan Uribe (free agent) and Toby Hall (club option) would like to return.  Ken Griffey Jr. would also be willing to talk.
• Gonzales ponders a veteran shakeup, wondering if the Sox will look to move players with no-trade clauses such as Paul Konerko, Jim Thome, and Javier Vazquez.  Chris De Luca sees Nick Swisher staying, but no chance of re-signing Orlando Cabrera.

Hall turned 31 this year; he hit well after a trade to the Dodgers after a June 27th trade from the Devil Rays.  Hall didn’t like being a backup and requested a trade in July.  Today’s signing indicates that he just couldn’t find full-time work anywhere, since A.J. Pierzynski plays a good 135 games a year.

Hall is a solid defender and his right-handed stick complements A.J. well.  He’s got a high-contact hitting style but little power or ability to draw walks.  Hence, the lack of interest in him as a starter.

With a .258 batting average on balls in play, Hendrickson has been the 11th luckiest starter in baseball this year.  Given the D-Rays’ team BABIP of .316, we can be fairly confident that the 32 year-old southpaw will not maintain his hit rate of 8.13 per nine.  His peripherals are otherwise unimpressive – 3.4 BB/9, 5.1 K/9, 1.0 HR/9.  Prior to this season, Hendrickson had allowed almost 11 hits per nine innings in the Majors.  His control is better than this, but he’s in for a steep decline overall. 

Despite an ERA near 6, I’m not sure Jae Seo is much worse than Hendrickson.  Though no one seems to trust Seo to succeed, he has managed a 3.85 career ERA in almost 400 innings leading up to this season.  Hendrickson doesn’t seem like a significant upgrade, especially half a season worth of him.

The exchange of Toby Hall for Dioner Navarro is another clear win for Tampa Bay.  Navarro is still just 22 and hasn’t had a full trial in the Majors.  Any backstop that young who can draw a walk 10% of the time has value.

I think this is a disappointing move for the Dodgers.  While it’s true they may not miss Navarro or Seo, Hendrickson is not the #3 starter the team needs to run away with the NL West.

These talks are still preliminary, but I was able to uncover some more info from a source close to the Devil Rays.  Word from that end is that Edwin Jackson and Dioner Navarro would go to Tampa Bay in a deal for Baez and Toby Hall.  The Dodgers may find Navarro expendable with top prospect Russell Martin perhaps a year away.

As mentioned on this site a week ago, the Baez for Aaron Heilman rumor wasn’t equal value for the Mets.  This possibility seems more reasonable to me.