Results tagged ‘ Rays ’

Roundup: Once-injured pitchers draw interest

The offseason is rolling on and that means there are fewer options in the free agent pool, especially for starting pitching. The Tigers, though, agreed to a deal with veteran Brad Penny on Tuesday, highlighting a trend of interest in talented pitchers coming off injury years. 
The biggest example in this category, Brandon Webb, signed with the Rangers just after the holidays, but there’s still a group of players who have battled injury and are looking to prove they are finally healthy. 
One such player, Justin Duchscherer, is drawing attention from the Yankees, ESPN.com reported Tuesday, citing an unnamed baseball source. Duchscherer missed several months in 2010 following a left-hip operation, after missing all of 2009 while rehabbing from right elbow surgery.
Free agents Chris Young, who is reportedly drawing interest from the Mets is in a similar boat, having missed a large chunk of 2010 with right shoulder issues.
Outside of the continual hunt for starting pitching, here’s a look at Tuesday’s happenings from around the league: 
- All-Time saves leader Trevor Hoffman told MLB.com’s Barry Bloom that he is calling it a career after 18 seasons in the big leagues. Hoffman, who became a free agent again earlier this offseason, will return to the Padres to serve in an unnamed free agent role, according to Bloom. 
- The Rays are still working to complete their roster for next season. They are looking for help in the bullpen and at designated hitter, SI.com’s Jon Heyman tweeted on Tuesday. Heyman highlighted Brian Fuentes and Jon Rauch as possibilities for the closer role, while naming Vladimir Guerrero, Jim Thome and possibly Manny Ramirez as possibilities for the designated hitter slot.
- Monday’s reports that the Rangers were trying to lure Thome to Texas gained more steam Tuesday as Heyman tweeted that outside executives see Texas as a real possibility for the veteran. CBS Sports’ Danny Knobler confirmed on Twitter that the Rangers want Thome, but suggested the team is concerned he’d rather return to the Twins.
- The Angels avoided arbitration with Alberto Callaspo on Tuesday, inking him to a one-year deal. The third baseman’s deal is worth $2 million, according to the AP.
- The Mets have their eye on free agent pitcher Dave Bush, ESPN.com reported on Tuesday. The right-hander went 8-13 last season with the Brewers, but did complete 18 quality starts on the year.
 
The organization also reached agreement on a deal with left-handed reliever Taylor Tankersley, according to Dave Gershman of the MLBlog SPANdemonium and confirmed by MLB.com. The Mets have been seeking left-handed bullpen helps since losing Hisanori Takahashi and Pedro Feliciano in free agency. Tankersley, who will turn 28 in March, missed all of the 2009 Major League season with an elbow injury. After seeing limited action as a lefty specialist in 2010, he rejected a Minor League assignment and was granted free agency in October.
 
- In addition to making Carlos Gonzalez’s seven-year, $80 million deal official on Tuesday, the Rockies also agreed to terms with right-hander Claudio Vargas on Tuesday, according to MLB.com’s Thomas Harding. Vargas will likely compete for a job in the Rockies’ bullpen. 
– Bailey Stephens

Roundup: Trade winds blow Garza to Windy City

Now the starting-pitching market is really dry.

Teams still looking for quality, front-line starters (i.e., the Yankees) now have to get much more creative, because Matt Garza — seemingly the last big-name arm for the taking, if you buy into recent reports — appears headed to Chicago. The Rays dealt Garza, who was in his second year of arbitration and would receive a raise from his $3.35 million salary, to the Cubs in exchange for five Minor Leaguers on Friday.

Club officials haven’t confirmed the deal, but sources told MLB.com’s Carrie Muskat that the framework is in place for the Cubs to send 2010 Minor League Pitcher of the Year Chris Archer, 2010 Player of the Year Brandon Guyer (an outfielder), shortstop Hak-Ju Lee, catcher Robinson Chirinos and outfielder Sam Fuld.

The Cubs would also get two Minor Leaguers from the Rays, and according to the Daily Herald, one of those is outfielder Fernando Perez, who played in 107 Minor League games this past season.

The Rays had a surplus of starting pitchers — with David Price, Jeremy Hellickson, Wade Davis, Jeff Niemann and James Shields also in the fold — and could afford to deal one, though trading a guy like Garza always hurts. With Garza, the Cubs appear to be premier contenders in a stacked National League Central. He’ll be added to a rotation that includes Ryan Dempster, Carlos Zambrano, Randy Wells, Tom Gorzelanny and Carlos Silva.

Here’s more from around the league …

* When Adrian Beltre signed with the Rangers, closer Rafael Soriano instantly became the best free agent left in the open market. The question is: Where does he fit? FOXSports.com speculated that the Angels are the ideal fit, but added that the Rangers and White Sox — unless the price goes way down — are not going after the American League leader in saves. Other than that, not much seems to have materialized yet. 

* The Yankees, meanwhile, have been rumored to be interested in Soriano as a setup man, but ESPN.com’s Buster Olney reported via his Twitter account that as of Thursday night, the Yanks weren’t interested. The fact general manager Brian Cashman told the Journal News he isn’t willing to surrender any first-round Draft picks makes the signing of Soriano (a Type A free agent) seem even more unlikely. 

* Speaking of the Yankees, Andy Pettitte told The New York Post from his home that he’s still not sure whether he’ll retire or come back. “I’m just chilling out, hanging,” he told the newspaper. “I’m relaxing. If I had something, y’all would know. If I knew exactly what I was doing, y’all would know.” Pettitte continues to stress that the Yankees should move on and not worry about him, and the organization has said just that. But it sure does seem like they need him.

* All-time saves leader Trevor Hoffman is “leaning towards retiring,” Jon Heyman of SI.com and MLB Network reported via Twitter. The 43-year-old right-hander had a 5.89 ERA and 10 saves with the Brewers in 2010, giving him 601 saves for his probable Hall of Fame career.

* In other news, former Royals starter Brian Bannister will pitch in Japan this season; the Rangers designated right-hander Guillermo Moscoso for assignment; and longtime Twins executive Jerry Bell retired. 

– Alden Gonzalez

Reports Say Garza to Cubs

Multiple media outlets are reporting that the Rays are close to making a deal to send right-hander Matt Garza to the Cubs for four prospects.

The four prospects are right-hander Chris Archer, shortstop Hak-Ju Lee, outfielder Brandon Guyer and infielder Robinson Chirinos.

Garza, who is arbitration eligible,  made $3.35 million in 2010 and will likely make considerably more in 2011.

–Bill Chastain

Roundup: Rays looking to deal?

The Hot Stove took a bit of a backseat on Wednesday, with the announcement that Roberto Alomar and Bert Blyleven will be inducted into the Hall of Fame this July dominating the baseball headlines.

With Adrian Beltre‘s signing with the Rangers now official, the rumor mill did ramp up on the trade market — namely, on Tampa Bay starter Matt Garza and a possible deal to the Cubs, reported on Tuesday night by the Chicago Sun-Times. That story was news to the Cubs, according to MLB.com’s Carrie Muskat, who also reported that the Rays are more likely to wait until the summer to move Garza.

Here’s the rundown of the rest of the news from Wednesday:

- Staying in the NL Central, the Cardinals have resumed extension talks with their own potential Hall of Famer, first baseman Albert Pujols. Pujols could hit the free-agent market following the 2011 season.

- The latest out of Southern California is that the Angels have interest in signing Vladimir Guerrero.

On MLB Network Radio on Sirius XM, Angels manager Mike Scioscia told co-hots Jim Duquette and Kevin Kennedy that the Angels are not closing the door on the possibility of Guerrero returning to his former home after one season in Texas.

After hitting .300 with 29 homers and 115 RBIs in 2009, the Angels’ American League Most Valuable Player in 2004, accepted a one-year contract with the Rangers and helped the AL West rivals reach the World Series.

Guerrero, whose career began with nine games in Montreal in 1996, is a .320 career hitter with a .383 on-base percentage and .563 slugging mark.

- The Mariners are working on a potential two-year deal with recently acquired shortstop Brendan Ryan, according to MLB.com’s Greg Johns. Ryan, who came over from St. Louis in a December trade, is eligible for arbitration for the first time in his career.

- The Red Sox claimed catcher Max Ramirez off waivers from the Rangers, tweeted MLB.com’s T.R. Sullivan. Ramirez, you may remember, was close to going to Boston last off-season in exchange for Mike Lowell. Ramirez hit .217 in 28 games for the Rangers in 2010.

- The Blue Jays announced that they claimed left-handed reliever Wil Ledezma on waivers from the Pirates. Ledezma was 0-3 with a 6.86 ERA for Pittsburgh in 2010.

- The Diamondbacks resigned lefty reliever Clay Zavada to a Minor League deal, as reported by Baseball America. Zavada pitched in five games for Triple-A Reno in 2010 before undergoing Tommy John surgery. Zavada posted a 3.35 ERA in 49 games for Arizona in 2009.

- The Rangers and Beltre made it official on Wednesday, with the club announcing the addition of the third baseman in an afternoon press conference. The signing of Beltre means that the Rangers are no longer interested in their former DH Vladimir Guerrero, according to a tweet from the Dallas Star-Telegram’s Anthony Andro.

- Likewise, the Brewers finalized their deal with Takashi Saito. As reported by MLB.com’s Adam McCalvy, the right-hander’s base salary will be under $2 million, but he can make more than $3 million in incentives.

- The Rockies have signed utilityman Hernan Iribarren to a Minor League contract. Iribarren, 26, last played in the Majors with Milwaukee in 2009, spending last season with Texas’ Triple-A affiliate.  The deal includes an invitation to Colorado’s Major League Spring Training camp.

-  The Padres signed versatile Kevin Frandsen and catcher Guillermo Quiroz Minor League contracts.  The deal will pay Frandsen $575,000 if he makes San Diego’s Major League roster, according to ESPN.

Frandsen, 28, has played several positions during his MLB career with the Giants and Angels, playing primarily third base last season for the Angels, who did not tender him a contract for 2011.

Quiroz, 29, has played parts of the last seven seasons in the Major Leagues with the Blue Jays, Mariners, Rangers and Orioles. He is a career .208 hitter in 255 at-bats.

–Tim Britton

1/5 Garza to Cubs? Not yet

The Chicago Sun-Times reported Wednesday that the Cubs were “close” to acquiring Rays right-hander Matt Garza. That was news to the Cubs. ESPN’s Buster Olney also cited a “well-placed source” Wednesday morning as saying the Rays are more likely to deal Garza this summer. My Tampa sources say the same thing. The Rays are waiting for a team to blow them away with players in exchange and the Cubs don’t want to give up someone like Andrew Cashner or Starlin Castro. The Rays may change their mind around the trading deadline. The Cubs do have depth in the rotation with Carlos Zambrano, Ryan Dempster, Randy Wells, Tom Gorzelanny and Carlos Silva. Garza would definitely give the Cubs a boost and help counter moves made this offseason by the Brewers. But Chicago doesn’t want to give up its young talent.

– Carrie Muskat

Cubs hot on Garza’s trail

According to a Chicago Sun-Times report that was time-stamped for midnight Wednesday, the Cubs are the favorites to land right-hander Matt Garza from the Rays. Via Twitter, Chicago sportscaster David Kaplan also said that a deal to bring Garza to the Windy City was being seriously discussed.

– Evan Drellich

Roundup: Winter Meetings Day 2

While Day 2 of the Winter Meetings brought the continuation of talks for some big free agents like Cliff Lee and Carl Crawford, it also surfaced the names of other players such as Delwyn Young and Ronny Paulino.
Here’s a rundown of the day’s bigger rumors and speculation. 
- The Rays and Orioles have been discussing a trade, possibly involving Rays shortstop Jason Bartlett for outfielder/first baseman Nolan Reimold. While the talks are serious, the names involved vary and nothing is imminent, according to MLB.com’s Brittany Ghiroli. The Rays are interested in more than Reimold, according to Marc Topkin of the St. Petersberg Times. 
- The Nationals are continuing their aggressive offseason on Day 2 of the Meetings. Tuesday morning brought rumors from all corners that Washington was making a hard charge for Lee, possibly offer a seven-year deal. While other reports have contradicted that, a baseball source told MLB.com’s Bill Ladson that “The Nationals are not out of it by any means.” 
Several afternoon reports, including one Twitter report from SI.com’s Jon Heyman indicated that while there was a seven-year market for Cliff Lee, it wasn’t the Nationals. By all accounts on the Yankees side,  the club isn’t willing to go to a seventh year. 
- Free agent left-hander Mark Hendrickson is drawing some interest from the Rays and Mariners, FoxSports.com’s Jon Paul Morosi tweeted on Tuesday. He added that the Orioles have kept tabs as well on the pitcher, whose value now is primarily as a reliever. 
- Add the Orioles to the list of teams who have talked to the Braves about Japanese pitcher Kenshin Kawakami, according to the Baltimore Sun. But Baltimore isn’t likely to pick up Kawakami from Atlanta, as the Braves are looking for outfield help, a baseball source told Dan Connolly of the Sun. 
-Left-hander Dennys Reyes could decide on a team within the next 48 hours, Morosi tweeted on Tuesday. The Phillies, Marlins, Mariners and Athletics have all been known to have interest. 
-Several teams are interested in utility man Delwyn Young, Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel tweeted. The Brewers, Marlins and Phillies are all talking to Young, who played second base, third base and right field last season. The 28-year-old elected free agency after being designated by the Pirates before the non-tender deadline. 
-After Monday’s news that the Royals were asking a very high price for Zack Greinke, it appears that teams are upping their offers for the ace, Ed Price of Yahoo Sports tweeted. While the Blue Jays and Rangers have been known to have serious interest in Greinke, the Nationals also recently inquired about him, CBSSports.com reported.
-Infielder Jorge Cantu has multiple teams interested, including the Padres, Mariners and D-backs, tweeted Yahoo Sports’ Tim Brown. The 29-year-old split last season between the Marlins and Rangers, hitting .256. 
- The Mets are having serious discussions with reliever D.J. Carrasco, according to an ESPN New York.com report. The report characterizes the negotiations to bring the right-hander to New York as “fruitful.”
-While it’s just discussion at this point and considered quite unlikely, the Red Sox are at least talking internally about a potential Carlos Beltran trade, ESPN New York reported. Boston would consider the outfielder a last option if their other outfield pursuits fall part, Joel Sherman of the New York Post tweeted. 
- The Mets are seemingly looking for a catcher to back up Josh Thole as on Tuesday morning ESPN New York reported the Mets were “closing in” on free agent Ronny Paulino. Other reports, including a tweet from Sherman, indicated the club was still talking to several backstops, but Paulino was one of them.
–Bailey Stephens

Bartlett to the Orioles for Reimold

According to a report in the Baltimore Sun, a trade could take place by the end of today that would send Rays shortstop Jason Bartlett to the Orioles for OF/1B Nolan Reimold.

Bartlett stands to make $5 million through arbitration and the Rays have Reid Brignac waiting in the wings. The Rays are looking for offensive help at first base, left field and DH.

Meanwhile, Fox Sports is reporting that the Rays have interest in left-hander Mark Hendrickson.

– Bill Chastain

Rays Reported to Be Among Those Interested in Harden

Fox Sports is reporting that the Rays are among seven clubs interested in right-hander Rich Harden.

Harden, 29, had a 5.58 ERA for Texas in 2010, but he has a 3.63 career ERA. According to the report, several teams are interested in Harden as a starter while others believe he can become an effective reliever.

Given the fact the Rays have six solid starters, they are likely interested in him as a reliever.

The other teams identified as being interested in Harden are the Yankees, Twins, Diamondbacks, Brewers, Mariners, and Rockies.

–Bill Chastain

Mozeliak douses Bartlett notion

In his nightly powwow with reporters on Monday evening, Cardinals general manager John Mozeliak touched on a wide range of topics — but before he even took the first question, he got right to one specific point.

“I guess I should start with an opening statement,” Mozeliak said, “that the Bartlett rumor is not true.”
The “Bartlett rumor” was a renewal of reports that the Cards are pursuing Tampa Bay infielder Jason Bartlett. Jon Heyman of SI.com and Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch were among those who reported that things might heat up once again.
However, Mozeliak explained that from his perspective, any notion of Bartlett coming to St. Louis is simply not realistic at this point.
He pointed to the fact that the club is happy with its recent acquisition of Ryan Theriot, and also noted that by spending $8 million on Lance Berkman, St. Louis is rapidly approaching the upper bounds of its 2011 player payroll.
“It’s twofold,” Mozeliak said. “One is, we’ve already made a trade for a player. And number two is after we did the Berkman deal, that [money] is becoming something that we have to be aware of too. We’re pretty comfortable now with what we’ve done in the middle infield.
“When we actually did that deal [trading for Theriot], there was still the potential to do something else in the middle infield. But then since then, subsequently, we’ve added Berkman and we don’t anticipate doing an additional move.”
–Matthew Leach
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