Rumors for February, 2010
Here are a few PRO Rumors to follow on Saturday night:
- Andrew Baggerly of the San Jose Mercury talks about Prince Fielder’s beef with the Giants and Guillermo Mota.
- Dr. James Andrews did not find any structural damage in Pirates’ right-handed pitcher Joel Hanrahan’s elbow. (Rob Biertempfel of The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review)
- According to the Associated Press, Clayton Kershaw will probably be the Opening Day starter for the Los Angeles Dodgers since Chad Billingsley may not be considered the staff ace.
- Richard Durrett of ESPNDallas.com said that Texas Rangers outfielder Josh Hamilton had X-rays on his “very sore” shoulder and the results were negative. Hamilton fell while chasing a fly ball during outfield drills on Wednesday.
Kelvin Escobar may not be ready by Opening Day
Posted by: | CommentsAlden Gonzalez of MLB.com is reporting that Kelvin Escobar may not be ready to pitch by Opening Day. Mets manager Jerry Manuel has opted to take a conservative approach with the throwing program Escobar is on. Escobar, who has been limited to just one Major League appearance in the past two years because of right shoulder woes, said he’s been playing catch every other day, but he added that there’s still no timetable for when he’ll return to the mound. With Escobar possibly out of the picture for the beginning of the season, the Mets will audition Bobby Parnell, Sean Green, Fernando Nieve and Ryota Igarashi for the role of setup man to Francisco Rodriguez.
Perhaps the Mets will look to the free-agent market for help. Veteran lefty Joe Beimel told The Denver Post on Friday that he’s weighing an offer from the Mets with the Mets believed to have offered a contract of about $1 million. Beimel is holding his breath as he is aiming for a 1 year $2 million offer. Beimel waited last year til March 18th to sign a contract.
Beimel is a proven reliable arm but one has to remember his infamous trip to New York with the Dodgers during the playoffs in 2006 when he cut his hand at a bar thus costing the Dodgers one of their proven arms.
PRO Rumors: Mariners, Whilhelmsen, Braves, Heyward, White Sox, Konerko, Dye
Posted by: | CommentsHere are a few links to follow on Saturday:
- Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times says the Seattle Mariners have signed former Minor League All Star Tom Wilhelmsen, 27, to a Minor League contract. Last season for the Tucson Toros of the independant Golden League, he struck out 13 batters over 11 2/3 innings with 2 saves.
- ESPN says that 19 year old Braves right fielder Jason Heyward is making good strong impressions at Spring Training this year. Pitcher Derek Lowe said, “his BP is frightening.”
- Paul Konerko of the Chicago White Sox understands that his days may be numbered with the Chicago White Sox. “And if that happens, fine. That’s great. We’ve had a great run. I know what I can control and I don’t foresee whatever the ending is being bad because I see both sides wanting to handle it the right way.” Konerko, 33, is completing a five-year, $60 million contract this season. (Mark Gonzalez, Chicago Tribune)
- According to Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Time, former White Sox slugger Jermaine Dye is “shocked” that he’s unemployed.
LHP Joe Beimel confirms offer from Mets
Posted by: | Comments2/27 12:54: Joel Sherman of The New York Post tweets, “Mets like Beimel, but say still looking in $2M range from last year, and Mets won’t go there.”
2/26 15:12: According to the Denver Post via Adam Rubin of The New York Daily News, left-handed reliever Joe Beimel has confirmed that he has received an offer from the New York Mets.
“We’ve been talking to them for a good part of the offseason. I am still just being patient, waiting for the right deal.”
Rubin earlier this week said the Mets may sign Beimel if he’s willing to accept approximately a one-year, $1 million contract. The Mets want him to complement the left-handed pitcher Pedro Feliciano.
PRO Rumors Editorial: Mauer (Economic) Power
Posted by: | CommentsLet’s take care of some of that contract stuff for Joe Mauer. There is no better time than now to get the contract extension done. The question is weather he will command a 200 million dollar contact or not. In my opinion I think the Minnesota Twins can lock Mauer up without giving him half the worth of their new stadium.
Here are the contractual goals for each side:
The Twins:
- Lock up Joe Mauer long term.
- Don’t eat up too much payroll so they can still build a competitive team around him.
- Hometown discount.
The Joe Mauer Camp:
- Being paid his worth to a Major League club.
- Stay in Minnesota.
So how about this deal for Mauer and the Twins?
- (6 years/$120 million) with a $24 million dollar option for 2016 (7 years/$144 million)
Here is the contractual breakdown:
- 2010: $15 million
- 2011: $18 million
- 2012: $19 million
- 2013: $21 million
- 2014: $23 million
- 2015: $24 million
- 2016: $24 million (club option)
Why it works for the Twins:
- Keeps Mauer in Minnesota.
- Prevents him from even getting a whiff of free agency.
Why it works for Mauer:
- Stays in Minnesota
- Becomes the highest paid catcher in baseball.
For Joe Mauer, this deal represents his strong desire to stay in Minnesota long term and help put together a winning product there. Sure, he could get a bigger and longer contract on the open market (7 years/$150 mil, 8 years/$160 mil), but given the Twins payroll flexibility, this deal would represent a massive commitment for them. It does help that the Twins are moving into a new stadium in April because without the added revenue, there’s virtually no way that a deal like this could ever be offered. $20 million annually is not too shabby for the former frugal spending Twins.
If the Twins payroll stays around the $90 million mark, then they will be committing a large portion of their payroll to a catcher. I don’t think any baseball fan out there is too fond of this idea, but quite simply, Mauer is worth it. He is one of the best players in baseball and represents so much to the Twins organization.
Ronnie Belliards contract: 2 pounds away from being guaranteed?
Posted by: | CommentsDylan Hernandez of the Los Angeles Times reported that infielder Ronnie Belliard personally estimated his weight at a friendly “210 or 211 pounds” upon his arrival at the Dodgers’ spring training in Arizona. If Belliard weighs in at 209 pounds or less at any point during spring training, then the $825K contract he signed last month would become guaranteed.
Felipe Lopez Rumors: Signing with the Cardinals?
Posted by: | Comments2/26 16:57: According to Joe Strauss of The St. Louis Post-Dispatch, the Cardinals are “close to (an) agreement” with free agent Felipe Lopez on a one-year contract. The Cardinals are seeking infield depth and a left-handed bat.
Strauss adds that the parties were close enough that Lopez could take a team physical this weekend. The deal would be “far lass than a $2 million base plus incentives.”
2/23 17:18: According to Buster Olney of ESPN, he tweets that Felipe Lopez will probably “wind up with the Cardinals.”
Lopez recently fired his agent Scott Boras last week. It was believed that he switched agents because Boras could not find Lopez a starting job. The Cardinals and Padres have been pursuing Lopez throughout the off season. The Cardinal’s need for Lopez may be linked to Brendan Ryan’s recent wrist surgery. The Padres do not have much middle infield depth and could use Lopez to give rest to Everth Cabrera and David Eckstein.
Lopez, 29, hit .310 with 9 home runs and 57 RBIs with the Arizona Diamondbacks and Milwaukee Brewers in 2009. You can see Lopez’s contract history and statistics here.
Here are your Friday afternoon PRO Rumors:
- The Baltimore Sun says the Orioles are holding tryouts for men and women who want to be a ballboy or ballgirl. Those at least 18 years old are asked to wear business casual attire and bring a resume with them.
- The Chicago Tribune says that Kevin Millar is the only player in history to hit an inside-the-park home run in both Wrigley Field and Fenway Park.
- Nick Evans of the Mets has problems keeping his weight on. During the offseason he had to eat one or two Chipotle burritos for the extra calories. (New York Daily News)
- Josh Beckett told CSNNE’s SportsNet Central that he probably will not negotiate a new contract with the Red Sox during the 2010 season.
- Despite having a three-year, $42 million contract through 2012, the Braves’ Chipper Jones said he would retire if struggles in 2010. Manager Bobby Cox does not believe Jones will retire, according to David O’Brien of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
- Dylan Hernandez of The Los Angeles Times, says Manny Ramirez is not happy with the weight clause on Ronnie Belliard’s contract. Belliard’s contract says that his one-year, $825,000 contract will become guaranteed if he weighs in at 209 or less this spring. Belliard says he’s at 210 or 211.
Royals mascot gets sued over hot dog stunt
Posted by: | Comments2/26 15:27: TMZ says that the Royals have selected Rob Montepare as their next mascot to play Sluggerrr. Montepare will enter a mascot boot camp run by Dave Raymond, the guy who originally played the Phillie Phanatic.
In the wake of the lawsuit, Raymond will teach Montepare how to wave the air gun “along with other driss that emphasize mascot safety.”
2/23 15:55: TMZ reports that Sluggerrr the Lion, the mascot for the Kansas City Royals, is being sued for poking a fan’s eye out with a hot dog last season. The fan, John Coomer, is suing for more than $25,000 for negligence and battery claiming the Royals “failed to adequately train its agents … in the proper method in which to throw hot dogs into the stands at Kauffman Stadium.”
A lawsuit filed in Jackson Couty, Missouri claims Coomer was hit in the eye by Sluggerrr who was throwing weiners into the stand by hand. Coomer claims, “Slugger lost control of his throw or was reckless with his throw, and threw the hot dog directly into the Plantiff.”
The hot dog supposedly hit Coomer in the left eye causing a detached retina and the development of cataracts.
