Rumors for February, 2010
Washington Nationals sign LHP Shawn Estes to a Minor League contract
Posted by: | CommentsAlden Gonzalez of MLB.com reports that the Washington Nationals have signed veteran left-handed pitcher Shawn Estes to a Minor League contract.
Estes, turning 37 this month, will get $600,000 plus a possible $400,000 in performance bonuses if he’s added to the National’s 40-man roster.
Estes made 13 starts for the Dodgers’ Triple-A affiliate in Albuquerque, N.M., this past season, going 3-4 with a 3.07 ERA, before semi-retiring in June because he said he didn’t want to pitch in Triple-A.
The 1997 All Star has a career 101-93 record with a 4.71 ERA. He last pitched in the Majors in 2008 with the San Diego Padres when he went 2-3 with a 4.74 ERA in 9 games (8 games started). You can see Estes’ contract history and statistics here.
Mark Reynolds Rumors: Will he get a multiyear contract?
Posted by: | CommentsAccording to Steve Gilbert of MLB.com, the Arizona Diamondbacks and Mark Reynolds are working towards a multiyear contract.
Because of his limited Major League service time, Reynolds is not eligible of salary arbitration, so he’s expected to sign a standard one-year deal unless both sides can agree to a longer term contract. He missed qualifying for salary arbitration by a few days.
“It’s kind of a sticky situation,” Reynolds said Friday during an open team workout at Chase Field. “I don’t really want to say much about it, but there are talks. There’s years being thrown back and forth right now. No money yet, but it could be anywhere from a two- to three-year deal with a couple of options is what I hear. I think the week of the 15th, there’s going to be some formal offers made, at least that’s what my agent told me yesterday.”
Nick Piecoro of The Arizona Republic wrote about the possible contract extension on Friday. Piecoro speculates it will probably be a three-year deal.
Despite having a small amount of Major League experience, Reynolds proves that he has the presence of a veteran bat. The 26 year-old third baseman hit .260 with 44 home runs, 102 RBIs and 24 stolen bases. You can see Reynold’s statistics here.
Jonny Gomes Rumors: Wants to rejoin the Reds
Posted by: | CommentsUpdate 2/5 17:41: According to Mark Sheldon of MLB.com, there has been little movement between the Reds and Gomes.
“Nothing recently,” Reds general manager Walt Jocketty said on Friday night. “We may re-evaluate where we’re at with our roster and with the number of people we have going [to Spring Training].”
If the Reds do not end up signing Gomes, they will not try to pursue another outfielder as a Plan B.
Update 1/29 14:27: According to John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer, the Reds have offered Gomes a Minor League contract. According to GM Walt Jocketty, “I talked to (Gomes’) agent a little while ago,” Jocketty said. “Hopefully, we can get something worked out.”
1/26: Free agent Jonny Gomes is heading into the month of February without a job and he’s asking his old employer to give him a call. According to Hal McCoy of the Dayton Daily News, Gomes said, “The Reds have some holes to fill and I’d sure like to fill one of them.” Gomes also said, “I haven’t heard from them since they told me in December that they were not tendering me.”
Unless the Reds sign a veteran outfielder, they are considering the inexperienced Chris Dickerson and rookie Chris Heisey to man left field.
It was rumored last week that the Chicago Cubs were talking to Gomes.
Gomes, 29, was non-tendered by the Cincinnati Reds last month after he hit .267 with 20 home runs and drove in 51 RBIs in his only season with the team. You can see Gomes’ contract history and statistics here.
MLB Rumors: Nomar to retire? Mark Reynolds contract, Orlando Hudson and draft picks
Posted by: | CommentsHere are a few links for Friday (I’ll update it throughout the day):
Ben Maller reminds us that Orlando Hudson is a Type A free agent but since the Dodgers did not offer him arbitration, the signing does not cost the Twins any draft picks.
Nick Piecoro of The Arizona Republic talks about the Diamondback’s working out a contract extension for third baseman Mark Reynolds. Probably a three-year deal.
Susan Slusser of The San Francisco Chronicle says that free agent Nomar Garciaparra has not been linked to any teams this off season and is expected to retire. Garciaparra, 36, played in 65 games with the Oakland Athletics in 2009 where he hit .281 with 3 home runs and 16 RBIs. You can see Garciaparra’s statistics here.
Adrian Gonzalez Rumors: Will the Padres trade him?
Posted by: | CommentsUpdate 16:47: Here’s an update on the Padres situation with Gonzalez via Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald.
“The team’s position with regard to Adrian has not changed at all,” said Hoyer in an e-mail to the Herald. “We are excited to have him under contract for the next two seasons. He is a great player who fits our city, team and payroll remarkably well. We have had, and will continue to have, dialogue with Adrian’s representatives about keeping him in San Diego long term. It is still early in that process and attempting to draw conclusions in the middle of any negotiation is an inexact science.”
The concern is that Gonzalez may fetch a deal similar to Mark Teixeira’s eight-year, $180 million deal with the Yankees. This is a price that will probably out of the Padres’ budget.
03:41 am: The San Diego Union-Tribune reports that Padres’ CEO Jeff Moorad did not sound optimistic about getting a contract extension with left-handed slugger Adrian Gonzalez. “While I’d be thrilled to have him as part of the organization for the long term, the early signals indicate his cost will be greater than our ability to pay,” Moorad said.
Gonzalez, 27, was rumored to be associated in a trade with the Boston Red Sox in December, but the deal never went through. It was believed the Padres were asking for too much at the time.
If the Padres have Gonzalez until the end of the 2011 season. If they can trade him this year, they can fetch a good bounty considering the new team will have him for two play off runs.
Gonzalez hit .277 with 40 home runs and 99 RBIs in 2009 with the Padres. You can see Gonzalez’s statistics and contract history here.
2010 Free Agents: Marlins make offer to Russell Branyan
Posted by: | CommentsUpdate 2/5 16:44: According to Joe Frisaro of MLB.com, he tweet, #Marlins Time to put the Branyan rumors to Marlins to rest. I was told team “never even spoke with him.”
Update 2/3 00:44: According to The Miami Herald, the Marlins have not made an offer for the free agent first basemane. The Marlins have merely contacted Branyan’s agent to guage the situation.
Accoridng to Jayson Stark of ESPN, the Florida Marlins offered free agent Russell Branyan a one-year Major League contract with a low base salary and lots of incentives.
However, Branyan may be holding out until he can get more of an assurance for playing time and more guaranteed money. Despite hitting 31 home runs last season, no contending team appears to be actively looking for an everyday first baseman.
The Marlins envision Branyan has a left-handed bat off the bench.
In addition to his 31 home runs, Branyan, 34, hit .251 with 76 RBIs in a shortened 2009 season. He played in 116 games but none after August 29. He was diagnosed with a herniated disk that sidelined him throughout the month of September.
You can see Branyan’s contract history and statistics here.
Grady Sizemore Trade Rumors: What will the Indians do?
Posted by: | CommentsThe Cleveland Indians are coming to close the end of Grady Sizemore’s contract. They have control over their leadoff hitter through the end of the 2011 season. This is a critical point in their decision making process since they have to decide on whether they want to invest in a long-term contract with their All Star center fielder or trade him away to acquire pieces for their rebuilding project.
History has dictated that the Indians will deal their players two seasons before their contract expires such as C.C. Sabathia and Cliff Lee. Teams will trade a player this early in order to fetch a bigger prospect bounty since the team acquiring the star player will have the player for two playoffs rather than a short-term end-of-the-season rental.
Sizemore signed a six-year $23.45 million contract in 2006. He will make $5.6 million this year and $7.5 million in 2011. There is a player option in 2012 that will pay Sizemore $8.5 million, but that is likely to be declined since it is expected that he can a new contract upwards to $100 million.
“Hopefully there is a long future for me here,’’ said Sizemore. “I’ve always enjoyed being a Cleveland Indian, and hopefully I can be here a long time and spend many more years here.’’
I expect Sizemore to be traded by the July deadline since the Indians are in a rebuilding mode and are not expected to make a championship run before 2011. It will be in the team’s best interest to trade him now.
Information used in this article came from The Morning Journal.
