Rumors for February, 2010
Arturo Lopez clears waivers – returns to Mets
Posted by: | CommentsAccording to Adam Rubin of The New York Daily News, left-handed pitcher Arturo Lopez has cleared waivers and will return to the New York Mets camp as a non-roster invitee. Lopez had been designated for assignment by the Mets to make room for Rod Barajas.
Lopez, 27, pitched in 4 games for the San Diego Padres in 2009. You can see Lopez’s pitching statistics here.
PRO Rumors: Zambrano, Millar, Fenway South, Luis Jolly
Posted by: | CommentsHere are a few more PRO Rumors to follow on Friday:
- Cubs’ pitcher Carlos Zambrano is very confident that Kevin Millar will make the Cubs’ roster when the team breaks camps according to Paul Sullivan of Chicago Tribune. The switch-hitting pitcher also says his days of pinch hitting are done. Manager Lou Piniella had Zambrano pinch hit seven-times last season.
- The Red Sox new Spring Training home, scheduled to open in 2012, will be very Fenway-like. The new park’s dimensions will be the same Fenway with a Green Monster clone. (Source: Daniel Barbarisi of The Providence Journal.)
- According to Mike DiGiovanna of The Los Angeles Times, the Angels have signed Luis Jolly, a speedy 6-foot-2, 16-year-old outfielder from the Dominican Republic, to a reported bonus of $150,000.
Mike Lowell Trade Rumors: Could the Cardinals make a move for Lowell?
Posted by: | CommentsRob Rains of The St. Louis Globe Democrat suggests that the Cardinals should have Boston’s Mike Lowell on their “Plan B” list in the event that rookie third baseman David Freese cannot handle the team’s everyday third base duties.
Lowell expects the the Red Sox to trade him before the regular season since the team already has Adrian Beltre inked in as the starter at third base.
“If I was on the trading block before, I can’t imagine all of a sudden I’m not now,” Lowell said. “I think my health is something I obviously something I need to show, not only the Red Sox but every other team. If that opens the door to something else, I’ll go wherever I go, or stay wherever I stay.”
“I think I’m pretty intelligent in the sense that there’s no real playing time for me here, barring a major injury, and I’m not really in the business of hoping somebody gets hurt just so I can get some at-bats,” Lowell said.
Lowell was originally going to be traded to the Texas Rangers, but was called off after doctors discovered the ligament tear in his thumb. Lowell is in his last year of a three-year contract. He’s expected to make $12 million. Part of the deal with the Rangers was that the Red Sox were going to pick up $9 million of the $12 million salary, so it would be a low risk for the Cardinals to get a quality third baseman. You can see Lowell’s contract history and statistics here.
Jarrod Washburn Rumors: Left-handed option for Royals?
Posted by: | CommentsDick Kaegel of MLB.com says the Kansas City Royals may break camp with no left handed pitchers on their rosters. Of the 19 pitchers on the 40-man roster, only three are left-handed: Dusty Hughes, an untested rookie, Edgar Osuno with no Major League experience, and Noel Arguelles who’ll be in the Minors.
“When you’re looking at starting pitching to build your baseball team, left-handed pitching is the hardest to find and, historically, it’s the most expensive,” Royals general manager Dayton Moore said.
The Royals had interest in free-agent pitcher Jarrod Washburn who went 9-9 with a 3.75 ERA in 28 starts for the Mariners and Tigers in 2009. Kaegel said that Washburn’s salary could be a deal-breaker for the low-budget Royals whose expected payroll for 2010 is right around $70 million right now. You can see Washburn’s contract history and statistics here.
TGIF! Here are a few New York Mets PRO Rumors to follow today:
- Just a reminder, please join us for the live web cast of PRO Rumors TV on Sunday, February 29 at 7:00 pm PST. You can watch on www.prorumors.com or blog.prorumors.com. We’ll be discussing the latest and greatest baseball rumors and news with special guest Daniel Shoptaw, founder of the Baseball Bloggers Alliance and writer at C70 At The Bat.
- Mike Puma of the New York Post says the Mets are ready to chart a new course and forget about 2009. “At this point, who cares what happened last year?” Jeff Francoeur said. “Even the Yankees, they won it, but it doesn’t matter at this point. It’s a new season.”
- Francisco Rodriguez has pink eye and was told to stay away from Tradition Field. (Mike Puma New York Post).
- New Met Frank Catalanotto may have the edge over Mike Jacobs for the final Mets’ bench spot.
- Ron Darling hints to The New York Post that Mets’ Jerry Manuel and Omar Minaya could be out of a job if the New York has two bad years in a row.
PRO Rumors: Dodgers, Rays, Cubs, White Sox, Pirates, Twins, Cardinals and Mets
Posted by: | CommentsHere are a few more PRO Rumors to follow on Thursday:
- Marc Topkin of The St. Petersburg Times says that Carlos Pena hopes to stay with the Tampa Bay rays after the season. With the expiring deal of Carl Crawford, it’s unlikely that the team can keep both.
- Paul Sullivan of The Chicago Tribune says that Cubs’ manager Lou Piniella doesn’t know what Twitter is. This is in response to White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen recently jumping on the Twitter bandwagon.
- The Pioneer Press says that Minnesota Twins’ Francisco Liriano is close to regaining his 2006 form. Liriano was 12-3 with a 2.16 ERA in 2006.
- According to Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, Pirates’ second baseman Akinori Iwamura said the Pirates could win the World Series. “There’s a big possibility for this (Pirates) team to win a World Series,” Iwamura said through an interpreter. “Just like Tampa Bay, we have good coaches and good, young players.”
- B.J. Rains of The St. Louis Globe Democrat says that Tony LaRussa has ruled out a possible return for former Cardinals Russ Springer and Jason Isringhausen.
- Nicholas Hirshon of The Daily News writes that the New York Mets have invited former pitcher Dwight Gooden to become a Spring Training adviser to mentor the young players on the pressures of playing in New York. Gooden declined the offer because his wife is nine months pregnant.
- Jerry Crowe of the Los Angeles Times suggests that Manny Ramirez might not be around past the trading deadline if the Dodgers fall flat this season.
Philadelphia Phillies Rumors: Could the Phillies get Cliff Lee at the trade deadline?
Posted by: | CommentsPaul Hagen of the Philadelphia Daily News said that some “in Philadelphia have wondered if history might repeat itself, if the Phillies might be able to once again get Lee before the trade deadline if they find themselves in need of a starter.” Hagen responds that it is “doubtful” since the Phillies’ Minor League system has been emptied of attractive trade bait.
In the recent deals to acquire pitchers Joe Blanton, Lee and Roy Halladay, the Phillies have given up a number of prospects including catcher Travis d’Arnaud and right-handed Kyle Drabek.
Lee could be a free agent after the 2010 season, and the Phillies could go after him then, but with a payroll expected to exceed $140 million and Jayson Werth being a free agent the Phillies have other decisions to worry about.
On a side note, Hagen mentions that the Phillies’ marketing department was not expecting the trade of Lee to the Seattle Mariners. They were working on a bobblehead promotion for Lee when the trade changed their plans.
Cuban 1B star Jose Julio Ruiz has drawn interest from 6 teams
Posted by: | Comments2/25 15:06: According to Morgan Campbell of The Star, Toronto Blue Jays GM Alex Anthopoulos was in the Dominican Republic for a scouting trip, but he would not say whether Cuban first baseman Jose Julio Ruiz was was on the prospects he observed.
2/18 10:23: According to Jorge Arangure Jr. of ESPN The Magazine, “Teams are intrigued with Ruiz’s batting prowess and at least several are debating whether he could immediately step in and contribute at the major league level. According to several sources, the Red Sox are among his suitors.”
Cuban first baseman Leslie Anderson is also drawing interest from Major League team. Both players are unlikely to sign with any team this week.
2/14 14:49: According to Luis E. Rangel of El Nuevo Herald, former Cuban National Team first baseman, Jose Julio Ruiz, has drawn interest from six teams. One of Ruiz’s representatives, Jorge Luis Toca, said “Toronto, Texas, Boston, San Francisco, Tampa Bay and Colorado are the ones who have shown more interest. We are also expecting an offer from the Yankees.”
Figures have not been discussed, but it is believed that any deal could include an invitation to Spring Training.
Ruiz, 25, hit .330 throughout his give season career with the Cuban National Team. Scouts have said that Ruiz is more of a contact hitter, quick on the bases and patient at the plate. He also possesses a good glove at first base. In 2008-2009, Ruiz was hitting .305/.408/.467 in 52 games before he defected to the United States in July.
Carl Crawford Rumors: Rays and Crawford table contract talks until the winter
Posted by: | CommentsMark Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times reports that the Tampa Bay Rays and outfielder Carl Crawford have decided to table any further negotiations on a new contract until after the end of the season.
“We had an opportunity to exchange ideas with the club about a contract extension for Carl and it was clear to all of us that an immediate agreement was not going to materialize,’’ agent Brian Peters told the St. Petersburg Times this afternoon. “Thus, we all agreed to table discussions until the end of the year. We’d like to minimize distractions for Carl and the club and keep the focus on baseball, so we don’t plan to comment upon Carl’s contract status again until after the season.”
Crawford is looking for market value, which would be in the $13-16 million per season range. In recent days, Rays’ owner Stuart Sternberg said that the team’s payroll will be under $60 million next year, so at the time it was hard to believe that the team was going to dedicate over 25% of their payroll to one player.
Crawford, 28, hit .305 with 15 home runs, 68 RBIs and had 60 stolen bases in 2009 with the Rays. This is Crawford’s final season of a six-year $33.5 million contract. You can see Crawford’s contract history and statistics here.
