Rumors for February, 2011
Jose Bautista and Blue Jays scheduled for arbitration on Monday
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What are Jose Bautista’s Valentine’s Day plans for 2011? Team Bautista and the Toronto Blue Jays have a date set for Monday, February 14, to have his arbitration case heard before a third party, according to sources close to FOXSports as reported by Jon Paul Morosi.
It’s possible that the sides can settle on a deal and avoid a hearing, but there’s a $2.9 million difference between them now. Bautista is arbitration-eligible and has asked for $10.5 million while the team countered with $7.6 million.
Going to a hearing could hurt the chances of the Blue Jays signing him to a long-term deal next winter. The team may be hesitant in investing a large sum of money to a player that may have had a fluke 2010 season where he led the Majors in home runs with 54. Another strong season in 2011 will guarantee Bautista a tremendous payday this winter when he enters free agency for the first time in his career.
Blue Jays sign Ryan Shealy to Minor League deal
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In a Tweet by Baseball America’s Matt Eddy, he reports that the Toronto Blue Jays have signed first baseman Ryan Shealy to a Minor League deal.
In seven at-bats over five games for the Boston Red Sox in 2010, Shealy went hitless. He’s a career .268/.331/.424 hitter with the Colorado Rockies, Kansas City Royals and Boston Red Sox.
Yankees officially sign Eric Chavez
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The New York Yankees have officially signed third baseman Eric Chavez to a Minor League deal according to Jerry Crasnick of ESPN. Chavez’s base salary will be $1.5 million if he makes the team.
The deal will also include about $4M in possible bonuses for time on the roster and plate appearances says Crasnick.
Chavez who has been hampered by injuries his entire career, just finished up a six-year, $66 million contract that saw him record 51 hits in 230 at bats over the last three years. Most of the at-bats came as a designated hitter.
Boston Red Sox sign New Zealand softball player
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The Boston Red Sox have signed Te Wera Bishop, a 17-year-old softball catcher from New Zealand. He’ll attend the team’s Spring Training and extended Spring Training in Fort Myers, Florida, according to Stuff.co.nz (via Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe).
“We have been impressed by his abilities behind the plate, he has excellent hands and a strong throwing arm, and with instruction from our Boston Red Sox coaches, we are confident he can make the appropriate changes from softball to baseball,” Red Rox Pacific Rim scout Jon Deeble said.
“We believe he shows the aptitude and willingness to be a successful baseball player. He has also showed us the ability to hit the ball out of the park. There needs to be a few minor adjustments made from the softball swing to baseball with the ball coming from different angles. This will also take time, but watching him hit some baseballs, he showed us a great amount of bat speed.”
Bishop tried out for several Major League teams in January, but the Red Sox were the first to make him an offer. After extended Spring Training, Bishop will attend the Australian MLB Academy in June.
Minor League Signings: Brandon Watson and Moises Hernandez
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The Chicago White Sox have agreed to a Minor League deal with outfielder Brandon Watson, according to Matt Eddy of Baseball America. The 29-year old Watson established a hitting streak record for an Independent League in 2007 with 43 games.
Watson last played in the Majors in 2007 with the Nationals. He hit .278 with 2 RBI’s in 18 AB’s.
The Mariners agreed to a Minor League deal with Moises Hernandez, Felix Hernandez’s older brother, Eddy reports. Hernandez pitched 7 innings over six games in the 2009-2010 season with Cardenales del Lara in the Venezuelan Winter League leaving a 14.14 ERA.
Ross Ohlendorf wins arbitration case against the Pirates
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The right handed pitcher Ross Ohlendorf has won his arbitration case against the Pirates according to Colin Dunlap of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. He will earn $2.025 million in 2011. The Pirates were offering $1.4 million.
Yesterday, we learned that Ohlendorf and the Pirates went in front of an arbitrator. The right-hander made $439,000 last season and was 1-11 with a 4.97 ERA and 79 strikeouts over 108 1/3 innings in 2010 with Pittsburgh.
Arizona Diamondbacks release Cyle Hankerd
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The Arizona Diamondbacks have released left fielder and first baseman Cyle Hankerd, according to Baseball America’s Matt Eddy.
The 26-year-old Hankerd was originally a third-round pick by the Diamondbacks in the 2006 MLB June Amateur Draft. In five Minor League seasons, he has hit .282/.354./.413 in 517 Minor League games. He reached Triple-A Reno in 2010 and played in 7 games.
Yankees agree to a Minor League deal with Luis Ayala
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According to a source close to Jon Paul Morosi of FOXSports, the New York Yankees have agreed to a Minor League deal with right-handed pitcher Luis Ayala.
Ayala last played in the Majors in 2009 with the Minnesota Twins and Florida Marlins. He spent some time with the Los Angeles Dodgers, Arizona Diamondbacks and Colorado Rockies organizations, but never reached the big leagues in 2010. In his six year career, he has a record of 29-39 with a 3.67 ERA over 377 relief appearances.
Mets sign LHP Casey Fossum
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According to Adam Rubin of ESPNNewYork.com, the Mets have sign left-handed reliever Casey Fossum.
Fossum, 33, last pitched in the Major Leagues with the Mets in 2009. In nine Major League seasons, Fossum has a 40-53 record with a 5.45 ERA in 237 appearances (120 starts). The reliever pitched in Japan during the 2010 season.
Michael Young Rumors: Will Angels pay to get Young from their AL West rival?
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There has been a lot of rumors regarding the future of Michael Young, and the infielder has said that he wants to be traded out of Texas because he was misled and manipulated. Here are your Tuesday rumors involving Young:
– If the Angels were to acquire Young from their AL West rival, Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times speculates that the team will have to assume most, if not all, of the $48 million that the infielder is due over the next three seasons.
– Troy E. Renck of the Denver Post is hearing that the Rockies “can’t make it work” with the Rangers for Young.
– The St. Louis Cardinals are denying interest in Michael Young according to Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
– The Astros indeed like Young, but his hefty contract would be too much for they to take on according to Brian McTaggart of MLB.com.
– Buster Olney of ESPN provides us an analysis about the possibles destinations for Young. He says that the Yankees doesn’t have a spot for him. The Padres, already have the middle infield assured for the next two years with Jason Bartlett and Orlando Hudson.
The Twins signed Tsuyoshi Nishioka to play second base or short stop, and sources close to Olney say that the Twins will give Alexi Casillas a real shot to play regularly. The Dodgers could use Young in their infield, but they’re facing financial problems right now. The Angels are trying to bounce back from a tough off season and could bring Young to play third base. The problem here is that the Rangers would only trade Young withing their division if it’s a very attractive deal for them, so the Angels would have to eat most or all of the money owed to Young, or give some talent.
The Rockies want Young, but they want the Rangers to provide significant salary relief to pay something close to half of what Young is owed over the next three years. Olney says that the Rockies want the Rangers to “put Young on a platter for them”, and that could be a roadblock between the two teams.
– The Rangers have increased their asking price since Vladimir Guerrero is unavailable to teams looking for offense. (Ken Rosenthal, FOXSports)
– A source close to Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports says that there’s a possibility that the Astros send Carlos Lee to Texas in exchange of Young. Lee can veto trades to Rangers and other 13 teams.
– According to Jayson Stark of ESPN, Young confirmed a “breach of trust” resulted in part from Rangers telling him they weren’t trying to trade him earlier when they were. He also adds that Young would consider to expand the eight teams list on “case-to-case basis.”
– Sources close to T.R. Sullivan of MLB.com say that the eight teams on Young’s list are the Yankees, Twins, Astros, Cardinals, Padres, Dodgers, Rockies and the Angels. Of those eight teams the Rockies have shown the most interest, but a deal is not imminent.
– Ken Gurnick of MLB.com says the Dodgers have held preliminary talks with the Rangers about Young, but a baseball source close to Gurnick believes the chances of a deal between the teams “a very long shot.”
