Kotchman hit a .306 avg in 563 plate appearances for the Rays last season on a minor league deal that paid him $750k.

Image taken by Keith Allison and used under the Creative Common License Agreement.

Wheeler posted a 4.38 era and averaged 7 strikeouts per nine innings in 49 1/3 innings for Boston last season.

Wheeler made $3mm last season and became a free agent when Boston declined his $3mm team option for 2012.

Speier also notes that the Red Sox will not receive compensation for Wheeler signing with the Indians even though he is a type B free agent because he signed a minor league deal.

Image taken by Keith Allison and used under the Creative Common License Agreement.

Slowey, 27, is a career 39-29 and a 4.66 ERA in 100 career appearances all for the Minnesota Twins. He was previously traded to the Rockies this off-season in exchange for RHP Daniel Turpen.

Putnam, 24, was 1-1 with a 6.14 ERA in 8 appearances last season. He also made his Major League debut last year.

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Last season with the Braves, Lugo hit .136 avg in 136 plate appearances.

In 2005, Lugo posted a career year with the Rays where he hit .295 in 616 plate appearances while posting a .362 OBP. That year he made $3.15mm.

Image taken by Keith Allison and used under the Creative Common License Agreement.

The team has also agreed to terms on a Minor League contract with relief pitcher Jeremy Accardo, Jerry Crasnick of ESPN reports.

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Last season Cabrera started off the year with the Indians before making his to the Bay and joining the Giants via the trade route.

In his career, Cabrera posted a .272 avg and had 123 home runs while posting a career .317 OBP.

Image taken by Keith Allison and used under the Creative Common License Agreement.

We are proud to announce that our PRO Rumors Android app version 1.0 is available on the Android Market.  We spent a lot of time on the app’s design and functionality, and we are sure that you’ll love it.  To download the app for an introductory price of $2.99 you can click here.

Here are a few features:

– Push Notifications to get the latest news and rumors for your favorite MLB team

– Pulse-like view of articles – it’s beautiful

– Real-time scoreboard

– Real-time box scores of in-game action

We’re working hard to add more features, so if you have any questions or feature requests, please send an email to support@prorumors.com.  We promise to write you back.

Allan

Pluto speculates that if the players are signed, they would be Minor League deals.

Image by Chris Metcalf under the Creative Commons License.

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Lopez, 28, is a lifetime /.263/.294/.398 hitter over eight Major League seasons.

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Pie last played 85 games with the Baltimore Orioles in 2011 where he hit .220/.264/.280, but was designated for assignment in August..  He signed a one-year contract prior to last season for $985,000.

Image by Keith Allison under the Creative Commons License.

As recently as September of 2011,  Ramirez indicated that he wanted to return to professional baseball.

Back in April the controversial Ramirez retired after being informed by MLB of an “Issue” regarding the Drug Prevention program. He was looking at a 100 game suspension at the moment because it was his second offense.

Image by Keith Allison under the Creative Commons License.

– The Houston Astros have hired Jeff Luhnow as their new general manager. (Brian McTaggart, MLB.com)

– The Pittsburgh Pirates have released Ross Ohlendorf. (Jenifer Langosch, MLB.com)

– John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle says the Giants are out on Carlos Beltran. Jon Heyman adds that Beltran’s market appears thin.

– Jimmy Rollins’ agent, Dan Lozano, and manager Charlie Manuel are saying that a deal between the Phillies and Rollins will get done.  (Jim Bowden, ESPN XM Radio).

– Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post says the Washington Nationals are now targeting Roy Oswalt.

– Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports reports that the Detroit Tigers are considered front runners to land veteran right hander Octavio Dotel. Rosenthal also adds that a NL team is also in the mix.

– The New York Mets are shopping Jonathon Niese according to Joel Sherman of the New York Post. He adds that the Padres and Rockies are among the teams interested in him.

– Mark Buehrle has narrowed his choice to three teams and according to Juan Carlos Rodriguez of the Sun Sentinel the Marlins are one of them.

– The Chicago Cubs, Colorado Rockies, the Arizona Diamondbacks are among the teams interested in Hiroki Kuroda according to Jon Heyman of CBSSports. He adds that the right hander may go back to Japan.

– According to Joel Sherman of the New York Post, the Athletics will not move left handed pitcher Gio Gonzlaez during the Winter Meetings.

– The Kansas City Royals are looking for an utility infielder, and according to Jerry Crasnick of ESPN, they are considering Edgar Renteria and “several others.”

– The Cleveland Indians are interested in first baseman Derek Lee, and according to Jordan Bastian of MLB.com, they are waiting until after Lee decides if he’ll accept the arbitration offer from the Pirates.

– The Colorado Rockies are interested in trading for Edinson Volquez or signing free agents Hiroki Kuroda or Kevin Millwood according to Troy Renck of the Denver Post. He adds that the teams has the money to make the next move.

– According to Buster Olney of ESPN, the Colorado Rockies and San Diego Padres are talking about a deal involving Huston Street.

– First baseman Carlos Pena said that he will not accept the Cubs’ arbitration offer according to Jon Heyman of CBSSports.

– Sussan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle confirms that the Phillies are indeed interested in Gio Gonzalez, and adds that they are also interested in reliever Craig Breslow.

– According to Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports, Gio Gonzalez’s “known suitors” are the Tigers, Diamondbacks, Marlins, Reds and Phillies.

– Veteran short stop, Miguel Tejada, is working out in Fort Lauderdale and is hoping to get a Major League deal according to Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun. He adds the the Orioles have no interest in signing him.

– According to the New York Post (via Guillermo Celis of ESPNDeportes), the New York Yankees are listening to offers for A.J. Burnett. He adds that the Yankees are willing to eat about $8 million of the $33 million owed to Burnett.

– The Detroit Tigers are apparently trying to make a strong push for left handed pitcher Gio Gonzalez according to Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle.

– Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports says that the Angels and Brewers are among the teams interested in Aramis Ramirez. He adds that the Phillies are no longer interested in the third baseman.

– Peter Gammons says that the Oakland Athletics are considering Josh Reddick and propects for Andrew Bailey.

Image by Keith Allison under the Creative Commons License.

– Five teams (including the Texas Rangers) are in the hunt for C.J. Wilson and one of them has made a six-year offer.  (Jeff Wilson, Star-Telegram)

– The Twins, Nationals, Marlins and Rangers are in on Mark Buehrle. (Ken Rosenthal, FOX Sports)

– The Royals, Marlins, Twins, Athletics and Mariners are interested in Carlos Guillen. (Enrique Rojas, ESPNDeportesLosAngeles)

– According to Joe Capozzi of the Palm Beach Post, the Miami Marlins (formerly Florida Marlins), plan to tender Juan Carlos Oviedo (formerly Leo Nunez).

– The Tigers, Blue Jays and Padres have inquired about Daniel Murphy from the Mets. (Joel Sherman, The New York Post)

– The Arizona Diamondbacks are looking for a starter, and according to Steve Henson of Yahoo Sports, they’re targeting right handed pitcher Hiroki Kuroda.

– Josh Willingham have been contacted by nine teams according to Jerry Crasnick of ESPN. That list includes the Twins, Red Sox, Indians and Reds adds Crasnick.

– Joe Capozzi of the Palm Beach Post says that the Philadelphia Phillies are “strong players”for third baseman Aramis Ramirez.

– The Los Angeles Angels have been inquiring about Andrew Bailey according to Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports.

– The St. Louis Cardinals have been talking to Octavio Dotel according to Jon Heyman of Sports Illustrated.

– The Pittsburgh Pirates “may add another outfielder” according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOXSports. And according to sources close to him, they are interested in former Pirate Nate McLouth.

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–According to Jim Bowden of ESPN.com, the Nationals have recently talked to the representatives for Albert Pujols and Prince Fielder, though the level of their interest is not known.

– The Marlins have offered a six-year, $111 million offer to free agent shortstop Jose Reyes. (Enrique Rojas, ESPNLosAngeles.com)

– Manny Ramirez filed for reinstatement and teams including the Kansas City Royals, Detroit Tigers, Chicago White Sox, Cleveland Indians, Minnesota Twins, Texas Rangers, Los Angeles Angels and Oakland Athletics WILL NOT be interested (our apologies). (Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports and Buster Olney of ESPN.)

– The Mets have contacted Francisco Rodriguez.  (Jon Heyman, Sports Illustrated).

– The Reds have offered a managing position to Double-A Pensacola to Jim Riggleman.  He’s likely to accept.  (Jon Heyman, Sports Illustrated)

Image by Keith Allison under the Creative Commons License.

In the book’s preface, the author quotes work done by a Manhattan lawyer named Doug Pappas. Pappas, says that a team with only minimum wage players, both on the Major League roster and the rest of the 40-man, would still probably win 49 out of the 162 games played.

In 2011, the minimum wage for a player on the 25-man roster was $414,500. The minimum wage for a player on the 40-man roster, with at least one day of MLB service time or had been on the 40-man roster for a year was $67,300.

The minimum that a team could spend on their 40-man roster in 2011 was: $11,397,000. That’s $10,387,500 for their 25-man roster and $1,009,500 for the rest of their 40-man roster. If a team could get approximately 49 wins with a $11,397,000 payroll, that means that if you divide the total wins a team got above their 49th win by the total dollars they paid over the minimum, you get the “price” each team paid for each win they got.

After this brief introduction of the “marginal win” formula, I’m going to say what this report is all about. I’m going to analyze the “price” for each win a team got in 2011 so we can determine which teams were the most cost effective. Besides that, I’m going to list the top 5 paid players on each team and give you their performance line, to see how much they actually contributed to their team.

I’ll also list each team’s OBP, runs and SLG totals so we can see for ourselves how related these stats are at the moment of scoring runs and winning games. So get ready to experience a thoughtful analysis of every 2011 Major league team.

The team’s payroll was taken from USA Today and the individuals salaries from About.com.

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The 25-year-old native of Venezuela hit .209/.227/.279 in 17 games for the Indians in 2011.  He spent most of his time at second base, but also had stints in left field and shortstop last season.

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Yesterday, Nick Camino of 1100-WTAM reported that the Cleveland Indians agreed to terms Sizemore.

Late in October, we learned that the Giants were considering Sizemore if the Indians decided not to sign him. Also, in early October we discussed the possibility of the Indians exercising his option given the fact he underwent his fifth knee surgery in the last three years.

In 2011, Sizemore hit .224/.285/.422 with 10 HR’s and 32 RBI’s in 268 AB’s in another injury plagued season with the Indians.

Image by Keith Allison under the Creative Commons License.

The team is in search of a platoon-mate for outfielder Seth Smith and Renck says that the club’s pursuit of Gomes is tied to Smith’s future.  Renck adds, “Colorado has offered Smith to the Braves for [Martin] Prado and will be creative in trying to get a deal done, though it is reluctant to include a center fielder.”

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Paul Hoynes of The Plain Dealer adds that the Indians are discussing a one-year deal and it would include a low base salary but there’s enough performance bonuses that would allow Sizemore to earn at least $9 million if he’s able to play a full seaosn.

Earlier this month, there were rumors about the Colorado Rockies expressing interest in the free agent outfielder.  ESPN’s Jim Bowden predicted Sizemore would receive a one-year, $5 million contract this winter.

In 2011, Sizemore hit .224/.285/.422 with 10 HR’s and 32 RBI’s in 268 AB’s in another injury plagued season with the Indians.

Image by Keith Allison and used under the Creative Commons License.

Image by dherrera_96 Under the Creative Commons License

ESPN’s Jim Bowden predicted Sizemore would receive a one-year, $5 million contract this winter.

In 2011, Sizemore hit .224/.285/.422 with 10 HR’s and 32 RBI’s in 268 AB’s in another injury plagued season with the Indians.

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The Japanese team apparently did not like the “baggage” associated with Ramirez.  The source added, “no matter how talented Manny might be.”

Back in April the controversial Ramirez retired after being informed by MLB of an “Issue” regarding the Drug Prevention program. He was looking at a 100 game suspension at the time. because it was his second offense.

In September, Ramirez said he was going to play Winter League in the Dominican Republic, but because the Winter League is affiliated with MLB, commissioner Bud Selig considers him ineligible to play.

Image by Keith Allison under the Creative Commons License.

While it’s a low-risk move for Philadelphia, one has to wonder how the team will use the future Hall of Famer.  Thome has only made one defensive appearance since 2007.  The Phillies may ask the slugger to work on his first baseman skills as insurance for Ryan Howard.

Thome, hit .256 with 15 home runs and 50 RBIs with the Minnesota Twins and the Cleveland Indians in 2011.

Image by Jim Epler under the Creative Commons License.