Winter Meetings Rumor Mill: Day 4 (Or The Bloody Aftermath)
Joey Matschulat
Rich Harden fires a first-inning strike against the Mets on Saturday, September 5th.Final-day tidbits and rumors after the sheer transactional chaos that was Wednesday ... and on top of that, stay tuned for the Rule 5 Draft, which is set to take place at 8:00 a.m. CST (and in which the Rangers will be involved, as they have received the third pick in the draft from the Orioles as part of the Kevin Millwood trade):
11:30 P.M. CST -- The Rangers and Red Sox have agreed upon the terms of the aforementioned Mike Lowell-for-Max Ramirez (which remains contingent upon each player's medical records being approved), with Boston apparently absorbing all but $3 million of Lowell's $12 million salary for the 2010 season; however, the deal may not be finalized until early next week, and while commissioner Bud Selig is expected to green-light the deal, he has "reservations" about the Rangers' adding $3 million in payroll (Rob Bradford, WEEI.com; Gordon Edes, ESPNBoston.com)
4:55 P.M. CST -- Rich Harden has reportedly passed his physical, completing his signing of a one-year deal with a 2011 mutual option; a press conference to announce the signing has been scheduled for 10:00 a.m. CST on Friday morning at Rangers Ballpark in Arlington (Anthony Andro, Fort Worth Star-Telegram)
[Love it. More later.]
4:50 P.M. CST -- According to general manager Jon Daniels, the probability of re-signing free agent outfielder Marlon Byrd seems relatively low (Richard Durrett, ESPNDallas.com)
[Nothing we haven't known for quite some time, but still reassuring to see this coming straight from the horse's mouth. Again, this ballclub isn't in the sort of financial position where it can commit something like three years and $20 million to a player who isn't really going to make the team all that much better going forward.]
4:45 P.M. CST -- Baltimore selected Giants left-hander Benjamin Snyder with the third overall pick in the Rule 5 draft, who will be shipped to Texas to complete the Kevin Millwood deal (Jeff Wilson, Fort Worth Star-Telegram)
[Snyder, 24, overtakes Clay Rapada in the prospective-LOOGY hierarchy; he brandishes a high-80s fastball and a slider which has reportedly impressed Rangers scouts, and has emasculated left-handed batters in the minors to the tune of a .191 opponents' batting average over his four professional seasons. One continues to get the sense that this C.J. Wilson-as-a-starter line of thought has gained some serious traction in the front office -- either that, or Texas is positioning Wilson as a viable trade candidate.]
4:30 A.M. CST -- St. Louis "strongly considered" pursuing Rich Harden, but instead opted to sign Brad Penny after examining Harden's medical records (Phil Rogers, Chicago Tribune)
[This is not what you -- nor I -- wanted to read vis-a-vis Harden, but it does drive home an important, albeit sobering point: his physical is not a mere formality in any sense. Harden's amassed 51 starts over the last two seasons, but his tagging as an injury-prone pitcher is not off-base and the most logical place to set the over/under for the number of innings he'll pitch in 2010 is around 140.]
4:15 A.M. CST -- The terms of right-hander Rich Harden's impending contract entail a one-year commitment at a guaranteed sum of $6.5 million (with $2.5 million in available incentives), followed by an $11 million mutual option for 2011 with a $1 million buyout (Jeff Wilson, Fort Worth Star-Telegram)
[Just to clarify, the mutual option means exactly what it sounds like -- both parties must agree upon the option being picked up in order to activate it, but it only takes one party to sever the agreement and end the contractual commitment. It seems that the impetus behind Harden opting for Texas over Seattle was the Mariners' hesitance regarding "accelerator clauses" requested by Harden's camp.
Provided that this all goes down as we think it's going to go down, this is a good, solid signing with the potential to be utterly fantastic -- one which I hope to further opine about once I have the luxury of a little more spare time on my hands. The biggest and most apparent downside here is that if Harden is both healthy and good (a tall order, to be certain, but possible), he's not going to stick around.]
4:00 A.M. CST -- Some 10 months after undergoing elbow surgery to repair a partially torn right flexor tendon, free agent right-hander Ben Sheets is reportedly only throwing off flat ground from a distance of 60 feet and may not be ready to go by the start of spring training; however, he's reportedly seeking a 2008-esque salary, which would be something in the vicinity of $12 million (T.R. Sullivan, MLB.com; Richard Durrett, ESPNDallas.com)
[Because what would the final day of the winter meetings be without your obligatory Ben Sheets update? I get this strange vibe that he's going to be somebody that remains linked with Texas for the next several years, but ultimately fails to become a Ranger year after year due to some unforeseen circumstance -- injuries, poor fit, prolonged exposure to radiation -- and then finally lands with Texas once his arm is shot and/or he's no longer any good. Shades of Sidney Ponson.
Sheets is, of course, not going to get that $12 million he's seeking; heck, he may not get even half of that. It's all a big, elaborate game of posturing.]
Quick Hits: The Diamondbacks have denied offering catcher Chris Snyder to the Rangers for left-hander C.J. Wilson ... The Rangers' interest in free agent catcher Rod Barajas has whithered due to his incongruous contractual demands; additionally, Texas has inquired into the availability of Diamondbacks utility infielder Augie Ojeda ... The Rangers and Angels are reportedly the most aggressive pursuers of free agent left-hander Darren Oliver ... Follow Baseball Time in Arlington on Twitter and/or Facebook.
Reader Comments (15)
Joey, tell us about Ben Snyder from San Fran....
snider
My Ranger nips are firm sausages.
Worst case scenario? Harden is hurt/ineffective and the Rangers don't make the playoff again. Newsflash: they weren't making the stinking playoffs with Millwood as your #1.
Best Case: Harden is healthy and effective, and we have a true #1 starting a playoff game 1.
Likely case: Harden has a good year, declines the mutual option, and hits the free agent market for a big contract. (Question: presuming this is the case, would this potentially give the Rangers a Type A free agent compensatory pick?)
I think there is little risk here and a ton of potential reward. As you noted, the worst case is he's injured and doesn't do anything to justify his contract... but if he's ok, and he hits that 140 IP mark, we have a heckuva pitcher on staff.
He's obviously going to be motivated to show the world he's healthy and a #1 or #2 starting pitcher... and if things don't work out (either this year or next), he could probably be bundled in a trade.
I love it... and I would suspect the Rangers will be VERY careful not to over-extend him... letting him hit that 6 IP plateau and then getting him out of there... regardless of pitch count, the score, etc...
Another part of all this: the Rays have been high on Ray. If we flip him for Dioner Navarro, we're almost set.
After getting Snyder with Balt's pick, did we take anyone with our (21st overall) pick? Chicago's C and Cleveland's C (Mc Bride?) looked comparable with Max as potential Back-up backstops.
Rule 5 Pick?
Ben Snyder LHP Out Of The Giants System
Fringe Top 25 Prospect According To Google Search For Their Bloggers
http://www.fangraphs.com/statss.aspx?playerid=paZ06017&position=P#standard
Finally some excitement! I love the Harden trade. Getting Lowell is a freakin' bonus!
I'm totally on board with the Lowell trade... in fact, I don't really understand the motivation for Boston doing this deal... but shhhsh, I don't want them to hear me.
Seriously; this guy only played in 105 games... but he hit .290 with 17 HRs and 70+ RBIs... and he does'nt strike out alot and knows how to work the pitcher.
If he slides in at DH, in our ballpark, and is available for 150+ games, he could put up career numbers.
And for what, Max Ramirez? I'm sorry but if MaxRam was in the Rangers plans, he wouldn't have started out 2009 in AAA. I like the guy but if he's the piece the BoSox want, I say good riddance.
BTW, take a look at Lowell's 08 and 09 stats... it's almost creepy how similiar they are to each other...
How does the pick up of Benjamin Snyder who was Baltimore's Rule 5 pick work? Is it like a regular Rule 5 pick where he has to be on the MLB team the whole year or be sent back to the original club or since he was acquired through a trade do the rules change?
It's just like a regular Rule 5 pick. He'll probably end up as the one out lefty in the bullpen. Maybe he'll work out if he's only having to get one guy out.
I don't understand why more bad or struggling teams with limited budgets do not use the Rule 5 Draft more aggressively. If I were KC or DC I'd have a scout just looking for guys to draft this way and keep a spot on my roster for one every year. Granted they often times do not amount to more than an average player but if I'm KC or DC that is often an improvement. And since KC or DC didn't pay the draft bonus they are a cheap way to help stock a system on the cheap; or so it would appear to me. Especially if they stick arround and be traded the next year.
More to the point with the Rangers. JD has done a good job this winter of creatively improving the Rangers roster. However, these are the kind of moves that cannot probably be done year after year because you have to be a bit lucky to be able to move the right peices and find teams willing to work with you. So I guess we better hope that the new ownership (Please God, let it be Greenberg & Ryan, Amen) is in place soon.
Another interesting thought with Rich Haarden concerning the ownership issue. By the trading deadline the new ownership will be in place. The Rangers may only need to keep Hardin healthy until then because if he goes down late in the season they can get a rent-an-ace at the deadline because by then they will have money. The Rangers may only, in effect need 1/2 a season of Harden plus a couple of starts to be in contention. Posters above were right, they were probably not going to have a legitimate shot at the division with Millwood as the #1 and that is not a slight of Kevin Millwood.
I like the fact that JD basically traded Millwood for Ray, Harden & Snyder, upgrading @ starter and getting 2 viable relievers who should allow both Wilson and Feliz to have a serious go at starting.
If I were TX, though, I'd back off the Lowell idea until they can figure out what they can get for McCarthy. Lowell is okay, but he's a 1 year guy who can't play the OF, has an injury problem, and is pretty old. If Smoak is really at the cusp of the major leagues, it would seem better if TX could pick up an OF/DH type instead. If McCarthy can land a good righty bat, they won't be forced to trade Max while his value is very very low. And who's to say - Max might actually be the righty DH bat they are looking for, right?
But JD may be getting Lowell to move him in another trade, as has been speculated about.
I am very impressed with JD - he is learning and making wise moves pretty consistently for 2 years now.
"Likely case: Harden has a good year, declines the mutual option, and hits the free agent market for a big contract. (Question: presuming this is the case, would this potentially give the Rangers a Type A free agent compensatory pick?)"
Yes.
The AP is reporting tonight that the Nationals will sign Pudge for $6 mil over two years. Could not the Rangers have paid Pudge 3 mil this year?
"Could not the Rangers have paid Pudge 3 mil this year?"
They possibly COULD have, but I'm not sure why they would have wanted to -- at $1-1.5M, keeping Pudge around makes some limited amount of sense (even I'll admit to being tentative there), but there's a salary point there where it quickly becomes impractical to keep him around, and the Rangers' offer (which was reported to be around $1-1.5M) seems to reflect cognizance of that salary point.
Doubling both that figure AND the commitment in years ... well, perhaps this whole "mentor to Steven Strasburg" thing will work out, but Washington could have snagged somebody else for around $4M less overall who could have produced at 80-90 percent of what Pudge is going to produce going forward. It might pay the dividends that the Nationals are seeking, but I doubt it.
"If I were TX, though, I'd back off the Lowell idea until they can figure out what they can get for McCarthy. Lowell is okay, but he's a 1 year guy who can't play the OF, has an injury problem, and is pretty old. If Smoak is really at the cusp of the major leagues, it would seem better if TX could pick up an OF/DH type instead. If McCarthy can land a good righty bat, they won't be forced to trade Max while his value is very very low."
Unless the Rangers are just excessively concerned about Chris Davis at first base (and if they are, then I'm not sure Lowell is the right guy to be bringing in, what with that whole "haven't started a single game at first base as a major leaguer" thing hanging over his head), Reed Johnson at $3 million probably makes a bit more sense than Mike Lowell at $3 million + MaxRam.