Deals and Rumors of Deals
We are two days into the Winter Meetings and, although plenty of activity is in the works, no new major deals have happened in the last 24 hours or so. You can usually tell the teams that have new GM's that are trying to make a splash and put their stamp on the team right away. The Dodgers, for instance, have been mentioned in a half dozen or so rumors, most notably deals for Abreu and Soriano. The Rockies have continued to be very quiet, brought up only in possible trades sending Miles to Florida and getting Johnny Estrada from the Braves for who knows what in a three-way deal with TB. In my opinion, this would be a good move by the Rox, obviously depending on what we had to give up. Estrada has a good balance of offensive and defensive skills that would suit the Rox well as they attempt to fix their never-ending dilemma at catcher. Like I said a few days ago, stay tuned.
Matt Morris, who was on the Rox' radar screen early on, has seen his price range soar to about $8mm per year with the signing of Byrd by Cleveland for $7.4mm per season.
The likelihood of BK Kim being on the team next year dwindles by the hour. The Rox have a $1mm offer on the table while Kim is seeking around $3mm. The Rox will not offer Kim arbitration, so if a deal isn't agreed to by midnight tonight then Kim will be somewhere else in 2006.
Speaking of arbitration, tomorrow is when we can expect the free-agent signings to really pick up, as teams that do not offer arbitration to their free-agents do not get compensation from a player's new team.
As Tracy Ringolsby reported yesterday in the RMN, the Rox' and Fuentes are close to agreeing on a two-year contract for about $5mm with an option for a third year. Congratulations to Tracy, who was selected 2005 winner of the A.G. Spink Award by the Baseball Writers Association of America.
Congratulations is also due the Tulsa Drillers organization, which received the 2005 Bob Freitas Award, awarded each year by Baseball America to one team in each minor league classification to recognize long-term business excellence.
As I mentioned earlier, tomorrow should have plenty to talk about so the blogs will be hopping. Even if the Rox aren't involved, this is always a fun time of the year.
Matt Morris, who was on the Rox' radar screen early on, has seen his price range soar to about $8mm per year with the signing of Byrd by Cleveland for $7.4mm per season.
The likelihood of BK Kim being on the team next year dwindles by the hour. The Rox have a $1mm offer on the table while Kim is seeking around $3mm. The Rox will not offer Kim arbitration, so if a deal isn't agreed to by midnight tonight then Kim will be somewhere else in 2006.
Speaking of arbitration, tomorrow is when we can expect the free-agent signings to really pick up, as teams that do not offer arbitration to their free-agents do not get compensation from a player's new team.
As Tracy Ringolsby reported yesterday in the RMN, the Rox' and Fuentes are close to agreeing on a two-year contract for about $5mm with an option for a third year. Congratulations to Tracy, who was selected 2005 winner of the A.G. Spink Award by the Baseball Writers Association of America.
Congratulations is also due the Tulsa Drillers organization, which received the 2005 Bob Freitas Award, awarded each year by Baseball America to one team in each minor league classification to recognize long-term business excellence.
As I mentioned earlier, tomorrow should have plenty to talk about so the blogs will be hopping. Even if the Rox aren't involved, this is always a fun time of the year.
posted by Todd Nikkel | 10:08 AM
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