Offseason Deals and Rumors

[UPRedsFan]

Anyone else feel like Walt is still on the phones trying to clear the funds to sign Choo? When you piece together some of the rumors we've heard over the past few weeks (Reds still in bidding for Choo; Choo strangely silent on his own options; talks with NYY and elsewhere about BP; etc.) I can't help but think that must be one of the possible offseason strategies. Perhaps Walt told Choo's agent the same, and that's why he's biding his time.

Anyone else still there with me? You might call me a dreamer -- but I'm not the only one. Right?

I'm with you redeye. It's not over til it's over.

[Gallen5862]

http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/

Astros Acquire Jesus Guzman

By Zach Links [December 18 at 5:03pm CST]

The Padres have traded outfielder/first baseman Jesus Guzman to the Astros for infielder Ryan Jackson, according to Corey Brock of MLB.com (on Twitter).

San Diego got interest in Guzman in late July, but he wound up staying put for the rest of the season. The 29-year-old took a step back from his previous two seasons with the Padres in 2013, hitting just .226/.297/.378 in 318 plate appearances. Prior to that, Guzman had a .277/.342/.446 slash line through 592 PAs in 2011 and 2012.

[SweetLou1990]

Per baseball reference Guzman is primarily a LF in 2013, previous a lot of time at 1B. Not sure if they would have plans to play him everyday, seems to be a very versatile fielder. At best hope, maybe Houston has dried up for Choo?

[PepperJack]

http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2013/1...ssignment.html

The Mariners announced that right-hander Chance Ruffin has been designated for assignment. The move will make room on the M's 40-man roster for Franklin Gutierrez.

Ruffin, 25, made nine big league relief appearances last season but spent the bulk of the year in Doulbe-A and Triple-A where he posted a combined 3.91 ERA with 6.6 K/9 and 2.3 BB/9. Ruffin was taken with the 48th overall pick in the 2010 draft by the Tigers. Detroit sent Ruffin as the player to be named later in the Doug Fister deal in 2011.

Weren't the Reds linked to him at draft time? If so, perhaps he is someone they will take a flier on.

[Gallen5862]

http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/

Rakuten Planning Record Offer For Tanaka

By Aaron Steen [December 19 at 7:15am CST]

The Rakuten Golden Eagles appear to be settling on not posting Masahiro Tanaka and plan to offer him a contract with a record annual salary of 800MM yen, or around $7.7MM, Sports Hochi reports. Tanaka said in a press conference this week that he had communicated his desire to pitch in the U.S. in 2014 to Rakuten. However, it appears that the maximum $20MM posting fee agreed to by MLB and Nippon Professional Baseball negotiators under the new posting system -- a drastic reduction from what Rakuten was expected to receive under the old arrangement -- is giving club ownership considerable pause.

The 800MM yen ($7.7MM) offer would double Tanaka's current salary and make him the highest-paid pitcher in NPB history. However, it's much less than what he was likely to get from an MLB club. One GM recently told Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com that Tanaka was certain to receive a deal worth more than $100MM if posted. The hurler nevertheless appears ready to accept whatever decision Rakuten comes to. "If the team tells me, 'We're not going to post you. Please stay,' the professional thing to do is give it your all and get back to pitching," Tanaka told reporters this week. "I'm ready to do that."

[757690]

If Tanaka isn't posted, it could mean Choo to the Rangers, as they might have been holding back money to spend on Tanaka. If he's not available, that would mean more flexibility for them to sign Choo.

[bounty37h]

http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/

Rakuten Planning Record Offer For Tanaka

By Aaron Steen [December 19 at 7:15am CST]

The Rakuten Golden Eagles appear to be settling on not posting Masahiro Tanaka and plan to offer him a contract with a record annual salary of 800MM yen, or around $7.7MM, Sports Hochi reports. Tanaka said in a press conference this week that he had communicated his desire to pitch in the U.S. in 2014 to Rakuten. However, it appears that the maximum $20MM posting fee agreed to by MLB and Nippon Professional Baseball negotiators under the new posting system -- a drastic reduction from what Rakuten was expected to receive under the old arrangement -- is giving club ownership considerable pause.

The 800MM yen ($7.7MM) offer would double Tanaka's current salary and make him the highest-paid pitcher in NPB history. However, it's much less than what he was likely to get from an MLB club. One GM recently told Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com that Tanaka was certain to receive a deal worth more than $100MM if posted. The hurler nevertheless appears ready to accept whatever decision Rakuten comes to. "If the team tells me, 'We're not going to post you. Please stay,' the professional thing to do is give it your all and get back to pitching," Tanaka told reporters this week. "I'm ready to do that."

I hear Tanaka doesn't play like he has any wabbles

[Gallen5862]

http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/

Cubs Sign Tsuyoshi Wada

By Steve Adams [December 19 at 12:54pm CST]

The Cubs have signed Tsuyoshi Wada to a minor league deal with an invitation to Major League Spring Training, the team announced. Wada, who is represented by Octagon, is viewed by the Cubs as a starter, tweets Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune.

Wada, 32, posted a 2.76 ERA with a 60-to-22 K/BB ratio over his final 78 1/3 innings for the Orioles' Triple-A affiliate in 2013 as he worked his way back from 2012 Tommy John surgery. Though he inked a two-year, $8.15MM contract with the O's prior to the 2012 campaign, Wada's injury prevented him from ever pitching in Baltimore.

The Cubs have plenty of starting pitching depth with Jeff Samardzija, Travis Wood, Edwin Jackson, Jake Arrieta, Carlos Villanueva, Justin Grimm, Chris Rusin and Arodys Vizcaino all in the system, so Wada will have to be impressive in order to earn a spot.

[Kc61]

XPaul reportedly signed minor league deal with Orioles.

[Gallen5862]

http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/

Orioles To Sign Xavier Paul

By Steve Adams [December 19 at 1:31pm CST]

The Orioles have signed outfielder Xavier Paul to a minor league contract with an invite to big league camp in Spring Training, according to Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet. The Paragon Sports International client was non-tendered by the Reds on Dec. 2 this year. He had been projected to earn $1MM via arbitration, per MLBTR's Matt Swartz.

[Kc61]

http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/

Orioles To Sign Xavier Paul

By Steve Adams [December 19 at 1:31pm CST]

The Orioles have signed outfielder Xavier Paul to a minor league contract with an invite to big league camp in Spring Training, according to Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet. The Paragon Sports International client was non-tendered by the Reds on Dec. 2 this year. He had been projected to earn $1MM via arbitration, per MLBTR's Matt Swartz.

Good pick up for the Orioles. Paul had a .339 OBP, one of the highest on the Reds last year. If Choo leaves also, not sure how they pick up all the OBP the team has lost.

I guess Schumaker's .332 OBP (with a .332 SLG) helps somewhat.

Eric Chavez might have been a decent pickup, but DBacks just signed him.

[Gallen5862]

http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/

Giants, KIA Tigers Close To Brett Pill Deal

By Mark Polishuk [December 19 at 7:03pm CST]

The Giants have a deal in place with the Korean Baseball Organization's KIA Tigers to sell Brett Pill to the Gwangju-based club, with just financial details left to be finalized, CSNBayArea.com's Andrew Baggarly reports. Pill is negotiating with KIA Tigers about a new contract, though the deal will fall through if Pill and the Tigers can't come to terms.

The Giants are expected to receive around $500K in the sale, Baggarly notes, which is roughly twice as much as teams usually receive in such transactions. Earlier today, John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle tweeted that the Giants were asking for as much as $1MM for Pill's rights and multiple teams in Korea and Japan were interested.

[Gallen5862]

Should the Reds try to buy Brett Pill from the Giants?

[mdccclxix]

Giants Designate Eric Surkamp For Assignment
By Steve Adams [December 20 at 8:22am CST]
The Giants have designated left-hander Eric Surkamp for assignment, according to the team's transactions page. The move was likely made to clear a roster spot for the recently signed Mike Morse.

The 26-year-old Surkamp made one start for the Giants in 2013, yielding an unsightly seven runs in 2 2/3 innings of work. His work in the minor league was excellent, however, as he pitched to a 2.80 ERA with 7.4 K/9 and 2.4 BB/9 in 86 1/3 innings. Surkamp split the season between Double-A and Triple-A as he recovered from 2012 Tommy John surgery, spending the bulk of his time in Triple-A Fresno.

In his minor league career, Surkamp has a 2.84 ERA with 10.0 K/9 and 2.5 BB/9 in 484 2/3 innings. The former sixth-round pick made his big league debut for the Giants in 2011 and ranked among Baseball America's Top 30 Giants prospects from 2010-13.

I think Surkamp is a Moeller grad. Maybe he's available?

[RedEye]

Eric Surkamp? Brett Pill?

Good grief. Things are really getting desperate around here.

Help us, Uncle Walt. You're our only hope!