Alex Cabrera signs with Japanese league

Alex Cabrera, who was named in the Mitchell Report, probably stemming from his days with the Diamondbacks in 2000, has signed with the Orix of the Japanese League.

Cabrera has spent the last 7 seasons in Japan playing for the Seibu Lions, but will spend 2008 with the Orix Buffaloes, signing a 1-year $2.2M deal.

Alex has a career .306 batting average with 273 homers and 686 RBIs in Japan. Last season, Cabrera hit .295 with 27 HR's and 81 RBI's.

Rays ink DiFelice

The Tampa Bay Rays added depth to their catching corps on Monday, signing veteran backstop Mike DiFelice to a minor league deal with an invite to Spring Training.

DiFelice was actually an original member of the Rays in 1998. He played in 242 games for Tampa Bay from 1998 until he was traded to Arizona in 2001.

Rickey Henderson to highlight 2009 Hall of Fame Ballot

Jack O'Connell of MLB.com has an article out, looking ahead to the 2009 Hall of Fame Ballot.

A name that baseball fans are familiar, that could highlight the balloting is Rickey Henderson. I don't know if there's any doubt that he has a great shot of being elected in his first year of eligibility.

A's, Duchscherer agree to 1-year deal

The Oakland A's avoided arbitration by signing reliever Justin Duchscherer to a 1-year deal on Wednesday.

Duchscherer missed most of last season with a strained right hip, appearing in just 17 games and posting a 3-3 record with a 4.96 ERA.

Mariners, Reds making push for Bedard

According to Ken Rosenthal, the Mariners and Reds are making a push for Orioles' left-hander Erik Bedard.

The Mariners are willing to trade their top prospect, Adam Jones, while the Reds would rather not part with theirs, Jay Bruce.

Phillies sign Werth, avoid arbitration

The Phillies avoided going to arbitration when they, and outfielder Jayson Werth, agreed on a 1-year $1.7M deal according to the Associated Press.

Werth shared time last season with Shane Victorino and is expected to share time next season with newly acquired Geoff Jenkins while Victorino will replace Aaron Rowand in center field.

Giles, Rockies reach tentative agreement

According to Tom Singer of MLB.com, the Colorado Rockies have reached a tentative agreement, pending a physical, with 2nd baseman Marcus Giles.

He's expected to be in Denver sometime next week to complete his physical.

I'm not sure of this move for the Rockies. I think they would have been much better off filling the position internally and they had the candidates to do so. Giles struggled mightily, with the Padres, after the first month of the season. After which, he was benched in favor of recently departed Padre Geoff Blum.

Maybe Giles did succumb to the Petco Park curse it seems to put on hitters, but after hitting .262 in 2006 with the Braves and .229 with the Padres last season, I don't see anything to be excited about.

The Goose is good for the Hall of Fame

He has been waiting a long time for this day, but it has finally come. Goose Gossage was elected to the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame today, getting 85.8% of the vote (466 votes).

Jim Rice finished with 392 votes (72.2%), just 16 votes shy of also being elected. Also falling short were Andre Dawson (358), Bert Blyleven (336) and a guy I was hoping would make the cut this time around, Lee Smith (235).

Sanchez signs 1-year deal with Mets

Duaner Sanchez had his 2006 season cut short after a Taxi accident and missed the entire 2007 season.

According to Anthony DiComo of MLB.com, the Mets think Sanchez can still help them out of the bullpen, signing the right-hander to a 1-year $850,000 contract on Monday.

As far as I'm concerned, Sanchez was one of the best relievers out of the bullpen in 2006. If he can make a comeback and be as dominant as he was when he season was ended, this is going to be a great deal for the Mets.

Orioles could re-sign Corey Patterson

According to Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun, the Baltimore Orioles have renewed their interest in Corey Patterson.

Orioles' president, Andy McPhail, told the Sun "I have had discussions with his representative, Scott Boras, and they are familiar with our interest." "We have agreed we will touch base a little later."

Clemens faces the media

For the first time since being accused of taking steroids, Roger Clemens faced the media this afternoon. He surprised everyone by playing a 17 minute, taped, phone conversation between himself and former training Brian McNamee.

After the taped conversation, Clemens took questions from the media, but cut the press conference short after being asked about the Hall of Fame, saying "Do you think I played my career because I'm worried about the damn Hall of Fame?" "You keep your vote. I don't need the Hall of Fame to justify that I put my butt on the line and I worked my tail off, and I defy anybody to say I did it by cheating or taking any shortcuts, OK?"

Mike Antonellis, Play-by-Play, Portland Sea Dogs

Mike Antonellis is the radio play-by-play voice for the Portland Sea Dogs, the AA affiliate of the World Champion Boston Red Sox.


Baseball-Rumors: Got to start here, Mike. Memorial Day 2007, you receive a phone call from the Red Sox asking you to be a part of a TV broadcast for the Portland Sea Dogs for NESN. What was that like and how much different is it from radio?

Mike Antonellis: The Red Sox actually called our office with the idea, saying they wanted to change this up a little bit and give the fans a chance to see the Sea Dogs play. Chris Cameron, our Media Relations Director actually suggested me, so, yeah it was a big day for me for sure.

It worked out really well, it was a great time. The biggest change is, as far as radio goes, in the opening moments of the game, you're describing the scene so you're constantly talking. In TV, it's very quiet. I was doing color of the game, there's a big mis-conception that you can't be as creative on TV than you can in radio, but I found out you actually paint a big picture with every change in camera shots. I really enjoyed the live part of it all.


Baseball-Rumors: The pitcher on the mound for that game, Clay Buchholz, in just his 2nd or 3rd start Major League start, goes out and throws a no-hitter. Did you get to see it as it happened and what was your reaction?

Mike Antonellis: I didn't get to see the entire game until the following morning when I got to sit down and watch the replay of the game. I'm not surprised at all because of his stuff. He's got 4 pitches that he has great command of, but that curve ball is the most devastating pitch, it's paralyzing, it really is.

My opinion, Clay is the best pitcher I've seen come through here in my 11 years of doing this. He's far and away better than anyone I've ever seen.

You really root for players like him because you get to know them as they come up through the system.

Baseball-Rumors: July 12th, 2006, a young player by the name of Jacoby Ellsbury steps on the scene. How much had you known about him and did you expect him to become the player he has?

Mike Antonellis: In this area, you know the players coming up before they do, you know a little about them already, so yes I knew of him before he came up.

Jacoby was drafted right around the time of Johnny Damon's departure from the Red Sox. When he was drafted out of college, a lot of scouts said he could play the outfield in the big leagues right now. He's a confident kid, but not so much that he's cocky. The one thing I like so much about Ellsbury is, he's got great speed, game changing speed.


Baseball-Rumors: How much fun do you have watching these young players coming up, not necessarily the aforementioned Buchholz and Ellsbury, but all of them?

Mike Antonellis: It's a lot of fun. I grew up in an area where noone liked minor league baseball, but now this is a big deal.

The first player to come through the Sox system, Jonathan Papelbon, was really the first young player to make an impact with Boston and show teams that this is what a good farm system can do for your organization.


Baseball-Rumors: If there are 1 or 2 players that you would want Red Sox fans to keep their eye on or watch for, who are those players and why?

Mike Antonellis: As far as a pitcher goes, I'd say Justin Masterson. He's got a great sinker, he has natural sink on that pitch and he can throw it anywhere from 85-95 MPH.

The other player would be Bubba Bell, he put up rediculous numbers in the California League. There was a lot of pressure on him when he was called up, but he held himself really well.


Baseball-Rumors: Do you see both players being called up next season or do you expect them to be back with Portland?

Mike Antonellis: I think both will be back in Portland in 2008. The Red Sox organization isn't into rushing players up, they take their time, especially with pitchers.

Rich Burk, Play-by-Play for AAA Portland Beavers

When I first started doing interviews, I thought I would keep it to just the big leagues, but with so many fans wanting to know about up and coming prospects, I thought I should expand to include the minor leagues as well.

With that, I got to speak with Rich Burk who is the Play-by-Play voice of the Portland Beavers. They are the AAA affiliate of the San Diego Padres.


Baseball-Rumors: Let's start with Yordany Ramirez, a young center fielder that I thought showed a lot of promise. Are you surprised the Padres didn't retain him?

Rich Burk: Yes and no. No, because I know how big of a concern a player's OBP is in the Padres Organization. Yes, because Ramirez was a run saver, he was a phenomenal center fielder. He took good routes to the ball, got great jumps on fly balls. Rick Renteria, Portland's manager last season (premoted to Padres 1st base coach for 2008) told me "he's the best center fielder I've ever seen, off the charts." Had I not seen Yordany for myself, I wouldn't have believed him.

Yordany came straight up from A-Ball, he didn't play AA. From the first day, Renteria told him "you're my guy," so I think that relaxed Ramirez and allowed him to just go out and play the game.


Baseball-Rumors: There's been a lot of talk about Josh Geer and Will Startup, 2 young pitchers that could challenge for a spot with the Padres next season. How good are both of these players and do they have a shot at making the team out of Spring Training?

Rich Burk: I don't know much about Josh Geer, he pitched for us once and that was on a road trip that I wasn't able to attend.

As far as Startup, he really didn't pitch that well for us last season. Is it possible, yes, he's a left hander that could put together a few good weeks in Arizona and make the squad. Would I be suprised if he made the team, yes. I fully expect him to be with Portland in 2008.


Baseball-Rumors: Tim Stauffer, a young pitcher that a lot of Padre fans have been really down on. Is it a mental thing with him, confidence or is there something else to it?

Rich Burk: I think it's a confidence thing. Stauffer is a great kid and, last season, he really showed flashes of what he had in 2006, he showed a lot of promise. When he got called up last season, we thought that was the last we were going to see of him, that he would finally be there for good, but then he just got lit up in his start in Houston. We were really disappointed for him. To us, it was like a punch in the gut, we really wanted him to do well.

When he was sent back down after that, I asked him what happened and he just shook his head, he didn't know.


Baseball-Rumors: Another prospect that Padres fans are talking about is Kyle Blanks. How much do you know about him and have you heard if he'll make the jump to Portland this year?

Rich Burk: I don't know much about Blanks, just what I've heard from players that have come up from Lake Elsinore (LeBlanc, Ramos) and they said he can really crush the ball.

As far as if I expect him in Portland this year, I don't know. We usually won't know until sometime in March.


Baseball-Rumors: How about Vincent Sinisi, what kind of player is he?

Rich Burk: Vincent is a great kid, hard nosed player, wants to play every day. He's someone that you want at the plate in a big situation.

He's downside is, he's had a hard time staying healthy so I think that may keep in him Portland next season. He has to get, at least, 1 fully healthy season under his belt before he'll get a serious look.


Baseball-Rumors: If there are 1 or 2 players you can pick and say "keep your eye on these players", who would those players be and why?

Rich Burk: If I could pick one, I would say Ceasar Carillo. He did undergo Tommy John Surgery back in June of 2007, I believe it was, so I think we may see him start pitching again in June maybe as late as July or August.

Another player I would keep my eye on is Jared Wells. He's got great stuff. Now that he's been transitioned into a reliever, he can harness his confidence, go out for 1 inning and just let loose. I think he's got a great future as a reliever and the position fits him really well. He's got a very promising changeup, noone expects that from a fastball/slider pitcher so that's going to be a devistating pitch for him.

Jenifer Longosch of MLB.com

This afternoon I had the privilege to talk to Jenifer Longosch, she covers the Pittsburgh Pirates for MLB.com.


Baseball-Rumors: The Pirates were known to have interest in Padres' catcher Michael Barrett. Is there still interest in him and have they talked to the Padres about his availability?

Jenifer Longosch: The Pirates do not have interest in him at this point. They wanted to add Barrett as a 3rd catcher to allow them to move Doumit to left field. They are still looking to add a 3rd catcher, but Barrett won't be that guy.

The Pirates have no catching depth in their minor leagues, so that's really hurting them right now.


Baseball-Rumors: The Pirates also showed interest in Octavio Dotel and Shawn Chacon, where are those talks with those 2 players?

Jenifer Longosch: They're not talking with Dotel, but they are having ongoing talks with Chacon. Problem is, Chacon wants a multi-year deal but the Pirates aren't willing to give him that. Knowing that, I doubt Chacon is with this team in 2008.


Baseball-Rumors: There were a lot of trade talks surrounding Xavier Nady. Is there interest in him from other teams or do you expect him to be with the Pirates in 2008?

Jenifer Longosch: They'll still entertain offers for him, but the Pirates are asking WAY too much for him at this point, which is probably why a deal hasn't been done. San Diego had talked to them about Nady, but that's no longer going to happen.


Baseball-Rumors: In the deal with San Diego, who were the Pirates asking in return?

Jenifer Longosch: From what I remember, the Pirates wanted Chase Headley and a bullpen guy in exchange for Nady and probably McLouth.

Headley is as close to untouchable as they come in the Padres system, so that was dead pretty quickly.


Baseball-Rumors: Adam LaRoche really struggled out of the gate last season, was it a mental issue or was there an injury concern?

Jenifer Longosch: It was a mental thing with LaRoche, he admitted as much towards the middle of the season saying it really put a lot of pressure on him. When Adam signed with Pittsburgh, management was telling fans that he was going to be the savior of the team and putting that kind of pressure weighed pretty heavily on him.

LaRoche has always been a slow starter, even in his days with Atlanta, he's not the kind of player that can carry a team.

As far as an injury concern, he did have some irritation in his left knee during the season. They did look at the option of surgery this offseason but have decided against it.


Baseball-Rumors: Nate McClouth and Nyjer Morgan will both compete for the CF job during Spring Training. Are the Pirates leaning towards one or the other?

Jenifer Longosch: I wouldn't say they're leaning towards either player, they'll see how both guys do in Spring Training then decide who will be the starter. I know when Jim Tracy was here, he favored Morgan.


Baseball-Rumors: Why are the Pirates trying so hard to deal Jason Bay?

Jenifer Longosch: At this point, I'm not really sure. Maybe they think they won't be able to sign him long term. I know they want to rebuild their farm system, start fresh.


Baseball-Rumors: The trade talks between the Pirates and Indians that included Bay, at what point did those talks break down?

Jenifer Longosch: The deal broke down at the Winter Meetings. The Indians say the deal was never close while the Pirates say the deal was close but that the Indians pulled out, so I'm not sure what to believe.


Baseball-Rumors: The Pirates tried to deal Matt Morris at the trade deadline last season, are they still open to trading him?

Jenifer Longosch: They would still like to deal Morris, but noone wants to pickup what's left on his contract (1-year $9.5M w/ $9M club option or $1M buyout).

I think you'll see Morris with the Pirates until the trading deadline comes back around. At that point, I think the Pirates will be willing to cover some of his remaining salary to make the deal.


Baseball-Rumors: If there was 1 prospect that Pirate fans should look forward to, who is that player and what do you like about him?

Jenifer Longosch: The one I would look forward to is Andrew McCutchen. He's a 21-year-old center fielder. He's got power, speed, he's defensively sound and is a 5-tool player.

I don't think you'll see him with the team in 2008, unless he's called up when rosters expand in September, otherwise I expect to see him to start the 2009 season.


Writer's Note: If you haven't seen the writeup on McCutchen, it's pretty impressive. Not only is he a rising star in baseball, but he was ranked among the top 200 football players in the state of Florida...AS A SOPHOMORE!

He was ranked 3rd best 5-tool talent among high school players prior to the 2005 draft.

Mariners need another starter

The Boston Globe has a tidbit on the Seattle Mariners, who could be in the market for another starting pitcher.

The Mariners could look to trade setup man Brandon Morrow or catching prospect Jeff Clement, who is blocked by starter Kenji Johjima and backup Jamie Burke, to get that done.

Inge to stay in Detroit?

According to Lynn Henning of the Detroit News, 3rd baseman Brandon Inge could remain in Detroit for the 2008 season, even though he's been displaced by newly acquired Miguel Cabrera.

Even though Inge has asked to be traded, Tigers' GM Dave Dombrowki has said that he'll wait for the appropriate trade to move him.

One team that could still be looking for a 3rd baseman are the Los Angeles Angels. The Angels seem content to have Chone Figgins start at the hot corner, but he's not exactly known as the best defensive 3rd baseman. The one thing that could hold up trading Inge, the Tigers signed an extension with him prior to the 2007 season, so he's still owed $19.1M through 2010.

LA Times, Angels Q&A

For those of you baseball fans who have watched some of the worst years and best years your team has seen, you know there are always fans that are never happy with what the front office has done.

Well, if this is you, Mike DiGiovanna of the LA Times posted his Angels Q&A yesterday. The first fan comment on there is worth the read for the very last sentence....

Instant Replay for baseball to be discussed

Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News had an article out back in November, and I'm just getting a chance to read it now.

The article is about Major League Baseball adopting Instant Replay. I've gone back and forth with this idea for awhile now. On one hand, if it's used ONLY on disputed home run calls, then I don't think it's such a bad thing, but how many of those do we see per game, not even an average of 1?

The bad side of adopting this idea is, where does it stop? Soon, managers want instant replays on close plays at home, 1st, stolen bases, did he tag up..where does it end at that point? Once you institute it, there are going to be new conversations at the end of each season on what else you can use it for. Now, I love the game of baseball, I attend 8-12 San Diego Padre games a year, but imagine how much longer games could be with Instant Replay added?

Yeah, my point exactly.

Rangers avoid arbitration with Broussard

Something I forgot to post yesterday, the Texas Rangers avoided arbitration with Ben Broussard by signing him to a 1-year $3.85M deal on Saturday according to T.R. Sullivan of MLB.com.

Broussard, expected to be the starting 1st baseman, was acquired by the Rangers from Seattle on December 12th.

Clemens, McNamee have hour long phone conversation

According to Alyson Footer of MLB.com, Roger Clemens and former trainer, and long time friend, Brian McNamee had an hour long phone conversation on Friday. A conversation that was described as "emotional" by those who know about it.

The conversation comes on the heals of Clemens' national television interview with Mike Wallace of CBS' 60 Minutes on Sunday evening.