Joba Chamberlain to open season in the bullpen

Joel Sherman of the New York Post reports, the Yankees say young right-hander Joba Chamberlain will work up to being a starter by starting the 2008 season in the bullpen.

With Joba only being 22 years of age, there's a higher risk of damage to his arm if he pitches a lot more than his 112.1 IP in 2007. The Yankees are counting on the rotation of Chien-Ming Wang, Andy Pettitte, Mike Mussina, Phil Hughes and Ian Kennedy to stay healthy before sliding Joba into the mix, plus, he's an almost untouchable setup man to Mariano Rivera.

Livan signs with Twins

The Minnesota Twins and right-hander Livan Hernandez have agreed on a 1-year $5M contract on Tuesday. It will include an additional $2M in incentives.

Last season with the NL West Champion Diamondbacks, he was 11-11 with a 4.93 ERA in 33 starts.

Fred Inglis of Fox 2 in Oakland

Fred Inglis, a 2-time Emmy Award winning reporter (1996, 2007), from Fox 2 in Oakland was good enough to give me a couple minutes on the Oakland A's.


Baseball-Rumors: A lot of fans have been scratching their heads about the A's signing Emil Brown, especially with them already having Travis Buck, Ryan Sweeney and Chris Denorfia. Did they bring in Emil to give one of the other 3 a challenge or are they serious about him starting?

Fred Inglis: Emil Brown is expected to bat against only left handed hitters. Check his numbers, he is terrible against RHP. He will not remind you of Jay Payton or Shannon Stewart, that’s for sure. He is making over $3 million so he will get a good look, but you’re right, there are several candidates who will get a chance to play. He does have more MLB experience than many of the other guys, like Ryan and Chris, but don’t be surprised if he doesn’t stay on the team all season.


Baseball-Rumors: With Hudson, Zito and now Haren gone, is it just a matter of time before Joe Blanton is traded?

Fred Inglis: It sounds more and more like Blanton is headed elsewhere ( Dodgers?). It may bring in someone for that outfield position that Brown is vying for. I talked to Billy Beane two weeks ago and he admitted the team we see now may not be the team that we see opening day. They really have loaded up on relievers lately, Devine, Foulke. You gotta wonder if Street is the guy who gets moved instead of Blanton.


Baseball-Rumors: Jack Cust really came up big for Oakland last season. Was 2007 a fluke or do you expect him to put up good numbers again in 2008?

Fred Inglis: Signing Mike Sweeney today means Cust will only have to face RHP. That should help his batting, but it may also mean he’ll play outfield and scare the hell out of us with his glove. I talked to Cust two weeks ago also, and he says he will take a drug test everyday if they want and you gotta hope getting mentioned in the Mitchell Report doesn’t have a negative effect on the field. He’s a fast ball hitter.. why do they throw fastballs to this guy? He strikes out too much, but they if the A’s keep playing for the 3-run Homer, who else will do that?


Baseball-Rumors: Bubba Crosby has missed a lot of games due to injury. Can he stay healthy next season and, if not, who is the next in line?

Fred Inglis: Bobby Crosby is starcrossed and if he and Rich Harden ever drive in a car together, it seems a crash would be inevitable. I’m not sure if a healthy version of Bobby Crosby is all that big a deal. Marco Scutaro where are you? I know Beane likes Bobby, but with all those injuries dealing him would get nothing in return. It’s going to be do or die season for Bobby. He must get over this or he becomes expendable for a bag of peanuts.


Baseball-Rumors: Who's the one young prospect you see coming up and making an impact for this Oakland team in 2008?

Fred Inglis: Fresh face? I don’t know the new six dozen or so players they picked up in the Haren and Swisher trades. I know my friends in Arizona Fox station say Carlos Gonzalez is a can’t miss prospect. But who knows? Jumping from AA to MLB is a leap for anyone.

I do like the A’s new starting pitcher…. Justin Duchscherer. He’s got more fire and guts than people think and his hip is fine then look for him to do well.

Daric Barton seems ready to make club in Spring and make an impact.

Rockies, Atkins reach agreement on 1-year deal

On Monday, the Colorado Rockies and 3rd baseman Garrett Atkins have agreed to a 1-year contract worth $4,387,500.

Atkins finished the 2007 with a .301 batting average to go along with 25 HR's and 111 RBI's for the National League Champions.

Biggio agrees to personal service contract with 'Stros

Recently retired Craig Biggio has agreed to a 3-year personal service contract from the Houston Astros on Monday.

Biggio will work as a special assistant to GM Ed Wade, helping coach young players as well as assisting the Astros on the business side. He'll split time between the Astros and St. Thomas High School, where he's the assistant baseball coach. His oldest son, Conor, plays for the team.

Dan Miller of Fox 2 in Detroit

Dan Miller of Fox 2 in Detroit, who's also the play-by-play voice of the Detroit Lions, stopped by to talk a little Tigers' baseball.


Baseball-Rumors: Take me back to the Winter Meetings, how did the Tigers get involved in the trade discussions with the Marlins, especially because their name never came up prior to that day. Did they pull the trade last minute?

Dan Miller: According to Dave dombrowski, owner Mike Illitch had heard that Cabrera might be available and told him to look into that. Dombrowski did and found that the Marlins were interested in making a deal. Florida in fact wanted to make the deal bigger by including WIllis in what amounts to a salary dump. The cost was going to be the Tigers top two prospects in Maybin and Miller and then some. The Tigers had mapped out exactly what they thought Florida would ask for and they nailed it, the two top prospects and others. They agreed.

Broken down, its trading two top prospects and some maybes for guys that already had done it at the major league level and two guys that if they stay healthy shuold be productive for a long time.


Baseball-Rumors: How good does a Dontrelle Willis make the Tigers rotation?

Dan Miller: I don't know because I need to see what Willis is that this point. His numbers have been down and his control has been a question. Does a change of scenery and significantly more run support get him back to his old level? We'll have to wait and see. I have questions about their rotation. Verlander is a given, Bonderman has yet to find consistency, Robertson is a number five at this point and Kenny Rogers certainly has age working against him. They could be very good but I don't think it's a given.


Baseball-Rumors: Do you have an update on the Brandon Inge situation? I know the Tigers had asked him to stick around this year because Ivan Rodriguez could depart via free agency after this season which would open up the catching position for Inge. What's the latest?

Dan Miller: Brandon has said that he will go to camp and work as a utility man and a catcher. I believe that would be in his best intrest. He can play the position defensively and offensively his numbers would be good for a catcher. As a third baseman his production and high strike out numbers don't put him anywhere near an elite level.


Baseball-Rumors: Were you surprised the Tigers didn't offer a contract to Chad Durbin?

Dan Miller: A bit, just because I figured he could be another arm to try out in the bullpen.


Baseball-Rumors: What are your expectations for this team going into 2008?

Dan Miller: They should be very very good offensively. They are going to score runs. There is not an easy out in the line-up. However, you have to get the pitching from your starters and relievers. They haven't done much to shore up their pen, although they did bring in a couple guys that they are hopeful can help out.

I'd be less than truthful if I told you that they are guys that I am familiar with. Detoit has to be high on the list of favorites to represent the AL and certainly Schillings situation hurts one of their key competitiors, but this is not a team without questions.

Mike Sweeney signs with Oakland

Jerry Crasnick of ESPN reports, the Oakland A's have signed long time Kansas City Royal Mike Sweeney to a minor league contract on Sunday.

Sweeney had received interest from the San Diego Padres as recently as last week, but the Padres are close to a deal with former DBack Tony Clark.

Padres, Clark close to 1-year deal

2.10.08 9:53pm PST

The Associated Press reports, the San Diego Padres are close to a 1-year $900,000 deal with free-agent Tony Clark.

The deal would bring back a guy who played high school and college ball in San Diego. The Padres always seem to bring back the hometown boys (ex. Brian Giles, Marcus Giles, Adrian Gonzalez, Mark Prior, etc.).

2.7.08 2:51pm PST

According to the San Diego Union Tribune, the San Diego Padres are deep in contract negotiations with Clark.

2.6.08 2:52pm PST

According to ESPN's Buster Olney, the San Diego Padres are in talks with former DBack Tony Clark.

Clark grew up in San Diego County and would be a great addition to the Padre clubhouse, not to mention that right-hander Chris Young wouldn't have to face Clark again. He's 4-9 against Young, all 4 hits were HR's.

Mark Sweeney close to returning to LA

Jerry Crasnick of ESPN reports, the Los Angeles Dodgers are close to an agreement with free agent Mark Sweeney on a 1-year deal to bring back the pinch-hitting specialist back to LA for 2008.

There's no figure on the contract yet, but Sweeney's agent Barry Axelrod said, "It's not a done deal, but we're moving in the right direction.''

Looking Forward to 2008: Florida Marlins

The Florida Marlins will report to Spring Training with 2 familiar faces missing from previous years.

During the Winter Meetings, the Florida Marlins pulled the trigger on a trade that sent left-hander Dontrelle Willis and 3rd baseman Miguel Cabrera to the Detroit Tigers. Willis was the last remaining member from the Marlins World Championship team in 2003. Another missing face from 2007 will be catcher Miguel Olivo, who was signed by the Kansas City Royals during the offseason.

Though the trade has been talked about on Detroit's side because of the players they received in Willis and Cabrera, the players the Marlins received in return aren't too shabby either. Top outfield prospect Cameron Maybin, who was among the players sent to Florida, should make an immediate impact in 2008.

Arrivals:

OF Maybin

LHP Miller

C Rabelo

RHP Eulogio De La Cruz

RHP Dallas Trahern

RHP Burke Badenhop

Departures:

LHP Willis

3B Cabrera

C Miguel Olivo

INF Aaron Boone

RHP Byung-Hyun Kim

Another piece that was sent to the Marlins from Detroit was left-hander Andrew Miller, who should be able to step right into the Marlins' rotation when they open the 2008 season. Joining him in the rotation from 2007 will be right-handers Scott Olson, Sergio Mitre and Ricky Nolasco, but let's not forget about the addition of veteran Mark Hendrickson as well as highly touted left-hander Taylor Tankersley who finished 2007 with a 6-1 record and a 3.99 ERA in 47.1 IP.

On the offensive end of things, this will be one of, if not the youngest team in major league baseball. That's not to say, however, that this team isn't going to surprise people because when you have young talent such as outfielder Cameron Maybin, 2nd baseman Dan Uggla, outfielder Josh Willingham, shortstop Hanley Ramirez and 1st baseman Mike Jacobs, you're going to put up runs. The question becomes, how is this rotation going to do when they're given run support? Will their bullpen be able to hold leads in the 7th, 8th and 9th innings?

Prediction Time:

Yes the offense will put up runs, but they're going to lose a lot more games than they're going to win, especially playing in the same division with the Atlanta Braves and NY Mets.

Marlins - 65-97

Gonzalez officially joins Marlins

Joe Frisaro of MLB.com reports, the Florida Marlins have officially added veteran outfielder Luis Gonzalez to their roster.

Just how bad did they want him? So much so that owner Jeffrey Loria placed a personal phone call to Gonzalez.

The team finalized a 1-year $2M deal with Gonzalez on Friday.

Atlanta Braves express interest in young Padres' prospect Matt Bush

According to Tom Krasovic of the San Diego Union Tribune, Kevin Towers has said the Atlanta Braves have expressed interest in Single-A prospect Matt Bush.

Matt Bush has been the one draft pick the Padres wish they could have back. Scouts had advised the Padres to select Stephen Drew, who was eventually drafted by the Arizona Diamondbacks and helped them win the NL West in 2007.

Yankees way over budget on new stadium

In an article from Karen Matthews of the AP, the Yankees have gone over budget on the construction of the new Yankee Stadium.

The estimated cost was originally $1B, but the total cost is now at $1.3B. Yankees Chief Operating Officer Lonn Trost told media members during a tour of the new ballpark the cost overruns included $150 million in such enhancements as the giant video screen, $138 million in food and beverage costs not included in the original estimate and $50 million from delays due to a lawsuit by community groups that sought to halt construction of the stadium.

Looking Forward to 2008: Detroit Tigers

The Detroit Tigers will report to spring training with a new look and a very different attitude towards the 2008 season.

Just when it looked like the team would stand pat with the players they had, they shocked the baseball world. During the Winter Meetings, the Detroit Tigers made a blockbuster trade with the Florida Marlins for left-hander Dontrelle Willis and 3rd baseman Miguel Cabrera. Not only that, but they also brought in SS Edgar Renteria and OF Jacque Jones.

Arrivals:

3B Miguel Cabrera

RHP Francisco Cruceta

OF Jacque Jones

LHP Dontrelle Willis

Departures:

1B Sean Casey

RHP Chad Durbin

OF Cameron Maybin

RHP Jair Jurrjens

LHP Andrew Miller

Though Willis is coming off a season that wasn't among his best, being in Detroit with a team that is going to put up runs for him, it should give him a lot more confidence to take the ball every 5th day and trust his stuff. Cabrera brings power to an already potent lineup with guys like Ivan Rodriguez, Edgar Renteria, Gary Sheffield, and Magglio Ordonez.

A team that has a front 3 that consists of Justin Verlander, Kenny Rogers and Jeremy Bonderman and you still have to face Willis and Nate Robertson is a rotation that is going to be among the best in the American League and will give a good challenge to defending AL Central Champion Cleveland Indians.

Prediction Time:

The one thing that could keep the Tigers from winning the AL Central is the health of guys like Sheffield and the effectiveness of Dontrelle Willis and Kenny Rogers. The Indians are a good ball club, but with Detroit adding the players they have, it's going to be a fun race to watch.

Tigers - 86-76

Sanchez not expected back in rotation until All-Star break

In an article from Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald, the Florida Marlins may not get young right-hander Anibal Sanchez back into the rotation until, possibly, the All-Star break.

Sanchez underwent surgery in June of 2007 to repair a torn labrum in his pitching shoulder. He's expected to see Dr. James Andrews on Monday to see if he can increase his training regimen. He's been throwing from 90 ft. on an every other day basis, but is taking his rehab slow and steady.

Foulke ends his retirement, signs with A's

Keith Foulke, who everyone thought had retired, apparently isn't ready to call it quits just yet.

The former Red Sox closer signed a 1-year $700,000 deal with the Oakland A's on Friday. "I decided I was not ready to leave baseball," Foulke said. "I started throwing again last November. It didn't take long to figure out I needed to give my knees a year. It was December before I could throw pain-free with my mechanics."

Foulke also received offers from the Arizona Diamondbacks, San Diego Padres and New York Mets.

Bedard to Mariners finally done

Erik Bedard is officially on his way to Seattle to become the newest member of the Seattle Mariners.

After a lengthy delay, the deal was finally done early Friday morning. Baltimore received outfielder Adam Jones, reliever George Sherrill and pitchers Chris Tillman, Tony Butler and Kam Mickolio.

Bedard will be a heck of a 1-2 punch behind ace Felix Hernandez and in front of former Angel Jarrod Washburn and Miguel Batista.

Schilling, Sox argue over surgery

Curt Schilling and the Boston Red Sox don't seem to agree on the course of action for pitcher's ailing right shoulder.

In an article from Rob Bradford of the Boston Herald, the Red Sox even went as far as to threaten to void Schilling's contract if he didn't agree to a program of rest and rehabilitation.

A statement released by the team last night said, “Curt Schilling was examined by Red Sox doctors in January after he reported feeling right shoulder discomfort. Curt has started a program of rest, rehabilitation and shoulder strengthening in an attempt to return to pitching.”

Schilling, as he always seems to do, fired back on his website 38pitches.com saying "I knew in my heart of hearts that the extra time I was giving my arm to rest this winter would in fact be the cure for what I went through the entire 2007 season. I had a strong desire to not have to go through multiple cortisone injections in my shoulder for another year."

Schilling went on to say "There have been disagreements these past few weeks in an effort to provide me with a solution that would allow me to pitch as much as possible during the 2008 season. At no time did I ever consider taking a course of action against the clubs wishes. In the end, regardless of who agreed with whom, I have chosen the clubs course of action and will vigorously pursue any and every option I can to be able to help this team to another World Series title in 2008."

Padres interested in Finley?

According to a report on XX Sports Radio in San Diego, while Steve Finley and his wife were holding a function at their home for California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, Finley received a phone call from Padres' GM Kevin Towers.

It's not known what the actual conversation was about, but maybe the Padres are interested in bringing him in on a minor league deal? They don't exactly have left and right fields determined yet.

Prior to be ready sooner than expected?

According to GM Kevin Towers, Mark Prior is coming along faster than previously thought.

The Padres didn't expect to have Mark Prior until possibly June, but he's now throwing off a mound which means he could be ready as early as May.

Towers spoke at a luncheon at the San Diego Hall of Champions, and when he was asked about Prior's progress he responded: "Todd Hutcheson told me that if he keeps along with the progress that he is having now, that he could be ready for a Minor League rehab assignment when we start our season."

That's good news for the Padres. If Prior is ready to make his rehab assignment at the start of the 2008 season, it could help the team that is typically a slow starter the first month.