Making Room for the New Guys?

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The Twins have outrighted infielder Chris Basak to Triple-A Rochester, which could be the first solid indication that a trade is nearing completion.

The move reduces Minnesota’s roster to 38, which allows the Twins to absorb two more players – room they will need if they complete a 3-for-1 trade involving Johan Santana.

At any rate, the timing of the move is sure to churn up the rumor mill again. The Red Sox and Twins have been meeting this afternoon, according to several reports from Boston. So the weeklong trade talks may be nearing a resolution.

Basak, by the way, is the infielder the Twins claimed off waivers from the Yankees in August, when call-ups of Brian Buscher and Tommy Watkins left Rochester short of experienced infielders.

UPDATE: Peter Gammons is reporting for ESPN that the Red Sox have added another player to their package, Ryan Kalish, an outfielder from New Jersey who will turn 20 next spring. Kalish hit .368 in 23 games at Class A Lowell last season, but a wrist injury cut his season short. Presumably the addition of Kalish means the Sox are standing by their stance that they will not part with both left-hander Jon Lester and centerfielder Jacoby Ellsbury.

ESPN also reports that the Angels have contacted the Twins, but there is no indication that they made any progress. And the Newark Star-Ledger is reporting that the Yankees have dropped out for good.

-- Phil Miller

More Talks Coming

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – According to Peter Gammons, who is well connected in Boston’s front office, the Red Sox and Twins plan an afternoon meeting to continue their discussions. So there could be some news later today.

If Boston remains adamant about not including both Lester and Ellsbury in the same deal, I just heard speculation that Bill Smith might try adding a prospect of his own to the deal, in hopes of making the trade more palatable. If that’s the case, this could be another all-nighter.

-- Phil Miller

Driving a Hard Bargain

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The story making the rounds here is that when the Twins asked for Ian Kennedy from the Yankees, in addition to Phil Hughes and Melky Cabrera, the Yankees said no. So the Twins substituted two high-ceiling minor-league prospects in Kennedy's place. The Yankees may have agreed to one, but not two, and that’s when the talks died.

Now, according to SI.com, the Red Sox believe they are close to a deal, and are making an “improved” offer for Johan Santana. The Twins asked that Boston present its best deal that revolves around left-handed pitcher Jon Lester. We’ll see what the offer turns out to be. The feeling in the press room is that if Boston relents in its refusal to package Jacoby Ellsbury and Lester, a deal will be done pretty quick.

Well, “pretty quick” is a relative term. Once the teams reach an understanding, the Red Sox would have to negotiate a contract with Santana. But his demands are pretty well known, so the Sox must have already determined that they can meet an asking price of around $24 million.

-- Phil Miller

Watching and Waiting

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The anticipation here is pretty amazing. Everyone is waiting for word that a Johan Santana deal has been struck with the Red Sox, but no hints have come from the Twins that anything is happening yet. Since the talks went so late on Monday – the understanding as we packed up in the press room after 1 a.m. last night was that talks were still going on – you have to wonder, when do these guys sleep?
It seems a given that the Red Sox are the only team in the talks now, given that Hank Steinbrenner has publicly announced his inability to reach a deal with the Twins. So the Twins will have to decide which combo they like better – Jon Lester and Coco Crisp, or Jacoby Ellsbury and a lesser pitcher. A scout I talked to yesterday said the player that most impressed him, of those being offered by Boston and New York, was Philip Hughes, by far. But he agreed that Ellsbury is a great fit for Minnesota, the sort of leadoff hitter Ron Gardenhire treasures.
It feels like something will happen today, but I wonder how long this can go on. As I left the press room last night, a national writer joked that Tuesday would be Boston’s day and that the Yankees would rush back in Tuesday night with another pitch. And the teams would take turns like that all week. After the siege of the past week, I can’t say it’s far-fetched.
-- Phil Miller

A chat with Coco Crisp's agent

Just talked with Coco Crisp's agent, Steve Comte. He acknowledged the Twins and Red Sox have talked about Crisp.

"Needless to say, Covelli's name has been mentioned in numerous scenarios, a couple of which are with Minnesota," he said. (Comte always uses Crisp's real first name, Covelli.)

"A couple of which" likely means the Twins have approached the Red Sox about a trade for Crisp that wouldn't be part of a deal for Johan Santana and about a trade that does involve Santana.

Also talked with Twins pitching coach Rick Anderson today about his 2008 rotation. Asked if he has any reason to believe Santana will be with the Twins come spring training, Anderson said, "No."

Look for more on Minnesota's pitchers in tomorrow's Pioneer Press.

Phil Miller will be in Nashville starting Sunday night for the winter meetings, so look for blog updates throughout next week from him.

-- Kelsie Smith

Twins acquire Craig Monroe

The Minnesota Twins announced today that they have acquired outfielder Craig Monroe from the Chicago Cubs for a player to be named later.

In August, the Tigers designated Monroe for assignment during a disappointing season and after he had been replaced by Marcus Thames in left field. Nearly one week later, Detroit traded Monroe to the Cubs for a player to be named.

Look for more on this in tomorrow's Pioneer Press.

Monroe's stats from the Twins press release ...

Monroe, 30, batted .219 (86-for-392) with 23 doubles, 12 home runs and 59 rbi in 122 games last season (99 with Detroit and 23 with Chicago). He was traded from the Tigers to the Cubs on August 22, 2007. In 2006, he batted .255 (138-for-541) with 35 doubles, two triples, 28 home runs and 92 rbi for the Tigers.

The 6-foot-1, 205-pounder has a career batting average of .256 (628-for-2499) with 135 doubles, nine triples, 104 home runs and 388 rbi in 722 games.

Santana and Hunter win Gold Gloves

Twins pitcher Johan Santana and center fielder Torii Hunter have been selected as Rawlings Gold Glove winners for the 2007 season. It's Hunter's seventh Gold Glove in as many years (and puts him ahead of Kirby Puckett's six Gold Gloves) and Santana's first.

Look for more in Wednesday's Pioneer Press. For now, here's some information from the Twins press release ...

Hunter, 32, batted .287 (172-600) with 45 doubles, one triple, 28 home runs, 107 rbi and 18 stolen bases in 160 games in 2007 for the Twins. Hunter led the club in games, at-bats, runs, hits and doubles, and was second in home runs, rbi and stolen bases.

He had a .995 (2 E, 394 TC) fielding percentage with five outfield assists last season and has a career fielding percentage of .991 (28 E, 3171 TC) with 72 outfield assists. Hunter becomes just the second Twin to be at least a seven-time winner (Jim Kaat, 11) and the first since Kaat (1962-72) to win the award in seven consecutive seasons. It also marks the 14th time the award has been given to a Twins outfielder.

Santana, 28, was 15-13, 3.33 (219.0 ip, 81 er) in 33 starts, with 52 walks and 235 strikeouts for the Twins in 2007. He had a 1.000 (0 E, 40 TC) fielding percentage last season, and has a career fielding percentage of .932 (15 E, 221 TC). Santana’s four pickoffs were tied for the second most in the American League last season. He becomes just the second pitcher in club history to win the award and the first since Jim Kaat in 1972.