Craig Monroe apparently decided the Twins' offer -- by rule, it couldn't go below roughly $3.8 million -- was more than he would receive as a free agent. So Monroe signed a one-year contract with Minnesota on Tuesday, one day before the Twins would likely have cut him loose had he refused.
Monroe, acquired last month from the Cubs for a player to be named (likely a low-grade prospect), adds depth to the Twins' outfield and gives them a right-handed hitter who can potentially get some at-bats at designated hitter.
Monroe is a six-year veteran who suffered a dreadful year last season, hitting just .212 overall. The Tigers dumped him in August to Chicago, and things didn't get much better there. But he's a lifetime .256 hitter who has hit 18 or more home runs in four different seasons. And remember, even his down-year total of 12 homers last season would have ranked fourth on the Twins.
-- Phil Miller
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
Thursday, December 6, 2007
Winding Down
NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- The Opryland Hotel is quickly turning into a ghost town. Bill Smith and most of the Twins’ staff is staying until Friday, but there might be only one or two other teams still here.
Smith just spoke about his week, and the gathering with reporters could best be described as “drowsy.” Everybody is exhausted after four straight 18-hour days.
Smith didn’t sound disappointed, exactly, that no transactions had been completed this week, but I think he was a little surprised that all the momentum from last weekend dissipated so quickly. The new GM said this week was helpful, that it's much easier to talk in person than on the phone or via email, but that didn't change the outcome. He also said progress was made on more than just the Johan Santana negotiations.
His phone is still on, he said, so things could change. But it's clear there isn't much talking going on now. If something is going to happen on the Santana front, it doesn’t look like it’ll be this week.
-- Phil Miller
Smith just spoke about his week, and the gathering with reporters could best be described as “drowsy.” Everybody is exhausted after four straight 18-hour days.
Smith didn’t sound disappointed, exactly, that no transactions had been completed this week, but I think he was a little surprised that all the momentum from last weekend dissipated so quickly. The new GM said this week was helpful, that it's much easier to talk in person than on the phone or via email, but that didn't change the outcome. He also said progress was made on more than just the Johan Santana negotiations.
His phone is still on, he said, so things could change. But it's clear there isn't much talking going on now. If something is going to happen on the Santana front, it doesn’t look like it’ll be this week.
-- Phil Miller
Rule 5: Minus 6
NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Right from the start, the Rule 5 draft was an unusual one for the Twins. Tampa Bay selected Rochester pitcher Tim Lahey with the first pick, and the scavenging of Minnesota’s organization had begun.
By the time the draft -- actually drafts, since Triple-A and Double-A drafts are held immediately after the major-league portion -- ended a half-hour later, the Twins had lost six players out of their system, more than any other team, while adding nobody. Minnesota ended up with the 11th pick (teams had to have fewer than 40 players on their major-league roster), but when the player they had intended to select was taken ahead of them, the Twins ended up being the first team to pass.
But teams couldn’t pass up the Twins’ eligible players. After Lahey, who went 8-4 with 13 saves in Class AA New Britain’s bullpen before being called up to Rochester in August, was taken by the Rays (and immediatelyl sold to the Cubs), the Twins watched as Seattle chose pitcher R.A. Dickey and Washington took outfielder Garrett Guzman. Dickey, a veteran knuckleballer who was Pacific Coast League pitcher of the year last season for Nashville, had just been signed by the Twins last week. Guzman batted .314 for New Britain.
In the Triple-A phase, the first two players picked were both Twins prospects, outfielder Rashad Eldridge by Tampa Bay and right-handed pitcher Joshua Hill by Pittsburgh. Both played for New Britain in 2007. In the Double-A phase, Fort Myers right-hander Jonathan Martinez was selected by Baltimore. The Twins passed again in both rounds.
“It’s a glass-half-full sort of thing,” said Twins scouting director Mike Radcliff. “We’re disappointed to lose players we’ve invested in, but it means we have talent in our organization.”
Six-year veterans who are not on major-league rosters are eligible to be drafted.
In other news -- well, there's no news, not on Johan Santana's status. But it's early.
-- Phil Miller
By the time the draft -- actually drafts, since Triple-A and Double-A drafts are held immediately after the major-league portion -- ended a half-hour later, the Twins had lost six players out of their system, more than any other team, while adding nobody. Minnesota ended up with the 11th pick (teams had to have fewer than 40 players on their major-league roster), but when the player they had intended to select was taken ahead of them, the Twins ended up being the first team to pass.
But teams couldn’t pass up the Twins’ eligible players. After Lahey, who went 8-4 with 13 saves in Class AA New Britain’s bullpen before being called up to Rochester in August, was taken by the Rays (and immediatelyl sold to the Cubs), the Twins watched as Seattle chose pitcher R.A. Dickey and Washington took outfielder Garrett Guzman. Dickey, a veteran knuckleballer who was Pacific Coast League pitcher of the year last season for Nashville, had just been signed by the Twins last week. Guzman batted .314 for New Britain.
In the Triple-A phase, the first two players picked were both Twins prospects, outfielder Rashad Eldridge by Tampa Bay and right-handed pitcher Joshua Hill by Pittsburgh. Both played for New Britain in 2007. In the Double-A phase, Fort Myers right-hander Jonathan Martinez was selected by Baltimore. The Twins passed again in both rounds.
“It’s a glass-half-full sort of thing,” said Twins scouting director Mike Radcliff. “We’re disappointed to lose players we’ve invested in, but it means we have talent in our organization.”
Six-year veterans who are not on major-league rosters are eligible to be drafted.
In other news -- well, there's no news, not on Johan Santana's status. But it's early.
-- Phil Miller
Wednesday, December 5, 2007
Biding Their Time
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – After talking to Bill Smith, I’m more convinced than ever that Johan Santana will be traded next week, or next month, but not today or tomorrow. It just appears he believes that competition will pick up again at some point, and the offers will improve.
Here’s one way it might happen: It’s now being reported by several publications that the Mets are interested again. Anything that rachets up the pressure on a certain owner’s son in New York – say, the prospect of the “other” team in town making a splash – has to be a good thing for the Twins’ chances of getting their asking price. Same with the growing consensus (not sure I buy it) that the Tigers might be Boston’s top competition next year, not the Yankees.
Until then, some of the rumors going around are getting fairly far-fetched. One of them that caused a few chuckles in the press room involved a three-way deal that supposedly sends Santana and Bobby Crosby to the Mets, Dan Haren to the Twins, and Jose Reyes to the A’s, with a few minor prospects sprinkled around, too. Can you imagine the reaction in the Twin Cities if Smith traded Santana, and all he got back was a starting pitcher who isn’t as good? Yikes.
-- Phil Miller
Here’s one way it might happen: It’s now being reported by several publications that the Mets are interested again. Anything that rachets up the pressure on a certain owner’s son in New York – say, the prospect of the “other” team in town making a splash – has to be a good thing for the Twins’ chances of getting their asking price. Same with the growing consensus (not sure I buy it) that the Tigers might be Boston’s top competition next year, not the Yankees.
Until then, some of the rumors going around are getting fairly far-fetched. One of them that caused a few chuckles in the press room involved a three-way deal that supposedly sends Santana and Bobby Crosby to the Mets, Dan Haren to the Twins, and Jose Reyes to the A’s, with a few minor prospects sprinkled around, too. Can you imagine the reaction in the Twin Cities if Smith traded Santana, and all he got back was a starting pitcher who isn’t as good? Yikes.
-- Phil Miller
Santana vs. Lackey on Opening Day?
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Well, it looks like the Twins’ big story of the winter meetings is going to be a non-story after all. Some well-connected folks at Baseball Prospectus just quoted a Twins official as saying they are “99 percent certain” Johan Santana will be a Twin when the meetings end tomorrow. I haven’t been able to find anyone to say anything nearly that definitive (mostly the team’s employees say, ‘You know I can’t talk about that’), but it certainly fits the general consensus in the Opryland Hotel.
Peter Gammons of ESPN has also reported that the Twins aren’t moving their ace this week, and various reports keep coming in that other teams, sensing hesitation on Minnesota’s part, are contacting general manager Bill Smith with messages along the lines of “What would it take?” Supposedly the Mets and Mariners have made that call – but apparently not the Yankees, not yet.
The Red Sox offers are apparently still on the table, and a Baseball Prospectus report a couple of hours ago said the Twins might ask that Jon Lester be examined by their doctors to make sure his arm is sound.
Now that the Tigers-Marlins trade is official, it might make sense for the Twins to just wait a while and see whether other teams start feeling pressure to match Detroit’s dramatic move. The Yankees say they are happy with their rotation now that Andy Pettitte is coming back, but as spring training draws closer, it’s hard to imagine that the opportunity to upgrade won’t entice them.
But for the moment, Ron Gardenhire is right: Santana is his opening day starter against the Angels.
-- Phil Miller
Peter Gammons of ESPN has also reported that the Twins aren’t moving their ace this week, and various reports keep coming in that other teams, sensing hesitation on Minnesota’s part, are contacting general manager Bill Smith with messages along the lines of “What would it take?” Supposedly the Mets and Mariners have made that call – but apparently not the Yankees, not yet.
The Red Sox offers are apparently still on the table, and a Baseball Prospectus report a couple of hours ago said the Twins might ask that Jon Lester be examined by their doctors to make sure his arm is sound.
Now that the Tigers-Marlins trade is official, it might make sense for the Twins to just wait a while and see whether other teams start feeling pressure to match Detroit’s dramatic move. The Yankees say they are happy with their rotation now that Andy Pettitte is coming back, but as spring training draws closer, it’s hard to imagine that the opportunity to upgrade won’t entice them.
But for the moment, Ron Gardenhire is right: Santana is his opening day starter against the Angels.
-- Phil Miller
Gardenhire Drops By
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The reality of the Twins’ current plight really hit home this morning when an out-of-town reporter asked Ron Gardenhire a blunt question: “You don’t know who you’ll have a third, short, second and center, do you?”
Gardenhire smiled and said, “Yeah, everywhere left of first base. First base, I’ve got covered.” But the question pretty much summed up how much work is left to do for the Twins.
They’ll start trying to accomplish it again today, but with general managers in meetings all morning, there are no signs of any movement on the Johan Santana front. Gardenhire, in a half-hour media session this morning, sounded resigned to losing his best pitcher, though he did keep reminding the crowd that “Johan Santana is still my Opening Day starter.” Actually, Gardenhire looked far more alarmed at the prospect of life without Joe Nathan; it’s clear he doesn’t want his closer going anywhere. But he said, if GM Bill Smith decides the move has to be made, "I'm sure we'll have a plan."
The prevailing opinion in the Opryland press room is that the Twins, particularly in the wake of Detroit’s stunning addition to its lineup, may be biding their time, in hopes that New York, Boston or even the Angels decide they need to match that move. So the vigil could last several more hours, days, weeks.
-- Phil Miller
Gardenhire smiled and said, “Yeah, everywhere left of first base. First base, I’ve got covered.” But the question pretty much summed up how much work is left to do for the Twins.
They’ll start trying to accomplish it again today, but with general managers in meetings all morning, there are no signs of any movement on the Johan Santana front. Gardenhire, in a half-hour media session this morning, sounded resigned to losing his best pitcher, though he did keep reminding the crowd that “Johan Santana is still my Opening Day starter.” Actually, Gardenhire looked far more alarmed at the prospect of life without Joe Nathan; it’s clear he doesn’t want his closer going anywhere. But he said, if GM Bill Smith decides the move has to be made, "I'm sure we'll have a plan."
The prevailing opinion in the Opryland press room is that the Twins, particularly in the wake of Detroit’s stunning addition to its lineup, may be biding their time, in hopes that New York, Boston or even the Angels decide they need to match that move. So the vigil could last several more hours, days, weeks.
-- Phil Miller
Tuesday, December 4, 2007
Another Long Night
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Boston general manager Theo Epstein just held a briefing session with the team’s beat reporters, and while he wouldn’t comment on what’s being talked about, he said he expected negotiations to go “well into the night,” presumably with the Twins. He also said the teams are being flexible, that no “final offers” have been made.
-- Phil Miller
-- Phil Miller
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