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19 Feb 2009 |
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| Opening Day is getting closer every day and with many free agents still unsigned you’ve come to the best place to find the latest rumors, news, and transactions. With spring training underway, there are all kinds of stories appearing about off-season workout regimens and the World Baseball Classic, and I’m here to display all that information in one place! General Rumors -Up until late last night, Ken Griffey Jr. was trying to decide between one year contract offers from the Atlanta Braves and Seattle Mariners. AP reports state that he has decided to sign with the Mariners for about $2 million before incentives. -The title of a recent FoxSports.com article says it all, “Tigers counting on Brandon Lyon to be their closer.” He was signed a few weeks ago for 2009 at a salary of $4.5 million.  -Chipper Jones and the Atlanta Braves have been discussing a contract extension. No financial details have been announced at this time, but this MLB.com article cites Chipper stating that he can be “as productive at 40 as [he] is now.” -38-year-old designated hitter Jim Thome, who only has one year left in his current contract, is saying that he will be playing at least until he turns 40. This means that he will be seeking a new contract sometime soon, and if he and the White Sox cannot reach an agreement (which is likely) he could be dealt at the deadline. -The Marlins have an interesting position battle for a first/third basemen which includes Dallas McPherson, Wes Helms, Alfredo Amezaga, Emilio Bonifacio, and Gaby Sanchez. Joe Frisaro of MLB.com confirmed that Jorge Cantu will play one of the two corner spots. -The Texas Rangers will be among many teams represented at Chad Cordero’s next workout, which could be today. It will be the first time that Cordero will throw from a mound since he had surgery to repair a torn labrum. -Mike Lowell is aiming to be ready for Opening Day, and there is a good chance that he will be. He has been hitting and throwing for a few weeks now, but has not run much yet. -Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post Dispatch is reporting that Chris Carpenter is getting closer to being ready to throw in a game situation. This past Tuesday Carpenter threw a bullpen session for about 20 minutes and is scheduled to pitch in a spring training game on February 28th. -Brian Roberts and the Orioles are close to agreeing on a four year extension worth about $10 million a year. -Multiple sources believe that the Cubs closer competition will not be decided for a few weeks, until Lou Pinella is able to completely evaluate both Kevin Gregg and Carlos Marmol. World Baseball Classic News There are all kinds of articles that have come about in World Baseball Classic News in the past week, so I’ve taken the most important ones from the past 24 hours. Below is a list of players that will, and that will not be playing in the WBC with a story linked to that player. Will Be Playing Brad Ziegler, USA Chris Denorfia, Italy Jeremy Guthrie, USA Not Sure Eric Gagne, Canada Francisco Liriano, Dominican Republic (likely not playing) Will Not Be Playing Placido Polanco, Dominican Republic Scott Kazmir, USA Joel Pinero, Puerto Rico Off-Season Stories The following is a listing of players that have had stories come up in the past few days about various off-season reports and rumors. -Jeremy Hermida believes he is poised for a breakout year and has set some pretty lofty goals for himself. -Willy Taveras stated that he can steal 100 bases this year. -Eric Gagne is “on [a] quest for redemption” in 2009 to make up for his poor 2008 performance with the Milwaukee Brewers. -Jon Garland is comparing the 2009 Arizona Diamondbacks to the 2005 World Series Champion Chicago White Sox after his first week or so of camp. -Coco Crisp is excited to be a Royal and to be the everyday center fielder and leadoff man. -Carlos Silva has reported to camp 35 pounds lighter to try to improve his stats from a rather disappointing 2008. -Heath Bell has lost 25 pounds this off-season due to the purchase of a “Wii Fit” that he originally purchased for his kids. -Luis Castillo and Marlon Anderson have both lost 17 pounds this off-season. Quote of the Week I have a late entry for Brian Joura’s recent article of the Top 10 Baseball Quotes. A reporter recently asked Johnny Damon about Alex Rodriguez’ steroid use, and claims that he could of done worse. When asked what could have been worse than steroids, Damon replied, So there you have it for this week’s Rumor Central column. Be sure to leave a comment below about some of the rumors that I may have missed. With the World Baseball Classic approaching, I’m interested to see what validity you feel World Baseball Classic stats have. Don't forget to sign up for our Premium Site--for $5 you get our downloadable draft guide, for$10 you get our full draft guide and for less than $30 yo get our full season of Premium Baseball Content.
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Comments (4)
  written by kevinorris, February 20, 2009
Tom Glavine has agreed to a one-year contract with the Atlanta Braves.
written by kevinorris, February 19, 2009
Here's the latest http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/...id=3919778 on Chase Utley according to ESPN.com.
written by kevinorris, February 19, 2009 I'd watch the hell out of Chipper Jones at 40! He had one of the most impressive seasons of his career in '08. Even though his injury risk is high as a kite, he's numbers for sure. Agreed. I talked with a very credible source last night, and these talks are just preliminary. We'll see if they can get something done before Opening Day, because at that time Chipper will cease negotiations.
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Tags: Ken Griffey Jr. Atlanta Braves Seattle Mariners Chad Cordero Texas Rangers Chipper Jones Brandon Lyon Detroit Tigers
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