Winter meetings begin (WITH UPDATES)
UPDATED, 7:50pm
Winter meetings begin (WITH UPDATES)
Andy Martino
UPDATED, 7:50pm
The Phils have finished meeting with agents from the Beverly Hills Sports Council, who represent Chan Ho Park and Chad Durbin. A person with direct knowledge of the discussions characterized talks with Park as "ongoing."
We wrote below that the Phils appear likely to tender a contract to Durbin.
UPDATED, 6:03pm
--Just came out of Ruben Amaro's daily briefing with reporters. Before I delve into transcribing the quotes, here is the gist: He insisted that the Phils would not push payroll much past $140 million, but he also said that they are hoping to add a late-inning guy. How to resolve this contradiction? Perhaps by moving some payroll. That would be the philosophy behind the Joe Blanton trade rumors, which Amaro would not directly comment on.
--No decisions yet on whether to tender contracts to Chad Durbin or Clay Condrey before Dec. 12 deadline, but Amaro said "Those are guys who we will probably count on."
--If the Phils open talks with Pedro Martinez, it will not be until much later in the offseason.
--Acquiring that last bench piece is a very low priority right now, could be left to an in-season trade.
UPDATED, 3:05pm
Heard this about Brandon Lyon from a major league source: He is not expected to sign anywhere soon, and winning is more important to him than closing.
The Ken Rosenthal tweet mentioned below about Lyon being too expensive for the Phils made perfect sense in light of their recent talk about a tight budget, but it is far from impossible that he lands in Philly. For one thing, he is the perfect fit, from a baseball standpoint--experience closing, willingness to set up. But he might just end up asking more than the team is willing to spend to fill that role.
Lyon has been linked to Phils in many places, but the team has expressed only a preliminary interest at this point, a source said. Stay tuned.
UPDATED, 12:44pm
--The Phils will meet with Chan Ho Park's agent, Jeff Borris, later this afternoon--one of many, many such meetings with agents this week. Ruben Amaro seems to believe that Park has accepted the fact that he should be a reliever at this stage in his career, and he and Borris are having a difficult time agreeing on Park's value. In reality, Park has not decided definitely that his rotation days are over, though it is unclear if he has received any offers to start next year. The Phils view him strictly as a reliever.
--Also, the Phils have been named organization of the year by Baseball America, and are accepting the award at a luncheon right now.
--There is a report out there from AOLFanhouse's Ed Price that the Phils are checking in on potential trade interest in Joe Blanton, as a way to clear payroll space and possibly sign a reliever. FoxSports's Ken Rosenthal tweeted this morning that Brandon Lyon's price was too high for the Phils, no surprise given the way Amaro has talked of late about a supposedly tight budget.
Good morning from the press room at the Indianapolis Marriott, where the winter meetings are beginning slowly, from a Philly perspective. Not much happening yet on this snowy morning, but we did just hear that umpire Doug Harvey and former Cardinals manager Whitey Herzog were elected by the Veterans Committee to the Baseball Hall of Fame.
Burrell was always a Met killer. Maybe he can go there and help kill the Mets— mikeyhigs- Thanks for the update.— P Even
- The Mets will be terrible for the next several years. I hope they trade for Manny Ramirez. Enjoy it while it lasts!— PuPuMan
- Andy: If the budget is tight now, what will happen when Vic, Werth, and Chooch start getting P-A-I-D. The Blanton note is interesting in that respect. Do you see any such thinking with respect to position players? That is, moving them now while they have some value? Finally, why are they so liberal to throw money around to guys like Moyer, Ibanez, Polanco, etc. both in terms of the length of the deals and amounts which only makes budget even tighter? Are they making a push for Halliday and trying to save bullets (money, prospects, Blanton?)— DennyP
- so we're short on starters and relievers but we're looking to trade blanton so we can afford to sign a free agent relief pitcher? is it me or is something fishy here?— low tide
- When IS Carlos due to be paid? I hope it's this year. I don't care what the rules are - it's a crime that he's been getting less than 500K per year, while bozos like Eaton were getting many millions for doing NOTHING.— betsy72
- It only makes sense if Drabek moves up, and with Happ, Lee, Cole make the top 4 and they get a cheaper starter. Who knows how teams figure out budgets. Lyon then comes here and then they wait till Roy, ha ha, falls to them on the cheap. Ha aha.— KGKoons
- Burrel cannot play for an NL team given his baggage.— mick314
- We need another quality starter, I wouldn't count on anything from head case Hamels (unless he's been seeing a good head Dr.) anytime soon, just sayin'...— DJ
- PS: Hamels also needs a quality 3rd pitch, all of baseball has caught up to him! Just sayin'...— DJ
- rossinkrantz, I'm not sure what it would take to acquire Duke, but I'm sure the package would pale by comparison to the one the Jays are expecting for Halladay. I've got to believe that the rebuilding Pirates whould consider a package of Blanton and/or Kendrick, and the likes of Mayberry, Taylor or many of the other unprotected minor leaguers. There's speculation that the Phils might not want to pay Blanton more money and might trade or non-tender him. With Duke, the Phils would ensure their future starting rotation and have a lot more flexibility with the pitchers they plan to keep, trade or release. On the question of Park, he is a reliever all the way. He proved it to everyone when he had the chance to start last year. Hopefully, he also proved it to himslef and is ready to return to Philly where his abilities as a reliever are appreciated.
- We need Blanton as the 3rd/4th starter...I don't see them moving him at this point. His $$ isn't that high for what he brings to the table. Re-sign Park and Eyre and look to the farm for some surprises. Also, when does Howard become too expensive? Don't get me wrong, he's a baller - but soon he's going to command Yankee $$!— Hollywood Junkie
- I hate that we declined Feliz's reasonable option and overpaid for Polanco and are now concerned with a 'tight budget'— wearethechampions
- Betsy72: Ruiz is arbitration eligible now, which has been mentioned frequently here and elsewhere. The financial structure of baseball means that players in their first few seasons get the shaft financially, but get big paydays if they are any good and can last more than 3 years. If they are still good and can make it to free agent eligibility, then they get "overpaid." Ruiz is under the Phillies control for 2010-2012, but with salary determined by the arbitration process if he and the Phillies don't come to an agreement. Look for him to make several million a year from here on out, so long as he remains more or less healthy.— judas_priest
- DJ, ending every post you put up with "Just sayin'" is incredibly annoying. Just sayin'— vetlincbank
