Latest from Adam McCalvy

[dpapo]

There is so much information in Adam McCalvy's latest update that I thought I would just put it all here. I see that some of it is already referenced in other threads, but basically Schmidt isn't coming to Milwaukee, the Philly trade was a no go from the start. There is also other interesting information, but overall things seem pretty quiet at the moment.

 

Brewers turn attention to trade market

Free agent landscape steers Melvin toward alternate options

By Adam McCalvy / MLB.com

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. -- Unable to compete in the soaring free agent market, Brewers general manager Doug Melvin is looking to swing some trades before these Winter Meetings adjourn on Thursday. But lying on the bed in his hotel suite on Tuesday with his hands folded behind his head, he hardly looked like a guy riding the adrenaline rush of a busy week.

"Maybe it's better to wait and find out where all of the free agent players are going," Melvin told a small group of reporters. "There's not as many clubs talking trades here as I thought."

 

Melvin is not in conversations with a single free agent, and he had only one face-to-face meeting before dinner on Tuesday, a sit-down with the Rangers. Texas may be considering Brady Clark as an option to play center field, but the Brewers are seeking starting pitching depth. Melvin doesn't see a match.

 

"I don't see anything coming out of that," he said.

 

The Brewers and Phillies were at the center of one of the more lively rumors in the lobby at the Dolphin Hotel on Tuesday. Talk circulated earlier in the day that the teams were closing on a trade that would have included Phillies veteran starter Jon Lieber and Brewers outfielders Kevin Mench or Geoff Jenkins and possibly relievers Derrick Turnbow or Jose Capellan.

 

Melvin and assistant GM Gord Ash did chat with Phillies officials, including GM Pat Gillick, but Melvin dismissed talk of the deal as "an Internet rumor."

 

Melvin asked the Phillies if they had interest in Jenkins and/or Mench, and "Pat Gillick says no," Melvin said.

 

Teams continued Tuesday to ask about Turnbow, who was an All-Star last season but struggled mightily in July and eventually lost the closer's role. Before the season started, he inked a three-year contract and is due about $6 million over the next two seasons. After that, Turnbow has one more year of arbitration eligibility remaining.

 

"I think they all think we're the Brewers of [old] and we have to give him up because he's making $2-3 million and the Brewers are looking for salary relief," Melvin said. "That's not the case.

 

"I wish we had a place to spend money," Melvin continued. "We have a little extra money, there's just no place to spend it. That's the frustrating part."

 

The Brewers came to the meetings with two needs already met. They upgraded their offense behind the plate by acquiring catcher Johnny Estrada in a six-player trade with Arizona, and later signed veteran free agent Craig Counsell to serve as a utility infielder. The Brewers would still like to add pitching, preferably a starter, and they would like to add a center fielder.

 

It has become clear to Melvin that he will have to fill his needs via trades because the asking prices of the available free agents are "off the charts," as he put it. Teams continued to wait Tuesday to see where marquee pitchers Barry Zito and Jason Schmidt will end up, and even the representative for free agent left-hander Ted Lilly drew an enormous media horde when he stopped in the lobby on Tuesday.

 

"Whenever there's a new labor deal, it seems like teams get excited about spending money," Melvin said. "We're fortunate that we did Estrada and got Counsell done before we got here. That was huge. If we didn't, we'd be scrambling.

 

"I thought that on the free agent market, there would have been some guys out there that were available. [Prices] have gone well beyond what we thought."

 

Other news from the meetings:

 

? Melvin contacted Schmidt's agents before the meetings began to see if the right-hander would even consider an offer from Milwaukee. Melvin characterized the response from Randy and Alan Hendricks as lukewarm.

 

"I think this is how [agents] operate: They say, 'There's A and B where I want to be, and to go to C, D or E, I'd have to get the extra year or get more money.'"

 

The team faced the same dilemma last month with outfielder Dave Roberts, who preferred to stay on the West Coast and eventually signed with San Francisco. The Brewers also showed interest in Juan Pierre, but they were told that Milwaukee was not on Pierre's wish list. He eventually went to the Dodgers.

 

? The Orioles and Dodgers are among the teams that have inquired seriously about Mench, but both teams presumably prefer free agent Luis Gonzalez because they wouldn't have to give up a player to get him, Melvin said. Brewers and Orioles officials met on Monday, and Melvin expects the lines of communication to remain open.

 

? Melvin had contact Tuesday with representatives for free agent infielder Jeff Cirillo and planned to e-mail a one-year offer later in the day. Melvin insisted that there would be room on the '07 roster for Cirillo, Counsell and Tony Graffanino, a free agent who was offered arbitration last week. Cirillo, who is represented by Ken Felder, has also drawn interest from the Diamondbacks, Giants and Twins.

 

? Melvin has directed his staff to predict potential non-tenders. Teams must decide whether to tender contracts to arbitration-eligible players by Dec. 12, and Melvin pointed out that David Eckstein was non-tendered by the Angels a few years ago before signing a three-year contract with the Cardinals.

 

? Melvin does not anticipate making a pick in the Major League phase of Thursday's Rule 5 Draft, and one team asked whether the Brewers would be willing to trade their pick (seventh overall). The talent pool is considered thin this season because of changes in the new collective bargaining agreement that gave organizations an extra year before they have to protect Minor Leaguers on 40-man rosters.

 

milwaukee.brewers.mlb.com...p&c_id=mil

[Invader3K]

I read it. Thanks for posting. Kind of a depressing read, though. Seems like more of the "same old, same old."

[yogallardo43]

Kind of makes you think that Melvin may not be making a move this week, especially in the free agent market. I guess we can put that Jason Schmidt rumor to bed.

[lukevan]

sounds pretty bleak. but again, who do we really expect to get for the likes of Kevin Mench, Brady Clark, and Derrick Turnbow?

[dpapo]

I was going through the Orioles Web site and it appears as though the hold up on trades is due to the number of teams who think they may have a shot at free agents. So, these Winter meetings have the potential to be one of the less active ones. Hopefully some movement gets made soon.

[DHonks]

So, these Winter meetings have the potential to be one of the less active ones

 

i laugh at everyone's expectations. Don't forget that the last 2-3 years people have expected every FA to be signed, and 10 trades to go down during the winter meetings. In fact, generally the Brewers' trades of Overbay and Pods have been about all that has happened the last few years.

[AJ Love]

Sounds like they will eventually trade Mench and maybe Jenkins, but not until more free agents get signed. Melvin is smart to be patient and wait

[dpapo]

Well, last year there were 17 trades and 24 free agent signings during the Winter meetings. Now in 2004 there were only 4 trades and 7 free agent signings. So, at the moment things are closer to 2004 than 2005.

[sbrylski]

Quote:

---

Melvin had contact Tuesday with representatives for free agent infielder Jeff Cirillo and planned to e-mail a one-year offer later in the day. Melvin insisted that there would be room on the '07 roster for Cirillo, Counsell and Tony Graffanino, a free agent who was offered arbitration last week. Cirillo, who is represented by Ken Felder, has also drawn interest from the Diamondbacks, Giants and Twins.

---

 

Rejoice, rejoice. Eman-a-a-a-nuel.

[PeaveyFury]

We've gone from faxing offers to Cirillo to e-mailing? Is this how the process actually works, or are these article snippets as backhanded as they sound?

[sbrylski]

We've gone from faxing offers to Cirillo to e-mailing? Is this how the process actually works, or are these article snippets as backhanded as they sound?

 

DM: "I've sent Jeff a contract offer with my carrier pigeon over the weekend, but he hasn't responded yet."

[PeaveyFury]

I'm fully expecting the offer to be sent via smoke signals sometime on Thursday.

[laserbomb]

Is this how the process actually works

 

He's going to get on a conference call and burp the offer while drinking a glass of water.

 

Edit: Ha ha, Team Canada below

[Team Canada]

I'm beginning to understand why Lozano was taking so long getting back to Doug's messages.

[PeaveyFury]

I'm beginning to understand why Lozano was taking so long getting back to Doug's messages.

 

You've got to run a lot of string to tie two tin cans together when one is in California and the other in Milwaukee.

[valpocrewsader]

Great, we're going to end up with three expensive backup infielders because Graffy's agent didn't have the latest version of Acrobat on his computer.

[cancer47]

Well, I think I can relax now. The Brewers won't be doing much at the moment. I do believe I remember DM mentioning once that sometimes, while the actual trade isn't made during the Winter Meetings, the groundwork for one is laid during this time, and the actual trade could be culminated later. We'll see.

 

And here I was hoping for some good sports news this week, especially after the Packers debacle. Sigh...

[DHonks]

i do have a hunch that we'll do something tomorrow. It might be Clark getting dealt, or a reliever like Aquino. I just think we'll part with an outfielder by tomorrow night

[MadisonBrewerBlue]

not one word about aquiring a run producer. its going to be along season without one.

[JohnBriggs12]

"not one word about acquiring a run producer, it's going to be a long season"

 

I'm with you MBB. Melvin says he's only looking to deal for starting pitching? That's already the strength of the team as I see it.

 

The bullpen was awful last year. Just awful and he's got offers for the worst of the worst and he's not moving on them?

 

And no move to improve the offense other than a slight improvement at catcher?

 

Somethings going on here. I heard Jason Stark this morning say something about teams (including small markets) having some incentive in the CBA? to spend money rather than keep it. Could it be too that Melvin has to save face for Attanasio's promise to increase payroll? But he can't find quality to spend it on so he's overpaying marginal players?

 

Here's an idea Doug. Instead of paying guys like Turnbow, Clark, etc. just dump them and offer some real money to actual producers in their prime like Hall and Capuano to stay around a while.