San Diego Padres News: Pro Sports Daily

Owings in three-way battle for fifth starter, long reliever role

February 3

San Diego Union-Tribune

"The signing of Micah Owings to a contract ultimately could affect both the Padres rotation and bullpen this spring. "His versatility raises a lot of possibilities and gives us more and potentially attractive options," Padres manager Bud Black said Thursday. Like Dustin Moseley last year, Owings comes to the Padres having worked both as a major league starter and out of the bullpen. In addition, Owings, who has a career .286 average with nine homers in 203 at-bats, is viewed by many as the top hitting pitcher in the game."

Padres talking to pitcher-hitter Micah Owings

February 2

San Diego Union-Tribune

"The Padres are talking to right-handed pitcher Micah Owings, although general manager Josh Brynes says the club does not have a "formal agreement" with the free agent. Owings, 29, came to the major leagues with Arizona in 2007 when Byrnes was the general manager of the Diamondbacks."

Sources: Playoff expansion has issues

February 1

ESPN.com

"Baseball commissioner Bud Selig continues to talk confidently about expanding the baseball playoff field in 2012. But sources tell ESPN.com efforts to make that happen remain bogged down, all because of one thorny little complication: the details. Wednesday was supposed to be the day the commissioner's office finished a proposed schedule for the 2012 postseason and shipped it to the players' association for consideration. But sources told ESPN.com that deadline wasn't going to be met -- not because talks have broken down, but because fitting two extra wild-card pieces into the postseason puzzle has proven to be more involved than the commissioner has been willing to acknowledge. The new"

Padres agree to deal with Moseley

February 1

San Diego Union-Tribune

"The Padres and arbitration-eligible pitcher Dustin Moseley agreed Tuesday to a one-year contract for the 2012 season. The deal - for $2,012,500 - means the Padres will not go to arbitration with any of their players. Moseley had asked for $2.55 million in arbitration, while the Padres offered him $1.5 million. The right-hander made $900,000 in 2011 after signing with the Padres as a free agent."

Scene & Heard: For a good cause

January 30

San Diego Union-Tribune

"The drama might have been on the South Course at Torrey Pines on Sunday, but there was action on the North Course as well, some of it involving golfers even more famous than those in the Farmers Insurance Open. Not famous because of their golfing skill, mind you, although former Padres second baseman Mark Loretta showed some pretty good game while nearly making an eagle on the 18th hole. Loretta, Padres manager Bud Black and current and former Chargers such as Takeo Spikes, Nate Kaeding, Nick Novak, Hank Bauer and David Binn all participated in a fundraiser for the Boys and Girls Club of San Dieguito."

Selig expects two one-game playoffs for this fall

January 28

Chicago Tribune

"Baseball appears ready for an extra round of wild-card playoffs by this fall, according to commissioner Bud Selig. "I really believe we'll have the (extra) wild card for this year," Selig said Friday at SoxFest. "Clubs really want it. I don't think I've ever seen an issue that the clubs want more than to have the extra wild card." The extra round would be one-game elimination in both the National and American Leagues to the teams who would have missed the playoffs as they are set up now. Some have argued for a best-of-three, but that appears impossible with the scheduled all but set for 2012."

Yonder isn't as important as hits to Alonso

January 27

San Diego Union-Tribune

"Yonder, as in "off we go into the wild blue . . .," would seemingly be the perfect name for a slugger. But when new Padres first baseman Yonder Alonso speaks of hitting, he doesn't talk in terms of home runs. "I am not thinking 40 or 50 home runs when I'm thinking about hitting," Alonso said earlier this week at Petco Park. "A lot of left-handed hitters and first basemen are thinking home runs," Alonso continued. "That's not the type of left-handed hitter I am. "When I look at Petco Park, I don't see how far away the fences are. I see a lot of grass. I feel like this ballpark likes the kind of hitter I am.""

Hundley enjoys cricket on baseball trip to New Zealand

January 25

San Diego Union-Tribune

"Nick Hundley traveled to New Zealand earlier this month to coach baseball. But the Padres catcher learned a lot about another stick-and-ball sport during the Major League Baseball Ambassador trip. "I liked cricket a lot," said the Padres catcher during an exchange of e-mails from New Zealand. "It is a very interesting sport, in some ways like baseball and in some ways totally different.""

MLB allows retired Tony La Russa to manage in All-Star game against Ron Washington

January 25

Dallas Morning News

"Tony La Russa will come out of retirement to manage the National League team for the July 10 All-Star Game at Kansas City. La Russa will go against Texas Rangers manager Ron Washington, who will handle the American League team for the second consecutive season. La Russa retired shortly after St. Louis defeated the Rangers in the seven-game World Series."

Richard agrees to terms with Padres

January 24

San Diego Union-Tribune

"The Padres Monday reduced their number of pending arbitration cases to one when they reached a 2012 salary agreement with Clayton Richard. The 28-year-old, left-handed starter will make $2.705 million this season. Richard had been seeking $3.1 million this year while the Padres arbitration figure was $2.35 million. Richard's signing leaves right-handed pitcher Dustin Moseley as the last of the club's 11 arbitration-eligible players to reach an agreement for 2013. Moseley's arbitration hearing is scheduled for next month. Moseley is seeking $2.55 million while the club's offer is $1.5 million."

Stauffer enjoys salad days after long road back

January 20

San Diego Union-Tribune

"The fortunes of baseball are fickle, especially for pitchers. The Cy Young winner of today might be one bad pitch from being the rehab patient of tomorrow. "You never know what tomorrow might bring," Tim Stauffer said Thursday morning after completing a preseason workout at Petco Park. Sadly, Stauffer knows this from experience. Today, the 29-year-old Stauffer is riding high."

Intrigue but no answers in stalled Padres ownership transition

January 19

San Diego Union-Tribune

"The Padres are a puzzle with at least one of the pieces missing. If there's a money problem with Jeff Moorad's ownership group, it should have surfaced before his final payment reached the escrow account last month. If there's a personality conflict in play, it should have played itself out somewhat earlier in a process now in its third year. If there are some specific questions that were not brought to Bud Selig's attention until Jan. 6, it would be helpful if the commissioner could clarify exactly what needs to be clarified and why it took so long for these issues to arise. If you add it all up, what you get is intrigue."

Padres sign nine of 11 on arbitration list

January 18

San Diego Union-Tribune

"The Padres spent close to $22 ½ million Tuesday, reaching 2012 contract agreements with nine of their 11 arbitration eligible players. The only arbitration eligible players who haven't reached agreement are starting pitchers Clayton Richard and Dustin Moseley -- both of whom are coming off surgery that ended their 2011 seasons. Agreeing to terms Tuesday were outfielders Carlos Quentin and Will Venable, catchers Nick Hundley and John Baker, right-handed starting pitchers Tim Stauffer and Edinson Volquez, third baseman Chase Headley and relief pitchers Luke Gregerson and Joe Thatcher."

Padres CFO Gerson in trivia competition

January 16

San Diego Union-Tribune

"Chief Financial Officer is not a position typically associated with baseball trivia. But when the Major League Baseball Network debuts its Baseball IQ game show later this month, the Padres will be represented by their CFO, Fred Gerson. Gerson recently defeated other Padres front office personnel to qualify for one of the 32 spots on the show, which will feature one trivia expert from each team plus one from the Baseball Hall of Fame and MLB.com."

Decision adds to Padres' perception problems

January 13

San Diego Union-Tribune

columnist Tim Sullivan

"Jeff Moorad is like the new guy trying to crack the country club. He's come up with the cash for the initiation fee, but the members want to know if he can handle the assessments. Before the chief executive officer of the San Diego Padres can complete his installment plan to purchase the franchise from John Moores, his prospective peers have a few questions they want answered. They'd like to know, for example, what happens if the ink runs red, if the Friars should start losing more money than they've saved. They'd like some assurance that Moorad is committed for the long haul and not just the fast buck, and that he has the means to manage any obligations he might incur in running the"

MLB puts Padres sale to Moorad on hold

January 13

San Diego Union-Tribune

"Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig called it a "speed bump" rather than a roadblock, but the Padres' planned ownership transition is at least temporarily on hold. A transaction Padres Chairman John Moores had described as "100 percent complete," pending confirmation by his peers, was abruptly dropped from the agenda of the quarterly owners' meeting here Thursday after a series of financial questions were asked but not answered. Padres CEO Jeff Moorad described the issues as "technical," and said "they have no material impact," but the late-breaking snag so irritated Moores, according to a baseball source, that he withheld his vote on Selig's two-year contract extension (which was approved by"

John Moores deserves credit

January 10

San Diego Union-Tribune

columnist Nick Canepa

"John Moores scoffs at the thought, but it's my thought, so I'm OK with it. He is one of two men who saved baseball in San Diego. And for that reason alone, he was a good owner. "Ray Kroc," Moores says. "He saved baseball in San Diego. I view myself as strictly a transitional figure. People will forget the Tom Werner group, if they already haven't (I'll never forget it). It will go from Ray Kroc to the person who owns the Padres when they win the World Series.""

Moorad group to finalize purchase of Padres

January 10

San Diego Union-Tribune

"Jeff Moorad's gradual acquisition of the Padres is expected to be completed Thursday. Nearly three years after negotiating an installment purchase of the franchise from John Moores, Moorad's limited partnership is poised to make the final payment subject to the approval of three-quarters of Major League Baseball ownership at a meeting in Paradise Valley, Ariz. "It's 100 percent done," Moores told MLB.com. "I couldn't be more pleased. Jeff's remaining payment of all cash went into escrow in mid-December. I remain impressed that Jeff has done everything he said he would do.""

Padres' transfer to Moorad nearly finished

January 9

MLB.com

"Jeff Moorad is on the verge of completing his long-awaited purchase of the Padres, John Moores, the club's majority owner, told MLB.com. The 100 percent sale of the franchise -- at an estimated $530 million -- that Moores has held since late 1995 is on the agenda for approval by the owners at this Thursday's first joint quarterly meeting of the year. "It's 100 percent done," Moores said in a phone conversation. "I couldn't be more pleased. Jeff's remaining payment of all cash went into escrow in mid-December. I remain impressed that Jeff has done everything he said he would do.""

Cashner key to Padres' deal with Cubs

January 7

San Diego Union-Tribune

"Seeking to avoid a "quarterback controversy" at first base, the Padres Friday morning moved first base prospect Anthony Rizzo to the Chicago Cubs for right-handed power pitcher Andrew Cashner. Cashner and Rizzo are the featured players in a four-player trade. The Padres got the 25-year-old Cashner and 20-year-old South Korean center fielder Kyung-Min Na in exchange for Rizzo and right-handed starter Zach Cates, who was the Padres third-round pick in the 2010 draft. Cashner, whose fastball has been clocked at 100 mph, will be used as a "toward the end of the game" reliever in 2012, although the Padres believe his future could be in the rotation or as a closer. He is a candidate this season"

Cubs give up Cashner for Padres' Rizzo

January 7

Chicago Tribune

"First baseman Anthony Rizzo may be the left-handed hitting slugger the Cubs have been trying to develop since Rafael Palmeiro was traded to the Rangers 24 years ago. The Cubs are counting on it after trading 2008 first-round pick Andrew Cashner and minor league outfielder Kyung-Min Na to the Padres on Friday for Rizzo and minor league right-hander Zach Cates. In a baseball version of musical chairs, general manager Jed Hoyer acquired Rizzo from the Red Sox for the Padres last year in a multi-player deal with his current boss, Theo Epstein, that sent Adrian Gonzalez to the Red Sox. On Friday, Hoyer and Epstein acquired Rizzo from Hoyer's replacement, Padres general manager Josh Byrnes, who"

Cubs acquire 1B Rizzo from San Diego in 4-player deal

January 6

Chicago Tribune

"The Cubs acquired top first base prospect Anthony Rizzo from San Diego Friday in a four-player deal that will send former first-round pick Andrew Cashner to the Padres. Rizzo, a left-handed hitting slugger who was drafted by Boston under Theo Epstein's regime and acquired by Jed Hoyer in San Diego last winter as part of the prospect package in the Adrian Gonzalez deal, is expected to be the full-time first baseman. Rizzo, 22, hit .331 at Triple-A Tucson last year with 26 home runs and 101 RBIs, with a 423 on-base percentage and .652 slugging percentage. He was ranked the No. 3 prospect in the Padres system, and made his major league debut for San Diego in 2011, struggling with a .141"

Tigers sign 2B/OF Eric Patterson

January 5

Detroit Free Press

"The Detroit Tigers have signed second baseman Eric Patterson to a contract with Triple-A Toledo. Patterson, who turns 29 in April, will provide the Tiers with insurance at second base behind Ramon Santiago, Ryan Raburn and Danny Worth. He also can play all three outfield positions. Patterson, a left-handed hitter, hit .180 in 47 games with San Diego this season. He never has spent a full season in the big leagues."

Could Padres' next move be contract extensions?

January 2

San Diego Union-Tribune

"The acquisition of left fielder Carlos Quentin on Saturday raised an interesting question regarding the Padres. Quentin is eligible for free agency at the end of the 2012 season. So, did the Padres acquire Quentin as a one-year rental, who could be traded as soon as the July 31 deadline? Or, did they acquire the slugger with an idea of signing him to a long-term contract and head the franchise in a new direction? "We don't have any commitments to 2013 and beyond," Padres General Manager Josh Byrnes said Sunday morning. "But we do have choices and decisions to make."

Quentin and cost shipped to Padres

January 1

Chicago Tribune

"Call it rebuilding, retooling or maybe even reinvesting, but this is your White Sox offseason so far: They have lost No. 1 starter Mark Buehrle and starting left fielder Juan Pierre to free agency, and closer Sergio Santos and starting right fielder Carlos Quentin in trade. Of course, they also lose their potential $34 million or more in salaries as the Sox try to trim a $127 million payroll. In return, so far, they have received three inexpensive minor league pitchers with potential — big right-hander Simon Castro and lefty Pedro Hernandez from the Padres on Saturday for Quentin and Nestor Molina from the Blue Jays. Still to come is a supplemental draft choice for Buehrle."

White Sox unload 'excited' Carlos Quentin for minor leaguers

January 1

Chicago Sun-Times

"Sergio Santos, gone. Mark Buehrle, gone. Carlos Quentin —he gone, too. By trading Quentin to the San Diego Padres for two minor-league pitchers Saturday, the White Sox have said goodbye to their closer, their Opening Day starting pitcher and their cleanup man. Are they making room for Cuban center fielder Yoennis Cespedes? For now, call it a long shot, but the Sox recently scouted Cespedes, who should be granted free agency soon. For what it's worth, they have two Cubans — shortstop Alexei Ramirez and right fielder Dayan Viciedo — to make recruiting pitches. "What I will say is that there are some doors now open for us that were not open just yesterday because of savings of dollars,""

Padres get OF Quentin from White Sox

January 1

San Diego Union-Tribune

"In a move to add a power bat and bolster the middle of their lineup, the Padres Saturday morning acquired corner outfielder Carlos Quentin from the Chicago White Sox for minor league pitching prospects Simon Castro and Pedro Hernandez. The trade signaled a change in directions for the Padres, who gave up two prospects for a proven power hitter who made $5.05 million last year and is eligible for free agency after the 2012 season. Quentin, who becomes the 10th Padre who is arbitration eligible for 2012, could make more than $7 million in 2012 -- pushing the Padres payroll for next season above $57 million."

Sox trade Quentin to Padres for two minor league pitchers

December 31

Chicago Tribune

"The Chicago White Sox traded outfielder Carlos Quentin and his potential $8 million salary to the San Diego Padres for a pair of pitching prospects. The Sox received right-hander Simon Castro and lefty Pedro Hernandez, neither of whom has appeared in the big leagues. Castro, 23, went 7-8 with a 5.63 ERA in 22 starts between Classes AA and AAA. He is 29-33 in six seasons in the Padres' organization. Two seasons ago, Castro not only started the minor league All-Star Futures Game, but was named Padres pitcher of the year while going 10-6 wityh a 3.33 ERA. Hernandez, 22, went 10-3 with a 3.49 ERA in 28 games at three different minor league levels. He has split time between starting and"

Padres' farm system much improved

December 26

San Diego Union-Tribune

"A lot has changed in the Padres' farm system over the past year. For the good. "We've added a lot of quality," Padres General Manager Josh Byrnes said recently while discussing the Padres' system. Two years ago, it was difficult to find 10 legitimate prospects in the Padres system. Today, the list of prospects in the Padres' system easily reaches double figures with the majority added over the past 13 months through the draft or trade. And the current list of top 20 prospects doesn't include two players listed in the top 10 a year ago — right-handed starter Simon Castro, who was as high as No. 2 on some Padres prospect lists going into last season, and center fielder Reymond Fuentes."

Rangers acquire catcher Luis Martinez from Padres

December 22

Fort Worth Star-Telegram

"Depth is always a nice thing to have at any position, and the Texas Rangers added catching depth on Wednesday. They acquired catcher Luis Martinez from the San Diego Padres in exchange for right-handed reliever Ryan Kelly. The Rangers added Martinez to their 40-man roster. "He's slated to compete for a role on the bench," general manager Jon Daniels said."

Contracts explain difference between Padres trades

December 21

San Diego Union-Tribune

"Both were 4-for-1 trades aimed more at the Padres' future than the present. But the trades of Adrian Gonzalez last winter and Mat Latos last week have many Padres fans wondering: Given the return in the Latos deal with the Cincinnati Reds, did the Padres get enough from the Boston Red Sox in the Gonzalez trade? Are the Padres just trying to shed payroll? And if Anthony Rizzo was the "Padres first baseman of the future," why did the Padres obtain first baseman Yonder Alonso in the Latos trade? "It's hard to compare any two trades without looking at everything involved," said Padres General Manager Josh Byrnes. "Everything" goes well beyond the talents involved."

Big money hurting small-market teams like Padres

December 20

San Diego Union-Tribune

columnist Tim Sullivan

"Despite the season, his team's red-and-white color scheme and the signing of Albert Pujols, Arte Moreno should not be confused for Santa Claus. The owner of the Los Angeles Angels is a capitalist, not Father Christmas. He doesn't spend money on his baseball team that he can't recoup and he wouldn't be able to spend nearly as much had he purchased the Padres. Moreno can afford to pay Pujols $254 million over 10 years because Fox Sports is paying a reported $3 billion over 20 years to broadcast Angels games. The Padres, meanwhile, are awaiting approval on a Fox deal Jeff Moorad says is worth in the mid-$20 millions per year."

Padres apparently banking on Latos not becoming an ace

December 18

San Diego Union-Tribune

"Mat Latos is less than a sure thing and more than a lottery ticket. He is a pitching prodigy in need of personal growth, alternately exciting and exasperating, sometimes unhittable, sometimes uncoachable. In trading this manchild of the mound to the Cincinnati Reds, Padres General Manager Josh Byrnes has sided with the safety of numbers against the possibility that Latos will grow up to be Tom Seaver. Byrnes has swapped baseball's scarcest commodity — potentially dominant starting pitching — for three prospects and a veteran pitcher, Edinson Volquez, whose recent past includes both a 50-game drug suspension and Tommy John surgery. Since most Padres fans have recently graduated from nagging"

Latos traded to Reds for Volquez, 3 top prospects

December 18

San Diego Union-Tribune

"The Padres completed a major trade Saturday morning that raised as many questions as it answered. The Padres sent right-handed starting pitcher Mat Latos to the Cincinnati Reds for right-handed starting pitcher Edinson Volquez and three of the Reds' top 10 prospects — first baseman Yonder Alonso, catcher Yasmani Grandal and right-handed relief pitcher Brad Boxberger. The trade added talent at two of the Padres deepest positions on paper -- first base and catcher -- with Alonso moving ahead of Anthony Rizzo at first and possibly freeing Jesus Guzman for a move to left or right field. "We're not guaranteeing anything to anyone," Byrnes said after negotiating his biggest trade in his seven"

Reds get Latos at steep cost

December 18

Cincinnati Enquirer

"The Reds got their top-of-the-rotation starter, but they paid a huge price. The Reds acquired right-hander Mat Latos from San Diego for first baseman Yonder Alonso, catcher Yasmani Grandal and right-handers Edinson Volquez and Brad Boxberger. "Our No. 1 goal was to find a top-of-the-rotation starter," general manager Walt Jocketty said. "We felt that Mat Latos, of the potential pitchers available, was the best guy out there for a number of reasons. He's still young at (24). He's a power pitcher who we think will pitch well at our park. He's under control for us for four years. He's definitely a top-of-the-rotation guy who will slot in well behind Cueto. We think in time (Latos) will"

Source: Padres deal Latos to Reds

December 17

Foxsports.com

"The Reds got the top-of-the-rotation starter they wanted, acquiring right-hander Mat Latos from the Padres on Saturday. In return, the Padres received right-handed pitchers Edinson Volquez and Brad Boxberger, infielder Yonder Alonso and catcher Yasmani Grandal. Latos, 24, will join right-hander Johnny Cueto, 25, to give the Reds a young, dynamic 1-2 starting punch. The Reds will control Latos for four years; he is not eligible for arbitration until 2013. Latos was 9-14 with a 3.47 ERA for the Padres last season after going 14-10 with a 2.92 ERA in 2010."

Padres acquire Double-A closer for Cunningham

December 17

San Diego Union-Tribune

"The Padres on Friday acquired 24-year-old, right-handed relief pitcher Cory Burns from the Cleveland Indians in exchange for outfielder Aaron Cunningham. Burns, an eighth-round pick by the Indians out of the University of Arizona in 2009, was 2-5 with a 2.11 earned run average and 35 saves in 37 opportunities for Cleveland's Double-A Akron affiliate last season. Opponents hit .220 against Burns, who had 70 strikeouts against 15 walks in 59 2/3 innings covering 54 appearances. The 6-foot-1, 180-pound Burns has made 130 relief appearances without a start in 2½ seasons in the Indians system. He had 42 saves and a 1.96 ERA in 2010 at two levels of Single-A. Burns has 188 strikeouts against 35"

Moorad gift for city would be buying out Moores now

December 15

San Diego Union-Tribune

"Technically, Jeff Moorad has plenty of time. The final payment of his Padres' layaway plan is not due until March of 2014. As a practical matter, however, Moorad may not want to wait that long. As a practical matter, Moorad should probably move forward much faster in his installment buyout of John Moores. The primary reason is perception – the pervasive notion that an owner who is buying a team on time cannot afford to invest fully in its immediate future — and that's a perception Moorad desperately needs to debunk. Secondarily, and sources are in conflict about its significance, is baseball's desire to consider the Padres' lucrative Fox Sports Net television contract with Moorad in place"

Padres send Schmidt to Rockies

December 10

San Diego Union-Tribune

"The Padres Friday sent left-handed starting pitcher Nick Schmidt to Colorado as the player-to-be-named-later to complete the trade for closer Huston Street. Schmidt, 26, the Padres first-round pick (23rd overall) in the 2007 draft. Schmidt was 3-5 last season with a 3.84 earned run average in 12 starts with Single-A Lake Elsinore and 1-1 with a 4.50 ERA in two rehab starts with the Arizona Rookie League Padres."

Rockies acquire LHP Nick Schmidt from Padres, completing Street trade

December 10

Denver Post

"The Rockies today acquired left-handed pitcher Nick Schmidt from San Diego, completing the trade that sent right-handed pitcher Huston Street to the Padres. Schmidt, 26, was the Padres' 2007 first-round pick. He split the 2011 season between High-A Lake Elsinore and on a rehab assignment with rookie level Arizona Padres in the San Diego organization. Between those two stops he combined to go 3-5 with a 3.84 ERA (63.1 ip, 27 er), 23 walks and 58 strikeouts in 12 starts."

Could Angels' moves affect Padres?

December 9

San Diego Union-Tribune

columnist Bill Center

"They were the Los Angeles Angels, then the California Angels, then the Anaheim Angels. Today, they are the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. But to hear Jerry Dipoto talk, maybe they should be the Southern California Angels. Maybe even the Pacific Southwest Angels, or … "This is exciting for Southern California as a whole," the Angels' general manager of two months said after closing baseball's annual Winter Meetings by signing free agent first baseman Albert Pujols and starting pitcher C.J. Wilson to $327.5 million worth of contracts. Bombshell? More like a tsunami."

Eight pitchers among 12 drafted in Rule 5

December 8

MLB.com

"It was short and sweet -- not to mention upstaged by a very large free-agent signing -- but another Rule 5 Draft came and went with a host of Minor Leaguers hoping their selection will be a ticket to a better future. Twelve players were taken in the Major League phase, with 25 more going in the Triple-A and Double-A phases of the Rule 5 Draft. During the Major League phase, eligible players left unprotected from their clubs' 40-man rosters could be selected for $50,000. A player selected must now remain on his drafting team's active Major League roster next season or be offered back to the original club for $25,000. During the Triple-A and Double-A phases it costs less to take a player and"

Padres get Street from Rockies to replace Bell

December 8

San Diego Union-Tribune

"For better or worse, the Padres didn't want to be committed to Heath Bell when he was 37 or 38. Aside from Bell accepting arbitration — the possibility of which delayed the Padres offseason planning — the club was never interested in signing him for more than two years with an option on a third season. Which is why Huston Street will be the Padres closer in 2012 rather than Bell. Five days after free agent Bell signed what could be a four-year, $36 million deal with the Miami Marlins, the Padres on Wednesday acquired right-handed closer Street and $1 million from the Colorado Rockies for a minor league player to be named later."

Padres acquire Rockies closer Street

December 7

San Diego Union-Tribune

"The Padres have acquired right-handed closer Huston Street from the Colorado Rockies for cash considerations and a minor league player to be named later. Essentially, the Padres would be picking up most of Street's contract for 2012 -- $7.5 million in addition to a $500,000 buyout against a $9-10 million option for 2013. The Rockies will also send an undisclosed amount of cash to the Padres as an offset against Street's salary."

Padres close to trading for Huston Street

December 7

CBSSports.com

"The San Diego Padres are very close to acquiring closer Huston Street from the Rockies in a trade, CBSSports.com's Danny Knobler has learned. Knobler reports the deal is "basically done" and that it will be for a player to be named later. The move marks a salary dump for the Rockies, as the Padres will pay Street's $7.5 million in 2012. The biggest factor in the Rockies making this move was clearing salary to go after starting pitching, Scott Miller of CBSSports.com notes. Just to throw a name out there, the Rockies were said to be interested in free agent Roy Oswalt earlier this offseason."

Padres have payroll "flexibility" but no deals yet

December 7

San Diego Union-Tribune

"Padres General manager Josh Byrnes "pushed some ideas" during the second day of baseball's Winter Meetings. And other teams and agents pushed back. "Today was less productive than Monday," Byrnes said Tuesday night. "We have no deal right now. It's not looking good for anything being announced here. Some things we'd been working on ended." Byrnes figures to be busy again Wednesday on the penultimate day of what – aside from the Miami Marlins – has thus far been a boring Winter Meetings. But it's beginning to look like the Padres could strike later than sooner when it comes to addressing their needs – starting with the eighth- and ninth-inning segments in a rebuilt bullpen."

Bell says Padres' last offer came in August

December 6

San Diego Union-Tribune

"Bud Black noted the "irony of the moment." As the Padres manager entered the media room at baseball's annual Winter Meetings Monday, Heath Bell was exiting. Moments earlier, Bell had formally been introduced as the closer of the Miami Marlins. Instead of handing Bell the ball in a save situation, Black was bidding farewell to the only player who had been with him throughout his first five seasons as the Padres manager. "Closer is a big priority," Black admitted during his opening remarks of his official media session. "There are a number of guys on the (free agent) market and a guy or two available in trades. But having Heath was very comforting. I've been very lucky with the closers I've"

Dodgers sign Jerry Hairston Jr., work on deal with Aaron Harang

December 6

Los Angeles Times

"For a team on a tight budget, the Dodgers were surprisingly active at the first day of baseball's winter meetings, signing utility man Jerry Hairston Jr. and working toward a deal with starting pitcher Aaron Harang. The Dodgers were able to fit Hairston into their payroll by persuading him to do what Mark Ellis and Chris Capuano did this off-season: take less money for the upcoming year in exchange for an inflated payday the following season. Of the $6 million Hairston is guaranteed over the next two years, he will receive $2.25 million in 2012 and $3.75 million in 2013."

Miami Marlins introduce new closer Heath Bell

December 6

Miami Herald

"Heath Bell didn't bother with the "VIP Tour" that the Marlins gave to Albert Pujols, Jose Reyes, Mark Buehrle and C.J. Wilson — the other high-profile free agents the team has wined and dined in an effort to lure them to South Florida. No lunch at Joe's Stone Crab. No inside tour of the new ballpark with the owner himself, Jeffrey Loria, as his personal escort. None of that, at least not before he decided to become a Marlin. "I'm kind of an old-school kind of guy," Bell explained Monday after he was formally introduced as the Marlins' new closer. "I don't need to be wined and dined. The media buzz and all that? Other guys can do that. I just want the ball. Give me the ball and let's go"