NASHVILLE, Tenn.–Out of left field the Tigers roared, scooping up all-star third baseman Miguel Cabrera and lefty starter Dontrelle Willis, two of the most coveted players on the trade market, from the Marlins for a package of six players. According to several sources, the Marlins and Tigers have agreed in principle to a deal for Cabrera and Willis for prized outfield prospect Cameron Maybin, left-hander Andrew Miller and catcher Mike Rabelo, plus three minor-league pitchers. The deal is pending player physicals.%26quot;It’s very serious, but nothing is finalized yet because some issues need to get worked out,%26quot; Tigers manager Jim Leyland told the Associated Press.Willis was on vacation when he heard the news. %26quot;I’m in Mexico right now with my family. I’m kind of busy,%26quot; he told the Associated Press.The Tigers had not been mentioned as players in the Cabrera sweepstakes. Instead, the Marlins had been dealing with the Angels for the last week, with those talks breaking down over the prospects that would be going to the Marlins. The Dodgers and Giants were also discussed as potential suitors for the 24-year-old Venezuelan.As for Willis, the energetic lefty had an off season for the Marlins, going 10-15 with a 5.19 ERA, but still made 35 starts and pitched 205 1/3 innings. He was slated to be a free agent after the ‘09 season and made $6.5 million (all figures U.S.) in ‘07. Willis and Cabrera, also with two years before free agency, combined to make $13.9 million, more than 45 per cent of the team’s total payroll of $30.57 million.Willis would join Justin Verlander, Kenny Rogers, Jeremy Bonderman and Nate Robertson in the Tigers rotation as they attempt to fight back to the World Series, after losing the AL Central to the Indians.Cabrera, who has played 348 games in the outfield and 373 at third base, joins veteran run producers Magglio Ordonez and Gary Sheffield in the middle of a potent Tigers batting order.At baseball’s winter meetings, when the logjam is broken with the first major trade or free-agent signing, there is usually a flurry of further activity.As the Tigers and Marlins trade was being discussed, the Red Sox were poised to win out over the Yankees in the tussle for Twins left-hander Johan Santana. Yankees senior vice-president Hank Steinbrenner had set a deadline of Monday night and was claiming to be standing by it, leaving the Red Sox as the only team with an offer on the table for the former Cy Young Award winner.%26quot;A deadline is a deadline,%26quot; Steinbrenner said, ignoring the fact that he had re-entered Alex Rodriguez negotiations after having bowed out. %26quot;It was pretty much done as of (yesterday) morning. He’s a fine pitcher, but there’s a lot of things that go into this. This isn’t fantasy baseball.%26quot;The Red Sox standing offer includes one of either left-hander Jon Lester or outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury. If it is Lester, he would reportedly be accompanied by outfielder Coco Crisp, shortstop Jed Lowrie and a pitching prospect. If it is Ellsbury, only Lowrie and the minor-league pitcher would be included.
hander
Related Articles
No user responded in this post
Leave A Reply
Please Note: Comment moderation maybe active so there is no need to resubmit your comments