Post Meetings Notes: Non Tenders, Mota, Bradley, and More

Yesterday, Baseball's Winter Meetings came to a close, and Milton Bradley is still on the Chicago Cubs roster. According to all sources, Bradley will be gone by Opening Day no matter what.

Tomorrow is the non-tender deadline for Major League Baseball. Teams must chose whether or not to offer contracts to arbitration eligible players. If they don't offer a contract, the player become a free agent. Here's some notes about the Non-Tender deadline and more:

• The White Sox beat the Cubs to J.J. Putz.
• Bruce Miles, Carrie Muskat and other sources expect the Cubs to offer contracts to all eligible players (Koyie Hill, Sean Marshall, Jeff Baker, Mike Fontenot, and Angel Guzman) with the exeption of Neal Cotts. Cotts is coming off Tommy John and could sign a minor league deal with the club.
• The Cubs have acquired minor league pitcher Arismendy Mota from the Washington Nationals for cash. More notes on Mota at the bottom of the post.
• White Sox writer Mark Gonzales speculates that the South Siders could have interest in bringing Neal Cotts back to their organization.
• Great You Tube video on the Cubs in the Dominican thanks to Muskat.
• Gordon Wittenmyer wrote about a brand new topic... Milton Bradley!
• Wittenmyer also notes that the Cubs the Cubs have their sights on 4 center fielders: Byrd, Cameron, Podsednik, and Ankiel.
• Michael Parisi, drafted in the Rule 5 Draft Thursday, has a chance to make the rotation.
• The Tampa Bay Rays are staying focused on next season, not a trade for Bradley.
• Check out "The Untouchables" thanks to TCR.
• BCB spent their Friday writing poetry.
• Hot Stove Cubbies says Alfredo Amezaga and Chris Young are on the Cubs' radar. The Young rumor has not been reported by a big league source.
• The Cubs and Dodgers are interested in Amezaga. The Marlins are trying to work a trade instead of Non-Tendering him tomorrow according to Juan C. Rodrigez.
• Jon Heyman says the Cubs are one team interested in Joel Piniero.
• Phil Rodgers' latest on the Cubs Spring Training home: Nothing's official, and Mesa, Ariz., did agree Wednesday to spend $750,000 to improve the existing facilities, but all signs point to the Cubs soon announcing they have turned down the proposed new complex there to jump to one in Naples, Fla.
• The CCO recapped Jim Hendry on XM Radio. He mentioned that Bradley was not the only Cubs to have a disappointing 2009.

Info on Arismendy Mota:

• Right Handed Pitcher
• Spent 2006-2009 with White Sox organization
• Drafted by Washington in the Rule 5 Draft Thursday, traded to the Cubs Friday
• Went 7-2 with a 1.81 ERA in the Dominican Rookie League this season over 16 games.
• 12-14 with 3.73 ERA in 61 career minor league games over 4 seasons.
• Will be 23 in February
• Baseball Reference Page

That's it for now, but I'll keep you posted.

Day 4 in Indy: Harden to Texas, Radio Recaps, Bradley, and More

Former Cub Rich Harden is now a Texas Ranger!

Let's start with some radio recaps!

Paul Sullivan joined Mully and Hanley on 670 The Score yesterday to talk Cubs:

• Sully went to get a coffee and he ran into Jim Riggleman and Jim Hendry in the Starbucks line and Paul joked "Milton Bradley to Washington."
• The Twitter thing has really spread rumors, such as the Bradley to Seattle rumors.
• He still thinks the Rays are the front runners for Milton.
• Paul says J.J. Putz "is the flavor of the hour" because 6-8 teams are looking at him because he's cheap. Putz is coming off elbow surgery, and Sully doesn't know if he has anything left.
• Brad Penney getting $7.5 million is not a good sign for the Cubs, because Penney got a lot of money as a "crummy pitcher".
• Paul expects the Cubs to be more active in January when they can make signing for cheaper.
• The Cubs are going to make a push for Mike Cameron for a one year deal, or maybe one year with an option. They will also look at Marlon Byrd and some non-tender guys that come out.
• They are not going to make a big splash this offseason.
• Sullivan says that covering Milton Bradley was stressful, so he can't imagine managing him.
• Lou Piniella and Milton Bradley were not a great combo.
• Nobody in the organization has talked to Bradley this offseason. "It's almost like the guy has cooties or something," Sully said.
• There's zero chance of Bradley returning.
• Ricketts and Kenney continue to say that the Cubs are series about Naples, Florida as a possibility for Spring Training.
• Sullivan thinks the Cubs owe something to Arizona. Fitch and HoHoKam Parks are "not that bad of a facility."

Today Jon Heyman of SI joined Mulley and Hanley to talk Cubs and Sox:

• If the Cubs can't get rid of Milton they may have to eat 90-95% of the contract.
• The Rangers may not want Bradley.
• The Rays are adding money with the addition of Rafael Soriano, so Heyman doesn't expect them to pursue Bradley.
• Jon still doesn't think releasing him would have been the right thing to do. They still may be able to work something out to get rid of at least a few million dollars.

Bruce Levine was on ESPN Radio with Waddle and Silvy today:

• Jim Hendry is going to stick around a little late to try to find a trade partner for Milton Bradley.
• Jim has done everything he can to try to make a move. He is trying to look for other contracts that people are trying to get rid of.
• The Cubs are choosing to put the money they make pack into the team and the ballpark first. They will not add any payroll in 2010.
• The other moves the Cubs make will be effected by Jim working on the Bradley trade.
• Levine doesn't think the Cubs would ever eat all $21.5 million. They are trying to only eat $5-6 million.
• Bruce doesn't think anyone should feel sorry for Jim because of this situation.
• Pat Burrell does not fit on the Cubs, so if he comes over in the Bradley trade, they would have to turn around and swap him.
• The Cubs are interested in Putz, but the White Sox are the front runners.

And now the latest rumor notes:

• The Winter Meetings are over... and Bradley is still a Chicago Cub.
• Carrie Muskat says that the Cubs are now scrambling to move Milton. The Rays would prefer 1 year of Burrell to 2 with Bradley.
• Cubs officials said today that they are close to trading Bradley according to Bob Nightengale.
• Nightengale says that Milton is going to Tampa, but Tim Brown says that if a trade is close, it's not to the Rays.
• Hendry had good things to say about Sean Marshall, and he will compete for a spot in the rotation next year.
• Gary Hughes, a special assistant for the Cubs, was honored as Scout of the Year yesterday.
• Tim Wilken, the Cubs scouting director, took a look at the Colts' facility yesterday to check out their scouting and player evaluation techniques according to Carrie Muskat.
• The Cubs have not made up their mind as to whether Spring Training will be moved to Naples. Mesa has offered to add batting cages to Fitch Park that cost $750,000.
• Rosenthal listed the Cubs as one team interested in Scott Podsednik.
• Jim Hendry had a meeting last night with Casey Close, who is the agent for Ben Sheets, Derrek Lee, and Mike Fontenot. He has been meeting with Mike Cameron's agent as well according to Levine. Ben Sheets is the type of player that the Cubs may look at.
• Putz worked out for the Cubs on Wednesday, and he will do so again tomorrow.
• Bruce Miles provides us with an interesting tidbit on an expected trade: The Cubs also are indirectly involved with a player the White Sox lost in the minor-league portion of the Rule 5. The Sox lost righty Arismendy Mota to the Washington organization. The Cubs are expected to make a trade with the Nationals to acquire Mota. The Sox also lost right-handed pitcher John Lujan to the Mets in the minor-league Rule 5.
• Miles thinks the final decision in the Spring Training situation will tell us a lot about Tom Ricketts.

That's it for now, but there's more to come...

Day 2 in Indy

• Gordon Wittenmyer says the Cubs are close to a "two-team" deal that would send Bradley packing!! Wittenmyer says via twitter that the deal could be done tonight.
• Joel Sherman reports that the Rangers are no longer interested in Bradley.
• Tim Brown from Yahoo thinks that Milton could be going to Seattle for Carlos Silva.
• The Tribune is now also reporting that the Cubs could have interest in Melky Cabrera, but Curtis Granderson to the Cubs is not likely, as he is close to signing with New York.
• Rosenthal gives us this breakdown: if the Cubs save a large amount on Bradley, the will be interested in Cameron, if they save a modest amount Marlon Byrd is a better fit, and if they save a small amount, Scott Podsednik makes sense. It all depends on the Bradley deal.
• The Cubs, Mariners Red Sox, and Yankees are interested in Mike Cameron.
• The North Siders like Kevin Millwood, but the Rangers are not interested in a Millwood for Bradley trade, according to Ken Rosenthal.
• Jon Paul Morosi reports that the Cubs are one of many teams with "varying levels of interest" in J.J. Putz. The White Sox, D'back, Rangers, Nationals, and Tigers are some of the other clubs listed.
• There was talk of adding a post season award specifically for relief pitcher today at the BBWAA meetings according to Bruce Miles. Miles says one possible name is the Holtzman Award, in honor of the write who invented the save.
• Write Bill Madden was elected to the Hall of Fame today.
• The Brewers are interested in bringing Kevin Gregg back to the NL Central. (Yes, as a Brewer).
• Bruce Levine says that Jim Hendry has talked with the Rockies about their outfield depth.
• The Padres are willing to trade Heath Bell, but the Cubs might not have the prospects that the Padres would want.
• Brown now tweets that "nothing imminent, but the Cubs and M's are talking Bradley and Silva."
• The Rangers and Rays are not close on Bradley, and Blue Jays officials have no comment.

I'll keep you posted on the Bradley front and more as the night moves on!