Jays sign left-hander Darren Oliver

Post #1 » by **Rhettmatic** » Fri Dec 30, 2011 7:09 pm

http://rangersblog.dallasnews.com/archi ... ign-w.html

The Rangers' month-long negotiating period with Yu Darvish - and the hefty investment it will require to sign the Japanese right-hander - does come with a price tag.

It appears it has cost them the opportunity to bring Darren Oliver back to the bullpen.

According to two major league sources, Oliver is close to signing a deal with Toronto - the club that finished as runnerup to the Rangers in the Darvish sweepstakes. Oliver, 41, was the Rangers' top lefty reliever each of the last two seasons. Oliver, who lives in Southlake, had expressed interest in returning to the Rangers and there was mutual interest. He met with GM Jon Daniels in early December, but the Rangers did not make any commitments, pending their potential outlay for other free agents.

Al_Oliver · Post #2 » by **Al_Oliver** » Fri Dec 30, 2011 7:10 pm

nice, if true... solid addition to the pen

torontoaces04 · Post #3 » by **torontoaces04** » Fri Dec 30, 2011 7:17 pm

He'll come relatively cheap. Seems like AA/Rogers type of guy.

SharoneWright · Post #4 » by **SharoneWright** » Fri Dec 30, 2011 7:21 pm

LOL. AA Stickin' it to Texas! A little revenge and a little value! Me likes.

(But boy is he old...)

Raptor_Guy · Post #5 » by **Raptor_Guy** » Fri Dec 30, 2011 7:25 pm

Sweeet we really needed a lefty in the bullpen

Relentless88 · Post #6 » by **Relentless88** » Fri Dec 30, 2011 7:26 pm

Hope it's true. Need to keep building that bullpen.

s e n s i · Post #7 » by **s e n s i** » Fri Dec 30, 2011 7:28 pm

i guess rogers isn't so cheap after all!

Wo1verine · Post #8 » by **Wo1verine** » Fri Dec 30, 2011 7:29 pm

Good potential signing, but surely nothing fans will get excited about.. I mean, our two biggest moves so far have been bullpen arms.. Something still has to give this winter.

dagger · Post #9 » by **dagger** » Fri Dec 30, 2011 7:30 pm

chocolateSensi wrote:i guess rogers isn't so cheap after all!

Ha. this won't even bring us up to $55 million in salary commitments for next season. :lol:

Wo1verine · Post #10 » by **Wo1verine** » Fri Dec 30, 2011 7:30 pm

chocolateSensi wrote:i guess rogers isn't so cheap after all!

They're still cheap. I mean, Oliver isn't going to cost anything

s e n s i · Post #11 » by **s e n s i** » Fri Dec 30, 2011 7:38 pm

Wo1verine wrote:
chocolateSensi wrote:i guess rogers isn't so cheap after all!

They're still cheap. I mean, Oliver isn't going to cost anything

no. a darren oliver signing signifies a dramatic shift in the financial landscape of the AL east. we are ready to make it rain and finally compete. we've waited impatiently for this day but it has come.

dagger · Post #12 » by **dagger** » Fri Dec 30, 2011 8:08 pm

It seems like only the Jays and Angels had any interest in him.

Mak · Post #13 » by **Mak** » Fri Dec 30, 2011 8:15 pm

no rumor came true yet... while Santos deal came out of nowhere. Same thing here?

Post #14 » by **Rhettmatic** » Fri Dec 30, 2011 8:23 pm

JonHeymanCBS Jon Heyman
Darren oliver in serious talk with #bluejays, as reported by the texas writers.

dagger · Post #15 » by **dagger** » Fri Dec 30, 2011 8:25 pm

You mean AA is doing something that isn't a done deal yet? I thought every one of his transactions is a done deal - signed and sealed - by the time we learn about it.

And do you realize Oliver is old enough to be Brett Lawrie's father? :lol:

flatjacket1 · Post #16 » by **flatjacket1** » Fri Dec 30, 2011 8:33 pm

dagger wrote:And do you realize Oliver is old enough to be Brett Lawrie's father?

Or is he... :lol:

Post #17 » by **Rhettmatic** » Fri Dec 30, 2011 8:39 pm

ShiDavidi Shi Davidi
From what I hear, Jays and Oliver still finalizing terms. Given holidays and need for physical, unlikely anything gets finished til next wk

TheMainEvent · Post #18 » by **TheMainEvent** » Fri Dec 30, 2011 9:33 pm

Except for him possibly failing his physical, I guess this is almost a done deal.

He's old, but there really aren't a good number of options for a lefty reliever in the FA market. He's also been effective the last few years. Good move, considering Luis Perez is the only lefty in the bullpen, but obviously nothing great.

Wo1verine · Post #19 » by **Wo1verine** » Fri Dec 30, 2011 9:58 pm

Wonder what his contract will look like? I'll take a guess and say 1-year, 3.7MM deal with a team option for 3.7 the following season.

Wo1verine · Post #20 » by **Wo1verine** » Fri Dec 30, 2011 10:06 pm

The Blue Jays have agreed to sign Darren Oliver to a one-year contract with a club option for 2013, reports MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan. The deal is still pending a physical.