Gammons On Available Pitchers

You can add Oliver Perez to that list. FA to be and only 26 years old.

I would think that Randy Wolf and Sean Estes would be available also as the Padres fall further and further from contention. Wolf is on a one year deal and has been marginally successful. Estes (I would think) could also be had down the stretch.

dunno if i could see the mets selling on pitching. it's not like they have anyone behind oliver perez.

slight possibility you see tim redding on that list, too. but since the nats can control him for another year (or maybe it's two), i think it would nate more to get him than odalis perez.

errr... nate? what the @$*#? the word should be "take". don't ask me what i was thinking there.

Granted Tim, Millwoods contract wouldn't look burdensome if he stayed on the field more. A workhorse, leader, and a solid number 2-3 in a contenders rotation by all means.

Padzilla is the same. And his contract is not at all burdensome. He doesn't have a terrible injury history and has seemed to really bounce back from a terrible 07 season.

To add to that,
there shouldn't be any concern over moving their contracts.

I still consider both contracts a burden. Millwood through 2010 plus a limited NTC, Padilla through '09. I don't think Padilla's ERA alone is going to change the general opinion of him.

The problem with determining a list of this sort right now is that there seems to be a heightened level of parity throughout the game right now. Is Oakland a buyer or a seller? Their position in the standings would suggest the former, but can they maintain this level of success? It was established over the off-season that Beane saw his club as a seller. In-division, Seattle looked like a possible win-now playoff candidate in the preseason. Now, it's just as easy to see GM Bill Bavasi overseeing a fire sale.

The Yankees, Indians, Tigers, Mariners, Mets, Brewers, Rockies, and Padres are all teams that came into '08 with high hopes...and currently carry records under .500. More importantly, their composition- the way they're built- doesn't fit the sellers' profile, while their records don't mark them as buyers.

On the flip side, Tampa, Minnesota, Oakland, Texas, Florida, St. Louis, Houston...even Arizona... These aren't front offices likely to flip their prospects for expensive vets. It's all topsy turvy and with only 9 teams in baseball currently over 6 games out of first place, there's plenty of reason to believe the patterns could reverse course.

What's it all mean? I'm guessing the typically underwhelming trade deadline is that much MORE boring this year; with minimal action, particularly as it pertains to big names. Then again, with the NY teams both struggling, the opposite could be true. After all, when seats get hot in NYC, the pressure to act is enough to make diamonds of coal...and competitors tend to follow suit.

Here's hoping for the latter, if only to keep things interesting.

Padilla has only 4 starts at home ~ against power-house teams like Tor in early April, Minn and recently against Seattle. I cant imagine he carries a 3.00 ERA in Tex the rest of the year… And if you look at his games, you notice he has really only faced poor offenses…

Don’t by the hype, no GMs will. That 1.452 WHIP is more indicative of what his ERA should be ~ not the deflated and deceptive ERA…

Also, could Jeremy Guthrie be added to the dark-horse list? It's likely (I hate to say) that the O's are going to fall further and further out of first, opening the way for McPhail's continued rebuilding efforts. Guthrie has pitched very well over the past two years and could be a nice No. 3 (or even 2? with his arm) on a contender. At 29, he's still fairly young, but doesn't fit the O's rebuilding window. Also, he's under team control for several years, having not even reached arbitration eligibility. This would suggest that he'd be a valuable pitcher in an otherwise underwhelming market. Any thoughts?

The question about Lowe is, what do the Dodgers get for him? Prospects? They seem to have the rotation set now that Kershaw has been called up and the 'pen has settled in well. I just don't see anything they need that they can get for Lowe, unless they would pick up a starter to replace him or slot in behind Kuroda as number 4.

"The question about Lowe is, what do the Dodgers get for him? Prospects? They seem to have the rotation set now that Kershaw has been called up and the 'pen has settled in well. I just don't see anything they need that they can get for Lowe, unless they would pick up a starter to replace him or slot in behind Kuroda as number 4."

...Do you really think about trading Lowe when Penny is in self-destruct mode anyway? I dont...

"...Do you really think about trading Lowe when Penny is in self-destruct mode anyway? I dont..."

Penny's struggles are something I really don't understand. He still has plenty of velocity and hasn't given up that many home runs. They just seem to be pecking him to death. That said, I do think Lowe has to be kept around until Penny can show 3 good starts in a row, at least. The issue is, Lowe hasn't looked much better than Penny. I don't, however, think the Dodgers should resign Lowe.

Why would the Rangers trade Padilla when he's been our most consistent pitcher this year? he's 7-3, decent ERA. I can see Millwood though but as long there is a good deal with awesome prospects I don't think it would be a good idea to trade him.