Jake Peavy Rumors: Friday

I say trade for Roberts instead and sign Furcal.

God, please don't let this happen. Hopefully his BFF Oswalt can talk him out of this one.

First, the offers must not be that great if the Cubs have become front runners with that package.

Second, if all of these reports are true, have you ever seen an elite pitcher so scared to pitch anywhere else. I mean first he does not want to go to the AL, then he doesn't want to go to any small ballpark, now he is worried about not having a shortstop if he goes to Atlanta. Geez, it;s starting to seem a bit pathetic.

I thought that Smardizja was on a $10MM salary. If the Padres are trying to cut costs to under $40, would they really want Smardizja? Furthermore, if the Cubs certainly shouldnt be kicking in any money.

The Braves can't afford to let him get away. They need to up their offer, maybe throw in Locke or someone to get it done

Yeah, Chris is right on. I've been defending Peavy for weeks, but starting to worry about not having Escobar if you go to the Braves? Give me a break.

I am completely underwhelmed by the Cubs offer. If that is what is on the table, then the market for Peavy has completely changed. I hope KT keeps him.

A big part of Smardzija's pay package was the signing bonus ($2m), and he's signed through 2011, so it would not be that bad for the Padres.

I can't believe anyone wants to trade someone to the Cubs. They currently have one of the worst farm systems & the players they'll be trading are and dare I say the elite of the bunch. I think Hendry would do the team a dis-service if he didn't do a trade like this even if its giving up several players. Pie hasn't proven anything in the majors, Marshall is a great #4 or #5 rotation man, Cedeno had his best year but probably more of a utility player. Hart has shown some upside & Veal was minor league player of the year if that means anything to anyone, but hasn't done much since. Do the deal & get rid of Marquis & Hill (since he's out of options) & try for the Furcal, in some bizarre universe the Cubs could actually land him. Then they'd be forced to move Theriot to 2nd & platoon D-ro & Hoffpauir in right, that is unless D-lee is traded too then Hoffpauir would play first. The best part of it would be Soriano would have to bat either 2nd or his more suited spot 5th in the lineup.

Do it.

"how in the world does:

Marshall, Pie, Cedeno, Veal and Hart

beat

Escobar, Morton and Schafer"

All a matter of perspective. Some scouts out there like Escobar a lot, but some others think he's average. I think it's unrealistic to have every GM have the opinion of whatever publication (BA/BP, etc.) you get your prospect rankings and scouting reports from. Ideas are going to differ.

If Towers thinks Pie IS a future star still and that Cedeno can be a starting ML SS, with Veal, Hart, and Marshall comprising a pretty good trio of pitchers, should he take the other offer still just because some other guy says its better?

The Braves offer as it stands isn't THAT much better or offering such a far and away huge prospect in the veins of a LaPorta, Price, etc. that I don't think anyone can say that Towers should think one offer or another is neccisarily better for his team in his view, and he's wrong if he thinks differently.

Peavy will be a Brave and the SS for the Braves will be Renty,Furcal,or Felipe Lopez. Peavy was just asked to wave the ntc.

I cannot see how Towers would take the Cubs offer over the Braves offer. I really think he is just using the Cubs as leverage to get the Braves to throw in another prospect(anywhere from low-mid level).

I retract my previous statement about this deal not getting done until after the season starts but I think Towers will wait it out and Wren will throw in another arm. Peavy for Escobar/Morton/Schafer/prospect is a very good deal for San Diego.

I have to admit, it seems like Towers is just trying to get more out of the Braves.

If Shark's NTC is only limited, that changes a lot. He does have huge upside, and it now makes sense that San Diego would say they like the Cubs young pitching. I thought they must be talking about Marmol earlier...but this makes more sense. I did think he had a full NTC though...

maybe peavy simply wants to get traded to the cubs, and is forcing towers to find a deal to be made with them? he's said he wants to play for a contender and the cubs are certainly that. eric karros said that every player in baseball should get a chance to play for them. andre dawson and kerry wood both signed virtual blank checks to play there. reed johnson and mark derosa signed with them before listening to any other offers. there are those, crazy at it may sound, that just simply want to play for the cubs.
and i also am enjoying the bitterness. even if the cubs don't get him, and i still don't think they will, the fact that it is driving so many people nuts is enough to make me laugh. god i hope they get him, though.

NEBravesfan, the Cubs offer is more tasty. You have Veal for the main course and Pie for dessert. That's some mighty fine vitters, oops I mean, vittles.

If Hendry can get this deal done with trading Samardzija instead of Ceda, then he's pulled off the move of the offseason. Samardzija isn't that good...doesn't have good enough stuff to rack up a high K-rate in the minors...I'll pass.

i thought the shark had a full ntc as well. maybe that gets a deal done? marshall's a good swingman. the shark's gonna be a good one, though he still needs polishing. the rest of the parts are potential upside guys, if that, and it's been demonstrated plenty that the braves can do better. maybe they feel they can just spend money on lowe and maybe garland, keep their own prospects and leave it at that.

"Second, if all of these reports are true, have you ever seen an elite pitcher so scared to pitch anywhere else. I mean first he does not want to go to the AL, then he doesn't want to go to any small ballpark, now he is worried about not having a shortstop if he goes to Atlanta. Geez, it;s starting to seem a bit pathetic."

Believe it or not, some pitchers make decisions based on who would play behind them when they are FA signing with teams. I agree, if the reports are true, Peavy's comments sound bad.

"I thought that Smardizja was on a $10MM salary. If the Padres are trying to cut costs to under $40, would they really want Smardizja? Furthermore, if the Cubs certainly shouldnt be kicking in any money."

Like another pointed out, Samardzija has that money until '11. It is not 10 mil per.

"Wow I would much rather take the braves offer over the pile of AAAA players the cubs are offering"

I would not go so far to call that package AAAA. The Braves could get it done and easily top the Cubs offer if they wanted to, they don't. I agree with the above poster that the Braves current offer is not that overwhelming to the Cubs right now, if those names are true. Again, Atlanta could make it overwhelming, they are electing not to do so.

"I thought KT said he wanted quality over quantity"

I was reading from the SD people who were saying the reality is they were not looking for a home run on this deal, more like a double. Besides, it is quite possible a third team gets involved and other names surface. Even without a third team, San Diego could afford to let Pie grow, Chicago is win now. Marshall would do a good job in Petco. Samardzija looks like the real deal, he needs to fine tune it and get more experience. Veal looks dominate at times and lost at other times and just needs innings. Cedeno will make the occasional bone head play and drive you nuts, but I'll take him over Greene. None of these guys are downside players. They need playing time and a team that can give them a chance to grow.

Steveo, I totally agree with you. I would take the Braves offer as well, that's not what I'm arguing.

What I am saying, is that (myself included) some people get out of hand when discussing trade packages, determining that a player's value to a team HAS to be a certain thing because a publication or two says so. I realize that most people would have tabbed Schafer over Pie, and Yunel over Cedeno. What I'm saying is that I'm not quite sure how you can say that Kevin Towers HAS to believe Schafer is a better player just because the general community regards him in a higher light than Pie (he still hasn't done anything at the ML level either after all).

I just don't see how it's that ridiculous that professional baseball people would have varying opinions of players that don't fit a certain ranking system. If Towers likes Pie more than Schafer is it THAT hard to believe? Should he take Schafer just because Baseball America says he should? Obviously that's what most of us would base our trades off of because we aren't in the field.

But I certainly don't think any of the guys in the discussion are such can't miss prospects that to like one over another (Pie over Schafer, Marshall over Morton) when none of them have even hit the majors is such a big deal.

Citizen no he said the Braves appear willing. I think you may need to re-read the segment.

Anyways why wouldn't the Padres accept the Braves offer of Yunel, Morton and Schaffe? Yunel is one of the best defensive SS's in the league, Morton is a young stud who will be a future 3-4 and Schaffer is compare to Grady Sizemore.

Interesting nugget from rotoworld...

According to the San Diego Union Tribune, Jake Peavy and his agent have decided that they'd like Yunel Escobar to remain with the Braves if Peavy is traded to Atlanta.

In other words, Peavy wouldn't want his potential new team to be weakened by the trade to get him. "One of the things we will want to look at some point is, 'Who are you giving up? How much are you weakening your team to make this deal?'" agent Barry Axelrod said. "If Team X trades three starting pitchers and a starting shortstop to get Jake Peavy, that lessens their chance of being a successful team." Peavy demanding that the team dealing for him keeps all of its MLB talent would make life a lot tougher on Padres general manager Kevin Towers.

Sounds like Peavy might want to wear the royal blue pinstripes?

100backeduptrucks hit my main comment here that we don't know if Peavy is playing hard ball.

Also going outside his 5 is not going to be an option. We all know the Yanks can put the best offer on the table in both players and extension, but with how ficle Peavy is being, it looks like he is going to be on 1 of 3 teams, Padres, Braves, Cubs.

As a cub fan i have to agree that this is not the best package in the world, but to say the Braves is that much better is not true either.

The SS invloved, thier main difference is service time and age.

Morton has more upside on the mound, but Marshall is good when he is in a grove, and in that park has #3 stuff, but most are correct that he is a #4 type. But lefties that can pitch at this level can survie long, just look at Jamie Moyer, for years he was a #3 #4 type pitcher. I also am in the camp that young bullpen guys are a crap shoot.

Schafer may be a top prospect but so was Pie once and have we seen if Schfer can hack it in the bigs yet, NO we have not. Pie was brought up too early imo and for a team/manager that does not have paitence to learn at this level. Pie in the right spot will succeed and the compairisons to Mike Cameron are not bad ones. The kid can flat out field at the big league level and the kid can fly. Those few times he has gotten in a little grove he is a very exciting player to watch play. Lots also not foget that he is ONLY a year older than Schafer.

So in all the deals are close, with the braves having some youth and service time in thier offer and the cubs offering up a couple extra bodies to compensate for that.

Peavy is making this an f'n chore for KT. Remember when all he demanded was a trade to one of 5 teams? Then, remember when he wanted his option year picked up? After that, remember when he asked for the moon? Then, remember when he asked to be traded to a team that didn't give anyone up? Sounds like, in order to get the 'go' from Peavy, the braves will have to give up Hanson as he is not a big-league impact and won't change the current braves team. I dont know, just a thought - maybe KT is behind this, or maybe KT is miserable for ever starting this adventure.

"Also going outside his 5 is not going to be an option. We all know the Yanks can put the best offer on the table in both players and extension, but with how ficle Peavy is being, it looks like he is going to be on 1 of 3 teams, Padres, Braves, Cubs."

Since when? He said it himself it would be an option if they can make the situation right. The UYankees can afford to overpay and the Angels are a team Jake likes. He might take a little convincing because he won't get to bat, but he gets to stay in So. Cal., and he loves that.

Some people need to stop acting immature, you have no say so in this matter, so stop fighting like 5 year olds. If Towers, Hendry, or Wren cared what fans think, this deal would of been done by now.

"Also going outside his 5 is not going to be an option. We all know the Yanks can put the best offer on the table in both players and extension, but with how ficle Peavy is being, it looks like he is going to be on 1 of 3 teams, Padres, Braves, Cubs."

Since when? He said it himself it would be an option if they can make the situation right. The UYankees can afford to overpay and the Angels are a team Jake likes. He might take a little convincing because he won't get to bat, but he gets to stay in So. Cal., and he loves that.

Why not becuase KT wants this done fast and move on. How does it look if he gets a deal done, as it will leak out, and then Peavy shoots it down? All that does is makes KT's job harder for the next deal.

Peavy took over control of the boat and KT's hands are tied. Do you honestly think he really wants to take either of the Cubs or Braves current rumored offers? NO, he doesn't it seems to me he is looking for a fast solution to this problem.

None of us are a GM, and it really comes down to him, does he keep an unhappy Peavy or move on? Clearly the ownership group wants a youth movement here and you have to start somewhere.

CubbyFan23: You are right with the exception of Escobar no one is "can't miss" in the disscussion. Maybe you don't agree but Escobar has already proven himself at the ML level, even if he never gets any better or even falls a small amount he will be in the top half of SS's in the league for the next 4 years.

As for the other part I see what your saying that maybe Towers and the Padres do see more in Pie, or Marshall or even the Shark then most people. I think the real problem for people looking at these proposed deals, fans, media and even Kevin Towers is that the cubs player value is low where the Braves' players value is higher. If it was a stock market Escobar and Schafer's value would be very high they have each had 2 good years back to back (though the suspension hurts Schafer's value a bit its not a deal breaker). Morton's value while not as high as the other two would still be pretty solid. The Cubs on the other hand Cedeno's value has fallen each of the last 4 years. Pie's value has fallen some these last 2 years. Veal's value as well went down after he struggled in the minors. Marshall had a nice year but not as a full time starter. Hart too has been solid these last two years but he wasn't a top guy. Even the Shark has some major question marks. He had a great call-up no doubt, but he did struggle in the minors esp. as a starter.

Also for the poster who talked about ages, yeah Pie is only 23 but he will be 24 before next season and he already had a couple ML callups. Schafer will only be 22 next year and still hasn't hit the bigs. Escobar and Cedeno will both be 26 for next season and Escobar has had two solid to good years while Cedeno has played in the last 4 seasons and has never been a solid regular. Marshall and Hart are older then Morton as well. I think there is also a question of roster spots. In the Braves deal only Escobar and Morton would take up 40 man spots. In the Cubs deal of say Samarzjida, Pie, Cedeno, Marshall, and Veal that would be 4 40 man roster spots (5 if Hart replaced Veal). That could be prohibitive to the Cubs if they have guys they need to protect for Rule 5 or to bring in other players through trades and what not.

Morton made 16 starts last year, in 8 of them he gave up 3 runs or less. 4 other starts he gave up 4 runs. Not bad at all for a rookie who gets called up midseason.

tsweet9000. he didn't even average 5 innings per start. you give up 3-4 runs in each of those starts, things aren't going so well. Let's not talk about age and growth ceiling either here, as Marshall is only 1 year older.

Once again, I'm not saying the Cubs players are any better, just that some Braves fans (just as some Cubs fans and other fans of any organization in general) need to stop overvaluing their team's prospects relative to other team's propects.

Steveo, I agree the "value" of the Braves offer is more. However, if I'm a ML GM, if I dealt on value 100% of the time it would be an easy job. If Towers thinks the actual production of the players from the Cubs outweighs the Braves offer, then shouldn't he take it, value or not?

Perhaps it means that he can squeeze an extra player from Chicago, but I doubt he should make the deal just based on what the percieved value of the players is.

Escobar is very solid, I agree, but I think it's very possible that KT thinks Pie>Schafer, the Cubs pitching in that deal>Morton, and Yunel doesn't add enough over Cedeno to make up for those two differences. I never have got the hate on Cedeno, by Cubs fans or others. He's a GREAT fielding shortstop and his bat came through finally at the ML level last year (RBI's be damned though).

In the very least, Veal, Marshall are much more valuable to a team than Morton. Again, I'd take the Braves offer if I was a GM, but I'm not. :) KT has to make his own decisions based on what he thinks the production will be from each deal, especially since these players won't likely be traded soon.

If you could somehow look into a crystal ball and see that a mega prospect would OPS .800 and a lesser regarded would OPS .850, both were offered to you, wouldn't you take the .850? I realize it's not that black and white, but that's at least the point I'm trying to get across. "Value" only takes you so far.

tom,

I'll discuss rumors.

Who says Hanson won't be an elite player or one of the worst players in baseball history. Or Escobar can have a bad injury and his career is over. Or Pie might be mad now, within a few years he might be the best CF in baseball. Or Samardzija might be the best pitcher in the Cubs farm system and can be the worst in the Padres farm system. Where i'm getting at with this is, you can't always believe what some writer or scout is telling you, until it happens.

tsweet9000 ,

Charlie Morton had a 1.54 WHIP in the minors. WOOF!

Veal, Marshall, Samardzija are all much much better prospects than Charlie Morton.

BD,

Good thought, but GM's rarely make trades where they have a specific Free Agent in mind. In addition, there's a ton of competition for Furcal so it's no guarantee. I don't think Theriot is involved.

Teetz, I was going with the idea that if we traded Theriot, Cedeno would take over the daily job... which is a damn good reason to look at Furcal, haha.

BravesRed, I completely agree, but this is the purpose of these places. Rumors are rumors and hindsight is 20/20. Nonez of us knows how these trades would play out in the longer run. We get that. But that's besides the point. We don't post because we're convinced we know better, we post because it's fun to talk baseball with fellow fans during work hours.

I don't think any poster actually works for a team, so we're all average baseball fans, some with more knowledge or insight than others.

All I'm saying is that if you come here, you should be able to talk c**p about baseball, listen to others, and discuss. We shoot opinions off of each other, all in good fun, acknowledging that none of what we say matters.

It's about discussing what makes sense to each poster, and seeing where you agree and disagree. Why? Because most of us enjoy it. It's all stupid ball talk. Let's keep it loose.

"Look at Mortons game by game log. When he was good... about half the time he was very good. The other half he was awful. "

All this equals to an ERA above 6. Good pitchers, even rookies, don't have awful games in half of their starts.

Let me preface this by saying that I am a Cub fan...

Sean Marshall is not off of the scrap heap as many of you think. He is a left handed pitcher that has been shuttled between starting and relief without every complaining. So he is good chemistry for a team that needs a versatile pitcher. God only knows how good he could be if left as a starter or reliever.

Pie is out of options and could benefit from a big ballpark like PetCo where a great defensive CF player is needed. A change of scenary would be good for him.

I'd hate to see Smardzija go in any deal, but I think he definitely adds great value to the Cubs offer. He is another pitcher that can start or relieve. He might be what they are looking for to take Hoffmann's closer spot.

Cedeno is a very good fielder, decent hitter, his main fault is his bone headed base running. Playing everyday might help his focus.

Ceda came to the Cubs from the Padres in the Todd Walker trade, so the Padres know all about this kid. He is another possible replacement for Hoffmann. I would not include both Ceda and Smardjiza in this trade.

Veal would probably be a throw in, into this deal. Not sure if he will ever realize his potential. Atkins might be a safer bet for the Padres.

If either Smardjiza or Ceda is involved in this trade then I would not include Vitters.

If Hendry pulls off this move after the Harden deal, then I think that people have to concede that this guy is a bit better at making trades than anyone previously recognized.

Samardzija is a very legitimate top prospect, his stuff is filthy, but he still only posted a 4.29 ERA between AA and AAA last season, and his peripherals were far from impressive. He was looking like a potential bust until being called up to AAA, when he just seemed to randomly turn it on.

If the Cubs can land Peavy for a package of Samardzija, Pie, Marshall and Cedeno, that's a no brainer in my opinion. We could then just sign Wood and let Dempster walk, or sign both of them and move Marquis.

My only concern would be if the Cubs traded Samardzija, and then didn't resign Wood, leading to a bullpen with Marmol as the closer, and guys like Gaudin and Guzman as the key set up men. Maybe they could look at a Juan Cruz reunion, but really I think that if the Cubs move Samardzija, Wood pretty much has to come back.

Also, by the way, I'm a Cubs fan, and I would prefer an Escobar/Schafer/Morton package over a Samardzija/Pie/Marshall/Cedeno package, although there is no doubt that if the Padres are targeting pitching, Samardzija and Marshall are better than what Atlanta has been offering pitching wise.

seems to me that the cubs are just offering quanity. not quality. the offer from the braves seems alot better than what the cubs are offering. IMO the cubs are offering more players because they know that they cant match the quality of the players the braves offered

Cook, if he wasn't very good then you must be downright awful.

This just in...the Cubs signed Manny Ramirez, traded for Peavy, acquired Alex Rodriguez, Rafael Furcal, and in a surprise move, signed Mark Teixeira and K-Rod...god this website is so cubs biased its ridiculous. I surprised that post hasnt been added yet

Golfstar, just because the Cubs are involved in a variety of rumors does not make this site Cubs biased... it makes the Cubs a major market team looking to acquire a front of the line starter or postition player.

If you can't handle the fact that major market teams (Yankees, Mets, Cubs, Dodgers, etc) are involved in more trade talks than the Royals and Nationals... then just give up on baseball. Good riddance.

i didn't say he sucked haha. obviously he was drafted for a reason. but i guess you are god of all baseball knowledge so..

i will say, however, he did hit probably the furthest home run i have ever seen in my life. Aluminum bat of course

cook,

I could of swore that Vitters batting average in his Minor League career is .322.

"I could of swore that Vitters batting average in his Minor League career is .322."

Actually its .290, but whos counting

lol @ Vitters being an elite hitter. Typical Cubs fan.

He said he "has the ability to be a elite hitter"

Does he not?

Good news for Braves fans with Jeff not being shopped. Ryan is a good MI though.

I think the Braves should step up and offer Rhoubough now and get it done.

Yeah but you can't just throw around the world elite. Look it up.

word*

Time for me to add my two cents:

First of all the Padres want someone better than Morton as the pitcher coming back from the back Braves, he is project by scouts to be a 4/5.
The major difference between the cubs packages (not sure who is including and who isnt) is the amount of arms being discussed. We want pitching.
And in all honesty the cubs are offering the same type of pitching, just more of it.

I told you yesterday, i would be it be Locke and Rohrbough. Even thought they are not ready, they are better arms, and more upside then the pitchers that are part of the deal.

If the Braves deal looked like Escobar/Locke/Rohrbough/Schafer I would believe the Padres would jump on it. If Peavy of course will allow it. Which does complicate the situation.

Bruce Miles is by far, the best Cubs beat writer out there and possibly the only good one.

What an incredible huge journalism error by Jeff Passan. Samardzija's NTC was the crux of the whole article and something he could have easily found out by making a phone call or using google.