Barry Zito Rumors

Olney On Potential Non-Tenders And Bradley

In today's blog post at ESPN.com, Buster Olney indicates that there is belief among general managers that the "financial restructuring that has been occurring across the landscape is about to hit the arbitration-level players like a tidal wave." He mentions underperforming, but well paid players like Garrett Atkins and Kelly Johnson are prime non-tender bait, especially since their clubs have replacements ready and it's unlikely they'll be able to trade them. Make sure you check out MLBTR's list of non-tender candidates. Olney also talks about some bad contracts the Cubs could acquire in exchange for Milton Bradley, adding that this...   Continue Reading

---

Odds And Ends: Yankees, Wagner, Byrd

Some links to start the week off... Joel Sherman of the New York Post argues that the Yankees were smart to spend on elite free agents last offseason. Mark Teixeira and C.C. Sabathia have contributed to the Yankees' dominance this year. Johnny Damon repeated to Kristie Ackert of the New York Daily News that he wants to return to the Yankees next season. The Toronto Sun notes that Mike Hampton won't pitch again this year. Billy Wagner didn't expect his Red Sox debut to go as smoothly as it did, according to Julian Benbow of the Boston Globe. As Alex...   Continue Reading

---

Odds & Ends: Zambrano, Royals, Phils

Game time? It's time for some more links, me thinks: Anthony Castrovince at MLB.com pays tribute to Hall-of-Fame reporter Hal McCoy of the Dayton Daily News, who will soon be out of a job. Dick Kaegel at MLB.com says that the Royals are still negotiating with their top picks, despite reports they had come to terms with their second- and fourth-round selections. David Kaplan at ChicagoNow stakes the claim that Carlos Zambrano is the most overpaid player in baseball. Jorge Says No! says, well... no. Jame Moyer has been sent to the bullpen in favor of Pedro Martinez, and he...   Continue Reading

---

Odds And Ends: Zito, Red Sox, Pedro

Some links for the morning... Tim Kawakami of the San Jose Mercury News says the Giants have to think about releasing Barry Zito after the season because he's weighing them down. ESPN.com's Rob Neyer says the Giants can't afford to release Zito just yet. Tony Massarotti of the Boston Globe says the Red Sox could use another lefty specialist in the 'pen. Joe Starkey of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reports that the Pirates are confident Miguel Angel Sano is a 16 years old, like he says. Jamey Newberg updates us on the top 20 Rangers prospects at MLB.com. You have to...   Continue Reading

---

Odds and Ends: Pedro, Wells, Tepesch, Zito

A few links for your pre-second half entertainment: Dave Cameron at Fangraphs is counting down the 50 players with the most trade value. Today, he posted #30-#26. ESPN's Jayson Stark recaps the Pedro Martinez press conference, and contends that the newest Phillie will start off on the DL because he didn't want to sign a minor league contract. Anthony Rieber of Newsday.com argues that the Yankess are in a unique position to land Roy Halladay - if they are willing to eat the contract of Vernon Wells. In the latest in a series of short videos on college prospects, ESPN's...   Continue Reading

---

Rosenthal On Mariners, A's, Putz

The latest from Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports... The Mariners and A's are not thinking about selling off veterans at the trade deadline. Both clubs plan to go for it. Tough decision for the Mets after the season: do they exercise J.J. Putz's $9.1MM option for 2010? Cot's Baseball Contracts says it's an $8.6MM club option with a $1MM buyout. Rosenthal says one GM views the recent DL trips for Dontrelle Willis, Chien-Ming Wang, and Daisuke Matsuzaka as possible abuse of the system. Will Barry Zito continue to be decent this year? His control and groundball rate have been much...   Continue Reading

---

Olney's Latest: Willis, Zito

Buster Olney touches on Dontrelle Willis and Barry Zito, two lefties long-struggling to make a comeback. Willis may not make the Tigers rotation. Instead, "rival talent evaluators" believe he will either be sent to the minors to continue to work, or be released. Willis hasn't impressed this spring, allowing 17 H, 7 BB, and 12 ER over 8.1 IP. Olney says scouts can't think of an example of a pitcher who has regressed as much as Willis and made a successful comeback. Zito is receiving mixed reviews with a fastball either in the range of either 80-82mph or 83-85mph. Says...   Continue Reading

---

Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Tigers, Braves, Red Sox, Pirates

Today is free agent Orlando Hudson's 31st birthday and the 29th birthday of Garrett Atkins, the subject of many recent trade rumors. Also, on this date 10 years ago, Kevin Brown became the first player to sign a contract worth at least $100MM, when he signed a seven-year/$105MM contract with the Dodgers. The deal came when Brown was 34, one season after going 18-7 with a 2.38 ERA. Brown's first two seasons with the Dodgers (18-9, 3.00 and 13-6, 2.58) were solid, but he would only make 29 starts in years three and four combined. Since then, two pitchers have...   Continue Reading

---

Rosenthal's Latest: Teixeira, Lowe, Everett

Time to discuss Ken Rosenthal's latest... Mark Teixeira is likely to sign before Manny Ramirez. The Nationals and Orioles are in the mix, but the Angels and Red Sox are more likely destinations. One GM predicted Raul Ibanez will receive a three-year deal worth $8-12MM per year. Not exactly going out on a limb there. ESPN's Jayson Stark named a dozen teams that have expressed interest. Rosenthal says the Mets are more likely to sign Brian Fuentes or Francisco Rodriguez than to acquire a closer via trade. Doesn't exactly fit with Stark's statement that J.J. Putz would go to the...   Continue Reading

---

Brown on Sabathia, Teixeira, Lowe, Peavy

In his latest article, Tim Brown at Yahoo! Sports considers a possibility that others have discussed: maybe C.C. Sabathia doesn't want to play for the New York Yankees. He certainly has options--Brown's list includes the Dodgers, Angels, White Sox, Red Sox, Mariners, Tigers, and of course, the Brewers. Not signing C.C. would increase the likelihood that the Yankees make a serious offer to Mark Teixeira. Nick Swisher seems to have the starting job at first base for now, but failing to land Sabathia might shift the Yankees' attention to all three of Teixeira, A.J. Burnett and Derek Lowe, says Brown....   Continue Reading

---

Top Stories

Search MLBTR

Lijit Search

MLBTR Features

Recent Posts

MLBTR Mailing List

Enter your email address:

Delivered by FeedBurner

Rumors By Team

Monthly Archives

Live Chats

Tuesdays at 2 p.m. CST