Matt Stairs Rumors

Odds and Ends: Byrnes, Teixeira, Swisher

Random links for Tuesday... SI.com's Jon Heyman notes that a Cy Young award for Johan Santana would lock in his 2014 option at $25MM. Mark Healey of Gotham Baseball wonders if the Mets might end up signing Ivan Rodriguez. The Jays officially received Fabio Castro to complete the Matt Stairs deal. Buster Olney had this one in August. Bummer to see Larry Borowsky of Viva El Birdos stepping down from blogging. He's been my favorite Cardinals writer. Nick Piecoro wonders if Eric Byrnes could be traded for another bad contract player like Luis Castillo. The Red Sox treated Mark Teixeira...   Continue Reading

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Week In Review: 8/24 - 8/30

Sunday afternoon is here again... let's have a look back at some of the moves and rumors since last time: The injury-plagued Red Sox acquired Mark Kotsay to help compensate for their injuries. In exchange, the Braves received minor league outfielder Luis Sumoza. Nice acquisition by the Red Sox; Kotsay has been swinging a solid bat this season. The Twins acquired Eddie Guardado from Texas in exchange for minor league pitcher Mark Hamburger. Guardado has spent the majority of his career with Minnesota and provides a solid arm to the bullpen. To make room for him, they DFA'd Mike Lamb....   Continue Reading

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Phillies Acquire Matt Stairs

5:56pm: ESPN's Buster Olney says the Jays will receive pitcher Fabio Castro, who warmed up during today's game against the Cubs. The 23 year-old lefty has struggled with his control, but still makes for a solid acquisition by J.P. Ricciardi. 12:19am: According to Ken Rosenthal, the Phillies acquired outfielder/first baseman Matt Stairs from the Blue Jays. The prospect in the deal has yet to be determined. Stairs was designated for assignment recently. He fills the Phillies' need for a left-handed bench bat (likely taking them out of the market for Mike Lamb). Stairs, 40, hit .250/.342/.394 in 368 plate appearances...   Continue Reading

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Ibanez Trade Unlikely

6:10pm: Just to wrap up Toronto's brief venture into the Bay sweepstakes (since it was first reported in this post)...the Jays backed out when the Pirates asked for Shaun Marcum and top prospect Travis Snider. 5:36pm: Geoff Baker has some more details on the failed deal with Toronto although he still is not sure who was offered for Ibanez. Baker has quotes from JP Ricciardi that says it was the Mariners that backed out of the deal. Baker then goes on to speculate that the aquisition of Ibanez was a marketing tool to convince the fans in Toronto that the...   Continue Reading

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Rosenthal's Latest: Holliday, Burnett, Rauch, Ibanez

Ken Rosenthal has a new Full Count video up. The Angels are not interest in Matt Holliday, while the Dodgers and Red Sox "could play" on him. Rosenthal names the Nationals as an "intriguing dark horse," saying they've been checking up on Holliday. They like the idea of having him for '09, and could even entertain signing him long-term. The Phillies have minimal interest in A.J. Burnett, plus they're on his 15 team no-trade list. Rosenthal notes that Burnett nearly signed with the Cardinals a few years back, but their interest is not mutual. Jon Rauch is a hot commodity,...   Continue Reading

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Rosenthal's Latest: Padilla, Manny, Beltre, Dunn

Rumor man Ken Rosenthal has a new column up. At least three teams have inquired on the Rangers' Vicente Padilla: the Mets, Yankees, and Brewers. Jon Daniels is looking for "quality young pitching." Manny Ramirez's $20MM option for '09 isn't a lock. It's a tough call - .900 OPS players on one-year deals don't grow on trees. Rosenthal suggests David DeJesus or Melky Cabrera would be nice fits for the Diamondbacks, who aren't looking for a rental. He also speculates on names like Brian Giles, David Dellucci, and Randy Winn. Note: Rosenthal is playing GM here, not relaying inside info...   Continue Reading

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Law: Top 10 Trade Candidates

Keith Law, a favorite here at MLBTR and at home home, River Ave. Blues, has posted an article on 10 potential trade candidates off-season. It seems that if anything big does go down this off-season, it will be in the form of a trade, since the FA market is particularly weak. So who does Law have in mind? The most surprising name on the list is the Blue Jays' Adam Lind. Law believes that with the next year's financial commitments to Frank Thomas, Lyle Overbay, and now Matt Stairs, there is no obvious spot for Lind, and he'll have to..   Continue Reading

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Blue Jays Sign Stairs For Two Years

According to ESPN's Amy K. Nelson, the Blue Jays have signed Matt Stairs to a two-year, $3.5MM deal. The price seems about right. J.P. Ricciardi has predicted a quite offseason, so we may not see much else. Nelson says the plan is for Stairs to mainly platoon with Adam Lind in left field. That seems to leave Reed Johnson as a non-tender candidate. The arbitration-eligible Johnson made $3.075MM in 2007 but his a miserable .236/.305/.320 in 275 ABs. That was a far cry from his '06 performance of .317/.388/.477. It should be noted that Johnson had back surgery in April,..   Continue Reading

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Jays To Retain Stairs, Cut Towers?

I feel like with two guys named stairs and towers I could craft some sort of amusing play on words. Oh well. Here's the latest on the Blue Jays. They'll pass on A-Rod, says J.P. Ricciardi. No surprise there, but now it's official. They could still stand an upgrade at shortstop though. Unless Travis Hafner teaches John McDonald how to hit. Hafner needs to get himself in order first though. The Jays also hope to re-sign Matt Stairs, who wants a raise from last year's $850K. Maybe $3MM would get it done. Stairs was shielded from southpaws a bit but..   Continue Reading

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Blue Jays, Stairs Talking Extension

39 year-old 1B/LF/RF Matt Stairs is having a remarkable year - he's hitting .310/.385/.591 in 303 ABs for the Blue Jays. Granted, he's been sitting against lefties most of the time, but he's still been the Jays' second-most valuable offensive player behind Alex Rios. And he's earning less than a million bucks this year. Stairs, a Canada native, would like to return for 2008. According to the Toronto Star, talks have begun. It definitely makes sense to keep him around for $2-3MM. He can help out at both outfield corners, first base, and DH. Bringing Stairs back for '08 might..   Continue Reading

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Cubs Considering Outfielders

Multiple readers have emailed me about a radio report on WSCR 670 The Score out of Chicago today. According to the report, the Cubs are considering multiple trade possibilities to fill the monthlog gap left by Alfonso Soriano's quad injury. On the radar: Craig Monroe, Matt Stairs, Jeff Conine, and Adam Dunn. Additionally, Cubs GM Jim Hendry came out and said today that he's working the phones to find some help. Contract situations of each player: Monroe - $1.5MM left in '07, should earn $5MM+ in '08 before reaching free agency Stairs - $267K left in '07, free agent after..   Continue Reading

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ESPN, MLB Radio: Stairs To Texas

According to ESPN, the Rangers have acquired DH type Matt Stairs from the Royals. MLB Radio adds that the Royals received 26 year-old righty reliever Joselo Diaz in return   Continue Reading

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