Michael Barrett Rumors

Rosenthal's Latest: Teixeira, Liriano, Garcia, Willingham

Ken Rosenthal has a new hot stove article up. Rosenthal leads with some Mark Teixeira-Angels speculation, but admits the Braves aren't considering trading him and the Angels are content with their team. The Halos' .706 team OPS ranks 12th in the AL; something should be done. All kinds of Mariners turmoil. They could look to acquire a center fielder given the move back to right for Ichiro. Releases of Richie Sexson and Jose Vidro could be on the agenda. And chemistry problems abound, with Ichiro and Kenji Johjima at the center. The Ms might consider Chris Antonetti and David Forst...   Continue Reading

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Padres Interested In Damian Miller

THURSDAY, 9:51am: The Padres (and Giants) didn't claim Quintero; he passed through waivers and is headed to Triple A. WEDNESDAY, 11:43am: The Padres aren't quite sure how long Michael Barrett's elbow injury will knock him out. He won't need Tommy John surgery, but he could miss anywhere from the minimum to two months. Kevin Towers contacted free agent Damian Miller as a possible backup to be used later this month. Miller wasn't able to find a job this winter. For now, the Padres will use the light-hitting Colt Morton behind Josh Bard. One reader suggested Humberto Quintero, who was designated...   Continue Reading

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Odds and Ends: Harden, Bonds, Ramon Hernandez

Time to round up today's linkage. Susan Slusser believes Rich Harden and Joe Blanton will both be traded this season. She sees the Yankees and Mets as suitors for Harden, though he's already having a start pushed back. Jim Caple recently made his case for the Mariners to sign Barry Bonds; his logic is sound. Our Brian Bannister Q&A got a mention in the KC Star. Nice! RotoAuthority has the fantasy take on K-Rod's ailing ankles. Pure speculation, but Ken Rosenthal thinks Ramon Hernandez would be a good fit for the Reds. Not sure if the Reds were looking at...   Continue Reading

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Padres Rumors: Stewart, Barrett

MLB.com's Corey Brock quotes Kevin Towers as saying a free agent signing is unlikely, which implies that Shannon Stewart is not on the radar. Towers still may add an outfielder via trade. The idea of the Padres and Mariners being interested in Stewart was misconstrued a bit. Jerry Crasnick said Towers "might be tempted to look at a free agent" and that the Mariners "seem like a potential fit." My summary of his article said the Mariners and Padres were possibilities. I should've been more clear that Crasnick was speculating on those two clubs rather than reporting specific interest -...   Continue Reading

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Odds and Ends: Kendall, Crisp, Gagne

I'm back in the swing of things, kind of. We're still living out of boxes, but I've got a laptop and I'm digging into all the rumors I missed. Joe did a great job the last couple of days. Be sure to visit his Yankees blog, River Ave. Blues. On to today's random rumors... I'm hearing that Jason Kendall could be a fallback for the Mets if they can't pry Ramon Hernandez loose from the Orioles. The Blue Jays have about $4MM to spend, and J.P. Ricciardi likes the idea of Michael Barrett splitting time behind the plate with Gregg...   Continue Reading

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MetsBlog: LoDuca the best choice

Matt Cerone at MetsBlog takes on the question that's been facing the Mets since mid-day yesterday: Who starts at catcher next year? Ramon Hernandez, who was offered a contract by the Mets two years ago when he was a free agent, is said to be Omar Minaya's top choice. However, this presents a problem. Hernandez won't come cheap, and the Mets would need to retain their best trading chips if they want to acquire a front-line starter. This would seemingly rule Hernandez out, since "word from [B]altimore had bee that [H]ernandez would cost a high-end prospect." A cheaper trade option...   Continue Reading

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Rosenthal's Latest: Bonds, Broussard, Hunter, Rowand, More

We missed an installment from good ol' Kenny Rosenthal yesterday. He's back today in full force (unlike another great rumor source, Buster Olney, who posted nothing really new in his blog today). The A's, once considered the best bet for Barry Bonds, are no longer interested in the indicted slugger. Rosenthal thinks it's likely that Bond's trial will start after Opening Day, causing him to miss time regardless of the verdict. And then there's the whole prison issue. The Rangers spoke to the Mariners at the GM meetings regarding the availability of Ben Broussard. Talks didn't really go anywhere, since...   Continue Reading

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State Of The Marlins

The Miami Herald's Barry Jackson has all sorts of info concerning the state of the Florida Marlins. We've heard this before - the Fish can't afford to keep both Dontrelle Willis and Miguel Cabrera. Do you trade the cheaper guy, or the more valuable one? As Jackson says, it really just depends on the offers. It wouldn't be a complete shock to see both traded if the Marlins received separate knockout offers on each. The Marlins are likely to non-tender Miguel Olivo, with an eye on bringing Paul Lo Duca back to Florida to provide veteran leadership for the young...   Continue Reading

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Michael Barrett On The Block?

Here's an interesting tidbit buried in a Giants notes column: the Cubs "reportedly are open to the idea of trading catcher Michael Barrett for pitching help." I can't imagine they'll part with Barrett cheaply, but does that mean they are willing to go with Henry Blanco and, say, Geovany Soto behind the plate? One thing is for sure: there isn't much available on the free-agent market. I suppose that if Barrett brought a decent return, a Mike Piazza-Blanco offense-defense platoon might make some sense for the Cubs; beyond that, the options are a bunch of guys who will cost more..   Continue Reading

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Globe and Mail: Cubs To Move Barrett?

The Globe and Mail is Canada's second-largest daily newspaper. This little tidbit from sportswriter Jeff Blair may have escaped your attention: "My sources are telling me that the Blue Jays and Cubs could figure in a deal after the All-Star break. The Cubs are going to dump infielder Todd Walker and might also look at moving Michael Barrett — whose omission from the NL All-Star team, even though it owes much to the justifiable presence of pitcher Carlos Zambrano as the Cubs representative, is one of the injustices of the All-Star rosters. Surprising, considering his knockdown of A.J. Pierzynski was..   Continue Reading

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