Rosenthal’s Latest: Nats After Dunn

Ken Rosenthal’s got a new column up; let’s dive in.

• Fun new rumor: the Nationals are pursuing Adam Dunn.  Huh?  Makes no sense on the surface.  Jim Bowden’s possible motivation would be to sign Dunn long-term and make him the cornerstone of the franchise.  If he fails at that, all would not be lost given the draft pick compensation.  Rosenthal says the market for Dunn beyond Washington is a bit foggy – the Twins, Angels, Yankees, Red Sox, and Padres could all get involved but none stand out.
• Rosenthal adds some color to my recent Nationals post.  He mentions that Ron Belliard is a name that might interest the Mets, an idea that has come up before.  Rosenthal says the Mets will not do a Lastings Milledge for Chad Cordero trade.
• The Dodgers have jumped to the forefront on Octavio Dotel, with Takashi Saito ailing.  According to Rosenthal, the Royals aren’t demanding the very specific bounty Joel Sherman claimed.  Instead, they just want a near MLB-ready player.  Rosenthal says Tony Abreu is out of reach but Chin-Lung Hu might not be.  He suggests moving Hu to second base to accomodate Tony Pena Jr., which should probably be reversed.   It appears the Indians wouldn’t surrender Franklin Gutierrez or Ben Francisco for Dotel.  I’d give one up, personally.
• I didn’t know this: Jermaine Dye can veto a deal to four clubs.  With his solid play, interest is picking up.  As are Kenny Williams’ demands; he wants an elite prospect.  The Indians and Red Sox have inquired; the Cubs might make sense too.  I thought we had ruled out the Red Sox earlier though.
• The Padres are looking for bench help, perhaps in the name of Ryan Klesko, Mike Piazza, Mark Loretta, or Mike Lamb.  Couple of prodigal sons there.  Would Piazza be happy as a pricey bench player?  Rosenthal says Matt Stairs isn’t available.  Why not?