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Archives for July 2008

Bedard Going Nowhere Fast

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10:30pm: Riggleman is now saying there is a chance the Ms get Bedard a start in late July against the Rangers.  Regardless, his injury came at a poor time and a trade seems unlikely.

2:30pm: Tightness in Erik Bedard’s left shoulder did not improve over the All-Star break, so the team won’t start him before the July 31st trade deadline in an attempt to showcase him for other teams. "We’re not looking at trying to pitch him before the 31st. The 31st is irrelevant with a guy who’s got a tender arm," Seattle manager Jim Riggleman said.

Bedard will try and play catch Monday and if that goes well, he could throw a bullpen session next week. If it doesn’t go well, it won’t be long before talk of shutting Bedard down for the rest of the season. Trading Adam Jones and George Sherrill for Bedard didn’t look good on paper before the season started, but now it looks like an absolute steal for Baltimore. The Bill Bavasi era will not be remembered fondly.

Coley Ward writes for Umbump.com. You can contact him here.

Twins Out Of Running For Beltre

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La Velle E. Neal III of Twins Insider is reporting that the Twins are bowing out of the Adrian Beltre sweepstakes. The price for Beltre, rumored to be similar to what the Phillies gave up for Joe Blanton, was just too high. Neal says:

In the Twins’ case, it could mean one of their four young starters plus a couple prospects.

Beltre is scheduled to make $12 million next season and any team that trades for the third baseman would have to pay that.

Just how much is Beltre worth? USS Mariner tackled that question in depth last September. Their findings might surprise you.

Coley Ward writes for Umpbump.com and can be reached here.

Olney’s Latest: Sherrill And Street

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This morning, ESPN.com’s Buster Olney weighs in with some possible destinations for two likely available closers, Oakland’s Huston Street and Baltimore’s George Sherrill.

  • Olney speculates the Orioles would seem to have a great potential fit with the Dodgers, who need a closer.
  • He says the Angels will need a closer next season if Francisco Rodriguez leaves and could use a lefty now.
  • The Red Sox, Olney says, would probably love to land Sherrill and have prospects to offer, but isn’t sure the O’s would trade with a division rival.
  • He says Brewers could be a match for either Street or Sherrill. Yesterday, Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel reported that the Brewers might be scouting Street.

Coley Ward writes for Umpbump.com and can be reached here.

Phillies No Longer Interested In Fuentes?

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MLB.com’s Trade Talk blog speculates that the Phillies may no longer be pursuing Colorado closer Brian Fuentes, after Philadelphia traded three prospects for Joe Blanton. The blog wonders, "How many chips do (the Phillies) have to play?" Then, the blog hedges its bets:

If an earlier report is correct, the Rockies have asked the Phillies for right-hander Carlos Carrasco or catcher Lou Marson in return for Fuentes, so something could still be possible.

Trade Talk goes on to say that the Rockies would "hit the jackpot if a team came up with a young, talented starter — like, say, the Yankees’ Phil Hughes or Ian Kennedy, or a couple of top Double-A prospects such as the Rays’ Wade Davis or Jeremy Hellickson."

It’s highly unlikely the Phillies will deal Carrasco, the organization’s top prospect, for a set-up man. It’s an absolute impossibility that the Yankees will trade Hughes for Fuentes. The Rays are still considered the front-runners for Fuentes, the blog says.

Coley Ward writes for Umpbump.com and can be reached here.

Manny To Meet With Boras

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Earlier this week, ESPN’s Buster Olney reported that he heard a rumor that Manny Ramirez switched agents, from Scott Boras to Legacy Sports Group.

Now the Boston Globe reports Manny is set to meet with Boras this weekend. "We’ll have a discussion about Manny’s future," Boras told the Globe.

So it looks like Manny and Boras are still together. Thank goodness. If those two crazy kids can’t make it work, what hope is there for the rest of us?

Coley Ward writes for Umpbump.com. He can be reached here.

Dunn Could Stay, Says Fay

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Reds beat writer John Fay says he thinks the Reds will hold on to Adam Dunn and take the draft picks when he leaves as a free agent, because Cincinnati’s outfield is so thin that they can’t afford to lose Dunn.

With Ryan Freel done for the year, the Reds currently have four healthy outfielders on the roster. That means if they traded Adam Dunn or Ken Griffey Jr. right now, you’re looking at Corey Patterson playing every day. That might blow up this blog.

This makes no sense to me. The Reds would only trade Dunn if they were prepared to give up on the season. And since they’re four games under .500 and 11 games back of the Cubs, it’s probably about time to give up on the season. So, if you’re looking ahead to next season, who cares if Patterson is playing everyday in August and September?

Coley Ward writes for Umpbump.com and can be reached here.

Bay Wants To Stay

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Jason Bay continues to play like his old self, and with 12 days to the non-waiver trade deadline, interest in the Pirates’ slugger is at an all-time high.

Speaking to the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review’s Rob Biertempfel, Bay expressed satisfaction with his performance:

"I feel like I’ve gotten back to that guy who I’ve been in the past, and that’s gratifying. But there’s also some trade-talk stuff that comes with it. It’s a Catch-22. I knew coming in that it would be this way."

The teams that Biertempfel mentioned as showing interest in the left fielder include The Mets, Braves, Rays and Diamondbacks, but Bay was poised when asked if he had any particular interest in a destination:

"There really is nowhere in particular that I really want to go," Bay said. "I don’t want out (of Pittsburgh). I like the familiarity, and I like the direction the team is headed."

According to Biertempfel, the Pirates could still decide to give Bay an extension and build around him.

Teams Expected To Make A Move

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Now that the second half of the season is underway, and less than two weeks before the trade deadline, the acquisitions of CC Sabathia by the Brewers, Rich Harden by the Cubs, and most recently, Joe Blanton by the Phillies (not to mention Tony Clark by the Diamondbacks and Richie Sexson by the Yankees) must have had an impact on the way teams still in the hunt are gauging their chances.

Let’s run down rumors by teams five or less games behind first place and I’ll attempt to sound like a baseball expert and predict the probability of some of those trades happening:

Marlins:
Arguably the team most active in trade rumors of those considered "still in it," the Fish have been mentioned in numerous trade scenarios. Most recently, they inquired on the availability of Ivan Rodriguez, but the Tigers said thanks but no thanks.

The Marlins have also been part of the Brian Fuentes trade speculation express, but they might be better served looking for a bat – thus the interest in Willy Taveras.

Sage prediction: It’s in their blood; the Fish have been active during trade deadline season in the past and now that the Phillies added Blanton (not to mention, hot play by the Mets) they’ll trade for a bat.

Cardinals:

The Birds are in second place behind the Cubs, but with the aforementioned trades by the other two teams out of the top three in the NL Central, it’s looking like a major move is inevitable to keep up with the pace.

In fact, the Cards have been mentioned in some trade speculation but those rumors have consistently been shut down. Barry Bonds to the Cards? Nope. Jason Bay rumors debunked, only to have them flare up again tied to top Cardinals prospect Colby Rasmus…until the press talks to the team chairman and they die back down.

Sage prediction: The Cards have to make a move for a bat and for pitching. There I said it. And I’m not the only one.

Twins:

As a small-market team that always competes with what it’s got, the Twins are again quiet in the trade market. There is, however, continuing speculation that they’re interested in upgrading at 3B, inquiring on the availability of Adrian Beltre. Earlier this week, Charlie Walters of the St. Paul Pioneer Press put together an interesting money-saving trade scenario involving a slugging third baseman.

Sage prediction: The AL Central is up for grabs, and it sure looks like an upgrade will help the Twins down the stretch to when (not if) the Tigers catch up and if (not when) the White Sox let up.

Mets:

Call it oversight, call it my subtle bias that I think the Mets will win the NL East, but commenter D Wright 5 is dead-on for calling me out on not including the Amazin’s in this list. I like his assessment:

The Mets are obviously looking to get a corner outfielder by way of trade. How come you didn’t add Raul Ibanez as a possible candidate to becoming a Met? Not one word about the rumors swirling around the David DeJesus might also become another possibility for the Mets? Not a word about Brian Fuentes being another option.

Honorable mention:

Dodgers: The problem is money. They have a big payroll and would probably only trade for role players that can help off the bench. Plus, they’re really being carried by the young hitters that ostensibly would be coveted by other teams. But don’t discount the possibility of someone like Raul Ibañez.

Red Sox: In an interesting twist, the Sawks were mentioned in connection to Mark Teixeira… but as a possible free agent signing next year. I’m gonna go out on limb and say they’ll stay pat and wait for the Rays to cool off.

Alejandro A. Leal writes for UmpBump.com. Comments? Rumors? email me: alexo05 [at] umpbump [daught] com.

Brewers Eyeing Huston Street?

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11:34pm: Haudricourt says the Brewers dispatched their top special assistant to watch the A’s play the Yankees.  Haudricourt speculates that the Brewers might have an eye on Huston Street, who is under team control through 2010.  Street’s had an off-year, mainly due to a rising home run rate.

4:38pm: As usual, Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel has the latest Brewers hot stove chatter.

  • GM Doug Melvin is calling around about relief help, but as you might imagine prices are high.
  • Melvin would not confirm Ken Rosenthal’s rumor that the Brewers are interested in the Giants’ Jack Taschner and Ray Durham.  Melvin is always honest with Haudricourt, so it’s worth noting that he didn’t deny it either.
  • Melvin seemingly has a little room in the payroll to make a reasonable addition.

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