Jarrod Washburn Rumors: Tuesday
2:00pm: SI.com’s Jon Heyman says the Yankees are now scouring the market for another pitcher.
10:24am: George King of the New York Post talked to a source who thinks this trade is dead, but King thinks it could be resurrected.
9:16am: According to Anthony Rieber of Newsday, Yankees GM Brian Cashman characterizes the trade market as "frigid" for his team. It seems no one is budging on the Jarrod Washburn standstill.
Sean McAdam of the Providence Journal says the Mariners are discussing Washburn with other teams.
Red Sox In On Teagarden
According to Peter Gammons, the Red Sox are in on Rangers catcher Taylor Teagarden. The Rangers have the game’s best catching surplus, and it’s resulting in plenty of inquiries.
Teagarden, 24, is hitting .234/.348/.404 in 53 Triple A games. He’s dealt with elbow soreness in the past, but he’s healthy now.
Chat Postponed Indefinitely
We’re going to have to postpone today’s chat indefinitely. For reasons unknown, the power went out at my home a bit ago. So I am trying to catch up a bit.
Additionally, you may have noticed that the site is loading a bit on the slow side. We are working hard to improve this. In the meantime I recommend Mozilla’s Firefox rather than Internet Explorer as your browser, if possible.
Molony’s Latest: Ohman, Fuentes, Sherrill, Tejada
Here’s a new column from MLB.com’s Jim Molony.
- Will Ohman suitors: the Marlins, Red Sox, Rays, Tigers and White Sox. Molony says the Braves aren’t highly motivated to trade Ohman, as they might want to re-sign him for ’09. Odd.
- The Rockies would need to be bowled over, but the Cardinals, Mets, Phillies, Rays, Red Sox, White Sox and Yankees still like Brian Fuentes.
- George Sherrill suitors: Cardinals, Dodgers, Marlins, Phillies, Red Sox and Tigers. He’s another reliever unlikely to be dealt.
- Molony disagrees with other reports on the Red Sox and Miguel Tejada; he says they did inquire but were rebuffed.
Rosenthal’s Latest: Tejada, Laird, Renteria, Sherrill
New one from Ken Rosenthal…
- The Padres will ask Greg Maddux again to consider accepting a trade to a team not located on the West Coast. The Dodgers haven’t shown interest.
- One big league source told Rosenthal that the Astros have had "absolutely no dialogue" about Miguel Tejada.
- The Marlins are the most aggressive suitor for Gerald Laird. The Brewers, Reds, and Yankees are also in on the Rangers’ catcher. Rosenthal points out a Doug Melvin connection – Melvin acquired Laird as the Rangers’ GM back in ’02. [UPDATE: Rangers guru Jamey Newberg tells me that it was actually John Hart and Grady Fuson who acquired Laird in ’02, not Melvin.] The Rangers continue to target young starting pitching in return.
- Looks like speculation, but Rosenthal wonders whether the Cardinals would consider re-acquiring Edgar Renteria.
- So far the Orioles have had no success trying to acquire shortstops like Erick Aybar, Alcides Escobar, and Reid Brignac for George Sherrill.
Red Sox Eyeing Relief Options
12:51pm: MLB.com’s Jim Molony says Brocail, Geary, and Jose Valverde aren’t going anywhere since the Astros are actually looking to add to their ‘pen.
11:21am: ESPN’s Peter Gammons says the Red Sox have been discussing Doug Brocail with the Astros.
9:57am: Boston’s top priority at the trade deadline seems to be relief help, if anything. They were linked to several relievers this morning.
Sean McAdam of the Providence Journal says the Sox "are interested again and expect expect to get back to the Royals on Ron Mahay." Mahay is generally believed to be unavailable.
Rob Bradford of the Boston Herald has the Red Sox eyeing Geoff Geary, Brian Fuentes, George Sherrill, and Will Ohman. Ohman seems the likeliest candidate, though they may have competition for him in the division-rival Rays.
Mets Rumors: Manny, Ibanez, Bullpen
12:06pm: ESPN’s Buster Olney ranks the Mets’ priorities as reliever, corner outfielder, and starter, in that order. They’re currently discussing Ibanez with the Mariners, but not much has come of it yet.
10:17am: Dan Graziano of the Newark Star-Ledger doesn’t buy the denials – he says Mets GM Omar Minaya remains interested in Manny Ramirez. The Mets rank Ramirez above alternatives like Raul Ibanez, Adam Dunn, and Randy Winn, and might make certain prospects available just for Manny. Is Jon Niese among them? Niese is thought to be untouchable, and was promoted to Triple A today.
Meanwhile Mets manager Jerry Manuel endorsed Fernando Tatis at the everyday left fielder. David Lennon doesn’t expect a trade unless the price comes down on Ibanez. Can Tatis continue to channel his glory days, when he posted a .957 OPS with 34 home runs for the ’99 Cardinals?
Graziano also talked to an NL official familiar with the Mets’ plans. That person said the Mets are considering a bullpen overhaul where they would ship out Aaron Heilman and Scott Schoeneweis and bring in different relievers.
Dodgers Inquire On Michael Young
From Dan Graziano of the Newark Star-Ledger:
The Dodgers continue to look everywhere for a shortstop, and tons of names have come up in connection with their search. They don’t seem likely to land the Pirates’ Jack Wilson, but they’re scouring other organizations for options, having touched base with Toronto about John McDonald, the Yankees about Alberto Gonzales, the Twins about Adam Everett and even the Rangers about Michael Young, though it’s unclear whether or why Young would be available.
Young is new to the discussion. The 31 year-old shortstop is hitting .298/.345/.421 in 469 plate appearances this year. He’s currently dealing with a fractured ring finger. His five-year, $80MM extension was signed in March of ’07 but doesn’t kick in until next year. Even if the Rangers would listen on Young, could the Dodgers take on such a contract?
Pirates Rumors: Grabow, Bay, Wilson
Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette has the latest Pirates buzz.
- Lefty John Grabow is drawing interest from the Rays, Cardinals, Phillies, Red Sox, and Angels. Grabow gave up a couple of homers in his last outing; he missed time earlier this month with arm fatigue. The 29 year-old southpaw is under team control through ’09.
- Calls are still coming in on Jason Bay and Jack Wilson, though the Rays are backing off on Bay. Kovacevic says the Red Sox might provide competition for the Dodgers in the Wilson sweepstakes. The Bucs interestingly called up shortstop Brian Bixler when Adam LaRoche hit the DL, but that simply may be to cover for an ailing Freddy Sanchez at second base.
- Nothing to yesterday’s MLB.com report of Pirates’ ownership nixing a Bay-to-Atlanta deal.
Marlins Looking For Catcher, Reliever
The NL East is a three-team race, with the Mets, Phillies, and Marlins all within a game of each other. Who’d have thought the Marlins would be contending after trading Miguel Cabrera?
According to Mike Berardino of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel, the Marlins have intensified their search for a catcher. The targets: Bengie Molina, Ramon Hernandez, Gerald Laird, and Ryan Doumit. Molina and Hernandez are the pricey options. Doumit would be especially tough to pry loose; he has a .937 OPS this year as a 27 year-old.
MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro wonders if Miguel Olivo, Gregg Zaun, and Paul Lo Duca could also enter the mix. He says it could even be a three-way possibility where the Jays acquire Olivo and move him to Florida.
The Marlins are also hunting for a lefty reliever, with Arthur Rhodes, Jack Taschner, John Grabow, Eddie Guardado, George Sherrill, Will Ohman, and Alan Embree all considered candidates. Dejan Kovacevic rattled off five suitors for Grabow this morning, the Marlins not among them. Also, the Marlins’ interest in Guardado is light. The Giants and Mariners both scouted the Marlins recently, and Berardino wonders if Mike Jacobs would interest them.
Berardino says acquiring a catcher and reliever in one trade would be ideal. The one Marlins minor leaguer considered off-limits is Sean West.