Arroyo Off The Market
First A.J. Burnett, now Bronson Arroyo. According to ESPN’s Jayson Stark, the Reds have informed other teams that Arroyo unavailable. Arroyo’s contract was causing unsatisfactory offers.
The Reds are pretty quiet all around. MLB.com’s Mark Sheldon says offers for Adam Dunn, David Weathers, Dave Ross, and Jeremy Affeldt have been unimpressive.
Burnett Won’t Be Traded
Blue Jays GM J.P. Ricciardi told MLB.com’s Jordan Bastian tonight that A.J. Burnett is "not going anywhere." He also has yet to have serious trade talks regarding other Jays veterans.
Ricciardi was careful when asked about the recent rumor of the team possibly offering Burnett an additional $2MM per year to remain with the team. He said ownership would have to be on board for something like that, but he’s comfortable with the current situation.
Stark’s Latest: Eyre, Sherrill
ESPN’s Jayson Stark has been burning up the phone lines today. New blog posts can be found here and here.
- Brian Fuentes and Damaso Marte are off the market, but lefty relievers remain plentiful. The Cubs would like to move Scott Eyre, perhaps to an AL club like the Rays, Red Sox, or Tigers. Eyre is in the last year of a three-year contract and can block trades to ten clubs.
- The Orioles would like to pry a young shortstop loose if they are to trade George Sherrill. Erick Aybar, Maicer Izturis, and Jason Donald are names of interest, but the Angels and Phillies aren’t biting.
Stark’s Latest: Ohman, Rhodes
ESPN’s Jayson Stark has some new rumor material.
- Braves lefty Will Ohman is drawing plenty of interest, with the Tigers, Rays, Yankees, and Cardinals named as suitors. Perhaps the Yanks’ interest will diminish now that they have Damaso Marte.
- The Marlins and other clubs may turn to Arthur Rhodes as a more reasonable Plan B if they aren’t able to pry George Sherrill or Brian Fuentes loose.
- Given the emergence of Jeff Samardzija as a power bullpen arm, the Cubs are no longer looking for pitching. They desire a left-handed hitting center fielder, but that might wait until the offseason. It’s probably too early to say whether Jim Edmonds will be considered.
Rosenthal’s Latest: Teixeira, Fuentes, Laird
Here’s Ken Rosenthal’s latest.
- Rosenthal firmly believes the Braves will find a match on a Mark Teixeira trade. He finds the D’Backs and Angels as the most reasonable fits. ESPN’s Keith Law says the Braves have spoken to at least four teams about Tex within the past two days.
- Despite yesterday’s "highly unlikely" comment from Dan O’Dowd, Rosenthal says the Rockies would trade Brian Fuentes for a young MLB-ready starter.
- It’s still possible that the Mets stand pat on a corner outfielder and just deal with it internally or make a minor trade in August.
- Rosenthal talked to one club official who finds a 50% chance of Gerald Laird or Jarrod Saltalamacchia being traded before the deadline. The Rangers want young pitching.
Mets Unlikely To Acquire Outfielder
Joel Sherman of the New York Post writes about the Mets’ unsuccessful search for a corner outfielder.
The Mets find the prospect price too high on players such as Raul Ibanez and Jason Bay. They don’t seem to care for Adam Dunn or Brian Giles. They don’t like Randy Winn‘s contract or lack of power. And Manny Ramirez is unlikely for numerous reasons.
While the Mets are fans of Ibanez, they’ve made all of their interesting prospects untouchable. The Mets may prefer to use some of those prospects in offseason deals. For now they will stick with the red-hot Fernando Tatis and other internal options.
Odds and Ends: Eaton, Dykstra, Lohse, Burnett
Let’s round up some linkage.
- ESPN’s Buster Olney wonders if Adam Everett would be a good fit for the Dodgers.
- Phillies pitcher Adam Eaton accepted a minor league assignment today. It seems that J.A. Happ will replace him.
- Jim Callis of Baseball America thinks the only first-round pick who might not sign will be San Diego’s Allan Dykstra.
- I did a Q&A with Mets Fans Forever.
- Cardinals GM John Mozeliak dismissed the idea of trading Kyle Lohse. Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe believes the Cardinals have the best shot at acquiring A.J. Burnett. But don’t forget that interesting suggestion yesterday from John Perrotto: the Jays might offer Burnett an additional $2MM in ’09 and ’10 to entice him to stay.
- Marlins catcher Matt Treanor had a setback, increasing their need to acquire a backstop.
- Rays manager Joe Maddon says the chances of a trade are "50-50 at best."
- The D’Backs are still talking extension with Cy Young contender Dan Haren, who is signed cheaply through 2010.
- Blue Jays reliever Brian Tallet is out at least three weeks with a broken toe; bad timing for potential suitors like the Mets.
- I did the Drunk Jays Fans podcast last night.
Tigers Rumors: Schoeneweis, Ivan Rodriguez
Let’s check in on the Tigers, who are in third place and 6.5 games out in the AL Central.
- Jon Paul Morosi believes Joel Zumaya‘s worrisome triceps injury coupled with concerns about Freddy Dolsi could prompt a relief acquisition very soon.
- Two recently named options of the lefthanded variety: Jack Taschner and Scott Schoeneweis.
- Morosi also discusses the Ivan Rodriguez situation. The Tigers haven’t approached him about an extension, and could trade him in August if they slip out of contention. Morosi thinks Rodriguez, who is hitting .298/.342/.421 despite a slow start, is in line for a multiyear free agent contract.
Tigers Not Discussing Jack Wilson
According to Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, the Tigers haven’t asked the Pirates about Jack Wilson since last winter. So while they may be looking for a long-term shortstop, he’s not the answer. Wilson was very nearly traded to Detroit for Jair Jurrjens a year ago.
Kovacevic says the Dodgers remain the top suitor for Wilson.
Holliday, Fuentes Trades Unlikely
SI.com’s Jon Heyman spoke to Rockies GM Dan O’Dowd, who now says a trade of Matt Holliday or Brian Fuentes is "highly unlikely." He talked to multiple teams about both players, but hasn’t found a match. Holliday could instead be shopped in the offseason.
The Rockies are in buying mode, hoping to land a back-end starter. Heyman mentions Josh Fogg and Paul Byrd. We’ve also seen Justin Duchscherer and Bronson Arroyo named in reports.