Jake Peavy Rumors: Thursday

4:05pm: Ken Rosenthal has some of the names being offered by the Braves for Peavy. According to Rosenthal, the Braves are offering Yunel Escobar, either Jo-Jo Reyes or Charlie Morton and an unnamed player believed to be a top prospect. Rosenthal does not have any details on the Cubs’ package but notes that it is likely to be "fluid".

4:00pm: Chris De Luca has updated his earlier piece and now says Dempster is seeking five years, $70MM.

3:03pm: Peter Abraham says that Kevin Towers has told Peavy that he will be traded and that negotiations have been narrowed to three teams. The Yankees are not in the mix as all three clubs are in the NL. Abraham speculates that in addition to the Cubs and Braves, the third team could be the Astros or Cardinals.

11:27am: Chris De Luca says the Cubs are in heavy pursuit of Peavy, partially because of steep contract demands from Ryan Dempster.  He’s heard Dempster wants five years, $75MM.

No deal is imminent, but De Luca wonders if pitchers Sean Marshall, Rich Harden, or Jeff Samardzija could be involved.  Samardzija has a no-trade clause.

10:02am: ESPN’s Buster Olney says the Padres have interest in Braves prospect Jeff Locke.  David O’Brien says the Padres want Tommy Hanson, but are willing to settle for Yunel Escobar and a few lesser prospects.

9:21am: Ken Davidoff is not buying the Feinsand/Yankees rumor.  Joel Sherman agrees.

8:55am: Let’s kick off a new Jake Peavy post.  Last we heard, Ken Rosenthal was suggesting the Cubs moved ahead of the Braves as the frontrunner.

Today, Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News says the Yankees’ chances for Peavy are improving as Kevin Towers struggles to find a match with an NL team on the pitcher’s list.  Feinsand says Towers wants two pitchers and an outfielder for Peavy.  He believes the Yanks could build a deal around Phil Hughes or Austin Jackson, though they might need to include Ian Kennedy as well.  Brian Cashman seems a bit more open to trading Hughes than he was a year ago.  The Padres aren’t interested in Robinson Cano.