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Pirates Acquire Ryan Ludwick

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The Pirates added another veteran bat today, acquiring right fielder Ryan Ludwick from the Padres for cash or a player to be named later.  The player to be named will come from a list of three minor league players, MLB.com's Jenifer Langosch reports (on Twitter).

Ludwick, a right-handed hitter, could at least fill the role the Pirates envisioned when they signed Matt Diaz in the offseason.  The 33-year-old is hitting .238/.301/.373 and has $2.2MM left on his contract.  The Bucs added veteran first baseman Derrek Lee yesterday to an offense that ranks 12th in the NL with 3.82 runs scored per game.

Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports broke the story.

Nationals, Twins Not Close On Span Trade

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2:46pm: The teams are not close on a Span trade, tweets Jon Paul Morosi.

12:29pm: The Twins don't currently believe this deal can get done, tweets Yahoo's Tim Brown.  The Nationals so far will not include Storen, tweets Scott Miller.

9:43am: ESPN's Tim Kurkjian tweets that the chances of a Storen/Span deal are less than 50/50.  The Nationals are still in the mix for B.J. Upton.

7:59am: Nationals closer Drew Storen is in the Denard Span trade with the Twins, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports, but the hangup is over the other players in the deal.  Yesterday we heard names such as Roger Bernadina and Stephen Lombardozzi of the Nationals.

Wandy Rodriguez Unlikely To Be Traded

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2:37pm: Rodriguez is likely to stay with the Astros, tweets Morosi.  Jon Heyman points out that he's a candidate for an August deal.

1:51pm: The Yankees' talks for Rodriguez are officially dead, tweets Stark.  Jon Heyman says the Yankees wanted the Astros to pick up half his contract.  Nothing is close for now, but it looks like the Blue Jays or nothing for Wandy according to Stark.

1:46pm: The Astros don't want to pay down Rodriguez's contract, tweets Heyman, so a trade seems unlikely.  Morosi says the Blue Jays have entered the bidding, however.

11:49am: There's a 50/50 chance of Rodriguez being traded somewhere, tweets Morosi.  The Yankees have strong interest, tweets Stephen Goff.

11:20am: The Yankees and Astros discussed Wandy as recently as this morning, tweets Jon Paul Morosi.

11:10am: Rodriguez would have to fall into the Yankees' laps, tweets Jack Curry.  The Astros would have to eat a "huge chunk" of his contract, tweets Buster Olney.  The Astros are surprised by the lack of interest and haven't shown an indication they're willing to include a lot of money, tweets Sherman.  Here's a link to my post earlier this month about whether Rodriguez is overpaid.

10:33am: The Yankees are trying for Astros lefty Wandy Rodriguez, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.  However, Joel Sherman tweets that there is no sense from the Yankees' side that they are anywhere near a deal.

The Astros will move Rodriguez only if they get impact prospects, tweets Rosenthal.  They'd have to pay a chunk of the $38.3MM that will be owed to Rodriguez through 2014 if he exercises his player option for that season.

Indians Acquire Ubaldo Jimenez

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The organization that sent C.C. Sabathia and Cliff Lee packing in high-profile summer trades is about to acquire an ace of its own. The Indians and Rockies have agreed on a deal that will send Ubaldo Jimenez to Cleveland for Joe Gardner, Alex White, Matt McBride and a player to be named, the teams announced. The deal, which will apparently include left-hander Drew Pomeranz once he's eligible to be traded in mid-August, became official today when Jimenez passed his physical.

Ubaldo

Jimenez, 27, has a 4.20 ERA with 8.6 K/9, 3.5 BB/9 and a 46.8% ground ball rate midway through an up and down season that has included flashes of brilliance, stretches of poor performance and a stint on the disabled list with a cuticle cut on the right-hander’s thumb. The third place finisher in last year's Cy Young voting, Jimenez broke out in 2010, posting a 2.88 ERA with 8.7 K/9 and 3.7 BB/9 in 221 2/3 innings.

Some of Jimenez's value comes from a contract that now seems team-friendly. Jimenez earns $2.8MM this year and $4.2MM in 2012. His contract includes a $5.75MM club option ($1MM buyout) for 2013 and an $8MM club option for 2014 ($1MM buyout), however Jimenez will be able to void that 2014 option with the trade.

GM Dan O'Dowd, who signed Jimenez to his extension, spent a decade in the Indians' front office from 1988-1998, working his way up to assistant GM before moving on to Colorado. He maintained throughout the negotiations that he would have to be overwhelmed to make a deal and said he'd turn down offers unless someone approached him with a Herschel Walker-type deal.

Pomeranz appears to be the key to the trade for Colorado, however the fifth overall pick in the 2010 draft can not officially be traded until August 15th. He will have to be a player to be named later until then. The 22-year-old southpaw has a 1.98 ERA in 91 innings this year, most coming with Cleveland's High-A squad. Baseball America ranked him as the 14th best prospect in the game earlier this month.

White was the 15th overall pick in the 2009 draft, and he made his big league debut earlier this season. He made three starts before being placed on the disabled list with a strained finger ligament, pitching to a 3.60 ERA. White is still on the disabled list but can be traded. He was considered the 47th best prospect in the game by Baseball America before the season.

Unlike Pomeranz and White, McBride was not a first round pick. He was a second rounder in 2006, and Baseball America did not rank him among the Tribe's top 30 prospects in their Prospect Handbook before the season. The 26-year-old has hit .279/.339/.501 in 393 plate appearances this year, most coming with Cleveland's Double-A affiliate.

Gardner, 23, was a third round selection in 2009. The right-hander has a 4.99 ERA with 5.5 K/9 and 4.3 BB/9 in 97 1/3 innings as a starter in his first stint at Double-A.

Troy Renck of the Denver Post broke the news on Twitter and Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer and Jon Heyman of SI.com added detail. Mike Axisa contributed to this post. Photo courtesy Icon SMI.

Heath Bell Rumors: Sunday

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The latest on Padres closer Heath Bell, who is owed $2.47MM on the season and projects as a Type A free agent in either league…

  • There has been some discussion between the Padres and Bell's agents within the last 24 hours, tweets MLB.com's Corey Brock.  The Padres will not trade Bell unless the Yankees or Phillies offer an astronomical package, tweets Scott Miller.
  • The Phillies still seem to be in on Bell, tweets Heyman.  The Padres just traded setup man Mike Adams to the Rangers.
  • The Angels have minimal interest in Bell, tweets Jon Paul Morosi.
  • The Cardinals are sensing no traction for Bell, GM John Mozeliak tells Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (Twitter link).
  • The Rangers appear to be losing momentum on Bell with the Cardinals still possible, tweets Rosenthal.
  • The Rangers are still in on Bell, but don't want to pay big now that they've gotten Koji Uehara, tweets Danny Knobler of CBS Sports.  The Yankees are in the mix, the Cardinals are on the fringes, and the Phillies have slight interest.  The Yankees are still viewed as a long shot, tweets Buster Olney.  The Rangers are also still in on Oakland closer Andrew Bailey, tweets Bob Nightengale.
  • The Yankees are in on Bell, tweets SI's Jon Heyman.  However, Joel Sherman tweets that as of this morning the two teams are not optimistic there is a common ground for a deal.  Last night, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports wrote that the Yankees were showing late interest in Bell, but the Rangers were the frontrunner and the Cardinals were still involved.

Rangers Acquire Mike Adams

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Mike Adams

The Rangers' bullpen may be a strength instead of a weakness for the final two months of the season.  A day after acquiring Koji Uehara from the Orioles, Texas obtained Mike Adams from the Padres.  Pitching prospects Robbie Erlin and Joe Wieland go to San Diego in the deal, the Padres announced.

Adams, 33, has a microscopic 1.13 ERA with 9.2 K/9, 1.7 BB/9 and a 45.8% ground ball rate in 48 innings this year.  The Corpus Christi native is no one-year wonder, either.  Since joining the Padres in 2008, he has a 1.66 ERA with 10.0 K/9 and 2.4 BB/9.

Erlin and Wieland, who are both represented by Sosnick Cobbe Sports, ranked fourth and 22nd in Baseball America's preseason Rangers top 30 prospects list prior to the season.  Wieland has seen his stock rise since then, with a 1.23 ERA in 44 Double-A innings – including a no-hitter his last time out.  Erlin, a 20-year-old southpaw, is considered among the top 35 prospects in the game by Baseball America and Kevin Goldstein.

The Padres' asking price (which I reported two days ago) was high, since Adams is under team control through 2012.  He earns $2.54MM this year and since setup men don't make as much as closers in arbitration, he'll be affordable next year.  Uehara will also figure into Texas' bullpen in 2012.

Evan Grant and Corey Brock reported the deal this afternoon after I reported the Padres' asking price two days ago. Ben Nicholson-Smith contributed to this post. Photo courtesy Icon SMI.

Diamondbacks Acquire Brad Ziegler

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Long expected to add relief help, the Diamondbacks acquired right-handed sidearmer Brad Ziegler from the Athletics for first baseman Brandon Allen and reliever Jordan Norberto today.

Ziegler, 31, is under team control through 2014 and is owed only $405K for the balance of the season.  He has a 2.39 ERA, 6.9 K/9, 3.1 BB/9, and 71.6% groundball rate with no home runs allowed in 37 2/3 innings this year.  As you might expect, he's a lot tougher on right-handed hitters.

Allen, 25, hasn't done much in 209 scattered big league plate appearances since coming to Arizona two years ago in a trade with the White Sox.  He's logged a lot of time in Triple-A, and the Pacific Coast League is hitter-friendly, but he is hitting .306/.427/.579 there this year.

Norberto, 24, tossed 20 ugly big league innings last year and has been in Triple-A this year.  The lefty has a 4.25 ERA, 10.0 K/9, 4.8 BB/9, and 0.2 HR/9 in 48 2/3 innings.  He has good velocity for a southpaw and ranked 29th among D'Backs prospects before the 2010 season, according to Baseball America.

Buster Olney, Jon Heyman, Tim Brown, and Steve Gilbert reported various aspects of the story as it developed.

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