Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com has the latest on a pair of August trade candidates…
- MLB executives say they don’t expect Cliff Lee to be claimed by this afternoon, the deadline for clubs to submit a waiver claim on the left-hander. However, one AL exec said someone might claim him since many teams are short on pitching. The Dodgers seem like the most likely candidate to claim Lee, according to the executives Heyman surveyed.
- Lee could prevent the Phillies from assigning his contract to any one of the 21 teams on his no-trade list if he is claimed on waivers, Heyman adds. Approximately 59% of 12,000 MLBTR readers expect Lee to be claimed.
- The Yankees agreed to pay the Marlins $1MM in exchange for Carlos Lee before the trade deadline, but Lee blocked the deal as Jayson Stark reported this week. The Marlins tried to get $2.5MM from the Orioles for Lee, Heyman reports. However, the Orioles declined the offer (it’s unclear if the Orioles are on Lee’s 14-team no-trade list).
- The Astros are paying Lee all but the pro-rated portion of the MLB minimum salary, so the Marlins would have turned a profit had they completed a deal with either AL East team. Lee, who is now on waivers, could be traded in August.
i like to picture Jon Heyman sitting in his living room at a small table with a kid’s tea set and seven or eight dolls. those are the executives he surveys. “Molly Ticklepants, the GM for a rival NL East team, says Cliff Lee is a naughty nelly!”
Oh my god this is the best comment I have ever seen on this website.
Is there a list somewhere of all players that are on waivers? or is it exclusive to teams?
im pretty sure mostly all players are put on waivers because the team can just pull them back if they want
I don’t think it is meant to be public knowledge. A lot of it leaks out but I don’t believe there is any official list.
Its supposed to be confidential. Unless reporters have a juicy name to bandy about, then its not.
If I were The San Francisco Giants I would do 2 things, claim 1st Baseman Lyle Overbay from Arizona D’Backs, and claim Carlos Lee From The Marlins. Lee is a good hitter at AT&T Park. Mike Fontenot a former Giant could be a nice pick up at shortstop/2nd Base.
Carlos Lee seems to have no interest in playing for a contender
Does Overbay have to go through trade waivers to be traded even though he was DFA’d prior to the deadline? Just curious.
Special Bulletin: Approximately 59 percent of 12,000 MLBTR readers to be wrong later today!
^ Good call….
I just figured no team was desperate enough to risk having to pay Cliff Lee over $100M dollars for the duration – and I figured wrong. Don’t punish me for going out on a limb though.
If the LA Dodgers get Cliff Lee, They would have to raid their farm system, Pitcher Zach Lee, Jeff Fife, among key names.. Philadelphia Phillies got Minor Leaguers Catcher Tommy Joseph, Pitcher Seth Rosin from The Giants and Josh Lindblom from The Dodgers. I see The Phillies dumping veteran Juan Pierre. Pierre would be a great fit for The Giants.
The possibilities if LA laid a clam would be for Philly to 1) let him go outright b) work a trade with LA which would provide LA with salary relief by taking prospects in return c) Philly rescinding the waivers. Additionally, any team below LA could cancel LA’s claim by laying their own blocking claim.
Except that teams put in claims blind. No one knows who else is submitting a waiver claim. If more than one team puts in a claim before the deadline (48 hours?) then the player is awarded to the team with the highest priority.
Carlos Lee? He’s gotta be what, 84 by now, no? I think my grandmother went to prom with him…
The Marlins trying to turn a profit on Carlos lee is pretty much the most Marlins-like thing one could do right now.
Carlos Lee seems to have no interest.
I’m fairly sure Carlos Lee will retire at the end of this season when his $100M, 7 year contract runs out. He’s just trying to maximize his income prior to retiring — so that he can plough more money into his cattle ranch in Texas. So, he won’t agree to going anywhere there is a state income tax. Pure business deal, nothing about not wanting to play for a contendor. If the Rangers or Rays wanted him he’d ok the deal.
i kind of get this argument, but since damn near all of his money is coming from Houston, dont they pay taxes in texas? since they are in texas and the contract was signed in texas?
This could be the last thread ever where Carlos Lee and Cliff Lee appear in the same story. If I’m Houston, I’d claim Cliff Lee just so I can flip him later for more minor leaguers. We can’t get enough minor leaguers here and they cost so much less than major leaguers that we’re thinking of just having an entire team of minor leaguers and still calling them the Astros. Oh, wait. That’s already happened.
Is Carlos Lee afraid to play for a winner? Why do you block deals to the Yankees and Dodgers, but approve the Marlins?
tax in new york state and los angels is higher then in florida or texas. its strictly a money thing
Carlos Lee seems to have no interest playing for a team located in a state where he would pay a state income tax.