Orioles Making Progress On Deal For Bud Norris

Reports this morning have indicated that the Orioles are still in on Bud Norris, who is controllable through 2015 via arbitration. Norris has been one of the most talked about players leading up to this season’s deadline. Here’s the latest on the 28-year-old…

• The Orioles are making progress on a trade for Norris, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (on Twitter).

Earlier Updates

• The Orioles are still in the mix for Norris, while the Giants are doubtful, tweets Stark.
• Talks for Norris have accelerated in the past hour, and the Pirates, D’Backs and Orioles have been in contact, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (Twitter link).
• ESPN’s Jayson Stark tweets that the odds of a Norris trade are up to 75 percent, and multiple teams are still involved.
• The D’Backs are a “distant maybe” for Norris at this point, tweets Jon Heyman of CBS Sports.
• Knobler also tweets that the Indians have had some recent talks with the Astros regarding Norris, though it’s not clear how strong their interest is. Cleveland is reportedly working hard to acquire a starter.
• The Rangers have interest in acquiring Norris, possibly for the purpose of flipping him for a hitter, according to Danny Knobler of CBS Sports (Twitter link).
• The Braves have indeed jumped into the mix, according to Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports (on Twitter). The Orioles, Pirates and D’Backs remain possibilities, and there’s a general sense that Norris will be dealt, adds Passan.
• Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports disagrees, reporting that the Braves aren’t in on Norris and never have been (Twitter link). MLB.com’s Mark Bowman tweets a similar report.
• Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review tweets that the Pirates have the interest and ability to put together a package of lower-level prospects if that type of return interests Astros GM Jeff Luhnow.
• The Giants and Pirates continue to show a lot of interest in Norris, while the Rangers and D’Backs are in the background as well, according to Peter Gammons of the MLB Network (Twitter link).
• The Astros need to lower their asking price on Norris significantly for the Orioles to be serious players, according to Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com (Twitter link).
• Brian T. Smith of the Houston Chronicle writes that the Astros have standing offers for Norris but are hoping someone ups their bid as the deadline nears. The Pirates, Orioles and Diamondbacks have shown interest, and a fourth team is in the mix as well. Offers to this point “have been pretty soft,” Smith adds.
• The Astros appear to be collecting their final offers for Norris, tweets ESPN’s Jayson Stark. The Giants could be a dark horse for Norris, and the Orioles are in the mix, according to Stark.
• Interest in Norris is picking up, according to Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe (on Twitter). The Orioles are in the mix, and Cafardo reports that the Braves have re-joined the talks as well.
• The Diamondbacks and Pirates don’t seem to be aggressively pursuing Norris, according to Jon Heyman of CBS Sports (on Twitter). Heyman notes that there’s a chance the Astros hang onto Norris.