White Sox righty Jake Peavy might be the best starting pitcher traded between now and this Wednesday's deadline. He's been well-informed of trade talks by GM Rick Hahn and indicated yesterday he expects a deal, packing his belongings from the clubhouse. With Peavy under contract for 2014, the White Sox are asking more for him than the Cubs did for Matt Garza, according to Yahoo's Jeff Passan. The latest:
- An executive from a team interested in Peavy tells Joel Sherman of the New York Post that Peavy wants to be traded. While Peavy enjoys the White Sox, he knows they're rebuilding and wants to play for a contender (Twitter link).
- The Athletics have moved on from Peavy and will focus on other upgrades such as their bullpen and middle infield, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (Twitter link). The A's will dangle some of the players they would have offered for Peavy as they pursue other upgrades. Rosenthal adds that Chicago's desire to receive quality prospects and shed the remaining $20MM or so on Peavy's contract "remains a significant obstacle."
- The White Sox are telling interested parties that they're planning to keep Peavy and build around him, according to ESPN's Buster Olney. As Olney goes on to note, this could just be a ploy by the White Sox to increase their leverage in Peavy trade talks (Twitter links).
- Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports tweets that the White Sox debated packaging Peavy and Jesse Crain together before ultimately electing to trade Crain to the Rays in a separate package.
Earlier Updates
- "They're definitely trying to move him before he makes that [Tuesday] start," an executive of a team monitoring the Peavy talks tells ESPN's Jayson Stark. Stark says the Red Sox are willing to take on Peavy's contract or give up prospects, but not both. Stark sees the A's as the favorite, with the money a stumbling block for the Braves, the Cardinals unlikely, and the Orioles lurking.
- The Red Sox are "very much in" the Peavy sweepstakes, tweets Passan. With their motivation and available prospects, they're in a strong position to acquire him. Passan says Hahn is asking for every interested organization's top prospect, including "complete non-starters" such as Xander Bogaerts of the Red Sox and Addison Russell of the A's. Executives believe the asking price will drop in advance of the Wednesday deadline.
- In speaking with executives yesterday, Joel Sherman of the New York Post got the impression the Athletics are pushing hard for Peavy after finishing second for Garza. Oakland "seems the most motivated," writes ESPN's Buster Olney.
