8:39am: Rosenthal definitively tweets that the Mariners are out of the mix on Upton at this juncture, further fueling the Padres scenario.
8:35am: Olney tweets that the Cubs aren’t in on Upton at this time. He adds that the Padres decided weeks ago that it Kemp had to play center field, they were OK with the idea. He also points out that the Braves have been trying to unload Chris Johnson in potential Upton deals, and San Diego does have an opening at third base.
8:31am: The Padres seem like the most likely club to acquire Upton, tweets Bowman. In addition to Renfroe, Bowman lists Matt Wisler, Max Fried and Austin Hedges as Padres prospects that intrigue the Braves.
8:23am: Buster Olney of ESPN tweets that the Astros aren’t the mystery club. He also tweets that the Braves asked San Diego for top outfield prospect Hunter Renfroe (their 2013 first-round pick) in Upton negotiations earlier this offseason.
8:13am: Bowman tweets that the early indication is that Upton isn’t heading to the A’s, Mariners or Rangers. Somewhat remarkably, Bowman notes that the Padres are a possibility to add Upton. San Diego has been hyper-aggressive of late, but they’ve also already added corner outfielders Matt Kemp and Wil Myers via trade.
Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports tweets that the trade partner is not the Athletics. He, too, mentions the Padres as a possibility.
8:09am: Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News tweets that the Rangers aren’t in the mix for Upton.
8:02am: MLB.com’s Mark Bowman tweets that the Braves have had recent talks with the A’s, Rangers and Mariners regarding Upton.
7:45am: The Braves are finalizing a trade of Justin Upton, tweets Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports. Late last night, Fangraphs’ Kiley McDaniel reported that Atlanta appeared to be “down the road” on a deal sending Upton to an AL West team for young pitching (Twitter link).
Among AL West clubs, the Mariners have been prominently linked to Upton in trade rumors for much of the offseason, but the Rangers also have a need in the corner outfield, and the extremely active Athletics have been stocking up on young pitching in trades recently.
Just as a reminder, the Blue Jays, Cubs, Blue Jays and Brewers are the four clubs on Upton’s limited no-trade clause.
