Heyman’s Latest: Nady, Teixeira, Sherrill
Jon Heyman is cranking out a lot of rumorage. Here’s his latest.
- The price has dropped a tad on Xavier Nady, as the Pirates have become more interested in moving him.
- The Braves still might trade Mark Teixeira right before the deadline, and Heyman thinks they can easily beat two draft choices.
- Many teams scouted George Sherrill recently: the Marlins, Dodgers, Cardinals, Phillies, and Brewers.
- Some execs "expressed annoyance" at the D’Backs underpaying for Jon Rauch.
- Heyman says the Yankees are looking for catching, though Peter Abraham doesn’t agree.
- The Twins, Giants, and Dodgers have interest in Hank Blalock, who has a $6.2MM option for ’09.
Rosenthal’s Latest: Fuentes, Sherrill, Nady, Kemp, Guthrie
New Rosenthal. Let’s take a look.
- Rosenthal says the Marlins are in on Brian Fuentes and other top relievers, and they’re more focused on bullpen help than a catcher. The Marlins’ interest in Fuentes was first reported by the Denver Post’s Troy E. Renck on July 9th.
- Sources tell Rosenthal that the Brewers aren’t likely to pay up for a top reliever like George Sherrill. Rosenthal considers the Angels the best fit for Sherrill, but doesn’t say whether they’re actually interested.
- The Braves probably won’t discuss Tim Hudson; they’ll need him for next year.
- Rosenthal wonders whether the Phillies will entertain trades for Brett Myers in the offseason.
- The Phillies inquired on some interesting hitters: Matt Holliday, Xavier Nady, and Matt Kemp.
- The Rockies asked the Orioles about Jeremy Guthrie, but he’s not available.
- The Mets may not consider Casey Blake even of a difference-maker, though Blake is popular on the trade market. The Rays are one team looking at him.
The Lefty Reliever Market
Let’s take a look at some of the left-handed relievers on the market.
George Sherrill, Orioles
- 31 years old, under team control through 2011.
- Known suitors: Cardinals, Brewers
- Asking price: two or three prospects, possibly a shortstop among them
Brian Fuentes, Rockies
- Almost 33 years old, free agent after season. Type A status likely.
- Known suitors: Marlins, Yankees, Mets, Red Sox, Phillies, Cubs, Cardinals, Rays, Angels, Brewers, Tigers
- Asking price: Apparently a young starting pitcher – Jon Niese, Ian Kennedy, and Clay Buchholz have been named
Damaso Marte, Pirates
- 33 years old, $6MM club option for ’09 with a $250K buyout. Type A status likely.
- Known suitors: Red Sox, Tigers, Mets, Yankees, Phillies, Cardinals, Rays
- Asking price: Perhaps a package exceeding the value of two draft picks
Ron Mahay, Royals
- 37 years old, signed for ’09 at $4MM.
- Known suitors: Cardinals, Yankees, Rays
- Asking price: Unknown, but Royals intend to keep him. Rany Jazayerli wonders if trading Mahay now would discourage future free agents from signing with KC.
John Grabow, Pirates
- 29 years old, under team control through ’09. Elbow stiffness last year.
- Known suitors: Tigers, Phillies, Cardinals
- Asking price: Less than that of Marte
Eddie Guardado, Rangers
- 37 years old, free agent after season. Type B status possible.
- Known suitors: Cardinals
- Asking price: Perhaps a starting pitching prospect; Rangers are said to be interested in the Cardinals’ Jess Todd
Alan Embree, Athletics
- 38 years old, $3MM club option for ’09. Type A status possible, but may choose to accept offer of arbitration. Embree wouldn’t be surprised if he was traded.
- Known suitors: None
- Asking price: Unknown
Jeremy Affeldt, Reds
- 29 years old, free agent after season. Type B status possible, could accept offer of arbitration.
- Known suitors: Yankees, Rays, Astros, Phillies last offseason
- Asking price: Unknown
Pirates Rumors: Alvarez, Marte
A few notes from Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette this morning.
- The Pirates are still engaged in deep, tight-knit negotiations with first round pick Pedro Alvarez. No one’s talking, but Kovacevic heard a rumor that the sides are $2MM apart. This might not be settled until the August 15th deadline.
- Kovacevic talked to a Pirates source who said Boston’s interest in Damaso Marte has heightened. Many clubs are after Marte. The lefty has a $6MM club option for ’09 with a $250K buyout. That actually might be worth considering. Marte seems likely to sneak into Type A free agent status – important stats like wins, saves, and innings are all up from last year.
Pirates Rumors: Wilson, Bay, Nady, Marte, Grabow
Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette has the latest Pirates hot stove chatter.
- The Pirates are not opposed to creating a hole at shortstop for the rest of the year by trading Jack Wilson. They would just need the right return. Teams are still calling on Wilson, with the Dodgers confirmed and the Tigers possible.
- A Jason Bay deal seems less likely – the Pirates’ price is high for their star.
- Xavier Nady and Damaso Marte continue to draw interest, with John Grabow in the mix as well. Nady or Marte would require two prospects each. Nady’s suitors are the Rays, Mets, Yankees, and Braves. Marte has roughly a dozen suitors.
- Ed Price of the Newark Star-Ledger says the injury to Hideki Matsui led to heightened interest from the Yankees in Nady and Bay. They’re also in on Marte and Grabow. The Bucs aren’t interested in Melky Cabrera.
- Interesting stuff in this John Perrotto article found via DRays Bay. He names the Red Sox, Tigers, Mets, Yankees, Phillies, Cardinals, and Rays as teams interested in Marte. The Tigers, Phillies, and Cardinals also have an eye on Grabow.
- Perrotto runs through all kinds of names of interest to the Pirates: Anthony Reyes, Chris Duncan, Jeff Larish, Matt Joyce, Ross Ohlendorf, Brent Lillibridge, Brandon Jones, Jeff Niemann, Jon Niese, Eddie Kunz, and Bobby Parnell.
Odds & Ends: Nady, Loewen, Torrealba
Just a few loose ends:
- Adam Loewen‘s career as a pitcher is over. The once highly-touted prospect is planning to reinvent himself as an outfielder/first baseman rather than opt for surgery and face a year and a half off.
- Dejan Kovacevic reports that Xavier Nady was out of the lineup on Saturday not because of any pending trade, but because Manager John Russell wanted to give him another day to catch up to himself after a number of days spent sitting in a hospital for the birth of his son, Xavier Jr.
- Yorvit Torrealba is still unhappy as a backup for Chris Ianetta. Most likely not a coincidence that he’s voicing it now with the deadline approaching.
Heyman’s Latest: Street, Durham, Holliday
SI.com’s Jon Heyman just posted a new column.
- The Brewers and White Sox inquired on A’s closer Huston Street. However, A’s GM Billy Beane said "there is nothing going on" in regards to Street. The Sox were linked to both Street and Jon Rauch today, so Kenny Williams is clearly monitoring the relief market.
- Heyman says the Rays have not discussed Street with the A’s, and the Dodgers "aren’t believed to be heavily involved."
- Heyman is on board with the recent rumors about Ray Durham and Jack Taschner possibly heading to Milwaukee.
- Heyman also confirms Ken Rosenthal’s report of the Phillies’ interest in Matt Holliday. He agrees that these talks have cooled, but notes a good relationship between GMs Dan O’Dowd and Pat Gillick. Gillick and O’Dowd have matched up for three deals, two occuring while Gillick worked for the Mariners.
- The Dodgers continue to consider shortstop a priority. Heyman wonders if Cristian Guzman would be a fit, especially if extension talks sour. Jack Wilson and David Eckstein are other possibilities.
Bay Wants To Stay
Jason Bay continues to play like his old self, and with 12 days to the non-waiver trade deadline, interest in the Pirates’ slugger is at an all-time high.
Speaking to the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review’s Rob Biertempfel, Bay expressed satisfaction with his performance:
"I feel like I’ve gotten back to that guy who I’ve been in the past, and that’s gratifying. But there’s also some trade-talk stuff that comes with it. It’s a Catch-22. I knew coming in that it would be this way."
The teams that Biertempfel mentioned as showing interest in the left fielder include The Mets, Braves, Rays and Diamondbacks, but Bay was poised when asked if he had any particular interest in a destination:
"There really is nowhere in particular that I really want to go," Bay said. "I don’t want out (of Pittsburgh). I like the familiarity, and I like the direction the team is headed."
According to Biertempfel, the Pirates could still decide to give Bay an extension and build around him.
Rosenthal’s Latest: Fuentes, Holliday, Sherrill
Ken Rosenthal tops off the day with a column full of rumors.
- Signing Mark Teixeira as a replacement for Manny Ramirez doesn’t make sense for the Red Sox, who don’t want to take on that kind of mega-contract.
- The Phillies were recently working on a blockbuster with Colorado that would have netted them Brian Fuentes and Matt Holliday for something like Shane Victorino, J.A. Happ, Carlos Carrasco, and Lou Marson. Those talks have stalled, and the added payroll might’ve been a problem for the Phillies anyway.
- Though Frank McCourt denies it, Rosenthal says the Dodgers owned vetoed a CC Sabathia/Casey Blake/Jamey Carroll blockbuster because of a desire to keep trades payroll-neutral.
- The Rockies, as well as the many suitors for Brian Fuentes, fear he could accept an offer of arbitration and saddle them with an $8MM salary in ’09 instead of two draft picks. Given Fuentes’ stated desire to close, I find this unlikely.
- A Pirates scout watched David Price‘s last start, though he was likely looking at other members of the Montgomery Biscuits. The Rays are known to be interested in Xavier Nady.
- The A’s, stacked with second base candidates, are already getting calls on Adrian Cardenas. Trading Mark Ellis would make more sense though.
- Rosenthal believes the Orioles are reluctant to trade George Sherrill because they don’t have a suitable replacement for him in the ninth inning this year.
- Brewers minor league shortstop Alcides Escobar is untouchable, and his ascent could lead the team to shop J.J. Hardy this winter.
Pirates Rumors: Nady, Marte, Bay
New blog to bookmark: PBC Blog. It comes from Pittsburgh Post-Gazette baseball writers Dejan Kovacevic and Paul Meyer, and already has plenty of good Pirates info up. On to the hot stove chatter:
- Kovacevic talked to a Pirates official who disputes the reports that the team’s asking prices for Xavier Nady, Damaso Marte, and Jason Bay are exorbitant. Kovacevic notes that many of these reports come from New York, and in some cases they’re created as tests for rookie GM Neal Huntington. Welcome to the club, Neal!
- Bay is unlikely to be traded, but Nady and Marte are available. Kovacevic says many teams are in on Nady, and the Braves and Mets even conducted recent conference calls with the Pirates about him. The Pirates are focused on receiving two quality players for Nady, with an emphasis on pitching. It’s not a concern yet, but if the Rockies truly shop Matt Holliday it could upset the Nady market.
- Kovacevic speculates on what it might take for the Pirates to sign Bay to an extension beyond ’09, which may well happen.