Rosenthal’s Latest: Teixeira, Burnett, Sherrill
Here’s the latest from Ken Rosenthal, who should probably take a vacation in August.
- The D’Backs inquired on Mark Teixeira, but a trade is unlikely. Tex might be the best available hitter, as Matt Holliday seems likely to stay put.
- The Rockies scouted Nick Adenhart‘s last start. The Angels have more interest in Brian Fuentes than Holliday.
- Tons of scouts converged on Camden Yards last night to watch A.J. Burnett and George Sherrill pitch (those hoping to see Sherrill were disappointed). The Cardinals, Phillies, Yankees, Brewers, Marlins, Dodgers, and Tigers all had scouts there to watch at least one of the pitchers.
- Rosenthal says trade interest in Burnett "remains minimal," as teams fear the pitcher’s contract.
- The Orioles are taking a look at the Brewers’ Triple A team, but it is believed that they are reluctant to part with more prospects.
- The A’s chose first baseman Chris Carter over Emilio Bonifacio in the Dan Haren trade.
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.
Braves Rumors: Mike Gonzalez, Ohman, Teixeira
Despite recent speculation about Mike Gonzalez‘s availability, MLB.com’s Mark Bowman says the Braves reliever is not going anywhere. Bowman talked to a team official who seemed adamant about keeping Gonzalez. That is no surprise, since Gonzalez is under team control for ’09 and Rafael Soriano is of questionable health.
Bowman adds that interest has picked up in another Braves lefty reliever, Will Ohman. The Braves apparently see Ohman as a Type B free agent and want a return better than the supplemental draft pick they could receive by letting him walk.
Similarly, the Braves will keep Mark Teixeira if they can’t top the two draft picks they’d receive for him. The risk there would be if Baltimore signs Teixeira and their first round pick is protected.
Will Carroll’s Latest: Blake, Mike Gonzalez, Fuentes
Baseball Prospectus’ Will Carroll checks in with a slew of rumors.
- Carroll believes Orioles relievers Jamie Walker and Chad Bradford would clear waivers. Bradford isn’t striking anyone out, but he does have a 2.45 ERA by virtue of good control and tons of grounders. He has a reasonable $3.5MM commitment for ’09.
- Casey Blake suitors: Mets, Rays, and Twins.
- Carroll wonders if the Rangers could send an outfielder to Atlanta for closer Mike Gonzalez. MLB.com’s T.R. Sullivan also linked the Rangers to Gonzalez. Gonzalez is under team control through ’09; I’d be surprised to see him traded.
- The Marlins are "very aggressively" pursuing Rockies closer Brian Fuentes.
Heyman’s Latest: Holliday, Teixeira, Burnett, Blake
10:19pm: Angels GM Tony Reagins laughed at Charley Walters’ Teixeira rumor, blaming it on…"those bloggers."
11:16am: The latest from SI.com’s Jon Heyman.
- The Rockies and Braves will wait until right before the July 31st deadline to decide whether to trade Matt Holliday and Mark Teixeira. The Rox have been more active calling around about Holliday, though. Heyman notes that Rockies GM Dan O’Dowd has spoken to the Mets, Angels, Phillies, and other teams about him. The Rockies are seven games out, while the Braves are six back.
- The Braves are reportedly making a list of trading partners for Tex, including the Red Sox, Angels, Rays, and D’Backs.
- Charley Walters has a rumor: Teixeira to the Angels for Robb Quinlan and Brandon Wood.
- The Yankees haven’t even considered signing Barry Bonds, despite the Hideki Matsui injury.
- Heyman spoke to a "Yankees person" who is fearful of A.J. Burnett‘s contract. I could see an acquiring team pushing for more certainty by buying out or guaranteeing the contract.
- Heyman considers Manny Ramirez‘s $20MM option for ’09 a bargain. For me, it’s not nearly as clear-cut.
- Omar Minaya is "especially" a fan of Cleveland’s Casey Blake. He would be a great fit for the Mets.
- Heyman is still hearing the rumor about the Mariners trying to lure Pat Gillick for an upper management position next year.
Odds and Ends: Murphy, Vizquel, Roberts
Today’s collection of links and rumors.
- I’ll be doing the weekly live chat here at 2pm CST. Right after that I’ll be on New Jersey’s Fox Sports Radio 1260AM.
- White Sox GM Kenny Williams talked about difficult it is to find an impact starter on the trade market.
- River Ave. Blues thinks the Yankees should pursue Josh Bard.
- The Athletics designated second baseman Donnie Murphy for assignment. Murphy, 25, showed a hint of promise at Triple A last year.
- The Giants don’t want to embarrass Omar Vizquel by releasing him.
- The Red Sox aren’t likely to make a major bullpen addition.
- A Brian Roberts trade is unlikely.
- David O’Brien on the difficulty in trading Mark Teixeira.
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.
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.
Rosenthal’s Latest: K-Rod, Maddux, Wolf, Street
Rumor guru Ken Rosenthal is at it again.
- Angels GM Tony Reagins is doing his due diligence on available hitters. Rosenthal admits his own suggestion of a Mark Teixeira/Will Ohman blockbuster acquisition is unlikely.
- Rosenthal believes Francisco Rodriguez‘s expected asking price to be five years, $75MM. The Angels would not bite on that.
- Greg Maddux only wants to be traded to a West Coast team. He might accept a trade back to the Dodgers, if Ned Colletti and Kevin Towers want to go down that road.
- The Orioles would trade George Sherrill if someone wants to overpay. Tons of teams are looking for lefty relievers, and many are available. Rosenthal notes that the Orioles have plenty of players likely to clear waivers, making August trades quite possible.
- The Dodgers are apparently interested in Toronto shortstop John McDonald. Talks for Cristian Guzman and Jack Wilson have stagnated. An extension is more likely than a trade for Guzman.
- Randy Wolf and Cla Meredith are the most popular Padres in trade talks. Wolf’s no-trade clause doesn’t include the teams that like him, so that won’t be an issue. If the Friars were to move Kevin Kouzmanoff, they’d ask for a young outfielder back.
- Even with their second base surplus, the A’s want to sign Mark Ellis to an extension.
- A Milton Bradley deal is unlikely, but the Rangers are getting calls on Marlon Byrd and Nelson Cruz. In return, they might be looking for young starting pitchers.
- The Royals are said to be "actively shopping" Miguel Olivo and Mark Grudzielanek. However, it’s been suggested that the Royals might not have the catching depth to move Olivo.
- Rosenthal’s list of Huston Street suitors: Mets, White Sox, Dodgers, and Brewers.
Braves To Keep Teixeira?
According to Terence Moore of the Atlanta Journal Constitution, the Braves are apparently sticking to their guns and going forward as buyers, not sellers. Moore writes:
"Braves manager Bobby Cox informed [Mark] Teixeira and others as much on Friday in a team meeting. ‘Bobby pointed out that there had been rumors about me and [reliever Will Ohman], and he told us not to listen to media reports and to those rumors, because this team is still trying to win the [National League East],’ said Teixeira."
The Braves could dramatically tumble out of it quickly if they struggle against the Marlins and Phillies in upcoming series’, but Moore feels they wouldn’t mind the draft picks or even the chance to re-sign Teixeira if it meant remaining competitive.