MLB.com on Rowand, LaRoche
Rumors weren’t flying around the White Sox today. The best we have is a mild indication that the Sox could have interest in Aaron Rowand. It’s a stretch.
On the Braves side, even if an Adam LaRoche/Mike Gonzalez agreement can’t be met, the Pirates could send over second baseman Jose Castillo to replace Marcus Giles. There’s also some Andruw Jones speculation here, but it sounds like a long shot.
Oh, and Jason Jennings is not "hot and bothered" by trade rumors. Ummm yeah.
Glavine Chooses Mets
Murray Chass’s New York Times article as well as Buster Olney’s blog indicate that Tom Glavine will make a decision today on whether to pitch for the Mets or Braves.
I’m not sure Glavine even has two options, as no one is reporting that the Braves have made him an offer. Perhaps Schuerholz is waiting on a deal of Tim Hudson or Marcus Giles to free up payroll before doing so.
UPDATE: As many have emailed to me, Glavine has re-signed with the Mets for one year and $10.5MM.
Gotham on Zito, Glavine, and More
Check out Mark Healey’s latest Rumor Mill over at Gotham Baseball. Some highlights:
Currently Healey’s sources don’t have any indications that Barry Zito will end up in New York. San Diego remains a possibility.
Healey mentions a Bill Shanks report for Scout.com that indicated Tom Glavine is close to returning to Atlanta for $7-8MM with an option.
Pirates Not Interested in LaRoche?
Bucco Blog is reporting this morning that the Pirates and Braves talked about a trade that would have sent Adam LaRoche to the Pirates.
Evidently, all that David Littlefield was willing to ante up was John Grabow and Nate McLouth and the Braves passed.
By Jake
Assorted updates: Alou, Hudson, Garland, Okajima
Earlier today, we found a report that Moises Alou was about to sign with the Mets. Now Rosenthal is saying that it could be a two-year deal. With Carlos Gomez right behind Lastings Milledge, putting two established vets in the outfield through 2008 would seem to make Milledge expendable.
Yesterday, Phil Rogers speculated that Mark Buehrle could be headed to Texas. Rosenthal says it’s Jon Garland, and hints (as Rogers did) that John Danks and Brian Anderson could be part of the package, especially if the deal gets bigger.
And, Buster Olney is reporting chatter about Tim Hudson heading to the Orioles. If, as Olney speculates, the return could include Adam Loewen or Hayden Penn, it would seem to be ideal for Atlanta: free up payroll for Tom Glavine, and get another (cheap) potentially decent starter in the deal as well.
And here’s something out of nowhere: Hideki Okajima, a lefty reliever, may be coming to the states. Okajima, a longtime Yomiuri Giant and recently a Nippon Ham Fighter, had a great 2006 but a mediocre ’05. Sounds like your typical middle-bullpen fodder.
By Jeff Sackmann
Angels Pursuing Andruw Jones Trade?
According to Halos Heaven, the Braves hope to send Andruw Jones to the Angels for Ervin Santana and Nick Adenhart. Of course, Andruw would have to be amenable to this deal to make it work.
Baseball Prospectus’s Kevin Goldstein wrote, "Adenhart has come all the way back from Tommy John surgery to establish himself as one of the top righthanders in the minors." Among right-handed starters, Goldstein ranked Adenhart behind only Homer Bailey and Philip Hughes.
Meanwhile, the L.A. Times (subscription required) says the Angels have made an offer to Alfonso Soriano and have interest in J.D. Drew. Mike DiGiovanna speculates that Drew could command a four-year, $56MMish deal.
Kei Igawa Has Been Posted
Rotoworld lists the potential suitors for Kei Igawa as the "Padres, Diamondbacks, Dodgers, Yankees, Braves, Mets, Cubs and Indians." They rule out the Red Sox and Mariners, though this Tacoma News-Tribune article says the M’s are "likely" to bid. That same article predicts that the posting fee will be about "two-thirds less" than Daisuke Matsuzaka‘s $51.1M: $17M.
That seems high for a guy who David Wright isn’t convinced has MLB-quality stuff. Personally, I wouldn’t want my team spending more than $10M for his rights, but with all those teams involved, $17M seems plausible.
UPDATE: An alert e-mailer points out this article on the Braves official site. According to club officials, Atlanta won’t be involved in this one.
By Jeff Sackmann
Braves Rumors
Talking Chop has a nice roundup of trade talks that the Braves could be exploring.
First, the White Sox are interested in Andruw Jones. That seems like a longshot because Andruw has a no-trade and the White Sox hate Scott Boras, but who knows, maybe an extension would get that done. Trading for Jones would make Brian Anderson expendable, and Anderson seems to me like Bobby Cox’s kind of player–young, great defense, could improve at the plate. Maybe Anderson and one of Chicago’s starters would get that deal done.
Second, the Rangers could be looking at Braves pitching. The Rangers could have all sorts of holes depending on how many of their free agents they are able to keep, especially in the rotation. They don’t match up nearly so well with the Braves–this article suggests the Braves would be looking for bullpen help in a deal like that, but after trading away Francisco Cordero last season, the Rangers wouldn’t appear to have the depth to survive losing Akinori Otsuka.
In related news, Vicente Padilla‘s agent doesn’t expect him to sign immediately, but notes that the Rangers are the most interested. I’m not surprised–if both Padilla and Adam Eaton went elsewhere, Jon Daniels would be forced to do a lot of shopping in a very, very expensive store.
By Jeff Sackmann
Marcus Giles On The Block
It’s old news, but I missed it a few days ago. Ken Rosenthal reported that the Padres are talking to the Braves about Marcus Giles. San Diego would use Giles as a third baseman, a position at which Giles has played nine games in his Major League career. But hey, it’s creative. Rumor has it the Braves might pursue a good reliever in return.
From the Fielding Bible, I learned that Giles has good range and hands but is much better on plays to his right than his left. Not good for third base, I would think.
Baseball Prospectus’s Marc Normandin did a player profile on Giles in September. Normandin concluded:
"If the Braves do indeed move Giles this winter, as has been whispered, then some new team might have themselves a second baseman who is still within his peak productivity, and may even get him at bargain-basement pricing, considering his ‘off’ year. Considering this winter’s weak free agent class, adding a player of Giles’ caliber would be a serious upgrade in a market that doesn’t offer very many of those."
Gotham Baseball: Mets and Yankees Rumors
Check out the latest from Mark Healey of Gotham Baseball. A summary is below.
Healey’s Cubs source indicates Mark Prior and Alex Rodriguez could be the main pieces of a trade. That’d be a tough sell for Brian Cashman so I’m sure the Cubs would have to spice up such an offer. Healey’s source mentions Mark DeRosa as a possible A-Rod replacement in New York.
A couple of names associated with the Mets include Ray Durham and Mark Mulder. Durham is a new one for me, though the Mulder info jives with what I heard last week. I also have strong indications from another source that a return to Oakland is "very likely" for Mulder, however. It’ll come down to the dollars: if Mulder takes injury/incentive type money, he goes to Oakland. Otherwise, the Mets should be the top suitor.
Healey and I are also in agreement on the Mets’ minimal interest in Julio Lugo and their intent to hang onto Lastings Milledge.
Finally, Healey’s sources call for a Tom Glavine/Greg Maddux reunion in Atlanta. I had heard the same about Glavine, though this weekend’s New York Post mentioned that Glavine doesn’t want to give the Braves a huge discount and Atlanta’s payroll is pretty tight as long as it includes Andruw Jones.
The Hot Stove hasn’t officially begun, but it’s going to be another exciting winter.
UPDATE: Today’s AJC indicates that the Braves would hesitate to pay Glavine even $10MM.