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Cubs Willing To Eat High Percentage Of Soriano’s Deal

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Alfonso Soriano's contract may be the most untradeable contract in baseball, but a source tells Bruce Levine of ESPN Chicago that the Cubs would be "willing to absorb a high percentage" of the money left on his deal if the right trade offer came along. There is more than $60M left on his eight-year, $136MM contract.

Soriano's deal includes a full no-trade clause, but we recently heard that he'd waive it to go to a contender. The 35-year-old is hitting .249/.291/.445 with 14 homers this year, and an American League team could also hide his suspect outfield defense by using him as a DH. Soriano's contract calls for an $18MM salary this year and every year through 2014.

Levine also mentions that there is interest in Kosuke Fukudome, John Grabow, and Marlon Byrd. The Indians are among those interested in Fukudome.

Braves Want Bullpen Help, Still Interested In Gomes

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A heavy workload on their relievers have the Braves looking for bullpen help according to ESPN's Buster Olney (Twitter links). The team is also continuing to discuss Jonny Gomes with the Reds according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports.

Atlanta's relievers have thrown 306 innings this season, the sixth most in all of baseball. The late-game trio of Jonny Venters, Craig Kimbrel, and Eric O'Flaherty have each appeared in at least 49 games and thrown at least 45 1/3 innings. As for Gomes, we first heard about the Braves interest in him yesterday. Today we heard that they fully intend to acquire a hitter.

Hunter Pence Rumors: Thursday

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There are a number of teams looking for a bat before the trade deadline, and Hunter Pence of the Astros is one of the best available. The outfielder is hitting .316/.361/.484 with 11 homers this season. Let's round up all the day's rumors involving him right here…

  • SI.com's Jon Heyman hears that Houston's asking price for Pence is so prohibitive that teams are sure he'll remain with the Astros (Twitter link).
  • A source tells Mike Silverman of The Boston Herald that Pence "won't be moved." (Twitter link)
  • Earlier today we heard that the Phillies would like to frame any potential trade for Pence around right-hander Vance Worley.

Phillies Sign Aaron Heilman

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The Phillies have signed Aaron Heilman to a minor league deal, reports Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com (on Twitter). He will report to Triple-A.

Arizona released the 32-year-old Heilman earlier this week after he'd posted a 6.88 ERA with 8.4 K/9, 2.8 BB/9 and a 38.5% ground ball rate in 35 1/3 innings of work this year. Bad luck may have contributed to an ugly ERA that was twice Heilman's xFIP of 3.44. He allowed a career-high .360 batting average on balls in play and a career-high 20% of fly balls against him left the yard. His average fastball velocity dipped from 92.3 mph in 2010 to 90.6 mph in 2011.

Indians Designate Jared Goedert For Assignment

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The Indians have designated Jared Goedert for assignment, reports MLB.com's Jordan Bastian (on Twitter). In corresponding moves, the team optioned Luis Valbuena to Triple-A and called up top prospect Jason Kipnis.

Goedert, 26, hit just .211/.284/.383 in 202 plate appearances with Cleveland's Double and Triple-A affiliates this season. He has never played in the big leagues, and spends most of his defensive time at first, third, and left field.

Marlins Have Interest In Brandon Inge

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The Marlins are said to be seeking a veteran third baseman, and MLB.com's Joe Frisaro says they have their eyes on Brandon Inge. Inge was designated for assignment after the Tigers acquired Wilson Betemit yesterday, but he said he would accept an assignment to Triple-A if he clears waivers.

The 34-year-old Inge has hit just .177/.242/.242 this season and there's approximately $8.5MM left on his contract through 2012, assuming his 2013 option is bought out. That salary almost guarantees that he will go through waivers unclaimed. Marlins' third basemen have hit just .267/.333/.347 this season.

Olney On Wandy, Phillies, DeJesus, Cardinals, Mets

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In addition to all the talk about a potential Hunter Pence trade, ESPN's Buster Olney notes the Astros are "making it clear" that they're willing to trade Wandy Rodriguez in today's Insider-only blog post. The left-hander has caught the eye of the Reds, but Houston will reportedly want as much for Rodriguez as the Rockies would want for Ubaldo Jimenez.

Here are the rest of Buster's rumors…

  • Olney hears that the Phillies would prefer to frame any offers for Pence around right-hander Vance Worley (Twitter link). Worley owns a 2.02 ERA in ten starts and two relief appearances for Philadelphia this season.
  • The Pirates have talked internally about pursuing David DeJesus, but it's unclear how aggressive they plan to get in trade talks (Twitter link).
  • The Cardinals have cast a wide net in their search for bullpen help, and other clubs expect St. Louis to land a right-handed reliever before the deadline (Twitter link).
  • There is growing confidence in the Mets' organization that the Bernie Madoff case "is veering in favor of the Wilpons," which could allow them to re-establish full control of the team. There is also some unhappiness with how David Einhorn has taken the spotlight without having a deal to become minority owner finalized.

Braves Have Interest In Jonny Gomes

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The Braves have interest in Jonny Gomes, report Jon Paul Morosi and Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (on Twitter). Earlier this afternoon we heard that Atlanta may be nearing a deal for a right-handed bat, which Gomes is.

Fred Lewis has been getting more and more playing time in left field for the Reds, which is why Gomes is available. He's hitting just .213/.339/.408 this year overall, but he's crushing left-handed pitchers: .340/.446/.547 in 65 plate appearances.

Tigers Acquire Wilson Betemit

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The Tigers have acquired Wilson Betemit from the Royals for prospects Antonio Cruz and Julio Rodriguez, reports Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports (Twitter links). Bob Dutton of The Kansas City Star first reported that a trade involving Betemit was imminent (on Twitter). The Royals have confirmed the move in a press release.

The 29-year old Betemit was a sought after man this summer; the Brewers, Angels, and Marlins all expressed interest in acquiring him at various times. He has hit .281/.341/.409 with three homers in 226 plate appearances this year, though he lost playing time to Mike Moustakas in recent weeks. The Tigers have been focused on pitching in recent weeks, but this move gives them an upgrade over Brandon Inge at the hot corner. Inge is hitting just .177/.242/.242 this season.

Neither Cruz or Rodriguez ranked among Detroit's top 30 prospects in Baseball America's 2011 Prospect Handbook. Cruz, a 19-year-old left-handed pitcher, has a 3.11 ERA in 75 1/3 innings with the Tigers' Low Class-A affiliate this season. He's struck out 58 and walked 28 in ten starts and a dozen relief appearances. Rodriguez, a 20-year-old catcher, has hit .283/.325/.354 with one homer in 246 plate appearances for Detroit's High Class-A affiliate this season.

AL Central Notes: Indians, Francis, Chen, Buehrle

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Jeff Keppinger was traded today as well as five years ago today. That's when the Royals acquired him from the Mets for Ruben Gotay. Here's the latest from the AL Central…

  • Grady Sizemore was placed on the disabled list with a knee issue, and SI.com's Jon Heyman says (on Twitter) the Indians have their eyes on Ryan Ludwick and Josh Willingham. They also called about Carlos Beltran, but his no-trade clause may be an obstacle.
  • Meanwhile, MLB.com's Jordan Bastian notes (on Twitter) that while the Indians prefer a right-handed bat, they haven't ruled out lefties with Sizemore and Shin-Soo Choo out.
  • Royals GM Dayton Moore told MLB Network Radio's Jim Bowden that it's possible they'll move lefty starters Jeff Francis and Bruce Chen before the deadline (Twitter link).
  • South Side Sox notes that it's much quieter this year than the last time White Sox ace Mark Buehrle was scheduled to become a free agent.

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