Oswalt Approves Phillies Deal; Option Won’t Be Exercised
1:53pm: The deal is done, tweets Rosenthal. Piecing this together, it appears the Astros send Oswalt and $11MM to the Phillies for Happ, Gose, and Villar, with the Phils potentially adding $1MM to Oswalt's buyout but not exercising his option.
A few tweets from Crasnick: the Cardinals and Padres made late runs at Oswalt today.
1:44pm: Rosenthal tweets that Oswalt's option is actually a mutual one. With the trade, his buyout will increase from $1MM to $2MM if the Phillies pick up the option and he declines, and remain at $2MM "if he simply opts out on his own." Rosenthal adds that the third player in the deal will be shortstop prospect Jonathan Villar. Some sources spell it "Villan," including the Baseball America Handbook.
1:34pm: Oswalt has accepted the deal, tweets Matt Gelb of the Philadelphia Inquirer.
12:51pm: Gose and Happ are definitely in the deal, tweets CSN Philly's Jim Salisbury.
12:12pm: Oswalt plans to OK the deal, but it's not official yet, reports Stark. He adds that the Astros will be sending $11MM. Rosenthal tweets that Oswalt's 2012 option will not be exercised; he'll be compensated some other way. ESPN's Amy K. Nelson tweets that Oswalt will get $1MM added by the Phillies to the buyout of his '12 option. She adds that the details are being worked out now regarding Oswalt retaining his no-trade clause.
ESPN's Jerry Crasnick tweets of a rumor that speedy outfield prospect Anthony Gose may be in the deal. AOL FanHouse's Ed Price tweets that he's hearing Gose and Worley could be in the swap.
10:43am: Rosenthal tweets that he hears Singleton is not in the deal.
10:17am: The identities of the other two players going to Houston remain unknown, but ESPN's Jayson Stark says the Astros have pushed hard for minor league first baseman Jonathan Singleton.
9:04am: The Astros will receive three players for Oswalt, tweets Rosenthal, while also paying a "very significant" part of his salary. Happ will be one of the three. Astros owner Drayton McLane has been negotiating directly with Phillies president David Montgomery, reports CBS' Danny Knobler.
7:37am: SI's Jon Heyman hears the Astros and Phillies were discussing Happ, righty Vance Worley, and two younger pitchers (Twitter link). Worley, a 22-year-old righty, spent most of 2010 at Double A, posting a 3.20 ERA, 6.6 K/9, and 2.9 BB/9. Baseball America ranked him 18th among Phillies prospects heading into the season, predicting a future as a back-end starter or middle reliever.
1:08am: The Astros and Phillies have reached an agreement on a Roy Oswalt trade, reports Mark Berman of FOX 26 in Houston. Berman says the Astros are now waiting for Oswalt's approval, having hammered out the players and money with the Phils. Wednesday morning, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports had reported that the players were "pretty much agreed on." Lefty J.A. Happ has been a rumored part of the deal for a while now.
Oswalt's contract has $5.46MM left from his $15MM salary this year, $16MM in 2011, and a 2012 option for $16MM with a $2MM buyout. It remains to be seen how the Astros and Phillies settled the financials and whether the Phils will pick up Oswalt's option, though SI's Jon Heyman hears that the Astros are sending a lot of money to the Phillies (Twitter link).
Giants, Not Rockies Considering Jorge Cantu
9:11pm: The Rockies are out on Cantu, according to Rosenthal (via Twitter).
3:49pm: The Giants are "not heavily considering" Cantu, a source told Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle (Twitter link). The Rockies are still looking at Cantu, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (Twitter link).
8:25am: The Giants are making a strong run for Marlins corner infielder Jorge Cantu, reports Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. They may hold an edge over the Rangers and Rockies, who remain involved. He says the Fish are believed to be seeking a young lefthander. The Giants have been using Travis Ishikawa at first base lately, while third baseman Pablo Sandoval is set to return from personal leave tonight.
In terms of young lefties, the Giants have reliever Dan Runzler on the DL with a knee injury and starter Eric Surkamp at High A. Clayton Tanner and Craig Clark also fit into their Baseball America top 30 prospect list heading into the season. Joe Martinez cracked the list the prior year. The Marlins asked about Tanner during the Winter Meetings, writes Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald.
Yesterday ESPN's Jayson Stark wrote that the Rangers and Marlins' talks for Cantu appeared hung up over dollars. The Rangers want the Marlins to assume all of the $2.22MM remaining on Cantu's contract.
Cantu, by the way, names the Marlins as his first choice when he hits the free agent market (ESPN's Amy K. Nelson via Twitter).
Prince Fielder Rumors: Wednesday
The Prince Fielder rumors have been surprisingly quiet, but here's the latest…
- The Rangers are not confident in their ability to acquire Fielder, according to Yahoo's Jeff Passan (via Twitter). They don't want to give up too many prospects, but the Brewers are asking for a mammoth return. Passan notes on Twitter that first base is still a priority for the Rangers, who maintain interest in Jorge Cantu.
- The Rangers have joined the Fielder fray along with the Angels and White Sox, tweets SI's Jon Heyman. Fielder would already cost a lot in terms of prospects, so I can't imagine what it'd take to convince the Brewers to pick up most of his remaining $3.88MM this year too. This is also the first we've heard in a while about the Halos being interested in Fielder.
Asking Price For Scott Downs
8:02pm: The Blue Jays are asking the Mets for a top prospect in exchange for Downs according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (via Twitter). The Twins have assigned a scout to watch the Blue Jays' relievers, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports.
7:48am: Blue Jays GM Alex Anthopoulos has the best reliever available in Scott Downs, and he knows it. Check out these asking prices for two months of Downs' services, courtesy of George A. King III of the New York Post: Joba Chamberlain or Jesus Montero from the Yankees, Casey Kelly or Jose Iglesias from the Red Sox (Montero link from SI's Jon Heyman via Twitter). With almost 80 hours remaining until the trade deadline, it doesn't hurt to ask.
Other teams are also trying to buy low on Chamberlain, who sports a 5.95 ERA, 10.0 K/9, and 3.6 BB/9 in 42.3 relief innings this year. The Diamondbacks also tried to get Chamberlain as part of a Dan Haren deal. Joba is under team control through 2013 and arbitration-eligible for the first time after this season.
Regarding the Yankees' search for a bench bat, King says they've spoken to the Orioles about Ty Wigginton. The O's are dangling Miguel Tejada, who's generated only lukewarm interest from the Yanks. Tejada is said to be the Phillies' primary infield target. As for a Yankees-Orioles deal, SI's Jon Heyman tweeted two days ago that O's owner Peter Angelos doesn't want to trade with his division rival.
Giants Inquired On David Aardsma
The Giants inquired on Mariners closer David Aardsma, MLBTR has learned. However, the Mariners countered by offering Aardsma and Jose Lopez for Pablo Sandoval and were turned down.
Aardsma was a first-round pick of Brian Sabean's Giants back in '03 but was traded to the Cubs with Jerome Williams two years later for LaTroy Hawkins and cash. His peripheral stats haven't changed much since last year, and his groundball rate is actually up, but his ERA increased from 2.52 to 4.73. One plus is that he's under team control through 2012. Lopez, a potential non-tender candidate for the Mariners after the season, doesn't seem to hold much trade value despite last year's 25 home run campaign.
Sandoval has seen a big downturn this year, with a .263/.325/.384 line after last year's amazing performance garnered MVP votes. His injuries have seemingly been minor, though he is just returning from personal leave. Sandoval remains under team control through 2014 and the Giants probably aren't inclined to sell low.
Ted Lilly Rumors: Wednesday
Ted Lilly may have made his last start as a Cub last night, tossing five-plus shutout innings in Houston while lowering his ERA to 3.69. The latest on the lefty up top:
- The Dodgers are more focused on Lilly and Paul Maholm than Roy Oswalt, according to ESPN.com's Jayson Stark.
- The market for Lilly has picked up, according to Stark (on Twitter). The Tigers are involved, and so are the Dodgers, Twins and Phillies.
- The Phillies have inquired on Lilly, according to Rosenthal (on Twitter). Ed Price of AOL FanHouse hears rumblings about a possible Lilly-J.A. Happ deal (Twitter link). However, Stark hears that the Phils, who are on the lefty's no-trade list, won't deal Happ for Lilly. The Twins and Dodgers remain involved, but the Mets are waiting to hear "from above" before pursuing Lilly more aggressively, according to Rosenthal.
- The Cubs have indicated a recent willingness to assume some of the $4.43MM owed to Lilly, reports ESPN's Jayson Stark. That'd help the chances of a Dodgers deal. Unfortunately for the Cubs, potential Lilly suitors like the Mets and Tigers may be reassessing their chances.
- The Twins have asked about Lilly, reports Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports, but their presence on his no-trade list means he'd require additional compensation to accept a deal.
Roy Oswalt Rumors: Wednesday
The lowdown on Roy Oswalt, with the newest buzz up top…
- The Phils and Astros have a deal in place that would send Oswalt to Philadelphia, according to Mark Berman of FOX 26 Sports in Houston. Oswalt, who is aware of the potential deal, can make it official by waiving his no-trade clause. Ken Rosenthal and Jon Heyman are working to confirm the story on Twitter.
- Talks between the Phillies and Astros have intensified in the last day, according to ESPN.com’s Jayson Stark. The clubs have more or less agreed on players – J.A. Happ and prospects would go to Houston – but they can’t agree on how much salary the Astros will absorb. Jayson Werth is off the market, so taking on payroll won’t be easy for the Phils.
- The Dodgers are now more focused on trying to obtain Ted Lilly or Paul Maholm.
- The Phillies and Astros are now dealing one-on-one, with no other teams involved, according to Olney (via Twitter). Jon Heyman of SI.com says the Phillies are the favorites to acquire Oswalt and notes (on Twitter) that the Yanks inquired once.
- Three or four teams will likely be involved if the Phillies acquire Oswalt, according to ESPN.com's Buster Olney (via Twitter).
- Astros owner Drayton McLane told Zachary Levine of the Houston Chronicle that a trade seems likely. "I'd say it's about 60% that something could be done and 40% that Roy will be here next year," McLane said.
- Oswalt is telling friends that he can’t wait to leave Houston, according to Newsday’s Ken Davidoff. The righty says he won’t necessarily insist that teams pick up his 2012 option.
- Oswalt wants ample time to decide on any trade, reports MLB.com's Brian McTaggart. He doesn't want the Astros coming to him an hour or two before Saturday's deadline.
- The Reds made a cursory call on Oswalt, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports, but no names were exchanged. John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer wrote today that Oswalt is too expensive for the Reds.
- The Cardinals are out and the Dodgers are making no progress, reports Rosenthal. The Phillies' front office is still divided about giving up prospects and taking on Oswalt's contract, though the players they'd send to the Astros are "pretty much agreed on." Earlier today, Joel Sherman of the New York Post wrote that the Cardinals remain in contact with the Astros for Oswalt.
- If Oswalt takes the mound Friday night against the Brewers, "the odds of him being traded are down to almost nothing" says Richard Justice of the Houston Chronicle. ESPN's Buster Olney tweets that the Astros are "working very, very hard" to find an acceptable Oswalt deal despite all the obstacles.
- The Phillies "remain top contenders" for Oswalt, writes MLB.com's Todd Zolecki. Zolecki's source thinks Oswalt's 2012 club option "is not the sticking point it has been made to be." On the other hand, ESPN's Jayson Stark feels that if the Phillies retain Jayson Werth as expected they won't have a way to clear 2010 payroll for Oswalt.
Yankees On Soria’s No-Trade List
WEDNESDAY: Soria can also block deals to the Red Sox, Tigers, Phillies, Cardinals or Cubs, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. The reliever’s 2012 option vests at $6MM if he finishes 55 games in 2011. It would be difficult for Soria to reach that mark if he weren’t closing games, but his trade protection provides him with some leverage.
TUESDAY: The Yankees are one of six teams on the no-trade list of Royals closer Joakim Soria, reports ESPN's Andrew Marchand. We learned yesterday that the Yankees made a "big proposal" for Soria, even dangling Jesus Montero, but the Royals were not interested.
Marchand notes that in the unlikely event the Royals and Yankees do reach an agreement for Soria, the no-trade clause might simply provide leverage for the pitcher. Maybe that means he requires all three club options to be picked up or even a contract restructuring, but we're getting ahead of ourselves.
Desmond Jennings Switches To Scott Boras
Desmond Jennings has switched representation from SFX to Scott Boras, MLBTR has learned. Jennings, one of the top prospects in the minors, has a .283/.356/.409 line for the Rays' Triple A club this year. His scorching June has been sandwiched by unimpressive months.
Perhaps the switch to Boras kills any chance of Jennings signing a team-friendly multiyear deal, but it's not worth worrying about before he even makes his big league debut.
Derrek Lee Will Remain With Cubs
Cubs GM Jim Hendry confirmed to ESPN's Bruce Levine today that first baseman Derrek Lee wants to play out his contract with the Cubs. Lee has full no-trade rights, and the recent scuttlebutt from Levine's colleague Jayson Stark on Twitter was that he'd veto any trade.
Levine notes that the Angels proposed a trade to the Cubs for Lee over the past ten days. Lee vetoed the potential, according to MLB.com's Carrie Muskat (Twitter link). Levine originally reported that the Rangers made a proposal for Lee, but now says Texas never offered a deal.