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Jake Peavy Rumors: Tuesday

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9:58pm: Peavy apparently rejected one trade, to an American League team with a small ballpark.

12:12pm: David O’Brien says Braves and Padres officials met Sunday and Monday to talk Peavy, discussing proposals not including Tommy Hanson.  The Braves remain the favorite.

12:08pm: Brewers GM Doug Melvin says he is not engaged in talks for Peavy.

10:32am: Joel Sherman says the Yankees have shown no early movement toward Peavy.  Free agents just make more sense.  Still, Jay Paris snagged some good quotes from Axelrod and Towers about the Yankees possibility.

8:52am: Peavy’s agent, Barry Axelrod, says they have not given approval for the Yankees or Angels.  Axelrod reiterated that the Yankees would have to pay a premium (likely an extension).  Towers said he doesn’t believe the Angels would have to pay the same premium.

8:35am: Towers also doubts Peavy would approve a trade to Milwaukee.

8:03am: Let’s kick off a fresh post for today’s Jake Peavy rumors.  A reminder of the latest news: Peavy has preapproved the Yankees and Angels, bringing his total to seven teams.  Padres GM Kevin Towers indicated that Peavy would not approve a trade to Boston.

Towers referenced the Dan Haren and Mark Teixeira deals while indicating he wants quality over quantity back.  CBS’s Scott Miller has info on some players discussed.  He says Felix Pie, Ronny Cedeno, and Rich Hill are available from the Cubs.  With the Dodgers, Chad Billingsley and James McDonald have been discussed.  We know Towers wants more from the Dodgers, but Billingsley seems unlikely.

Boras Wants Posada Money For Varitek

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5:49pm: Scott Boras held court regarding Varitek this afternoon.  He suggested Varitek should get a deal comparable to Jorge Posada’s four-year, $52.4MM contract, which is ridiculous even for Boras.

11:01am: According to Sean McAdam of the Boston Herald, Red Sox GM Theo Epstein will meet with Scott Boras this week to discuss free agent catcher Jason Varitek.  Epstein would not be concerned if the situation remains unresolved well into the offseason.  Yahoo’s Tim Brown suggested the Tigers and Dodgers as other possible fits for Varitek.

Varitek, 37 in April, earned $9MM in 2008.  If Boras can get him two years and $14MM it will be impressive.

A.J. Burnett Opts Out

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4:28pm: According to Ken Rosenthal, Burnett has officially opted out of the remaining two years and $24MM on his deal.  The Blue Jays remain in the mix.  If he leaves, they’ll at least end up with two draft picks.

10:22am: What’s the deal with A.J. Burnett?  We were supposed to have an opt-out decision yesterday before the GM meetings began.  Ken Davidoff talked to Burnett’s agent, Darek Braunecker.  Apparently Braunecker will meet with the Jays today to see if they’ll make a "knock your socks off" offer to keep Burnett off the market.  Cathal Kelly of the Toronto Star says the Jays will have to look at other free agent starters if Burnett leaves.

Sean McAdam of the Boston Herald does not see the Red Sox in on Burnett or C.C. Sabathia, based on Theo Epstein’s comments.  The Yankees are expected to be major players.

Battle For Teixeira

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ESPN’s Buster Olney gives his take on the Mark Teixeira situation in his blog this morning.  Olney believes the Yankees will "bid heavily" on Tex, perhaps $120MM over six years.  Teixeira turned down $140MM from the Rangers last year, though that was for eight years.  Ken Davidoff of Newsday believes that since the Yanks are prioritizing pitching, they’ll probably go with cheaper options like Casey Blake or Kevin Millar.

Olney says there’s debate about Boston’s level of interest in Teixeira – do they truly want him, or are they trying to drive up the price for the Yankees?  He suggests a scenario where the Sox sign Teixeira and keep Mike Lowell – Kevin Youkilis goes to left field, Jason Bay to right, and J.D. Drew to center (pushing Jacoby Ellsbury to a utility role and leaving Coco Crisp out of a job). 

Meanwhile, the Angels told Francisco Rodriguez’s agent that their initial focus this winter is signing Teixeira.  Dylan Hernandez and Mike DiGiovanna see the Halos in the six-year, $120MM range.

Latest Red Sox Buzz

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Alex Speier of WEEI has the latest Red Sox buzz from the GM meetings…

  • Theo Epstein confirmed that he has a new contract, but wouldn’t reveal the terms.  About a month ago, SI.com’s Jon Heyman said it was worth about $7MM over three years.
  • It seems that Mike Timlin plans to pitch in 2009, but it won’t be for the Red Sox.  Timlin, 43 in March, posted a 5.66 ERA in 49.1 innings this year.  It might be time to head back to the NL.
  • Paul Hoynes says Sean Casey also won’t be back with the Sox next year.
  • Epstein will meet with Scott Boras this week, with Jason Varitek an expected topic.

NPB Rumors: Tazawa, Iwase, Iguchi

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Some Japanese baseball-related rumors, courtesy of Patrick Newman at NPB Tracker:

Rockies Shopping Holliday, Atkins, Taveras

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9:11pm: According to David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, the Braves are not interested in Taveras after all.

10:47am: According to Troy E. Renck of the Denver Post and Tracy Ringolsby of the Rocky Mountain News, the Rockies are shopping Matt Holliday, Garrett Atkins, and Willy Taveras.

Holliday, a Scott Boras client, is set to earn $13.5MM in 2009 before reaching free agency.  Ringolsby says the Yankees, Red Sox, Rays, Angels, Mets, and Phillies have shown interest. Renck has the Cardinals as a lurker.  The Nats may also be interested.  The Rockies will target young pitching in return.

Atkins is under team control for 2009 and 2010.  Ringolsby has the Yankees, Red Sox, Rays, Angels, Mets, Phillies, White Sox, and Twins as interested parties.  Renck sees the Indians as another possibility.

Taveras is also under team control through 2010.  Ringolsby says the Royals, Yankees, White Sox, and Braves are in on him, while Renck adds the Nationals.

Jake Peavy Rumors: Monday

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12:08pm: Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe says Towers still considers the Braves the best match for a Peavy trade.  Cafardo says the Braves appear willing to trade shortstop Yunel Escobar.  He adds that the Red Sox haven’t been ruled out but they’re far down the list.

9:35am: Padres GM Kevin Towers arrived early at the GM meetings, with trading Jake Peavy high on his to-do list.  The latest from Tom Krasovic of the San Diego Union-Tribune:

  • Towers is "focused on three" teams.  Krasovic believes these to be the Cubs, Dodgers, and Braves.  He’s matched up with Jim Hendry and Ned Colletti before, and has known Frank Wren for many years.  It is believed that Towers would charge the Dodgers a premium for being in their division.  The Braves do not want to include top prospects such as Tommy Hanson and Jason Heyward.
  • Towers isn’t opposed to a three-team deal, but he’s never done one.  He’d prefer to make a normal direct trade. 
  • Towers wants quality over quantity, saying the right two or three players could get it done.

Rosenthal’s Latest: Peavy, Burnett, Sabathia

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Let’s take a look at the latest column from Ken Rosenthal at FOX Sports.

  • Don’t look for a Jake Peavy trade this week at the GM meetings, as the Padres haven’t found a match with Peavy’s five preferred teams.
  • A.J. Burnett’s agent should announce his client’s decision to opt out today.  Rosenthal notes Burnett’s preference to sign near his Maryland home, with the Yankees and Red Sox as the most realistic possibilities.
  • Rosenthal believes the Brewers offered C.C. Sabathia $100MM over five years (rather than four).  The Brewers can say they tried, but no one expects Sabathia to settle so far below his market value.  Also, the Brewers will decide today on Mike Cameron’s $10MM option.
  • The Phillies’ areas of uncertainty: GM, left field, fifth starter.

Cafardo’s Latest: Contract Swap Meet

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The Boston Globe’s Nick Cafardo wonders:

"I never really understood why there aren’t more "swap meet" type deals in baseball. As in, ’You take what I can’t use and I’ll take what you can’t use.’"

It’s a valid question if you believe a change of scenery can help a player and yet these deals rarely happen. Cafardo then goes on to list all of the players he considers "overpriced, underperforming, too old, or not useful to their present teams." Here’s the list:

Table 1, starting pitchers: Barry Zito (Giants); Dontrelle Willis and Nate Robertson (Tigers); Adam Eaton (Phillies); Carlos Silva, Miguel Batista, and Jarrod Washburn (Mariners); Daniel Cabrera (Orioles); Jeff Suppan (Brewers); Ian Kennedy and Kei Igawa (Yankees); Scott Olsen (Marlins).

Table 2, relief pitchers: Mike MacDougal (White Sox); Aaron Heilman and Scott Schoenweis (Mets); Jason Frasor (Blue Jays); Luis Vizcaino (Rockies); Kevin Gregg (Marlins); Justin Speier (Angels); Brandon Backe (Astros).

Table 3, infielders: Julio Lugo (Red Sox); Jack Wilson and Freddie Sanchez (Pirates); Scott Rolen (Blue Jays); Miguel Tejada (Astros); Melvin Mora (Orioles); Rickie Weeks and Bill Hall (Brewers); Mark Teahen and Ross Gload (Royals); Nick Johnson and Dmitri Young (Nationals); Luis Castillo (Mets).

Table 4, catchers: Yorvit Torrealba (Rockies); Ramon Hernandez (Orioles); Bengie Molina (Giants); Kenji Johjima (Mariners).

Table 5, outfielders: David Dellucci (Indians); Eric Byrnes (Diamondbacks); Nick Swisher (White Sox); Dave Roberts and Randy Winn (Giants); Kosuke Fukudome and Alfonso Soriano (Cubs); Gary Sheffield (Tigers); Gary Matthews Jr. (Angels); Austin Kearns and Wily Mo Pena (Nationals); Jeremy Hermida and Josh Willingham (Marlins); Hideki Matsui, Johnny Damon, and Melky Cabrera (Yankees); Juan Pierre and Andruw Jones (Dodgers); Willy Taveras (Rockies); Jeff Francoeur (Braves).

Cafardo says the reason we don’t see more of these "swaps" is that GMs fear ridicule if these deals don’t pan out for them and that matching salaries can be tricky.

He cites a few examples: Julio Lugo for Nate Robertson or Dontrelle Willis as being a possible – this has been discussed here before as a longshot idea. Or what about Kosuke Fukudome for Gary Matthews?

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