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More On Harden, Sabathia Trades

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I’ve got some odds and ends related to the Rich Harden and CC Sabathia trades.

  • The Cub Reporter had an interesting post yesterday, stating that Harden can demand a trade after this season under the old CBA.  The Cubs could always sidestep that by declining Harden’s $7MM option and going through the arbitration process with him.  I ran this by a source close to the situation, and he said the Cubs are not worried about Harden demanding a trade.
  • Bruce Miles talks about the "great personal and working relationship" between GMs Jim Hendry and Billy Beane.
  • Susan Slusser says Beane never inquired on the Cubs’ top draft pick from 2007, third baseman Josh Vitters.  She says the A’s did not consider it appropriate to ask for a player they had no chance of getting.
  • Slusser adds that "there is thought among other clubs that the A’s might deal Matt Murton or Eric Patterson."
  • Authors at the Hardball Times did a roundtable about both trades.
  • Squawking Baseball praises Beane’s boldness.
  • The Royals spoke internally about Sabathia, but it never got to the point of a discussion with the Indians.

Odds and Ends: Resop, Myers, Gallardo, Fuentes

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Today’s link collection:

  • Joel Sherman says the Mets would be willing to eat some money on a contract to reduce the prospect price for a corner outfielder.  He suggests names like Xavier Nady, Raul Ibanez, Randy Winn, and Adam Dunn.  The salary-eating strategy would probably only help with Winn.
  • The Hanshin Tigers purchased reliever Chris Resop’s contract from the Braves.
  • Ricky Bottalico says Brett Myers wants to be traded, but Myers and the Phillies denied it.
  • It would be cool to see Yovani Gallardo return this year, if only to see him line up with CC Sabathia and Ben Sheets for a brief period of time.  That’s three aces.
  • The Yankees are still interested in Rockies closer Brian Fuentes; the Rox might be interested in Mark Melancon.
  • More rumblings that the Dodger front office is confusing other teams.
  • SI.com’s Jon Heyman ranks the most impactful potentially available players, raising the question of whether impactful is a word.  Heyman also includes odds of each player being dealt.

Reds Rumors: Weathers, Ross, Harang, Dunn

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Time for a look at the Reds.  They’re currently 11.5 games back in the NL Central and 8 out of the wild card.

  • You might imagine the Reds are sellers, but GM Walt Jocketty won’t commit yet.  The Reds’ current road trip against division foes may be the deciding factor. 
  • Jocketty says he’s been getting more phone calls since the CC Sabathia trade.  Apparently interest has centered on reliever David Weathers and catcher Dave Ross.  The Marlins could make sense for both, though they’re only said to have interest in Ross.  The Fish are eager to snare a backstop, and are put off by Yorvit Torrealba’s salary.
  • On July 3rd, ESPN’s Jayson Stark said the Reds would accept bids on Aaron Harang.  He cautioned that the Reds would have to be bowled over.  Jocketty, however, downplayed the idea of a Harang trade.  And with Harang possibly hurt, a trade is even less likely.
  • Why is there no buzz on Adam Dunn yet?  It might be because Dunn "hasn’t yet been made available," according to Will Carroll.  I still think interest in Dunn will heat up in coming weeks.  Joel Sherman wonders if the Reds would be hesitant to offer Dunn arbitration after the season for fear that he might accept.  That could reduce the asking price.

CC Sabathia Links

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The CC Sabathia trade is complete, but there’s still some good info floating about.

Odds and Ends: Bedard, Teixeira, Longoria, Durham

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Rounding up today’s links…

Sabathia To Brewers Trade Official

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Let’s round up today’s C.C. Sabathia links in a fresh post.

  • The Brewers’ trade for ace pitcher C.C. Sabathia is official.  As a reminder, the Indians will receive Matt LaPorta, Rob Bryson, Zach Jackson, and maybe Taylor Green.  Paul Hoynes says Michael Brantley could end up the player to be named later instead of Green.  Ken Rosenthal suggests Lorenzo Cain may also still be possible.  MLB.com’s Jonathan Mayo analyzes the prospects received by the Indians.
  • Here’s an interesting link.  This is apparently the blog of agent Joshua Kusnick of Double Diamond Sports Management.  Among others, Kusnick represents Cain, Brantley, and Green.  He says Green hasn’t been informed of anything but seems more likely to be included than Brantley.
  • Yahoo’s Jeff Passan calls the package of players an "OK haul."
  • ESPN’s Keith Law agrees, suggesting that Mark Shapiro should’ve held out for a higher probability return.  He sees Bryson as the key to the deal.  The 20 year-old is a projectable live arm.
  • Joel Sherman says the Brewers aren’t done – they want to add a late-inning reliever as well.
  • Indians owner Paul Dolan explains the Sabathia trade in a letter to fans.
  • Rosenthal has details of other teams’ attempts to acquire Sabathia.  He says the Dodgers wanted the Indians to package Sabathia with Casey Blake.  Surprisingly, the Yankees were "very heavily involved."  They did not want to give up Phil Hughes, however.
  • Most articles seem to assume that the Brewers have no chance of signing Sabathia.  I agree that it’s unlikely, but I wouldn’t rule it out.  We’ve read repeatedly that Sabathia does not intend to chase every last dollar.  What if he loves Milwaukee and he leads the team deep into the playoffs?  The Brewers could let Ben Sheets and Eric Gagne leave and put that money toward a competitive five-year Sabathia offer.  It’s not out of the question.

Cubs Pursuing Harden In Wake Of Sabathia Deal

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How will the Cubs counter the Brewers’ C.C. Sabathia acquisition?  They simply can’t match it, but the next best thing might be Rich Harden.  Harden is also a frontline starter, but he lacks Sabathia’s durability.

According to Chris De Luca of the Chicago Sun-Times, "the Cubs have spent a lot of time on the phone recently with Oakland Athletics GM Billy Beane trying to pry away Harden."  De Luca says they’ve been discussed a deal for at least a month.  Plan C is apparently Randy Wolf.  Will Carroll says the Cubs "think they match up well for A.J. Burnett."      

Jayson Stark commented on the Harden situation on Thursday:

The A’s will consider any offers that allow them to add and subtract at the same time. But any Harden deal would have to at least approach last winter’s Dan Haren extravaganza.

A reminder: Baseball America ranked Carlos Gonzalez as the game’s #22 prospect, and Brett Anderson was #36.  The Cubs don’t have two players like that.  Then add Greg Smith and Dana Eveland, who have combined for a 3.52 ERA in 207 innings this year.  Oh, and toss in Chris Carter and Aaron Cunningham for good measure.  That was a haul, even for an ace like Haren. 

Brewers Close To Acquiring C.C. Sabathia

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10:11pm: Haudricourt has names.  He says the Indians are getting LaPorta, Zach Jackson, Rob Bryson, and maybe Taylor Green.  Green could end up in the deal as a player to be named later.

Also, Rosenthal has commentary on the deal, explaining that "in baseball’s new-world order, prospects are power."  The ability to draft brilliantly could trump payroll as a competitive advantage.

7:59pm: ESPN’s Buster Olney chimes in, citing sources that say the teams have agreed in principle to a deal.  Sabathia himself sent a text message to ESPN’s Amy Nelson implying the same.  All signs point to Sabathia making his Brewers debut on Tuesday, with an official trade announcement tomorrow.

By the way, Yahoo’s Jeff Passan has sources saying LaPorta and Green are in the deal.

6:29pm: MLB.com’s Anthony Castrovince talked to Indians GM Mark Shapiro, who said "it is definitely not a done deal."  We don’t know whether that comment refers to the standard physical, or something more.  Meanwhile, Scott Miller says the deal is all but done.

6:05pm: Haudricourt says the Indians and Brewers have reached an agreement on a Sabathia trade.  The Brewers will send LaPorta and two lower level minor leaguers to Cleveland for the southpaw ace.

5:53pm: Haudricourt checks back in, stating that a deal is nearly complete. The Brewers will send LaPorta and two other minor leaguers in exchange for Sabathia. One of them could likely be Class A third baseman Taylor Green, but the other will not be Lorenzo Cain, Mat Gamel, or Alcides Escobar. Cain has been promoted to Class AA Huntsville, likely to take LaPorta’s place on the roster.

The Brewers are insisting that the deal be closed tonight, in order to allow Sabathia to arrive in Milwaukee in time to make his next scheduled start on Tuesday.

5:41pm: LaPorta is absent from tonight’s game in AA Huntsville; Alcides Escobar is not. Definitely a sign that LaPorta could be on the move and a deal is getting closer to completion.

4:50pm: Tom Haudricourt tells us that the Brewers and Indians are still in "heavy negotiations." Haudricourt notes that with the Indians having a day off tomorrow, it makes an ideal time for a press conference to announce a big move. Additionally, he reiterates that the Brewers should try to get the deal done in time to have Sabathia make his next scheduled start in a Brewers uniform.

3:54pm: Jon Heyman weighs in on the impending Sabathia deal, stating that the Indians have been trying to pry top shortstop prospect Alcides Escobar away from the Brewers as well. Heyman re-affirms that the Brewers would like a deal complete as soon as possible, in order to get two starts from Sabathia – one Tuesday and one Sunday – before the All-Star Break.

No mention of the unconfirmed report of the deal being completed from Heyman just yet.

3:15pm: Anthony Castrovince from MLB.com takes Rosenthal’s rumor one step further, citing a "Major League source," that says a trade with the Brewers and Indians for C.C. Sabathia has been "completed." If correct, the trade is indeed centered around Double-A outfielder Matt LaPorta, though the other two prospects are not yet named.

Further updates as soon as they are available.

1:58pm: Ken Rosenthal writes that the Dodgers are officially out of the C.C. Sabathia sweepstakes, meaning that the Brewers could be extremely close to securing a deal to bring the 2007 American League Cy Young Award winner to Milwaukee.

Rosenthal says that the Rays and Phillies are still in the race, but are also likely unable to top the Brewers’ offer, centered around Class AA outfielder Matt LaPorta. Rosenthal points out the Indians’ strong need for power in the future and LaPorta’s 20 HR and 66 RBI in AA Huntsville. According to Rosenthal, Cleveland will also receive two more prospects from Milwaukee in the current offer. Taylor Green and Lorenzo Cain were mentioned previously on MLBTR.

Week In Review

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Continuing with Tim’s new tradition, here’s my take on some of the top rumors of the week from June 29 – July 6:

  • The C.C. Sabathia sweepstakes is nearing an end, with the Brewers’ Matt LaPorta package being the frontrunner. We’ll let everyone know the full story as soon as possible.
  • The Phillies extended Brad Lidge to a three-year contract. Lidge looks like his old self – great deal for Philadelphia. Looks like this means Brett Myers will remain in the rotation if he can get back on track.
  • We heard a lot about the Rays’ growing interest for Colorado closer Brian Fuentes. They could be preparing an offer. Troy Percival has been good, but injury prone, and you almost hate to move Dan Wheeler from the eighth inning where he’s been so good all year.
  • The shortstop market is hot, as the Dodgers, Orioles, and Jays would all like to upgrade. The Dodgers are interested in Jack Wilson, while the Orioles are looking at David Eckstein and possibly Juan Uribe or Felipe Lopez. The Jays could look to move A.J. Burnett and his contract for an upgrade there as well. Interesting that Toronto wants an upgrade over Eckstein, while Baltimore looks at him as an upgrade…
  • The Indians finally cut Joe Borowski loose, designating him for assignment. Was this too little too late? They tried to sneak Craig Breslow through waivers earlier this year. I’m guessing they’d rather have the 1.42 ERA he’s posted this season than Borowski’s 7.56, but the Twins are enjoying Breslow’s benefits.
  • Could the Angels add Matt Holliday? Seems unlikely with the stockpile of large contracts they already have in their outfield if you ask me.
  • The A’s signed Michel Inoa for $4.25MM on Thursday.
  • The Padres will be sellers this July. The onslaught of injuries have made this a frustrating season for San Diego. If you’d been able to see Adrian Gonzalez’s monster numbers through July 1 before the season started, who would’ve believed this team wasn’t contending? Wow.
  • For those who are interested, Tim looked at this past years’ offseason moves and compiled an All-Star lineup of free agent hitters signed prior to the 2008 season. That’d be a heck of a team to try to beat right now…

Latest Sabathia Rumors

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ESPN’s Buster Olney and the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel’s Tom Haudricourt have the latest C.C. Sabathia trade rumors this evening.

  • Olney says the Brewers restructured their offer today.  That offer is believed to include Matt LaPorta plus lesser prospects.  Haudricourt suspects those prospects might be Taylor Green and Lorenzo Cain.  Haudricourt says the Indians have the Brewers’ offer in hand and Milwaukee GM Doug Melvin is waiting to hear back.  Olney says the Brewers are looking at some Plan B starters in case they don’t win the Sabathia sweepstakes.
  • Olney also has the Rays, Dodgers, and Phillies in the Sabathia talks.  Those teams all have their issues.  The Rays may not have the motivation, the Dodgers are being vague about who’s available, and the Phillies’ best talent is at the lower levels. 
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