Halladay Season: Link Round-Up
The baseball realm is a-twitter with the news that the Blue Jays will listen to offers on Roy Halladay. Let's run down the latest bullet points on this front:
- MLB.com's Jordan Bastian has a bevy of quotes from Roy himself: "It's a situation where I think if it's best for the team, if it's best for me, then you go from there."
- SI's Jon Heyman hears that the Jays may want a top SS prospect for the Doc, which could bode well for the Phillies, White Sox and Brewers, who all harbor chips in Jason Donald, Gordon Beckham and Alcides Escobar, respectively.
- Scott Gregor at the Daily Herald doesn't believe a deal with the White Sox for Halladay to be a likely scenario.
- Scott Lauber of the News-Journal says the Blue Jays already have a scout at the Phillies game tonight.
- Bill Shaikin at the L.A. Times asks Dodgers fans what their package deal for the Doc would be.
- Ken Davidoff at Newsday says it'd be "irresponsible" for the Mets and Yankees to not inquire on Halladay. Davidoff talked to Ricciardi, who insinuates that he wants a bigger package than what the Braves gave for Mark Teixeira a couple years ago.
- Tony Massarotti at the Boston Globe wonders just how unlikely an intra-divisional trade would be, and according to J.P. Ricciardi via WEEI.com's Rob Bradford, he apparently wouldn't hesitate to deal to an AL East competitor.
Odds & Ends: Boras, Nationals, Bedard, White Sox, Giants, Astros
Some evening links for those of you who haven't checked out for the long holiday weekend yet.
- Billy Witz of the NY Times wrote about the relationship between the Dodgers and superagent Scott Boras.
- The Nationals have agreed to terms with five international players according to Bill Ladson. A formal announcement of the signings will come in a few days.
- Pete McElroy of MASNsports.com notes that the Nats have signed a pair of draft picks, including fourth rounder AJ Morris.
- Geoff Baker of The Seattle Times notes that Erik Bedard threw a 54-pitch simulated game today and will start on Tuesday. Teams will have just enough time to evaluate him before the trade deadline.
- Will Carroll tweets that the Giants and White Sox "want to make a deal quick." He later backs off a bit and says that the two teams won't necessarily made a trade with each other, but both are looking for good deals.
- Kiley McDaniel has a list of four international players the Astros have signed.
- Remember, you can get all your rumors instantly via MLBTR's Twitter feed.
Stark On Dodgers, Giants, Brewers
In this ESPN Radio segment, Jayson Stark says the Dodgers will go after the best starting pitcher they can find. There's no elite starting pitching out there now, but Ned Colletti is looking to turn some up. Here are the rest of Stark's rumors:
- The Giants need an impact hitter and they're "in on every bat out there."
- Matt Holliday is not a likely fit for the Cardinals.
- Stark says Doug Davis is a good fit in Milwaukee.
- The Mets are more interested in left-handed first basemen, so Nick Johnson still looks like a good fit for them.
- The Tigers are looking for a bat, The White Sox could add pitching and the Twins want relievers.
Olney On Felix, Reds, Dye, Indians
ESPN.com's Buster Olney imagines there will be a long lineup of suitors for Felix Hernandez when he hits free agency after the 2011 season. Players as good as King Felix will sign massive deals regardless of the economy, Olney says. Here are the rest of his rumors:
- The Reds, who are looking for a right-handed bat, will probably choose between marginal improvements and busting the budget for a pricier hitter like Matt Holliday or Jermaine Dye. They'd have to give up better prospects to obtain the salary relief they'd like, but they're reluctant to part with top talent.
- For those wondering if Jermaine Dye could fit in San Francisco, Olney says the White Sox and Giants don't match up particularly well.
- Olney suggests the Red Sox should trade for a first baseman and move Kevin Youkilis over to third if Mike Lowell has to miss much time,
- It makes sense for the Rockies to play Garrett Atkins more. Not only is he hitting better, teams will have more interest in Atkins if they see him perform well.
- Any deal that makes the Indians stronger for 2010 is worth making if they aren't going to contend this year. Cleveland's now 12.0 games out of a playoff spot.
Giants Scouting V-Mart, Dye
Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune reports that the Giants are scouting Jermaine Dye and Victor Martinez. The Indians aren't shopping V-Mart and the White Sox aren't sellers at this point, but the Giants need a bat.
Odds & Ends: White Sox, Bay, Lee
On this day in MLBTR history: Last year, the spotlight was on the potential landing spot for CC Sabathia, and the Astros were one of 12 teams interested in Freddy Garcia. My how times have changed. Some links to sate you in between games, with more to come:
- Ian Browne at MLBlogs talked to Jason Bay, who isn't overly concerned with discussing a contract extension with the Red Sox at the moment.
- According to Scott Merkin at MLB.com, the White Sox inked catcher Josh Phegley, their 38th selection in this month's draft, as well as five others.
- Eric Seidman at Fangraphs has a solid piece outlining the starting pitching market, and is confused as to why Cliff Lee's name hasn't been floated more in talks.
- Larry LaRue at the Tacoma News Tribune reports that Adrian Beltre will opt for shoulder surgery, which LaRue says makes him "virtually untradeable" before the deadline.
White Sox Close To Inking First-Rounder
According to Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune, the White Sox "are expected to agree to terms soon" with first-round draft pick Jared Mitchell.
Odds & Ends: Moore, Schmidt, Atkins
On this date back in 2003, Johnny Damon hit a single, a double, and a triple in a 14-run first inning against the Marlins. The Red Sox set a league record by scoring ten runs before making an out.
On to the linkage…
- Matthew Pouliot of Circling The Bases says that Dayton Moore's moves over the last season and a half are enough to warrant his dismissal. He notes they have a more than qualified replacement already in-house in senior advisor Mike Arbuckle.
- Ben Bolch of The LA Times notes that Jason Schmidt threw 104 pitches over 7.2 shutout in a rehab start yesterday. We know the Dodgers are looking for pitching, but a healthy and reasonably effective Schmidt could lessen that urgency.
- Tracy Ringolsby writes that Garrett Atkins' recent hot streak creates "more of a possibility of another team having interest in acquiring him." Atkins is hitting .340-.415-.553 in June.
- The Rangers have been getting good production from unexpected sources like Jason Jennings, says Ken Sherrington of The Dallas Morning News.
- Rockies outfielder Carlos Gonzalez says he's happy to be in Colorado, according to Susan Slusser of The SF Chronicle.
- Joe Cowley tweets this Ozzie Guillen quote: "The people that run baseball teams now are soft." I wonder what Kenny Williams thinks about that.
- Marc Carig writes that the Rockies had begun combing through the Yankees' farm system in advance of a potential Huston Street trade back in May.
Odds And Ends: Sano, Rays, Mateo
More links for your Friday afternoon…
- The Orioles' director of player development told Steve Melewski of MASN.com that Miguel Angel Sano is the best Dominican prospect he's ever seen.
- The Orioles haven't begun negotiating with Sano, as there are some lingering questions about his age.
- ESPN.com's Rob Neyer says he'd find room for David Price in the crowded Rays 'pen instead of bumping Andy Sonnanstine from the rotation.
- White Sox scouting director Doug Laumann says Josh Phegley and Kyle Bellamy could move quickly through the minors.
- ESPN.com's Jorge Arangure believes the $3.1MM Wagner Mateo agreed to is impressive in this economy.
Norris Hopper Traded For Corky Miller
Tim Curtis of the Cincinnati Enquirer reports that the Reds traded Norris Hopper to the White Sox in exchange for Corky Miller. Miller, a 33-year-old catcher, began his career with the Reds and played four seasons in Cincinnati from 2001-04. He's played for four major league teams since, most recently for the White Sox. He'll restart his Reds career in Triple A.
Hopper, 30, has played parts of three seasons for the Reds, but hasn't played in the majors so far in 2009.