AL Central Notes: Lindor, Tigers, Slowey
Historically speaking, July 26th has been a busy day for the Indians. The Indians and Cardinals swapped Mark DeRosa and Chris Perez on this date in 2009; the Tribe acquired Carlos Santana for Casey Blake on this date in 2008; the Indians acquired Shin-Soo Choo for Ben Broussard on this date in 2006; they sent Russell Branyan to Milwaukee on this date in 2004 and they signed Marco Scutaro as an amateur free agent in 1994. This year, they're buyers. Here's the latest on the Indians and their division rivals…
- Indians GM Chris Antonetti says the Tribe has had continued dialogue with the agent for first round pick Francisco Lindor, though there’s no real update on the talks (Twitter link).
- Tigers owner Mike Ilitch told Bob Wojnowski of the Detroit News that he'd be "extremely disappointed" if the Tigers don't make the playoffs this season. GM Dave Dombrowski and manager Jim Leyland are in the final years of their respective contracts.
- The Rockies and others continue to pursue Kevin Slowey, according to Yahoo's Tim Brown (on Twitter). Earlier in the month, it became clear that the Pirates and Rockies were among the clubs with interest in the Twins right-hander.
Carlos Beltran Rumors: Tuesday
Yesterday right fielder Carlos Beltran shot down the notion that he's told the Mets he won't accept a trade to an American League team. Writers agree that the Rangers are making a big push and that the Phillies have cooled, but the standing of the Braves, Red Sox, and Giants is unclear. The latest up top:
- Beltran says he never blocked a deal to the Indians, according to Mike Puma of the New York Post (on Twitter). He says the Mets haven't come to him with possible deals.
- The Indians offered to pick up all of Beltran's remaining contract and give the Mets a good player in return according to MLB.com's Peter Gammons, but Cleveland was not a fit for the Scott Boras client. Heyman reports (on Twitter) that the deal was never presented to Beltran, so the Mets must know which teams he'll accept a trade to.
- The Phillies won't give up Jonathan Singleton for Beltran, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com, who confirms that Cosart and Brown aren't available either (Twitter link). More Phillies prospects will soon be off the table as well, according to Heyman.
- Brewers GM Doug Melvin declined to speak about Beltran in particular, but he told Adam McCalvy of MLB.com that he's always open to making the right deal, generally speaking.
- Agent Scott Boras told ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick that Beltran's decision to accept or block a trade will revolve around his chances of winning a title. Crasnick's take on the leading suitors for Beltran confirms what we've read for the past 24 hours or so: the Rangers have ramped up their pursuit of Beltran and the Braves and Giants remain interested, while the Red Sox and Phillies appear to have slipped to the back of the pack.
- There's a strong belief the best offer may come from the Rangers, tweets SI's Jon Heyman.
- The Mets' asking price has come down a bit from two weeks ago, an interested executive told Joel Sherman of the New York Post (Twitter links). Sherman says the Mets are talking two and three-prospect deals with the Rangers, Red Sox, Giants, Braves, Phillies, and Brewers.
- The Mets have been turned down on requests for Mike Minor, Julio Teheran, or Arodys Vizcaino of the Braves, Zack Wheeler or Gary Brown of the Giants, and Domonic Brown or Jarred Cosart of the Phillies, reports ESPN's Jayson Stark. Stark says the Mets are telling teams the Beltran deal isn't about money, and the team that offers the best players will get him.
- A high-ranking source tells ESPN's Buster Olney there is no clear frontrunner for Beltran as of right now (Twitter link). Meanwhile, a source close to the talks tells Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports he expects things to intensify within the next 48 hours (Twitter link).
- The Giants "look like a possible favorite" for Beltran at the moment, reports SI's Jon Heyman. The Braves are very interested as well, while the Phillies "don't seem all that involved."
- The Reds are not currently involved in trade talks for Beltran, tweets ESPN's Buster Olney.
- An executive from a team that has expressed interest in Beltran told Joel Sherman of the New York Post, "They are not getting a top-40-ranked prospect for Beltran even if they eat all the money [left on his contract]." Sherman's article goes on to explain why the Mets will probably have to settle for less-than-elite prospects. He reiterates that the Rangers are aggressively pursuing Beltran and the Braves and Red Sox are the other two most interested clubs.
Ubaldo Jimenez Rumors: Tuesday
Yesterday, a Major League source close to the Ubaldo Jimenez trade talks told Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports that the chances of a deal are "around 50/50." Here's the latest on the Rockies' ace, with the newest info up top…
- The Yankees and Red Sox called the Rockies about Jimenez today, according to MLB.com’s Thomas Harding. Talks with the Reds appear to be further along, though the Rockies appear to be asking for Travis Wood, Bailey and either Chapman or Mesoraco. The Rockies won’t lower their asking price, Harding reports. The Reds haven't said no yet, according to Troy Renck of the Denver Post (on Twitter). Until they do, there's a slim chance a deal will occur.
- Sources tell Dan Knobler of CBSSports.com that the team with the best chance to trade for Jimenez is the Yankees (Twitter link). The Blue Jays are considered a "real longshot at best."
- About seven teams are interested in Jimenez, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com who names the Reds, Tigers, Yankees, Red Sox, Rangers, Indians and Blue Jays (on Twitter).
- The Blue Jays "legitimately want" Jimenez, according an executive who spoke to ESPN.com's Jayson Stark (on Twitter).
- The Rockies have asked the Reds about Homer Bailey, tweets Troy E. Renck of the Denver Post. Earlier, Renck wrote that "chances remain slim" of a Jimenez trade. He said the Rockies "continue to listen and negotiate with multiple teams regarding Jimenez, with the Reds receiving the most attention," but in general Colorado's demands are so high that no team is expected to bite. Renck said the Rockies have asked the Reds for Devin Mesoraco, Aroldis Chapman, and Chris Heisey, among others. In an email exchange with MLBTR, Renck clarified that the Rockies asked for Mesoraco and Chapman together while Heisey is simply another name that has come up in talks. Both Mesoraco and Chapman appear to be untouchable.
- The feeling from executives is that the Rockies want to find a trade for Jimenez, tweets Joel Sherman of the New York Post. The Yankees, Red Sox, and Reds are calling, and the Blue Jays kicked the tires.
- The price on Jimenez hasn't dropped at all, writes ESPN's Jayson Stark. He says the Rockies require "three sure-thing young players, including one pitcher who goes into their rotation immediately." One executive who spoke with the Rockies pegs the chances of a deal at no more than 25 percent.
- The Rockies "recently held a two-hour internal conference call to go over the trade alternatives" for Jimenez, writes SI's Jon Heyman.
Indians Willing To Deal Good Players, Take On Salary
5:32pm: The Indians offered to pick up Carlos Beltran’s salary and give up a good player in return, according to Peter Gammons in a piece at MLB.com. Cleveland “did not fit,” for Beltran, who will accept and turn down trades based on which teams he expects to win, Gammons writes.
5:18pm: Indians GM Chris Antonetti told MLB.com’s Jordan Bastian that the Indians are prepared to trade quality players or add payroll if it means improving the team’s playoff chances (all Twitter links). Now one game behind the Tigers in the AL Central, Cleveland isn’t limited to minor moves this summer.
"We are willing to trade good players and we're willing to take on salary to improve the team," Antonetti said.
The GM finds it difficult to imagine parting with one of the organization’s best young players for a rental player, but he’ll consider trading top prospects if he’s presented with a “compelling deal.”
The Indians have interest in outfielders, including B.J. Upton, infielders, including Jamey Carroll, and starters, including Hiroki Kuroda.
B.J. Upton Rumors: Tuesday
The latest on Rays center fielder B.J. Upton, who owns a .229/.310/.399 line on the season:
- The Rays had a scout watching the Nationals' Triple-A team yesterday, tweets Joel Sherman of the New York Post.
- The Giants are showing strong interest, tweets SI's Jon Heyman.
- The Indians, Giants, Braves, and Pirates are among the teams in on Upton, report Jon Paul Morosi and Ken Rosenthal. The Royals are not seriously pursuing Upton, while the Brewers, Rangers, and Phillies are not involved.
- The Nationals have balked at trading pitchers Ross Detwiler or Brad Peacock for Upton, reports ESPN's Jayson Stark. One executive says the Giants have moved in.
- Five teams are "in play" for Upton, a source tells Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports (Twitter link).
My apologies for an earlier error in which I erroneously attributed Joel Sherman's "asking for a ton" quote to the Rays and B.J. Upton. The quote actually referred to the Cardinals and Colby Rasmus.
Hiroki Kuroda Rumors: Monday
Dodgers righty Hiroki Kuroda has generated interest from the Tigers, Yankees, Red Sox, Indians, and Brewers, reported CBS Sports' Danny Knobler yesterday. He noted that the Tigers "have been very interested." This is the first time I've seen the Brewers mentioned for any starting pitcher. The Rangers have also popped up for Kuroda in other reports, and Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch tweets that the Cardinals inquired. Here are the latest rumors about Kuroda, with the most recent updates up top:
- Kuroda hasn't talked to his agent or Dodgers GM Ned Colletti about a trade in recent days, according to MLB.com's Ken Gurnick.
- ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick hears that Kuroda isn't into "hypotheticals." He'll decide on deals if and when the Dodgers present them to him instead of providing them with lists in advance, according to Crasnick (Twitter links).
- Kuroda will consider waiving his no-trade clause if he's dealt to the Yankees or Red Sox, according to Andrew Marchand of ESPNNewYork.com.
- The Tigers, Indians and Rangers are the three hottest teams on Kuroda, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (on Twitter).
- The Dodgers believe Kuroda can be persuaded to waive his full no-trade clause, wrote Knobler. I am guessing a financial incentive in the $1-2MM range might compel Kuroda to pitch in the midwest or on the East Coast for a few months. Since Kuroda's signing bonus is paid out in 2012-13, $6.6MM of his $12MM contract will be owed to him after the trade deadline. Tack on additional money for the no-trade clause, and renting Kuroda becomes an expensive proposition. Kuroda, 36, has a 3.19 ERA, 6.9 K/9, 2.3 BB/9, 0.99 HR/9, and 43.2% groundball rate in 127 innings this year.
AL Central Rumors: Tigers, Indians, Twins
The AL Central has only one clear seller at this point in the Royals, and they don't have much to offer. The White Sox and Twins will add a lot to the trade market if they decide to wave the white flag. The latest on the division:
- The Tigers' list of starting pitching targets includes Ubaldo Jimenez, Hiroki Kuroda, Aaron Harang, Jeremy Guthrie, and Jason Marquis, tweets Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. However, the Padres are more inclined to keep Harang and try to re-sign him, tweets ESPN's Jayson Stark. Harang picked up his ninth win today in Philadelphia.
- The White Sox are scouting the farm systems of the Yankees, Red Sox, and Phillies in case they decide to sell, tweets Joel Sherman of the New York Post.
- In a series of three tweets, Joel Sherman of the New York Post explains why the Indians are setting their sights low as they seek a right-handed hitting outfielder. I think the biggest point is that they expect Grady Sizemore and Shin-Soo Choo back in August.
- Indians corner infielder Jared Goedert cleared waivers and was outrighted to Triple-A, tweets Morosi. Another procedural note: Tigers lefty Brad Thomas is now on the 60-day DL rather than being outrighted, tweets MLB.com's Jason Beck.
- The Twins reached an agreement with Vanderbilt lefty Corey Williams for just under $600K, tweets ESPN's Keith Law. Williams, the team's third-round pick, signed above slot.
Hiroki Kuroda Rumors: Sunday
Hiroki Kuroda will listen to anything the Dodgers present to him before next Sunday's trade deadline, but as we learned yesterday, the team has yet to approach him about waiving his no-trade clause for any specific destination. With the Tigers, Indians, Yankees, Rangers, and Red Sox potentially in the mix for the right-hander, let's keep tabs on today's rumors here, adding the latest updates to the top of the list:
- A scout who spoke to Yahoo's Jeff Passan (Twitter link) thinks the Tigers could be the favorites for Kuroda, and that they may not have to give up top prospects Jacob Turner, Andy Oliver or Nick Castellanos to land him.
- We've already heard that Cleveland is targeting Kuroda, and Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer confirms (via Twitter) that the Indians have talked to the Dodgers about a deal.
- Danny Knobler of CBS Sports (Twitter link) hears the Dodgers think Kuroda might agree to go somewhere for the next two months. The Dodgers believe, however, that if the right-hander is pitching in the Majors in 2012, it will be in Los Angeles.
Quick Hits: Hanley, Phillies, Zduriencik, Darvish
The Mariners' losing streak extended to 14 games after dropping a 3-1 result to Boston today. Seattle's 14-game skid ties a franchise record for consecutive losses.
Some news from around the majors….
- In a radio appearance with Dan LeBatard (partially transcribed by Matt Forman of the Miami Herald), Jeff Conine said that if it was up to him, the Marlins would trade Hanley Ramirez. Conine might have just been using the interview to vent, but given Conine's status as a special assistant to Marlins president David Samson, it's worth wondering if others in the Florida front office feel the same way about the club's star shortstop.
- Also from Forman's post, Marlins manager Jack McKeon doesn't think his team will do much, if anything at the trade deadline.
- Ruben Amaro's reputation for major trade deadline deals has raised expectations that the Phillies GM will make another big move this summer, writes Phil Sheridan of the Philadelphia Inquirer.
- The Mariners' losing streak has erased the fact that the club was in the AL West hunt just two weeks ago. GM Jack Zduriencik tells Larry Stone of the Seattle Times that he tried to find help for the Mariners' terrible offense but to no avail. "That big bat doesn't seem to be out there at a reasonable cost. It's not as easy as saying, 'We need a bat. Let's go get a bat.' Great. Who's giving one up? Lots of clubs who are doing well are looking for a bat," Zduriencik said.
- The Nationals still have an interest in Japanese right-hander Yu Darvish, reports MLB.com's Bill Ladson.
- It's been almost 20 years since the Dodgers were last sellers at the trade deadline, writes Steve Dilbeck of the Los Angeles Times.
- The Angels aren't expected to make any huge deals at the deadline, though Kevin Baxter of the L.A. Times notes the Halos have been "eagerly courting" the Padres with the hopes of adding Heath Bell or Mike Adams.
- Dennis Manoloff of the Cleveland Plain Dealer looks back at the Indians' history at the trade deadline since 1994.
Indians Notes: Carroll, Prospects, Ludwick, Harang
Neither Roberto Alomar nor Bert Blyleven will be wearing a Cleveland cap into the Hall Of Fame tomorrow, but both men spent significant parts of their careers with the Tribe. Blyleven won 48 games and posted a 3.23 ERA with the Indians between 1981-85, twice finishing third in AL Cy Young voting in that span. Alomar played in Cleveland from 1999 through 2001, earning Gold Gloves and All-Star appearances in each year and hit .323/.405/.515 as an Indian.
Onto some news about the modern-day Clevelanders, courtesy of Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer….
- Lonnie Chisenhall, Jason Kipnis, Drew Pomeranz and Alex White are "all but untouchable" in trade talks. Without these top prospects on the table, however, it makes it unlikely that the Indians will be able to acquire top-tier trade candidates like Carlos Beltran or Hunter Pence. Hoynes notes that the Tribe's dealings are tempered by the fact that while they have a chance to win the AL Central, they probably don't have a realistic shot at the World Series so the team doesn't want to mortgage the future for just a token playoff berth.
- The Indians have talked to the Dodgers about utilityman Jamey Carroll. Cleveland's interest may have cooled, though, now that Kipnis has been called up. The Rockies and Brewers have shown interest in Carroll. MLBTR's Tim Dierkes explored Carroll's trade candidacy and also had a Q&A with the veteran last month.
- The Indians "aren't close" to working out a deal with the Padres for Ryan Ludwick or Aaron Harang, reports Hoynes (Twitter link). We recently heard that Harang (along with Hiroki Kuroda) were Cleveland's top two targets on the trade market.