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Yankees Getting Offers For Phil Hughes

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2:41pm: The Braves talked to the Yankees about Hughes but it won't happen, tweets Joel Sherman of the New York Post.  Sherman hears the Braves' interest was mild, anyway.

1:39pm: The Yankees are getting offers for righty Phil Hughes now, tweets Bob Nightengale of USA Today.  Hughes, 27, has a 4.58 ERA, 7.5 K/9, 2.5 BB/9, 1.61 HR/9, and 30.1% groundball rate in 112 innings for the Yankees this year and will be eligible for free agency after the season.  Hughes' home run problems have been much worse at Yankee Stadium, so a change of scenery leading up to free agency would be to his benefit.

Orioles Making Progress On Deal For Bud Norris

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Reports this morning have indicated that the Orioles are still in on Bud Norris, who is controllable through 2015 via arbitration. Norris has been one of the most talked about players leading up to this season’s deadline. Here’s the latest on the 28-year-old…

  • The Orioles are making progress on a trade for Norris, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (on Twitter).

Earlier Updates

  • The Orioles are still in the mix for Norris, while the Giants are doubtful, tweets Stark.
  • Talks for Norris have accelerated in the past hour, and the Pirates, D’Backs and Orioles have been in contact, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (Twitter link).
  • ESPN’s Jayson Stark tweets that the odds of a Norris trade are up to 75 percent, and multiple teams are still involved.
  • The D’Backs are a “distant maybe” for Norris at this point, tweets Jon Heyman of CBS Sports.
  • Knobler also tweets that the Indians have had some recent talks with the Astros regarding Norris, though it’s not clear how strong their interest is. Cleveland is reportedly working hard to acquire a starter.
  • The Rangers have interest in acquiring Norris, possibly for the purpose of flipping him for a hitter, according to Danny Knobler of CBS Sports (Twitter link).
  • The Braves have indeed jumped into the mix, according to Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports (on Twitter). The Orioles, Pirates and D’Backs remain possibilities, and there’s a general sense that Norris will be dealt, adds Passan.
  • Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports disagrees, reporting that the Braves aren’t in on Norris and never have been (Twitter link). MLB.com’s Mark Bowman tweets a similar report.
  • Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review tweets that the Pirates have the interest and ability to put together a package of lower-level prospects if that type of return interests Astros GM Jeff Luhnow.
  • The Giants and Pirates continue to show a lot of interest in Norris, while the Rangers and D’Backs are in the background as well, according to Peter Gammons of the MLB Network (Twitter link).
  • The Astros need to lower their asking price on Norris significantly for the Orioles to be serious players, according to Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com (Twitter link).
  • Brian T. Smith of the Houston Chronicle writes that the Astros have standing offers for Norris but are hoping someone ups their bid as the deadline nears. The Pirates, Orioles and Diamondbacks have shown interest, and a fourth team is in the mix as well. Offers to this point “have been pretty soft,” Smith adds.
  • The Astros appear to be collecting their final offers for Norris, tweets ESPN’s Jayson Stark. The Giants could be a dark horse for Norris, and the Orioles are in the mix, according to Stark.
  • Interest in Norris is picking up, according to Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe (on Twitter). The Orioles are in the mix, and Cafardo reports that the Braves have re-joined the talks as well.
  • The Diamondbacks and Pirates don’t seem to be aggressively pursuing Norris, according to Jon Heyman of CBS Sports (on Twitter). Heyman notes that there’s a chance the Astros hang onto Norris.

Quick Hits: Lee, A’s, Rays, Yankees

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In reality, the Red Sox were a "non factor" for Cliff Lee before they landed Jake Peavy, writes Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com.  Will he get moved today to another club?  Baseball people are highly doubtful anyone would meet the supposed Phillies' asking price of three top prospects for a pitcher who has $70MM left on his deal through 2015.  "I don't know of a team in baseball that would [do] that. Taking on that much money and giving up three legit prospects seems like a stretch for anyone," one exec said.  Here's more from around baseball as we approach the 3pm central deadline..

  • The A's are still pursuing bullpen depth, tweets Jim Bowden of MLB Network Radio and ESPN.
  • Teams that have spoken with the Phillies say they're not upbeat about making any deals today, tweets ESPN.com's Jayson Stark.  Michael Young is still in play, but there's no clear destination for the third baseman.
  • The Cardinals are leaning towards standing pat at the deadline unless there is a last minute drastic change, according to Jim Bowden of ESPN.com (via Twitter).
  • Joe Smith of the Tampa Bay Times writes that the Rays have been looking into at least one more potential deal, presumably to add a bat.  Tampa Bay made a splash earlier this week when they landed Jesse Crain in a swap with the White Sox.
  • The Yankees were mainly working on smaller acquisitions like Alberto Callaspo this week and didn't have any interest in Alex Rios once they landed Alfonso Soriano, tweets Joel Sherman of the New York Post.  Callaspo wound up going from the Halos to the A's.
  • The Marlins don't expect to do much today and plan to keep Chad Qualls, Justin Ruggiano, and other trade chips if they can't get good value in return, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.
  • Meanwhile, the Marlins are gauging interest in Juan Pierre and Placido Polanco, tweets Buster Olney of ESPN.com. 
  • The Royals' search for a second baseman continues, but they don't appear to be close on anything at the moment, writes Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star.  “Anything’s possible,” one club official said. “We looking at a lot of things, but I doubt anything get done unless things change in the last few hours.”
  • The Indians got the left-handed reliever they needed yesterday in Marc Rzepczynski and would still be open to a rotation upgrade, but they don't like the price so far, according to Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com (via Twitter).  For now, the Tribe is prepared to stand pat.
  • There are a lot of present and veteran Braves who think the club is making a serious mistake by allowing Brian McCann hit the open market at the end of the season, writes Peter Gammons at GammonsDaily.com. "Only the people around the team understand what he means to that pitching staff. He’s a star player in the team concept,” said David Ross of McCann, who also leads the team with a .884 OPS.
  • Dan Kolko of MASNsports.com spoke with Nationals players to get their take on the trade deadline.  Scott Hairston and Adam LaRoche have both been involved in multiple deadline deals.

Cubs Notes: Schierholtz, Russell, Gregg, Villanueva

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The Cubs have plenty of trade chips remaining, but time is running out to deal them as tomorrow's 4pm ET deadline looms. Here's the latest…

  • The Pirates remain interested in Nate Schierholtz, writes Bruce Levine of ESPNChicago.com. Concerns surrounding his shoulder cause the Bucs to switch gears to Alex Rios a few weeks back, but Schierholtz has demonstrated his health with strong play of late. Earlier today, Buster Olney of ESPN tweeted that Schierholtz is likely to be traded.
  • Levine also reports that James Russell was nearly acquired by the Braves last week, and he's now drawing interest from the Reds. The Braves have since acquired Scott Downs to fill the left-handed void in their bullpen.  Russell had a rough outing in the first game of today's doubleheader, allowing a three-run home run to Khris Davis plus two other hits and a free pass.
  • Schierholtz and Kevin Gregg are the two Cubs most likely to be dealt prior to tomorrow's deadline, Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Time reports. The Pirates and Tigers are scouting the Cubs' series with the Brewers, with the Bucs looking for outfield help and the Tigers on the hunt for bullpen help.
  • The Blue Jays have also been scouting the Cubs for the past week, according to Wittenmyer, but that's likely because they're looking to add pieces for 2014.
  • Wittenmyer adds that Carlos Villanueva isn't likely to be traded, as the Cubs value his versatility and cheap contract as they look to shuffle the roster again in 2014.

Trade Reactions: Jose Veras, Scott Downs

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We've seen three relievers get shipped off to new teams already today, with the Tigers acquiring Jose Veras for Danry Vasquez and a PTBNL, the Braves landing Scott Downs for Cory Rasmus and the Rays making a play for the injured Jesse Crain. The Crain deal will remain an unknown as the two sides are still working out "future considerations" to be sent to the White Sox due to Crain's DL status, but the baseball world is already weighing in on the Veras and Downs deals. Let's take a look…

Jose Veras

  • Dave Cameron of Fangraphs calls the trade a win-win move. He notes that over the past year, Veras has been statisically similar to Jonathan Papelbon but comes at a fraction of the price. The Astros, meanwhile, cashed in on an asset for which they had little need and received someone with notable upside in the process.
  • ESPN's Keith Law also likes the move for both sides (ESPN Insider required and recommended), noting that Vasquez's prospect status has slipped this season, but he's still a nice lottery ticket for the Astros, who have little need for a solid closer in a likely 100-loss season.
  • Houston GM Jeff Luhnow told MLB.com's Brian McTaggart that he's been following Vasquez since he was an international free agent and is excited to add him to the team's Class-A affiliate: "And he's at the A ball level, and you plug him into Quad Cities with [Rio] Ruiz, [Carlos] Correa and the pitchers there, it's a pretty formidable group there and pretty exciting. He's young and has a tremendous upside. He has the potential to be hit in the middle of the lineup."
  • The move was bittersweet for Veras, who told McTaggart that he considers Houston his home but is excited to be going to a team with a chance to make the playoffs. He also has friends such as Omar Infante, Brayan Pena and Ramon Santiago in Detroit.

Scott Downs

  • Cameron offers his take on the Downs trade as well, noting that Downs shouldn't face righties anymore but can still provide a boost in the playoffs against tough lefties like Joey Votto and Adrian Gonzalez. The Angels didn't get much back in return, in Cameron's mind, as most organizations have plenty of relief prospects who can throw 93 mph and miss bats with questionable command. However, getting "something just north of nothing" was better than simply letting Downs leave at season's end.
  • Downs "[has] a place in any modern day bullpen," given his dominance over lefties, writes Matt Eddy of Baseball America. Eddy provides a scouting report on Rasmus, whose biggest weakness is his control. Eddy points out that Rasmus is capable of retiring both lefties and righties if he can reign in the walks.
  • One scout told Danny Knobler of CBS Sports that Downs has lost the "turbo-sink" that prompted Anaheim to sign him to a three-year, $15MM contract but wondered if joining a playoff contender will revitalize the 37-year-old lefty.
  • The Braves got Downs "for virtually nothing" writes Law (ESPN Insider required). Rasmus profiles as a generic right-handed reliever whose main value is that he's cost-controlled. Rasmus' high fly-ball rates will play better in Angel Stadium and with Anaheim's defense though, Law adds.

Braves Designate Kameron Loe For Assignment

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The Braves have activated the recently acquired Scott Downs and designated right-hander Kameron Loe for assignment, the team announced on Twitter.

Loe, 31, signed a minor league contract with Atlanta back in May after being designated for assignment by the Cubs and Mariners. He threw 42 1/3 innings of 3.19 ERA ball at Triple-A Gwinnett before being called up to the Major League team last week. Loe hurled one scoreless inning before allowing three runs in 1 2/3 frames on July 25. In 17 2/3 innings for the Mariners, Cubs and Braves this season, Loe has an 8.15 ERA with 10 strikeouts against seven walks (two intentional).

Jake Peavy Rumors: Monday

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White Sox righty Jake Peavy might be the best starting pitcher traded between now and this Wednesday's deadline.  He's been well-informed of trade talks by GM Rick Hahn and indicated yesterday he expects a deal, packing his belongings from the clubhouse.  With Peavy under contract for 2014, the White Sox are asking more for him than the Cubs did for Matt Garza, according to Yahoo's Jeff Passan.  The latest:

  • An executive from a team interested in Peavy tells Joel Sherman of the New York Post that Peavy wants to be traded. While Peavy enjoys the White Sox, he knows they're rebuilding and wants to play for a contender (Twitter link).
  • The Athletics have moved on from Peavy and will focus on other upgrades such as their bullpen and middle infield, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (Twitter link). The A's will dangle some of the players they would have offered for Peavy as they pursue other upgrades. Rosenthal adds that Chicago's desire to receive quality prospects and shed the remaining $20MM or so on Peavy's contract "remains a significant obstacle."
  • The White Sox are telling interested parties that they're planning to keep Peavy and build around him, according to ESPN's Buster Olney. As Olney goes on to note, this could just be a ploy by the White Sox to increase their leverage in Peavy trade talks (Twitter links).
  • Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports tweets that the White Sox debated packaging Peavy and Jesse Crain together before ultimately electing to trade Crain to the Rays in a separate package.

Earlier Updates

  • "They're definitely trying to move him before he makes that [Tuesday] start," an executive of a team monitoring the Peavy talks tells ESPN's Jayson Stark.  Stark says the Red Sox are willing to take on Peavy's contract or give up prospects, but not both.  Stark sees the A's as the favorite, with the money a stumbling block for the Braves, the Cardinals unlikely, and the Orioles lurking.
  • The Red Sox are "very much in" the Peavy sweepstakes, tweets Passan.  With their motivation and available prospects, they're in a strong position to acquire him.  Passan says Hahn is asking for every interested organization's top prospect, including "complete non-starters" such as Xander Bogaerts of the Red Sox and Addison Russell of the A's.  Executives believe the asking price will drop in advance of the Wednesday deadline.
  • In speaking with executives yesterday, Joel Sherman of the New York Post got the impression the Athletics are pushing hard for Peavy after finishing second for Garza.  Oakland "seems the most motivated," writes ESPN's Buster Olney.

Rangers Inquired On Brian McCann

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In their extensive search for a bat, the Rangers recently inquired with the Braves on catcher Brian McCann, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.  The Braves had no interest in trading their starting catcher, who ranks fourth on MLBTR's 2014 free agent power rankings.

Rookie Evan Gattis filled in admirably for McCann while he recovered from offseason shoulder surgery, and Gerald Laird has been surprisingly useful with the bat in limited duty.  The club also has Christian Bethancourt in Double-A.

Braves Acquire Scott Downs

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The Braves found their left-handed reliever, acquiring veteran Scott Downs from the Angels for righty reliever Cory Rasmus, according to Halos communications director Eric Kay.

USATSI_7311613

Downs, 37, has a 1.84 ERA, 6.8 K/9, 3.4 BB/9, 0.31 HR/9, and 63.1% groundball rate in 29 1/3 innings this year.  The 12-year veteran has split his time fairly evenly against righties and lefties, but has been quite good in facing left-handed hitters 55 times this year.  Prior to the 2011 season, Downs signed a three-year, $15MM free agent deal with the Angels.  The first-place Braves were known to be in the hunt for a lefty reliever after losing Eric O'Flaherty and Jonny Venters for the season, with the Cubs' James Russell high on their wish list along with Downs.  Luis Avilan had been the team's lone southpaw reliever.  Downs has yet to pitch in the postseason in his career, notes Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register.

Cory Rasmus, younger brother to Colby, made his big league debut in May but has spent most of the season as a closer at Triple-A.  There, the 25-year-old posted a 1.72 ERA, 11.8 K/9, 5.4 BB/9, and 0.49 HR/9 in 36 2/3 innings.  Rasmus works around 93-94 miles per hour.  He was drafted 38th overall by the Braves in '06.  Rasmus can be a long-term piece for the Angels, who as MLB.com's Alden Gonzalez notes have lefty Sean Burnett signed for next year and Nick Maronde waiting.

Braves GM Frank Wren and Angels GM Jerry Dipoto last matched up on a trade in November, when Atlanta sent starter Tommy Hanson to Los Angeles for reliever Jordan Walden.

Another first-place team added a reliever earlier this morning, as the Tigers acquired Jose Veras from the Astros.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Jake Peavy Rumors: Sunday

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Jake Peavy has cleared his belongings from the White Sox's clubhouse and is prepared to be traded soon, reports ESPNChicago.com's Bruce Levine. "It is sad to think that this is probably my last day in here," Peavy said this morning. "We all realize the reality of the situation and I am prepared with that to happen soon. If I am not traded I would be happy to know the message here is we think we can win it all next year with you a part of it. I am reflecting on my four years here as we speak and getting a little caught up in the emotion. It is a sad day when you think it could be your last. This is a business and this is what we do. I will always cherish the people here and my time in Chicago." Here are the other rumors involving Peavy today:

  • The White Sox have shown no interest in absorbing any of the approximately $24MM owed Peavy and that, along with health concerns, are big issues for the Braves, Orioles, Cardinals, and even the Dodgers, tweets ESPN's Jayson Stark.
  • Baseball executives still feel it is likely the White Sox will trade Peavy before the deadline, ESPN's Buster Olney reports (Insider-only). The Cardinals have more than enough young pitching to get Peavy, but they don't seem inclined to move it, Olney writes. He guesses that Peavy will ultimately wind up with the Athletics.
  • The Sox are having difficulty trading Peavy, however, tweets Peter Gammons, whose reporting echoes Stark's. The Sox asked the Athletics for top young players Sonny Gray and Addison Russell, while also asking the A's to pay almost $20MM in salary, Gammons writes. That's surely far more than the A's would be willing to pay.

Earlier Updates

  • The Braves are no longer in the mix for Peavy, tweets FOXSports.com's Ken Rosenthal. In a separate tweet, Rosenthal notes Orioles owner Peter Angelos has historically been a stickler on medical issues and Peavy's long injury history may affect their pursuit. 
  • The sense is the A's are working the hardest to acquire Peavy while the Braves like him but not enough to offer a significant package, tweets Joel Sherman of the New York Post.
  • The current front-runners for Peavy are (in order): A's, Cardinals, Red Sox, and Orioles, according to ESPN's Buster Olney (Twitter link).
  • The White Sox are targeting top prospects, but interested teams figure the price will come down and see the Sox accepting multiple prospects instead, tweets Jeff Passan of Yahoo! Sports. Passan, in a separate tweet, reports the asking price for Peavy is higher than for Matt Garza. 
  • Levine notes, in the aforementioned article, talks with the Braves have heated up since Tim Hudson's season-ending ankle injury, but MLB.com's Mark Bowman writes, while there might be some lingering interest in Peavy, GM Frank Wren appears focused on upgrading the bullpen.
  • The Cardinals are continuing their pursuit of Peavy and Alexei Ramirez, tweets Jim Bowden of ESPN and MLB Network Radio. Bowden lists Carlos Martinez, Joe Kelly and Kolten Wong as names being mentioned on the Cardinals' end.

Charlie Wilmoth contributed to this post.

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