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Brewers, Mariners Talking Washburn?

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9:15pm: Things just got really interesting; this rumor may be growing legs.  From the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel's Tom Haudricourt: 

"I know for a fact that the Brewers have been discussing Washburn, even though he is a free agent after the season. Because Washburn is a Wisconsin native, maybe the Brewers think they could convince him to stay with another contract after this year."

Haudricourt notes the M's would probably ask for a shortstop in return, naming J.J. Hardy and Alcides Escobar as possible trade chips.  Of course, that's a pretty steep price to pay.  "The Brewers probably would want more than Washburn in return for either shortstop," Haudricourt adds, "considering his pending free agent status." And his 4.03 career ERA.

9:06pm: Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times suggests the Brewers might have serious interest in the Mariners' Jarrod Washburn. 

"I'm starting to doubt he'll take the mound on Tuesday night in a Seattle uniform," Baker writes. "A big reason why is that things are happening in Milwaukee and some decisions will have to be made in short order."

"Brewers pitcher Seth McClung went on the 15-day DL on Saturday and today, the Brewers called up Tim Dillard from Class AAA Nashville. But here's the catch: the Brewers are refusing to name Dillard as their Tuesday starter."  Might it be Washburn?

3:08pm: Jeff Fletcher tweets that the Brewers will have a scout in attendance at Justin Duchscherer's rehab start tonight. Duchscherer could be ready to pitch in the Majors in two weeks.

2:15pm: MLB.com's Adam McCalvy writes that Brewers manager Ken Macha may have hinted at an upcoming acquisition of a starter before the deadline for the Brewers. He quotes Macha:

"The trading deadline is coming and Doug [Melvin, Milwaukee's general manager] is trying to help the club," Macha said. "I don't want to try to create expectations, but he's trying to make the club better and I'm sure if he finds a starting pitcher who can help out, it's something he would do."

Macha cautioned that the Brewers want to field a competitive team every year, so they'd have a hard time gutting the farm system. When asked if he would be surprised if Melvin doesn't make an acquisition, Macha replied:

"I just know how much effort has been put into trying to look at our needs as a whole and fill those needs."

McCalvy names Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee, Doug Davis, Jon Garland, Erik Bedard, Jarrod Washburn, and Brian Bannister as pitchers of interest, although it's safe to cross Bedard off that list now that he's on the 15-day disabled list.

Rosenthal’s Full Count Video: Mariners, Cardinals, Indians

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Ken Rosenthal of FoxSports.com has a new Full Count video up. Let's round up the rumors…

  • With the Mariners fading out of contention, they could make lefties Erik Bedard and Jarrod Washburn available. If they do, it could cloud the market for Roy Halladay because teams will have more options.
  • One GM tells Rosenthal that the Mariners are likely to play out the weekend before deciding to sell.
  • The Yankees have been in touch with Seattle, and would love to see Washburn made available again after expressing interest in him in the past.
  • The Brewers remain "on the periphery" of the Halladay sweepstakes, but they aren't playing well enough to justify such a major trade.
  • After moving five players and adding $6MM in salary to acquire Matt Holliday and Mark DeRosa, Albert Pujols shouldn't have any questions about ownership's commitment to winning. However with Holliday likely to leave as a free agent after the season, the team will be in the same situation again, looking for a bat to protect Pujols.
  • Indians ownership would need to sign off on a deal involving catcher Victor Martinez or lefty Cliff Lee, neither of which is imminent. The team knows the Red Sox will not trade them Clay Buchholz in a package for Martinez, and moving Lee would be an even bigger blow given how thin their pitching staff is right now.

In a separate video, Rosenthal says that the Phillies and Blue Jays are still haggling over which players would be included in a potential deal for Halladay. The Angels have made a strong offer for Doc, and the Jays expect other teams to get involved this week. Meanwhile, Lee's agent Darek Braunecker says Lee has told his team that he will test the free agent waters at the end of next season after being told "no" when asking about a contract extension last spring. If traded, Lee prefers it to happen sooner rather than later.

Odds & Ends: Trade Deadline, Brewers, Cardinals

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Some more links on a busy Saturday afternoon…

Odds & Ends: Strasburg, Diamondbacks, Indians

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Lots of trade talk means lots of links, so let's get right to the madness:

Odds & Ends: Braves, Orioles, Arroyo, Strasburg

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Some links to check out on the night Derek Jeter tied Ted Williams on the career hits list with 2,654…

  • MLB.com's Mark Bowman writes that if the Braves make a move before next Friday's trade deadline, "the best bet is that they'll add a reliever." He mentions Danys Baez, Takashi Saito, Ron Mahay, and John Grabow as available options.
  • Jeff Zrebiec of The Baltimore Sun took a look at the Orioles' main trade chips, including Baez, Aubrey Huff, George Sherrill, and Ty Wigginton.
  • Bronson Arroyo is officially on the trading block, according to SI.com's Jon Heyman,
  • The camp of top pick Stephen Strasburg has expressed concern over the Nationals' uncertain general manager situation, reports Chico Harlan of The Washington Post. 
  • Geoff Baker of The Seattle Times says that despite the Matt Holliday haul, the Mariners shouldn't expect as big of a return for Erik Bedard or Jarrod Washburn because they only project to be Type-B free agents after the season.
  • Brewers owner Mark Attanasio said ""We'll be aggressive but we won't be stupid," when it comes to making trades according to Tom Haudricourt.
  • Scott Lauber of The News Journal wrote about the dilemma of trading prospects.

Roy Halladay Rumors: Friday

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7:46pm: Bob Elliot of The Toronto Sun reports that only the Phillies and Yankees have scouts watching Halladay tonight.

6:47pm: Speaking on Sirius XM, commissioner Bud Selig said "I was told by somebody with pretty good inside knowledge that they won’t get rid of him," referring of course to Halladay. He followed that up by saying "Now, whether that’s true or not, I don’t know. And, you know, clubs are going to start bidding it up."

6:39pm: Tom Haudricourt tweets that GM Doug Melvin said "it's not true that the Brewers have withdrawn from the bidding for Halladay."

6:07pm: Andy Martino of The Philadelphia Inquirer reports that the Blue Jays have asked for Kyle Drabek, J.A. Happ and outfielder Dominic Brown.

5:31pm: MLB.com's Jordan Bastian hears from a source that reports of Halladay being traded to Philly within the next 24 hours are inaccurate.

4:50pm: Ed Price of AOL FanHouse hears that the Jays are considering trading Halladay to the Phillies for Kyle Drabek, Michael Taylor, Jason Donald and Lou Marson. However, no deal appears to be close.

4:20pm: The Phillies are "fully determined" to acquire Halladay, while the Dodgers still have a small chance of acquiring him, according to Knobler. As for the Jays, one person involved says "it's obvious that they have to move him now."

4:05pm: The Jays could obtain a stronger supporting group if they were to accept J.A. Happ in place of Kyle Drabek in a possible trade, according to Heyman.

3:59pm: Knobler says the Brewers are "basically out" of the Halladay talks because they don't want to give up Alcides Escobar or Mat Gamel. Boston's representatives also left Toronto today.

3:28pm: Danny Knobler of CBS Sports says the Phillies remain the favorites to acquire Halladay, but the teams don't appear to be close to completing a deal.

2:04pm: MLB.com's Ken Gurnick passes on comments Dodgers GM Ned Colletti made this morning on KABC Radio. Colletti says the Jays want two or three current Dodgers, including a young pitcher, or five or six prospects.

2:00pm: Jon Heyman of SI.com says the Phils are "trying hard" to obtain Halladay. He'd be surprised if they don't acquire him.

11:45am: Ed Price of AOL FanHouse says Cincinnati has interest in Halladay. Presumably, Halladay wouldn't accept a trade to the 44-50 Reds.

10:00am: With a week to go before the trade deadline, here's a recap of what we found out about Roy Halladay yesterday: the Jays could expand a deal to include other players; Jays GM J.P. Ricciardi said Halladay wants to test the free agent market after next season; Halladay has given Ricciardi a list of teams he'd accept trades to; Kyle Drabek is not untouchable; the Angels and Dodgers are still in the mix. And here's what we've heard so far today:

  • Ricciardi told The Globe and Mail that Halladay has not given the Blue Jays a list of teams. Instead, the Jays have run teams by Halladay to determine his interest in joining them.
  • Jon Heyman says the Phillies are frontrunners for Halladay, but the Brewers have a shot at Toronto's ace.
  • Ricciardi told Jim Salisbury of the Philadelphia Inquirer that he's in the midst of serious discussions with four teams, all of which have the talent to acquire Halladay.
  • Ricciardi says he hasn't discussed specifics with the Phillies; Salisbury's sources say the Blue Jays would require Kyle Drabek and J.A. Happ in the deal, along with others.
  • Former Phillies GM Pat Gillick sounds tempted by Halladay, saying he'd give the Phils the chance to go "back-to-back." 
  • Happ knows tonight's start could be his last for the Phillies, according to MLB.com's David Gurian-Peck.
  • Ricciardi told Mike Rutsey of the Toronto Sun that the Blue Jays won't pay any of Halladay's salary if they trade him.

Heyman On Halladay, Holliday, Indians, Nats

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9:34am: Heyman says the Yankees inquired about Cliff Lee and were told they'd have to give up Joba Chamberlain or Phil Hughes, plus other players.

8:34am: Jon Heyman of SI.com has the latest on the biggest stars available:

  • The Phillies are the frontrunners to acquire Roy Halladay. Heyman says the Jays are expected to ask for one of J.A. Happ and Kyle Drabek, one of Dominic Brown and Michael Taylor, plus others.
  • The Brewers may be the Phillies' biggest threat, but they'd probably have to part with Alcides Escobar, and maybe Mat Gamel, too. 
  • The Mets bowed out of the Halladay talks once Fernando Martinez's name came up. 
  • There's a "good chance" the Cardinals trade for Matt Holliday, according to one of Heyman's sources.  
  • Indians GM Mark Shapiro wonders if teams are holding onto their prospects too tightly: "It's almost to the point where there's an over-evaluation of these guys. There's almost an over-correction."
  • Heyman says the Nats should trade Nick Johnson, Adam Dunn and Josh Willingham. 

Edes On Holliday, Willingham, Sherrill

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Yahoo's Gordon Edes hears the Cardinals aren't the only team interested in Matt Holliday. Here are the details:

  • The White Sox have some interest in Holliday, according to Edes' colleague, Tim Brown.
  • The Tigers have considered Holliday, but probably won't meet Billy Beane's asking price.
  • The Phillies have interest in Josh Willingham.  
  • The Giants may be the favorites to acquire Nick Johnson, now that the Red Sox have Adam LaRoche.   
  • George Sherrill has many suitors, including the Brewers and White Sox.  
  • The Cubs and Red Sox would like to add left-handed relievers. 

Stark On Deadline Deals

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ESPN.com's Jayson Stark says this year's deadline will be different than others, since more players will clear waivers, allowing teams to deal until the end of August. Matt Holliday, Jarrod Washburn and Jack Wilson are all "likely to zip through waivers" next month. Here are the rest of Stark's rumors:

  • The Phillies are as motivated as ever to acquire Roy Halladay. Their goal is to win the World Series, not make the playoffs.
  • The Phils don't want to trade Kyle Drabek or J.A. Happ, but one GM believes they should include Drabek if one of the two has to go.
  • The Phillies may have to decide which outfielder to include in a deal: Michael Taylor or Dominic Brown. One scout says there's "nothing not to like" about Taylor.  
  • Acquiring Cliff Lee would take a "four-for-one, Halladay-esque Package."
  • The Dodgers, Angels, Phillies, Rays and Brewers are scouting Lee. 
  • Both the Blue Jays and Indians want top young arms for their aces, but the Indians aren't demanding big-league ready prospects, as long as they get a high-upside group.
  • Expect Lee to be traded close to the deadline, if he's moved at all, because the Halladay saga will need resolution first.
  • The Orioles have two prices for George Sherrill. Teams willing to take on his salary have to give up a premium prospect and another prospect, but if the O's have to pay Sherrill, they want a premium prospect and two other players.
  • Danys Baez's value has plummeted recently.
  • The Braves, unsure of how much Tim Hudson can contribute, are leaning heavily towards keeping Javier Vazquez.
  • Adding a reliever is now the Dodgers' top priority.    
  • The Phillies have some interest in Ryan Spilborghs, Scott Hairston and Ryan Raburn.
  • The Reds would like to deal some of their expensive pitchers.
  • July 31st is also the deadline for Japanese teams to acquire foreign players for the rest of their season, so if Scott Boras is going to send Stephen Strasburg overseas, this will have to be the week.
  • The Cubs are looking at left-handed relievers, including Sherrill, John Grabow and Joe Beimel. 
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