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Edes On Francoeur, Nick Johnson, Valverde

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8:10pm: David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution on the Red Sox-Francoeur rumor:

Talked to someone in Braves organization who sort of dismissed the Red Sox rumor. Said he hadn’t heard one thing about them having any serious interest in Francoeur or scouting him recently.

9:01am: Yahoo's Gordon Edes wrote about many different trade scenarios in his column last night.

  • Edes seconds Ken Rosenthal's rumor that the Red Sox have been scouting Jeff Francoeur.
  • The Nationals have been scouting the Mets' Triple and Double A teams, trying to figure out a possible return for Nick Johnson.  Names of interest for Washington: Jon Niese, Mike Antonini, Eddie Kunz, and big leaguer Bobby Parnell.  The Red Sox also had interest in Johnson, but not for the price of Michael Bowden.  Back to the Mets – Joel Sherman of the New York Post has a list of available players they could consider aside from Johnson, including Jermaine Dye, Ben Francisco, Adam LaRoche, and Eric Hinske.
  • Edes likes the fit of Jose Valverde with the Rays, but speculates that the Astros could ask for Wade Davis in return.  Six years of Davis would be a huge price to pay for a few months of Valverde plus possible draft picks.  Edes also likes Mark DeRosa for Tampa Bay, but they seem well-equipped to handle Akinori Iwamura's injury with internal options.
  • Edes names the Phillies, Brewers, Royals, and Twins as possible suitors for Brad Penny.  Edes adds that the Phillies "are already making plans for life without Brett Myers" after this season.
  • The shortstop market includes Jack Wilson and perhaps John McDonald, but could become more interesting for a team like Boston if the Indians make Jhonny Peralta available.

Mets Acquire Wilson Valdez

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According to Matthew Cerrone of MetsBlog, the Mets sent cash to the Indians for journeyman minor league shortstop Wilson Valdez.  Based on the 31 year-old's hitting for the Columbus Clippers this year, I'd say he's the all-glove stopgap the Mets have been seeking.

Other moves: Ryan Church and Jose Reyes to the DL, top prospect Fernando Martinez promoted.  Martinez, just 20, owns a .291/.337/.552 line in 42 Triple A games this year. He could accumulate as much as 132 days service time this year, meaning there's a slight chance he'll become a Super Two Player after 2011.

Odds & Ends: Braves, Peavy, Mets, Sabathia

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Links for Tuesday…

Rosenthal On Astros, Marquis, DeRosa, Francoeur

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Let's take a look at the latest from Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.

  • Rosenthal recommends the Astros trade veterans to improve their bottom-ranked farm system.  He'd especially like to see Houston make Roy Oswalt available.  They'd have take Oswalt's no-trade clause into consideration.
  • The Phillies continue to seek a starter, and they made an inquiry on Colorado's Jason Marquis.  Rosenthal finds Erik Bedard "perhaps the most intriguing fit" and notes that the Phils probably have flexibility to add payroll.  This question came up in a recent chat…I do think the Phillies have the pieces to pull off a Bedard trade.
  • The Brewers are not going after Cleveland's Mark DeRosa, as they cannot spare Major League pitching for him.  Rosenthal also finds Jake Peavy unlikely, as the Brewers probably couldn't pull off a deal without creating a new need.  Of Peavy, Rosenthal says, "He will not leave easily."
  • The Mets are interested in Nationals first baseman Nick Johnson, who is off to a .338/.445/.471 start.
  • The Royals might be the top suitor for Jeff Francoeur if the Braves shop him, but not everyone in Kansas City's front office is keen on him.  The Red Sox are known to have an eye on Francoeur.
  • Rosenthal's heard speculation that the Sox could trade Daniel Bard, whose value may be at a high point.
  • Rather than acquire someone like Yuniesky Betancourt, the Padres will stick with in-house options at shortstop (mainly Luis Rodriguez and Everth Cabrera, once they're healthy).

Odds & Ends: Draft, Iwamura, Mets

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Some links to tide you over this Memorial Day Eve:

  • John Sickels at Minor League Ball lists last year's starters who posted a Win Share over 10 alongside their draft origins. Last week, Future Redbirds advised against risking a first round pick on high school pitchers.
  • MLB.com has a fan Q&A up with Pirates GM Neal Huntington, who believes this year's draft is deep in pitching but thin on quality college position players.
  • Akinori Iwamura will probably hit the DL after he suffered a nasty collision in today's game and was carted off the field. Joe Maddon will have a look at internal options to fill in for now.
  • With the Mets hurting badly, Ken Davidoff at Newsday acknowledges GM Omar Minaya has his work cut out for him. With Jose Reyes' lingering tendinitis in his right knee and his injured backups, Davidoff thinks Minaya should get an appraisal on Bobby Crosby. Davidoff also thinks the Mets should "aggressively" go after the rehabbing Ben Sheets and at least discuss Erik Bedard with the M's, despite the Mets' top prospects sitting at lower levels.

Red Sox Could Shop Brad Penny

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Alex Speier of WEEI.com says Brad Penny could be a name floated in trade talks by the Red Sox. Not a huge surprise given Boston's ample starting pitching depth. Penny is only making $5MM on a one-year contract for 2009. Says Speier:

"Right now, the mention of Penny in trade speculation seems like precisely that: speculation. There had been some published suggestions that the Mets were likely to be interested in the right-hander, but a major-league source said that New York had no interest in acquiring the pitcher."

Penny is a veteran to the trade circuit, notes Speier. And despite his declaration that the Red Sox have been his "best experience being on a team in baseball thus far,” he acknowledges the team's pitching depth makes him expendable.

Nationals Rumors: Strasburg, Johnson, ‘Pen

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ESPN.com's Tim Kurkjian takes a close look at the Nationals in his latest column and concludes that they have good baseball teams to look forward to. Along the way, he turns up some Nats rumors:

  • Stephen Strasburg pulled an oblique muscle Wednesday, but acting GM Mike Rizzo says he's not concerned, repeating a line we've heard before: "If the draft was today, we would select Stephen Strasburg." 
  • Kurkjian hears that it will cost the Nationals between $25-50MM to sign Strasburg for six years. 
  • Since the Washington 'pen has struggled so much, there's a good chance the Nats will add a reliever or two this offseason.  
  • As an alternative, they could deal Nick Johnson for pitching; Kurkjian suggests the Mets or Giants could be interested.
  • Matthew Cerrone of MetsBlog.com heard from a person connected to the Mets that the Nationals would likely want Bobby Parnell in exchange for Johnson.

Mets Interested In Mark DeRosa

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According to Ed Price of AOL Fanhouse, the Mets have been talking to the Indians about acquiring Mark DeRosa.  With Jose Reyes' injury last night, Price says "now that move makes even more sense."

What would it take to get DeRosa, who is hitting .255/.322/.427 in 174 plate appearances this year?  First off I'd guess full relief of the $4.1MM still owed to him.  Beyond that the rumor yesterday was pitching that could help the Indians this year.

Oakland A Fit For Mark DeRosa?

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According to the San Francisco Chronicle's Susan Slusser:

Oakland is likely to talk to the Indians about Mark DeRosa, who is on the block. The A's had some interest in the infielder after the 2006 season.  The Indians are believed to be looking for pitching, but the A's won't trade any of their hotshot young pitchers.

Second baseman Mark Ellis should be back in June, but the A's are getting a .177/.270/.300 line over at the hot corner.  The A's are currently 7 games out and in last place, though, so they might be the ones shopping veterans a month from now.

Speaking of DeRosa, Joel Sherman of the New York Post wonders if a deal involving him, Jamey Carroll, and J.J. Putz could be worked out between the Mets and Indians.  He says Carroll is an Omar Minaya favorite.

First Baseman? Mets Need a Shortstop

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With Carlos Delgado out until at least late July, the rumors have swirled around the Mets and first basemen throughout the league.

But what the Mets may really need is a shortstop. Jose Reyes left Wednesday night's game against the Dodgers with what looked to be an aggravation of the calf injury that kept him out for five games. With backup Alex Cora out indefinitely with a thumb injury, the Mets are now left with a pair of shortstops: Ramon Martinez, who had two errors in his start on Monday night, and Fernando Tatis, who is a "break glass in case of emergency" kind of shortstop.

Even if Reyes returns quickly, the Mets need a credible backup. In house, the Mets have last season's backup middle infielder Argenis Reyes at shortstop, a decent glove who simply cannot hit. Jose Coranado is struggling so much with the bat, a .141 average at Triple-A, that he is an unlikely recall.

As previously reported, the Indians are fielding offers for Mark DeRosa. But DeRosa hasn't played more than 20 games at shortstop in a season since 2001-and over his last three seasons, he played a total of nine games there.

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