Stark’s Latest:
Jayson Stark has a new column over at ESPN.com. Some highlights:
- Octavio Dotel is almost a lock to be traded, and Chin-Lung Hu remains a possibility. Stark adds that Dodgers GM Ned Colletti scouted reliever John Malone, which I think means Jonathan Meloan. The 23 year-old Meloan throws in the low 90s with a hard slider; he commands his fastball well but carries some health concerns.
- Regarding Jon Garland, we’ve already heard that the Mariners, Braves, and Yankees are interested. Stark adds the Dodgers, Mets, and Phillies to that list. However, he thinks Kenny Williams really just wants to trade Jose Contreras.
- The Astros, surprisingly, have yet to open shop on their relievers.
- Michael Bourn is the Phillies’ top trading chip. Some possible targets: Kameron Loe, Scott Olsen, Ervin Santana, Noah Lowry, and Dontrelle Willis.
MetsBlog Podcast Now Available
Hop on over to MetsBlog to hear the recent podcast. Anthony and Matt had me aboard to talk rumors, especially Mets ones. You can find the podcast player on the lefthand sidebar of MetsBlog; today’s show is titled Rumor Roundtable.
Latest On Jermaine Dye
Jermaine Dye stands to be one of the bigger names dealt within the next seven days. He’s been hitting well since the All-Star break, but it’s only been 48 ABs. Here’s the latest on the 33 year-old right fielder.
- Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times names the Mets, Padres, Dodgers, and Mariners as the top suitors for Dye. In case you were wondering, Dye has not played more than one game in left field in a seasons since 1996. A position switch could be necessary, depending on where he ends up.
- Bill Madden of the New York Daily News thinks Dye could be had in August. I don’t agree – Dye has only $2.6MM left on his contract this year and Kenny Williams would be better served trading him in July. Plan B would be to just let him leave via free agency and take some good draft picks.
- MetsBlog’s Matthew Cerrone believes that Dye would cost a leadoff hitting center fielder or a zero-to-three reliever. The Mets might be able to offer up the CF, but is Dye worth it?
- Plenty of speculation around Chicago that the Cubs could pursue Dye. However, I haven’t seen any reason to think this is more than just speculation. He does seem like a fine fit on the North Side. Paul Sullivan believes Cliff Floyd‘s fragility may force the Cubs to acquire an outfielder. Will Carroll thinks the Cubs are the best fit for Dye as they can offer the White Sox a prospect and a reliever.
- Something that could heighten the Cubs’ interest: the Brewers are said to be kicking the tires on Dye.
- I don’t see why the Mariners would pursue Dye; there is good reason to believe top prospect Adam Jones would outproduce him.
Latest On Octavio Dotel
You know what I love about the Kansas City Star? The enormous, extreme close-up pixellated player photo that seems to accompany every article. It’s bizarre in a good way.
Anyway, Bob Dutton gives us the latest on hot commodity Octavio Dotel. According to Dutton, the Dodgers and Indians are at the forefront, with the Red Sox, Mets, and some other teams monitoring the situation.
As before, Dutton indicates that the Dodgers are the best possibility. They refuse to part with Tony Abreu, however. Abreu is seen as Jeff Kent‘s replacement at second base, though Kent is still going strong and his 2008 option becomes guaranteed with 550 plate appearances this year. Barring injury, he’ll reach that.
This seems parallel to the shortstop situation, where Rafael Furcal is signed through 2008 and Chin-Lung Hu is knocking on the door. For some reason Dutton seems to view Hu as more available than Abreu.
The Indians won’t give up outfielders Franklin Gutierrez or Ben Francisco, at least not yet. Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer confirms the info. Is Francisco really anything more than a fourth outfielder?
The Red Sox could go after Dotel and Reggie Sanders in a package deal, perhaps with Wily Mo Pena going to KC.
If Dayton Moore gets anything close to his asking price, the Dotel rental will end up a fantastic move.
Graziano’s Latest: Livan, Wily Mo
Dan Graziano at the Newark Star-Ledger has really stepped up in recent days with a lot of insider trade talk. Let’s see what he has in store for us this morning.
- Apparently Josh Byrnes is calling around, actively shopping Livan Hernandez. According to Graziano, the Mets, Braves, and Mariners have expressed interest. To the contrary, Ken Rosenthal wrote last night that the Mets and Braves are not interested. Who to believe? Hopefully the Mariners do better than Livan if they make a move for a starter. To hear Nick Piecoro tell it, the Diamondbacks are more likely to just opt for the draft picks they’ll get if they let Hernandez leave via free agency.
- The Yankees are in a quandary when it comes to dealing Scott Proctor or Kyle Farnsworth. For Proctor, they want more than just a role player like Ty Wigginton. They want a reliever back, which begs the question – why not just keep Proctor? With Farnsy, the Yanks are reluctant to pay a big chunk of his $5.5 salary for ’08. They should toss in $2MM and see if that’s enough to get Wiggy.
- If the Red Sox can snag Bobby Kielty, they might turn around and trade Wily Mo Pena to the White Sox. Wily Mo in that ballpark with 600 plate appearances? 40 home runs. Might make Theo look bad. Dejan Kovacevic mentions that Epstein is "actively shopping" Pena, and seems to like the idea of the Bucs sending Salomon Torres to Boston for him.
- The Brewers, Phillies, and Dodgers are looking at Oakland lefty and impending free agent Joe Kennedy. Kennedy is only 28 and he has had National League success as a starter.
Rosenthal’s Latest: Nats After Dunn
Ken Rosenthal’s got a new column up; let’s dive in.
- Fun new rumor: the Nationals are pursuing Adam Dunn. Huh? Makes no sense on the surface. Jim Bowden’s possible motivation would be to sign Dunn long-term and make him the cornerstone of the franchise. If he fails at that, all would not be lost given the draft pick compensation. Rosenthal says the market for Dunn beyond Washington is a bit foggy – the Twins, Angels, Yankees, Red Sox, and Padres could all get involved but none stand out.
- Rosenthal adds some color to my recent Nationals post. He mentions that Ron Belliard is a name that might interest the Mets, an idea that has come up before. Rosenthal says the Mets will not do a Lastings Milledge for Chad Cordero trade.
- The Dodgers have jumped to the forefront on Octavio Dotel, with Takashi Saito ailing. According to Rosenthal, the Royals aren’t demanding the very specific bounty Joel Sherman claimed. Instead, they just want a near MLB-ready player. Rosenthal says Tony Abreu is out of reach but Chin-Lung Hu might not be. He suggests moving Hu to second base to accomodate Tony Pena Jr., which should probably be reversed. It appears the Indians wouldn’t surrender Franklin Gutierrez or Ben Francisco for Dotel. I’d give one up, personally.
- I didn’t know this: Jermaine Dye can veto a deal to four clubs. With his solid play, interest is picking up. As are Kenny Williams’ demands; he wants an elite prospect. The Indians and Red Sox have inquired; the Cubs might make sense too. I thought we had ruled out the Red Sox earlier though.
- The Padres are looking for bench help, perhaps in the name of Ryan Klesko, Mike Piazza, Mark Loretta, or Mike Lamb. Couple of prodigal sons there. Would Piazza be happy as a pricey bench player? Rosenthal says Matt Stairs isn’t available. Why not?
Nationals Looking To Deal
MLB.com’s Bill Ladson has the lowdown on the Washington Nationals. They’ve got several pieces they’re looking to move.
Chad Cordero and Jon Rauch remain popular names on the market, but it still seems like Jim Bowden is holding out for something amazing. Ladson says Bowden is asking the Mets for Lastings Milledge and Mike Pelfrey in a deal. It is known that the Mets would move Pelfrey in a major trade (per Jayston Stark). Pelfrey would be a great guy for the Nats to acquire; they really need some MLB-ready pitching depth. Another name on the Nats’ radar is Double A righty Kevin Mulvey of the Mets – they were openly scouting him on Thursday.
Cordero is aware of the rumors, and will move into a setup role for another team graciously. He hopes to stay in Washington though.
Ladson also says Ryan Church is being offered up; contenders would use him as a fourth outfielder. Church has been connected to the Cubs in the past, but I don’t think they’d go for him now. He’s at .262/.342/.420 this year, good fourth outfielder numbers. He’s capable of knocking 3-4 homers a month.
Finally, Ladson mentions that the Nationals recently scouting the Tigers’ Double A Erie affiliate. The SeaWolves’ more interesting prospects include Jair Jurrjens, Dallas Trahern, and Jeff Larish. It is known that the Nats were watching Jurrjens’ last start.
Mets Mulling Options At Second Base
Jose Valentin‘s fractured tibia on Friday should knock him out about six weeks. Unfortunately for Valentin, this injury and a previous one will stop him from reaching 400 plate appearances this year. That means his $4.3MM option for 2008 will not vest.
The Mets have a number of internal options: Anderson Hernandez, Marlon Anderson, Ruben Gotay, and Damion Easley can all handle second base and offer different skills. Willie Randolph didn’t seem thrilled with the idea of Gotay as the everyday guy, though Omar Minaya expects him to play the most.
Minaya’s not actively looking to trade for a second baseman, but he will listen. Jose de Jesus Ortiz believes Minaya covets Mark Loretta, even speculating on expanded deals involving Chad Qualls or Wandy Rodriguez. I had not previously known that Wandy was on Omar’s radar last winter. Still, it doesn’t make much sense for the Astros to give him up in the midst of a possible breakout season.
Dejan Kovacevic mentions Jose Castillo as another option, though there’s no indication the Mets are after him. Two other options for the Mets are impending free agents Luis Castillo and Tadahito Iguchi. There’s been speculation that the Mets will sign Castillo this winter.
Olney: D’Backs Could Trade Livan Hernandez
ESPN’s Buster Olney brings up one available starting pitcher we haven’t mentioned here anytime recently: Livan Hernandez. It hadn’t really occurred to me that the Diamondbacks could be sellers. But according to various playoff odds reports, their chances of making the playoffs have slipped to 3-8%. Our good friend Jeff Sackmann took a look at teams on the bubble in a recent column at Hardball Times and recommended the Diamondbacks sell off players such as Hernandez, Eric Byrnes, and Orlando Hudson.
Hernandez reaches free agency after this season, and it seems likely the D’Backs would let him leave. Trading him now could make some sense. He’s got about $2.7MM left on his contract this year. As Olney says, Hernandez’s main virtue is durability. He will take the ball every fifth day and give you six innings. He’s no longer the seven inning per start horse he was from 1998-2005; his average is now around 6.3 innings per start.
As far as playoff experience…would a team like the Mets really want to give him a playoff start? I wouldn’t think so. No doubt the NLCS MVP version we saw in ’97 is a distant memory, and even his work for the Giants in ’02 is five years removed.
Olney believes strong offensive NL teams like the Braves, Mets, or Phillies could take a look at Livan. The Brewers, Dodgers, and Padres may also be looking to add a starter.
Graziano On Greinke, Pettitte
Good stuff today from Dan Graziano of the Newark Star-Ledger. Here’s my summary:
- Beyond the Cubs, Graziano lists the Braves, Dodgers, and Diamondbacks as teams interested in pitcher Zack Greinke. If the initial asking price for Octavio Dotel was as high as reported, I can’t imagine what Dayton Moore would want for Greinke.
- Graziano’s Dotel suitors: Cubs, Dodgers, and Brewers. The Red Sox, Rockies, and Indians have been mentioned by other sources. Quite a market for this guy.
- David Weathers is seen as the poor man’s Dotel/Gagne. Let’s see if Wayne Krivsky can get something useful for him. Stormy makes another $2.75MM in ’08 before his contract is up.
- The Mets are mostly focused on a power relief arm, as Roy Oswalt and Dontrelle Willis are said to be unavailable. I have no idea why Willis keeps getting lumped in with Oswalt; they are nowhere near equal. Graziano says the Mets still like Javier Vazquez but the White Sox keep trying to pawn off Jose Contreras instead.
- The Braves are trying to deal for southpaw reliever C.J. Wilson of the Rangers. The 26 year-old has an undeserved 2.81 ERA right now. His control has been worse this year, so he’d have to remain unhittable to be effective.
- The Mariners inquired on Andy Pettitte, but the Yankees aren’t giving up yet.