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Stark On Royals, Phillies, Holliday

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ESPN.com's Jayson Stark asks some thoughtful baseball people why we're not greeting Manny Ramirez like the "team-wrecking, alibi-distorting, female-fertility-drug-popping scoundrel he is." And, of course, Stark has piles of rumors. Here they are:

  • The Mets were never willing to move Bobby Parnell or other top young arms for Mark DeRosa, so they weren't as close to acquiring him as the Reds and Cubs were. The Phillies, Marlins and Giants were also in the mix.
  • The Indians are more interested in dealing Rafael Bentancourt than Kerry Wood, whose contract ($15MM remaining) would be hard to move.  
  • The Royals will listen on anyone but Zack Greinke, but that doesn't mean they're looking to deal starters. They're "reluctant" to deal Brian Bannister, Kyle Davies or Gil Meche, who has a no-trade clause.
  • The Phillies were looking at Juan Cruz, who the Royals say they'd only deal for an upper-tier prospect ready to make a big-league impact.  
  • The Reds will wait it out and ramp up their pursuit of a bat if they're in the race later in the month.  
  • One executive says Pedro Martinez didn't look bad in last month's workout; Pedro's just demanding too much money. 
  • The Phillies haven't given up on pursuing Cliff Lee, Erik Bedard or Roy Oswalt.  
  • The Braves are trying to deal Jeff Francoeur everywhere, but no one's interested. One front-office guy says his team would be interested if Francoeur's non-tendered.  
  • Officials are divided on whether Yunel Escobar could be dealt, but a trade is unlikely at best.  
  • Rangers GM Jon Daniels says he is now looking to bolster his rotation.  
  • As expected, Daniels confirmed that the Rangers will have "limited" ability to take on salary at the deadline. 
  • The A's will want "two prospects with tremendous upside" for Matt Holliday if they deal him. It's unclear how much of the $6.75MM remaining on his contract the A's would pick up.
  • Could Josh Willingham be the next-best bat on the market? One exec says he might be if Russell Branyan and Miguel Tejada don't become available.  
  • Another official says Willingham's unappealing because of his back issues.  

Odds And Ends: Renteria, Lugo, Phillies

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It's a busy day for international signings, but lots is going on at the major league level, so let's take a look:

Odds And Ends: Halladay, Yankees, Rangers

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Links for Tuesday morning…

Amaro: Few Pitchers Available

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Phillies GM Ruben Amaro Jr. told MLB.com's Todd Zolecki that some pitchers aren't available no matter what prospects he offers up.

"if the guy is not going to go, he's not going to go," Amaro said. "You can give them your entire club."

So far Amaro's offered up prospects in vain and has relied on the inexperienced arms of J.A. Happ and Antonio Bastardo. Now that Bastardo has a strained shoulder, the Phillies will pluck another arm from their system, possibly Carlos Carrasco. Amaro admits he's looking for pitching, but says asking "pretty please" won't land him starters when many other teams need pitching as well.

Odds And Ends: DeRosa, Royals, Jays

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The runner-up for Mark DeRosa, thoughts on the Blue Jays and a pair of discussions to listen in on…

Odds & Ends: Morgan, Brewers, Phillies

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Some odds and ends around the league:

Stark On Lee, DeRosa, Phillies, Rays, Beltre

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Jayson Stark of ESPN.com calls this one of the slowest-moving trade markets in a while, but provides lots of rumors anyways:

  • Teams are making introductory calls now to set the tone for the next five weeks.
  • One official looking to add a reliever says no one is available.
  • With so few teams willing to part with players, sellers are asking for a lot.
  • The Brewers, Dodgers, Phillies and Mets are among the teams to call about Cliff Lee. The Indians would still have to be overwhelmed to part with him.
  • The Cubs have considered trying to reacquire Mark DeRosa.
  • They've also done some preliminary searching for a bat, but they're not sure where they'd play a new hitter so that gives the versatile DeRosa extra appeal.
  • Stark's heard nothing to suggest Bobby Valentine will end up managing the Nationals.
  • The Phillies have given indications that they'd part with Michael Taylor and/or Jason Donald in a deal for a top starter.
  • However, they won't listen on these players: Dominic Brown, Lou Marson, Kyle Drabek, Jason Knapp, Carlos Carrasco and Antonio Bastardo.
  • Doug Davis and Ian Snell aren't Phillies targets.
  • The Rays are looking for long-term upgrades. They'd like to acquire "the next J.P. Howell."
  • They're asking about young corner outfielders, rather than Jermaine Dye types.
  • Pedro Martinez still wants a $5MM salary (prorated) plus incentives, so don't expect him to sign soon.
  • The Reds have the best minor leaguers in the division and some could become trade chips.
  • The Mets checked in on Garrett Atkins.
  • Tony Reagins believes 2009 free agent Vladimir Guerrero can still hit.
  • At least one scout can't imagine Adrian Beltre being traded. Makes sense, given his shoulder injury and contract.

Odds & Ends: Mariners, Phillies, Padres

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Serving up absolutely the most hyper of links from across the baseball sphere, with more to come:

  • Mariners GM Jack Zduriencik sat down for a lengthy Q&A with fans on MLB.com. Ever wanted to know what it's like to be a GM? "It's cool," says Zduriencik.
  • David Murphy at the Philadelphia Inquirer talked to Phillies GM Ruben Amaro, who echoes a belief around the league: “I think things will heat up late, because everybody is still kind of in it,” he said.
  • According to Jorge Arangure at ESPN the Magazine, the Padres are keeping tabs on Dominican OF Jose Alberto Peña and pitcher Cristopher Cabrera.
  • Paul DePodesta says the Padres have come to terms with their third, fifth and seventh round picks.
  • Juan C. Rodriguez at the Sun-Sentinel wonders if the Marlins should go after Luis Ayala now that Matt Lindstrom has hit the DL.
  • Eric Seidman at Fangraphs takes a nifty look at batting average on ground balls. David Wright currently leads the majors with a .471 average in that department.
  • Geoff Baker at the Seattle Times discusses the ramifications of potential trade piece Adrian Beltre's recent bout with bone spurs.

Rosenthal On Lee, Holliday

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Ol' reliable Ken Rosenthal has a new column up. Let's scope out the highlights:

  • The Dodgers have had discussions about Cliff Lee, but the price might be too steep for them to acquire him before the deadline. The Indians are said to want top-shelf talent along the lines of Tommy Hanson or Clay Buchholz.
  • The Dodgers have talent like that in Clayton Kershaw and Chad Billingsley, but obviously they're not going anywhere. A package around James McDonald and Blake DeWitt wouldn't suffice.
  • The Phillies have also inquired on Lee, but "have balked at the price."
  • Reports that the A's would accept less for Matt Holliday because they'd prefer to skip out on the arbitration process this offseason are probably untrue, as a source said the potential high cost for the slugger is a "nonissue."

Knobler On Cardinals, Phillies, Giants

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Danny Knobler of CBS Sports identifies the five neediest teams in baseball. No team will be able to acquire big names easily, however, as officials around the league agree that impact arms and bats aren't available with so many teams in the race. Here's a closer look at Knobler's rumors:

  • The Cardinals have had less production out of the cleanup spot than just about any NL team and GM John Mozeliak says he's "not ignoring" the issue.
  • As one official points out, "thirty teams in baseball could use Mark DeRosa" and the Cardinals could use him most of all.
  • Knobler expects the Phillies to continue looking for a starting pitcher. He doesn't rule out Erik Bedard and says the Phils have considered Zach Duke and Paul Maholm.  
  • The Giants could use a hitter and Knobler hears that Brian Sabean's facing pressure from his superiors to make a move.
  • The Brewers could use an arm, as we know. 
  • Omar Minaya seems more intense than usual, but the many injuries to his players could make it harder for him to justify making one big move. As one Mets official said, the team is in a "bad position."
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