Headlines

Go To Pro Hockey Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Phillies Rumors

Odds And Ends: Lahey, Gibbons, Freel

By | at

A couple minor notes this morning…

  • The Phillies claimed reliever Tim Lahey off of waivers from the Cubs. Lahey was the top pick in the Rule 5 draft from the Twins’ system. The Cubs had to expose Lahey to waivers prior to offering him back to the Twinkies. Rule 5 rules still apply with the Phillies, so Lahey must remain on their 25-man roster all season or be offered back to Minnesota.
  • John Fay notes that after the Reds latest round of cuts the roster sits at 26 which could open the door for a trade. He doesn’t offer any potential names, but Ryan Freel still seems like the most logical choice.  By the way, LEN3 notes that the Reds called the Twins about Freel and the Twins weren’t interested.
  • Peter Schmuck thinks that the Orioles might be reluctant to cut Jay Gibbons while Major League Baseball continues to renegotiate the league’s drug policy. Gibbons is facing a 15-day suspension for use of PEDs but many believe the suspension will be lifted under the new agreement which ironically is supposed to stiffen penalties. Schmuck feels that if Angelos decides to keep Gibbons, it could undermine Andy MacPhail’s efforts to rebuild the Orioles.

Cork Gaines writes for Rays Index and can be reached here.

Odds And Ends: Eaton, Balfour, McAnulty

By | at

Couple of minor notes for this Friday afternoon:

  • Paul McAnulty, who is out of options, is going to make the Padres 25-man roster. With Scott Hairston filling in for injured Jim Edmonds in center, McAnulty could get a fair share of playing time in left. The other candidate for playing time is Jody Gerut.
  • It appears the Rays have decided on their final bullpen spot, giving the job to Scott Dohmann. The loser in this deal is Grant Balfour, who is out of options. The Australian reliever has some promise, and I would imagine will be claimed on waivers.
  • Not that it’s a trade rumor, but there are whispers that Adam Eaton may have pitched his way out of the Phillies five slot. There isn’t mention of a replacement, but it could be Chad Durbin.

Posted by Joe Pawlikowski.

Reds Shopping Freel?

By | at

John Fay, writing on his Reds Insider blog, notes that the reason for the lack of cuts in Reds camp is that they might be looking to move Ryan Freel. He didn’t elaborate much, other than to say he heard talks of Philadelphia, Minnesota, "and others."

Freel is pretty versatile, having handled all three outfield positions, as well as second and third base. The Twins could use his bat in the lineup. But where would he play? Second? Displace recently-acquired Carlos Gomez in center field temporarily? Or just a utility role?

The same situation appears to be in place in Philly. They just signed Pedro Feliz to play third, and have a full infield beyond that. In the outfield, they signed Geoff Jenkins over the off-season to go with Shane Victorino and Pat Burrell. So it appears he’d be headed for a utility role there, too.

The question, then, becomes: What will the Reds do about their outfield? Do they really plan to start Norris Hopper in center? Or does this signal that Jay Bruce could be back soon? Lots of questions to be asked surrounding this rumor.

(Of course, less than three hours after Fay noted the lack of cuts, the Reds re-assigned Andy Phillips, optioned Bill Bray, and returned Jose Capellan to the Red Sox.)

Posted by Joe Pawlikowski

Phils Talking To Giants, Reds About Helms?

By | at

THURSDAY: Jim Salisbury says the Helms for Kline idea has fallen through, and Hal McCoy nixes the Helms for Stanton possibility.

WEDNESDAY: The Phillies would like to conclude their offseason by swapping third baseman Wes Helms and the $2.9MM owed to him for a lefty reliever.  According to Paul Hagen of the Philadelphia Daily News, the Phils are talking to the Giants and Reds about Helms.  Steve Kline ($1.75MM) or Mike Stanton ($3.5MM) are the targets.  The Reds may deem Stanton too pricey to cut.

The Giants recently picked up Jose Castillo, but they also lost Kevin Frandsen.  Moving Kline would make sense, because then they could fit both Merkin Valdez and Erick Threets.  The Reds have Jolbert Cabrera and Andy Phillips battling for a bench spot, and don’t seem to have a place for Helms.

Benson Stays With Phillies

By | at

Rehabbing starter Kris Benson chose not to opt out of his contract with the Phillies; his window to do so has passed.  According to Todd Zolecki and Jim Salisbury, his contract was restructured yesterday to allow him to opt out on May 15th if he’s not on the Phils’ 40-man roster.

Benson, 33, had surgery a year ago to repair a partially torn rotator cuff.  He signed a minor league deal with the Phillies in February.

Do the Phillies have sufficient depth behind Brett Myers and Cole Hamels?  Kyle Kendrick, Jamie Moyer, and Adam Eaton have the last three slots.  J.D. and Chad Durbin are additional options.  Would it make any difference to add Claudio Vargas to this group?

Miguel Cabrera Signs Extension

By | at

4:08pm: John Lowe has the year by year breakdown and adds that there are ten teams Cabrera can be traded to without his permission.

TUESDAY, 12:44pm: Cabrera’s seven-year extension is official.  $20MM a year is a solid price for 25 year-old superstar who has never been injured.  And Cabrera sets himself up for one more massive deal, just like A-Rod did.

MONDAY, 8:57am: Though we don’t have an official announcement and press conference from the Tigers yet, it’s obvious that an agreement has been reached.  Sabernomics thinks Cabrera will be worth $268MM over this time period; PECOTA feels differently.  Cabrera will only be 32 when this contract ends.  Though their ages don’t match up, Jim Salisbury and Todd Zolecki believe this deal could be a comparable for Ryan Howard.

SUNDAY, 8:52pm: Danny Knobler clarifies: it’s a seven-year extension worth around $140MM, starting with the 2009 season.  Regardless, it’s a team-friendly deal.

12:18am: According to ESPN’s Enquire Rojas, Tigers third baseman Miguel Cabrera is set to sign an eight-year, $153.3MM extension.  That’s $19.16MM per year for 2009-16.  Definitely less than I expected him to sign for.  We’ll examine the deal more closely when details become available.   

Odds and Ends: Giles, Crisp, A-Rod

By | at

Nothing huge cooking this morning, so here are some odds and ends.

  • Doesn’t look like the Dodgers will acquire Marcus Giles.
  • Rany Jazayerli writes about how Kansas City is home to many of the country’s best baseball journalists.  On a related note, the Star’s Sam Mellinger has a chat with Brian Bannister on his blog.
  • Coco Crisp rattles off the trade rumors he’s heard: Cubs, Sox, A’s, Padres.  No deal appears imminent, though Crisp was healthy enough to pinch-run this morning.
  • John Harper snags an exclusive with Alex Rodriguez.  A-Rod admitted he chose the Rangers over the Mets for money and feared he was going down that road again this past winter.
  • Roch Kubatko writes that Brian Roberts was pulled from the lineup today for back pain, hoping to nip trade speculation in the bud.
  • The Phillies have to make a decision on Kris Benson today.
  • Aaron Gleeman weighs in on the Joe Nathan extension.  Buster Olney talked to baseball execs who felt the Twins should’ve added Nathan’s money to their Johan offer.

Braves Expect Trades

By | at

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s David O’Brien talked to Braves GM Frank Wren, and he learned that Wren expects to "make a deal or two."

DOB says the Braves are looking to add a proven bench bat.  They can spare an out of options reliever from the group of Blaine Boyer, Chris Resop, Tyler Yates, and Royce Ring.  O’Brien sees Yates as the one to go.  Catcher Brayan Pena and first baseman Scott Thorman are other possible trade chips.

As for who’s coming to Atlanta, O’Brien pretty much ruled out Reed Johnson and Robert Fick.  He considers Wes Helms a possibility.  The Orioles and Giants are two teams with veterans to spare, though most are of the overpriced variety. 

Stark’s Latest: Roberts, Fuentes, Lofton

By | at

ESPN’s Jayson Stark has a new blog post jam-packed with hot stove rumors.

  • The Cubs are getting frustrated with the Brian Roberts situation, wondering if they’ll ever complete this trade.  The Orioles are scouting players but still haven’t given the Cubs the names they crave.  I got the exact same vibe from the source who told me Jose Ceda’s inclusion was never proposed by the Cubs.
  • The Tigers and Phillies are both hunting for bullpen help; Detroit’s sights are set higher than Philadelphia’s.  Unwanted players such as Wes Helms and Brandon Inge aren’t in demand.  And while Marcus Thames is desirable, he’s not enough to get Aaron Heilman from the Mets.  Brian Fuentes, also a Yankees target, may be the best available reliever.  But Stark says the Rox want a "high-upside young arm" for the southpaw.
  • My own guess at some useful relievers who may be available: Damaso Marte, Joe Nathan, Jamie Walker, Chad Bradford, Huston Street, Alan Embree, Kevin Gregg, Jon Rauch, and Chad Cordero.
  • Stark names the Cubs, Rays, and Mets as the teams looking for an extra outfielder.  No deals appear imminent, though the Rays made an unsuccessful offer to Kenny Lofton.  The Mets and Cubs are considering the same names we’ve heard for a few weeks now.  The Cubs are in a holding pattern since they may get Jay Payton in a Roberts deal with Baltimore. 

Odds and Ends: Rivera, Hamels, Sherrill

By | at

Here’s today’s gathering of links.

  • John Shea examines the Giants’ roster crunch, which would be greatly relieved by trading Dave Roberts and Steve Kline.
  • Adam Rubin implies that the Angels want too much from the Mets for Juan Rivera – Jon Niese or Bobby Parnell.  A deal seems unlikely.
  • Cole Hamels, accused by a heckler of being a cross between Casey Fossum and Shawn Camp.  BURNED!
  • Buster Olney is hearing from other teams that the Orioles may shop 30 year-old newly anointed closer George Sherrill this summer.
  • Joe Christensen believes that we’ll learn about Joe Nathan’s future with the Twins by week’s end.
  • Brock For Broglio posted an interesting interview with Voros McCracken.  This quote from McCracken caught my eye: "One of the things that kind of bugged me with the Red Sox was a somewhat implied expectation that I’d come up with something like DIPS on a regular basis."
Show all

MLB Trade Rumors is not affiliated with Major League Baseball, MLB or MLB.com

Do not Sell or Share My Personal Information

hide arrows scroll to top