Arroyo Off The Market
First A.J. Burnett, now Bronson Arroyo. According to ESPN’s Jayson Stark, the Reds have informed other teams that Arroyo unavailable. Arroyo’s contract was causing unsatisfactory offers.
The Reds are pretty quiet all around. MLB.com’s Mark Sheldon says offers for Adam Dunn, David Weathers, Dave Ross, and Jeremy Affeldt have been unimpressive.
Mets Unlikely To Acquire Outfielder
Joel Sherman of the New York Post writes about the Mets’ unsuccessful search for a corner outfielder.
The Mets find the prospect price too high on players such as Raul Ibanez and Jason Bay. They don’t seem to care for Adam Dunn or Brian Giles. They don’t like Randy Winn‘s contract or lack of power. And Manny Ramirez is unlikely for numerous reasons.
While the Mets are fans of Ibanez, they’ve made all of their interesting prospects untouchable. The Mets may prefer to use some of those prospects in offseason deals. For now they will stick with the red-hot Fernando Tatis and other internal options.
Stark’s Latest: Dunn, Tankersley, Sherrill
ESPN has a new Trade Deadline blog going; here’s the link. Jayson Stark already has two entries up, found here and here. Let’s dig in!
- The Yankees have explored the idea of acquiring Adam Dunn, though they’re reluctant to meet the Reds’ demands.
- The Marlins are proposing the idea of swapping lefty Taylor Tankersley for a more experienced one like Brian Fuentes or George Sherrill. So far, nothing’s cooking. Tankersley, 25, was demoted to Triple A earlier this month after being bitten by the home run bug. He dealt with shoulder tendinitis in early ’07.
- The Rockies instead have their eye on Florida’s Ryan Tucker, a young Double A righty with a mid-90s heater and a 1.41 ERA. I don’t see that happening. Stark says they want to push the bidding closer to the deadline though.
- The Orioles are apparently trying to pry Alcides Escobar or Mat Gamel from the Brewers for Sherrill, but as you know they’re not biting.
Graziano’s Latest: Sherrill, Arroyo, Rhodes, Zaun
Dan Graziano of the Newark Star-Ledger has a new Trade Winds column.
- Graziano notes how incredible the Erik Bedard trade could look for Baltimore if they spin George Sherrill for prospects. He names the Cardinals, Rays, Marlins, and Red Sox as suitors. The Mets fear Sherrill’s price tag, while the Yankees don’t expect a deal within the division.
- The Yankees haven’t spoken to the Reds about Bronson Arroyo (although based on previous reports, they have scouted him). The Yanks aren’t likely to sign Barry Bonds, and aren’t terribly thrilled with the catching market.
- Fernando Martinez‘s possible injury could increase the Mets’ urgency to find a left fielder. For some reason, Adam Dunn is not in the mix. The Mets are in on relievers Brian Tallet, Jack Taschner, and Arthur Rhodes.
- The division rival Marlins are after Rhodes, as well as Gregg Zaun.
- Graziano says no one denied his rumor that the Blue Jays were quietly discussing Roy Halladay with other teams. The offseason might be a better time to shop him, though.
Heyman’s Latest: Sabathia, Dunn, Blake
Another column from SI.com’s Jon Heyman.
- The Yankees "appear primed to make a big push" for CC Sabathia when he hits free agency. While Sabathia may prefer the West Coast, he reportedly will not be offering a discount to those teams. He’ll want Johan money.
- Heyman speculates that Adam Dunn could be a nice addition for the Yankees, one that might mostly cost just money. I know he hates playing baseball and all but the lack of interest is perplexing. Brian Cashman and Walt Jocketty have matched up a couple of times for trades, including one that sent Sterling Hitchcock to St. Louis in ’03.
- Heyman believes both the Yankees and Mets might consider Cleveland’s Casey Blake.
Nationals Rumors: Guzman, Rauch, Holliday
MLB.com’s Bill Ladson has the goods on the Nationals.
- The Nationals are currently negotiating with Cristian Guzman‘s agent on a possible extension. Last month, the Nats proposed a two-year extension. It’s thought that Guzman might make some concessions given how little he gave the Nats in the first three years of his current contract. But if the two sides can’t reach an agreement soon, the Nats may choose to trade Guzman.
- Ladson also reports that the White Sox and Rays are scouting closer Jon Rauch. Rauch, you may recall, came up as a starter with the Sox and was traded to the Expos in ’04. Kenny Williams made that deal with Omar Minaya.
- Ladson’s source confirmed mild interest in Colorado’s Matt Holliday. Ladson notes Jim Bowden’s fondness for Adam Dunn as well. However, the source considers the infield a greater need for the Nats.
Dunn Could Stay, Says Fay
Reds beat writer John Fay says he thinks the Reds will hold on to Adam Dunn and take the draft picks when he leaves as a free agent, because Cincinnati’s outfield is so thin that they can’t afford to lose Dunn.
With Ryan Freel done for the year, the Reds currently have four healthy outfielders on the roster. That means if they traded Adam Dunn or Ken Griffey Jr. right now, you’re looking at Corey Patterson playing every day. That might blow up this blog.
This makes no sense to me. The Reds would only trade Dunn if they were prepared to give up on the season. And since they’re four games under .500 and 11 games back of the Cubs, it’s probably about time to give up on the season. So, if you’re looking ahead to next season, who cares if Patterson is playing everyday in August and September?
Coley Ward writes for Umpbump.com and can be reached here.
Heyman’s Latest: Yankees, Manny, Bowden, Pudge
SI.com’s Jon Heyman has a new column up.
- Given Richie Sexson‘s expected part-time role, the Yankees are in the market for an everyday outfielder to replace Hideki Matsui‘s bat. Barry Bonds is not under consideration. Heyman tosses out names such as Matt Holliday, Xavier Nady, Jason Bay, and Adam Dunn, while noting that the price on most is too high (the Pirates deny this).
- Heyman is still saying the Cardinals will consider trading Colby Rasmus, despite various denials.
- The Yanks are also looking to add a #3-4 starter type. Here’s a look at the market.
- Manny Ramirez probably isn’t going to get what he wants – free agency, an extension, or a trade.
- The Nationals are supporting GM Jim Bowden despite his recent problems. Heyman reported rumblings last month that Bowden "could be in trouble."
- Despite the Marlins’ interest, the Tigers are unlikely to trade Ivan Rodriguez. Jon Paul Morosi agrees, while noting that Pudge’s salary might be too high for Florida anyway.
Rosenthal’s Latest: Dunn, Burnett, Ibanez
Ken Rosenthal’s Full Count video Saturday covered many interesting topics; yesterday he put the info into column form and added even more.
- Same old story with Adam Dunn – he’s just not drawing much interest. Even with the whiffs and ugly defense, this is surprising to me. Rosenthal says the Reds "will take a considerable risk" if they offer Dunn arbitration after the season and he accepts. Would having Dunn on a one-year deal at market price really be so bad?
- Rosenthal says "it remains to be seen whether Jim Bowden’s authority will be compromised" in the wake of his involvement in the FBI’s bonus-skimming investigation. The Nationals have a couple of mildly interesting starters to shop in Tim Redding and Odalis Perez, plus perhaps the top righty reliever in Jon Rauch. Maybe Rauch will be packaged with a starter.
- The Angels will try to retain Francisco Rodriguez after the season.
- The Blue Jays started A.J. Burnett on three days rest in an attempt to maximize his starts before the trade deadline, though the J.P. denies it. Burnett responded well against the Yankees. Rosenthal wonders whether he would abandon his opt-out clause if his contract was extended through 2011 upon a trade. A dissenting opinion – Jon Heyman talked to one GM who does not expect Burnett to opt out.
- The D’Backs apparently do not see Raul Ibanez as much of an upgrade over Chad Tracy. However, Jack Magruder wrote Saturday that the Mariners and D’Backs had discussions on Ibanez.
- The Dodgers are still interested in Jack Wilson.
- Rosenthal says some teams are skeptical that the Pirates would offer Damaso Marte arbitration after this season. Why wouldn’t they? The Red Sox are interested in the lefty.
Odds and Ends: Resop, Myers, Gallardo, Fuentes
Today’s link collection:
- Joel Sherman says the Mets would be willing to eat some money on a contract to reduce the prospect price for a corner outfielder. He suggests names like Xavier Nady, Raul Ibanez, Randy Winn, and Adam Dunn. The salary-eating strategy would probably only help with Winn.
- The Hanshin Tigers purchased reliever Chris Resop‘s contract from the Braves.
- Ricky Bottalico says Brett Myers wants to be traded, but Myers and the Phillies denied it.
- It would be cool to see Yovani Gallardo return this year, if only to see him line up with CC Sabathia and Ben Sheets for a brief period of time. That’s three aces.
- The Yankees are still interested in Rockies closer Brian Fuentes; the Rox might be interested in Mark Melancon.
- More rumblings that the Dodger front office is confusing other teams.
- SI.com’s Jon Heyman ranks the most impactful potentially available players, raising the question of whether impactful is a word. Heyman also includes odds of each player being dealt.