Rosenthal On Halladay, Frasor, Rios, Bay
Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports hears that the Angels and Cardinals will have a hard time assembling a package enticing enough for the Blue Jays to part with Roy Halladay. One GM said the Angels have "zero chance" at acquiring the Jays ace. Players like Brandon Wood and Howie Kendrick have lost some of their appeal and prospect Jordan Walden finds himself on the DL for the second time this season.
- The Dodgers are interested in Halladay, Jason Frasor and George Sherrill.
- The White Sox would probably have to part with Gordon Beckham to acquire Doc.
- The Jays and White Sox haven't discussed an Alex Rios deal recently, but the White Sox have long been interested in the Jays outfielder.
- Jason Bay is close to setting a cutoff date for negotiations on an extension with the Red Sox.
Odds And Ends: Pirates, K-Rod, Jackson
Some links to peruse in between home runs…
- Here are the latest minor league transactions from Baseball America.
- CBS Sports reports that Indian pitcher Rinku Singh picked up his first win as a pro. Check out Dejan Kovacevic's article on Singh's team, the Bradenton Pirates, which has players from five continents on its roster.
- Danny Knobler of CBS Sports has a source who believes a Roy Halladay deal is more likely in the winter. It's hard to imagine Halladay's value being much higher than it is now.
- Francisco Rodriguez told Kevin Baxter of the LA Times that he enjoys baseball less than he did growing up, but realizes it's a business.
- Edwin Jackson isn't bitter about his Tampa Bay Rays tenure, according to Kevin Baxter of the LA Times.
- The AP (via the Miami Herald) reports that a number of agents are pressing the Players' association to file a collusion grievance against teams.
- John Perrotto of PiratesReport.com revisits a deal that would have sent Paul Maholm to Toronto for Alex Rios in 2005 and wonders if the Pirates and Jays could make the same deal work today.
- Click here to listen to my chat with Justin Hull on 1570 The Score this afternoon.
Trade Candidates: Outfielders
This year’s outfielders have a lot to live up to on July 31st. It was just a year ago that the Red Sox parted with Manny Ramirez and acquired Jason Bay. This time, Matt Holliday’s the big name, but there are also a few cheap, powerful players out there for teams looking to add an outfielder. Here’s your list of trade candidates, ranked from highest 2009 salary to lowest:
- Matt Holliday – At $13.5MM, Holliday's pricey, but he's a good defender with a history of batting excellence. With just seven extra base hits in the last month, Holliday's no longer perceived as a sure thing.
- Jermaine Dye - He makes $11.5MM this year and there's a mutual option with a $1MM buyout for 2010 on his deal. The White Sox want to win now though, so Dye doesn't appear to be on the block.
- Gary Matthews Jr. – The Angels would presumably pick up salary in any deal involving Matthews, as he makes $10MM this year and $23MM over the course of the next two years.
- Juan Pierre – Another overpaid outfielder in LA, Pierre makes $10MM this year and $18.5MM over the course of the next two. At least he's hitting well, with an OBP approaching .400 and a career-high slugging percentage.
- Alex Rios – He makes $5.9MM this year and has $60MM more coming his way between now and 2014. His teammate, Vernon Wells likely could not be traded.
- David Dejesus – Under contract for $3.6MM this year, he can play all three outfield positions, but his .714 OPS is ordinary.
- Mark Teahen – Makes $3.6MM as well and can play the outfield, though he's been manning third for the Royals. He has a .344 OBP and 27 extra base hits.
- Jeff Francoeur – He's struggled since last year and makes $3.4MM this season, so the suitors are not lining up for Francoeur.
- Josh Willingham – He has 10 homers for a .534 slugging percentage and he'll earn $3MM in 2009. Mike Rizzo says Adam Dunn's staying in Washington.
- Luke Scott - He makes just $2.4MM this year and won't be a free agent until after 2012, so the Orioles have a cheap, powerful asset on their hands. They have three talented outfielders already in Nolan Reimold, Nick Markakis and Adam Jones, so they could conceivably part with Scott.
- Jeremy Hermida – With good patience, some power and a $2.25MM contract, Hermida could appeal to teams in need of a bat.
- Cody Ross – Like Scott, Ross is cheap and powerful. He's slugging .505 and makes just $2.2MM this year. He's scheduled to hit free agency after 2011.
- Scott Hairston – He was just traded, but he plays solid defense and has extra base power, so Hairston, who makes $1.25MM this year, could appeal to other teams.
- Ryan Spilborghs – Apparently the Rockies would prefer to hold onto Spilborghs, who's under team control for three more years and makes just $415k this season.
The Tigers, Braves, Mets, Giants and Reds could all look for outfield bats.
Rosenthal’s Latest: Atkins, Rolen, Rios, Davis
FOXSports.com's Ken Rosenthal has a fresh column up. Let's dive in and explore some of the juicier details…
- The Red Sox and Rockies have discussed a Garrett Atkins swap, but "both teams continue to explore other options." It sounds like Boston may have sent the Rox a feeler, trying to gauge the third baseman's price tag.
- Along with ace Roy Halladay, the Blue Jays are also taking offers for outfielder Alex Rios and third baseman Scott Rolen. They both carry hefty contracts, however, so deals could be tricky.
- The Diamondbacks are seeking first-to-second round talent for Doug Davis, "which is what they will receive if they offer him arbitration and he departs as a free agent," notes Rosenthal. The Brewers have shown mild interest.
- The Rockies currently consider Ryan Spilborghs, who's hitting .351 in the month of July, too valuable to trade.
Rosenthal On Holliday, Lee, Jays
On the MLB Network, Ken Rosenthal says he wouldn't be surprised to see the Indians deal Cliff Lee. Here are the details and the rest of his rumors:
- There's a good chance Matt Holliday will be dealt, though the A's aren't shopping him now. They say they'd have to be impressed to deal him, but Rosenthal suggests this is just a more subtle way of asking for offers.
- Several GMs believe Billy Beane will trade Holliday this month.
- Rosenthal isn't sure Cliff Lee will be in Cleveland for the rest of the year. He says the Indians aren't going to sign him when he becomes a free agent after 2010, so if someone offers the young top-of-the-rotation starter the Indians are looking for, they could deal their ace.
- Victor Martinez is less likely to be dealt, as the Indians would consider keeping him after 2010, when they're expected to pick up his option.
- There's no chance Vernon Wells gets traded.
- Alex Rios, however, could appeal to some teams as a center fielder, so there's a chance he's moved.
Odds And Ends: DeRosa, Royals, Jays
The runner-up for Mark DeRosa, thoughts on the Blue Jays and a pair of discussions to listen in on…
- Hal McCoy of the Dayton Daily News says the Reds came in second in the DeRosa sweepstakes.
- Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports that DeRosa's already fitting in well with the Cards.
- The Phillies, who are scouring the league for starters, could have interest in Gil Meche and Brian Bannister so, as David Murphy of the Philadelphia Daily News reports, the Royals scouted Lou Marson and others in Triple A.
- MLB.com's Mark Bowman notes suspicion that the Braves are unhappy with Yunel Escobar's behavior.
- Jeff Blair of the Globe and Mail gets the sense that the Jays are ready to move Vernon Wells and/or Alex Rios for just about anything to free up enough money to keep Roy Halladay after next year.
- Watch my discussion with Sid Rosenberg right here. We talked about the Mets, Matt Holliday and the best pitching available.
- I will also be talking trades on SportsTalkSoup tonight at 10pm CST, so listen in.
Blue Jays To Meet With Pavano’s Agent
11:06pm: O’Connell says the Jays have significant interest in Pavano. Bastian also reports that J.P. Ricciardi did not deny that he’d listen on Alex Rios.
7:22pm: MLB.com’s Jordan Bastian reports that the Blue Jays plan to meet with Carl Pavano‘s agent Tom O’Connell this week. O’Connell plans to get together with about ten clubs at the Meetings in regard to Pavano. The Marlins and Rockies have been connected to him in the past.
Rosenthal’s Latest: Gross, Rios, Perez
The tireless Ken Rosenthal has another column up today. Not a whole ton in the way of trade rumors, but let’s see what we can salvage from the article.
- The A’s could be a team interested in trading for the Brewers’ Gabe Gross, who is the likely casualty once Mike Cameron returns from suspension. Gross can play all three outfield positions, and it’s not clear whether the A’s view him as a roving fourth outfielder, or a replacement for Emil Brown.
- Rosenthal notes that the Blue Jays are following the lead of David Eckstein, hustling like crazy to first base. This, he notes, keeps fielders on their toes and makes them more apt to commit an error. The only one not buying in, apparently, is Alex Rios. How is this significant? Well, Rios just signed a six-year, $64MM contract before this season. Not exactly the impression you want to be making.
- The Mets’ Oliver Perez one a solid year away from cashing in this winter. Young, hard-throwing lefties are always in demand. He’s on his way now, sporting a 2.49 ERA through four starts, striking out just a hair under a batter an inning. Now, if he can only find a pitching coach who can teach him to throw strikes — he has 12 walks in those innings, which is less than a 2:1 ratio.
Posted by Joe Pawlikowski, who writes for River Ave. Blues, a Yankees blog.
Blue Jays Sign Alex Rios, Aaron Hill
Surprise move by the Jays today – they inked second baseman Aaron Hill to a four-year, $12MM deal with club options for three years after that. The deal begins with the ’08 season and then covers his three arb years. Orlando Hudson, a decent comparable, got about $12.8MM for a similar slice of his career. Sounds fair, and the options are a nice bonus for the Jays.
The Jays also completed Alex Rios‘ six-year, $64MM deal. This is another fine contract for Toronto, as they get four of Rios’ free agent years at a below-market price. The Jays have a seventh year option for Rios at $13.5MM, with a $1MM buyout attached. The contract includes a complete no-trade clause for the first two years and a partial thereafter.
Rios Extension To Be Announced Today?
Baseball Digest Daily is reporting a press conference scheduled at the Rogers Centre this afternoon. The belief, from BDD and many other quarters, is that they’ll be announcing Alex Rios‘ extension. Standard PR move to wait until the home-opener.
It’s supposed to be a six-year, $65MM deal extension. It would start with the ’09 season with an option for 2015 for around $15MM. If those numbers are correct, it sounds like a smart move for Toronto.