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Barry Zito

Rosenthal On Zito, Padilla, LaRoche

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If you haven’t been at FOX Sports lately, be sure to check out Ken Rosenthal’s column.  As always, it’s chock full of rumory goodness.  A quick summary:

The Rangers are talking to both Barry Zito and Vicente Padilla.  They could top the market by giving Zito six years and $102MM and would like to get Padilla on a three-year deal.  I know Padilla could get four somewhere if he forces the issue.  For CF, Texas could pursue Jeremy Reed or Kenny Lofton.  Mike Piazza remains an option at DH, which could make Jason Botts trade bait.  No talk of the Rangers going after Julio Lugo for CF.

The Braves can’t get Mike Gonzalez for Adam LaRoche, so the teams might not have a match on a trade.

The Fish would like to acquire Rocco Baldelli, one of the finest CF options on the market.  I imagine one of Olsen, Sanchez, or Johnson would have to go.

The Phils could move Jon Lieber and bring in another starter via free agency.  Not sure what that would accomplish.

Zito, Boras Meet With Rangers

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T.R. Sullivan of MLB.com reports that Barry Zito and agent Scott Boras came to Dallas today to visit with Rangers owner Tom Hicks and GM Jon Daniels.  Zito is fond of new manager Ron Washington.

The Cubs, also in need of a big-name starter, seem focused on Jason Schmidt currently.  Rumors of their three year, $44MM offer were debunked, but Jon Heyman’s sources indicate that the Cubs are indeed trying to convince Schmidt to come to Chicago.

Brian Bannister Available?

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Word from my Mets source is that the team is in a holding pattern until Tom Glavine makes his decision.  He feels that the club will end up with either Glavine or Barry Zito and fill the other spots internally.

There is a chance Brian Bannister is traded for a solid reliever to replace Chad Bradford.  Interested parties include the Rockies and Mariners.  He mentioned the D’Backs as well, but their interest may have waned now that Doug Davis has been acquired.

Gotham on Zito, Glavine, and More

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Check out Mark Healey’s latest Rumor Mill over at Gotham Baseball.  Some highlights:

Currently Healey’s sources don’t have any indications that Barry Zito will end up in New York.  San Diego remains a possibility.

Healey mentions a Bill Shanks report for Scout.com that indicated Tom Glavine is close to returning to Atlanta for $7-8MM with an option. 

Zito Interested In Rangers?

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Add the Rangers to the list of possible destinations for Barry Zito, if Jon Daniels is interested in bidding.  We should know whether he won the Matsuzaka bid soon enough.

Zito is fond of new Rangers skipper Ron Washington, and officially added the club to his list this afternoon.  The Rangers are nearly a lock to add a top tier starter this offseason, and Zito is as good of a five or six-year bet as they’ll find.

While I have you, let me recommend Ken Rosenthal’s latest.  His most intriguing tidbit to me is the possibility of J.D. Drew opting out of his contract (he’s slated to make $33MM over the next three seasons).  I’m pretty confident Drew could beat that, but not by a huge amount. 

New York Teams Back Off On Zito

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Not what Scott Boras wanted to hear: multiple newspapers are reporting that both New York teams have minimal interest in Barry Zito.  This is the complete opposite of what we were hearing in April.  Popular speculation is that the Padres and Rangers are now the biggest horses in the race.

Some other possibilities:

Orioles – Another offseason, another promise of spending money.  Doesn’t seem like Angelos would meet Zito’s price, though he probably loves the flawless medical record.  In addition, Angelos does not like to deal with Boras.  So scratch this possibility; they’ll probably acquire a lesser starter.

Blue Jays – They’ve got money to burn and need at least one starter.  I think the Jays will at least entertain Zito but will probably miss out.

Red Sox – I don’t see him fitting into Theo’s plans, especially if Papelbon is moved to the rotation. 

Mariners – Seattle will have three vacant rotation spots this offseason assuming Gil Meche departs.  Zito could be Plan B if they miss out on or can’t afford Daisuke Matsuzaka.

Phillies – Unless that whole J.D. Drew thing still lingers for some reason, the Phillies could be a player.  They will have some vacancies in the rotation.  Still, I don’t see them coming in with the best offer.

Cubs – The Cubs could try to make a statement: fire Dusty, throw down the big bucks on Zito.  Jim Hendry doesn’t mind working with Boras at all.  This team is better primed to win in 2008, though, and needs position players the most.  For that reason I see the money going towards Carlos Lee or Alfonso Soriano.

Diamondbacks – The club has no issues with Boras, dealing with him on Stephen Drew and others.  They also have a definite need for pitching if they are to compete in the near future.  Would Josh Byrnes take on a contract like that?  Guess we’ll see.

Dodgers – If Greg Maddux returns, the Dodgers don’t have an opening.  They seem more likely to spend their money on Aramis Ramirez.

Giants – San Francisco will need to replace Jason Schmidt, but Ted Lilly seems more their speed.  And he wants to play there. 

There’s no standout player aside from the Rangers and Padres.  It wouldn’t be surprising to see the Jays, Mariners, or Cubs jump into the bidding, however. 

 

Rosenthal: Padres Will Join Zito Bidding

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According to Ken Rosenthal, the Padres will be involved in the Barry Zito sweepstakes this winter.  Other interested parties include the Mets and Dodgers.  The Padres will free up a significant amount of cash with Chan Ho Park and Ryan Klesko coming off the books.

Park is actually the one Padre who retains Scott Boras as his agent, so perhaps that will serve as a cautionary tale for Kevin Towers and Co.  Zito has actually been fairly mediocre this year:

2006 League Averages for Pitchers:
AL: 4.53 ERA, 1.41 WHIP, 3.18 BB/9, 6.41 K/9, 1.13 HR/9, 9.49 H/9
NL: 4.50 ERA, 1.41 WHIP, 3.38 BB/9, 6.64 K/9, 1.11 HR/9, 9.27 H/9

Zito:
3.79 ERA, 1.37 WHIP, 3.93 BB/9, 6.20 K/9, 1.11 HR/9, 8.41 H/9

Based on those peripherals, Zito actually deserves a 4.38 ERA according to Component ERA.  I’m not knocking Zito – there’s something to be said for that kind of consistency.  It’s just that Zito’s no ace.  He’d actually fit quite well in San Diego, where Jake Peavy can where the ace label well if healthy.  Ditto for Chicago, where Carlos Zambrano is top dog.

Gotham Baseball On The Mets

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Gotham Baseball’s Mark Healey has an update with the latest buzz surrounding the Mets.

Healey talks to various team officials and uncovers Billy Beane’s reported asking price for Barry Zito: John Maine, Carlos Gomez, and Aaron Heilman. 

If you’re not familiar with Gomez, here’s a little background.  He’s a 20 year-old CF/RF currently residing in Double A.  Gomez is holding his own with a .281/.341/.432 line so far, including a blistering July (1.096 OPS).  He’s a raw prospect and has struggled with lefties.  Baseball America seems enamored of his tools and ranked him third among Mets prospects entering the season.

Healey also notes that the Mets have put in another inquiry on Livan Hernandez, only to learn that the Nats are trying to force a Soriano-Livan package deal upon the Mets.  In searching for a positive about Hernandez’s performance this season, I did discover that he’s had 12 quality starts this year.  That’s as many as Brad Penny, Jake Peavy, or Aaron Harang.

Zito On Mets’ 40 Man Roster…Sort Of

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Just got word from a loyal emailer:

"Was driving back from a party last night around 1:20AM and WFAN in NY had callers saying that Barry Zito’s name was on the Mets roster over at Mets.com. His name was in place of Alay Soler. Sure enough, WFAN had checked it out and they confirmed that it was the case."

No, this probably isn’t an early sign that the Mets have completed a Zito for Milledge and Soler trade.  Most likely it was just a webmaster getting crazy in the way that only a webmaster can.

On the other hand, if my memory serves me correct, the person in charge of Cubs.com accidentally posted Dusty Baker as the team’s manager before his hiring was made public.  So you never know.

Latest Mets Buzz

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Haven’t heard from my Mets source in a while, but he checked in this morning with some good info.

He tells me that the Mets are not interested in trading Lastings Milledge or Aaron Heilman in a Barry Zito deal.  The Mets aren’t a team to overpay for 2-3 months of Zito given his impending free agency.  In addition, the Wilpons are sensitive about the Scott Kazmir trade (7-2, 2.39 ERA) and won’t let history repeat itself. 

On the other hand, if the Mets had to include Milledge and another top prospect (Alay Soler?) to acquire Dontrelle Willis, they’d jump at the chance.  Willis could anchor the rotation for many years in front of Mike Pelfrey.

20 year-old outfielder Carlos Gomez is a scout favorite despite his current .219/.290/.318 line at Double A so far.  The Mets love the kid, but he could be had if it meant acquiring an ace-caliber pitcher like Jason Schmidt without parting with Milledge. 

Anderson Hernandez, Michael Abreu, Evan Maclane, Heath Bell, and Victor Diaz are all readily available trading chips if the Mets decide not to shoot for the stars. 

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