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Casey Blake

Mets Cool On Street, Nady?

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According to David Lennon of Newsday, the Mets are searching for a shutdown reliever.  However, he says Huston Street has apparently dropped off the Mets’ radar.  Billy Wagner was able to pitch today, so maybe the need for relief will remain secondary.

Lennon adds that the Mets’ interest in Xavier Nady has cooled, but they are still in on Casey Blake and Raul Ibanez.

Stark’s Latest: Teixeira, Padilla, Sheffield, Beltre

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ESPN’s Jayson Stark has a new Rumblings and Grumblings up.  You may want to grab a glass of water or something, because this is a beast of a column.

  • If the Braves have a bad weekend and decide to trade Mark Teixeira, a deal could come together quickly.  Stark says the Braves have already touched base with the Rays, Red Sox, Dodgers, Angels and Yankees.  Where Tex fits on the Rays, I’m not sure.  Additionally, interest in Will Ohman is said to be "massive."
  • A Jorge Posada move to first base could affect the Yankees’ interest in Teixeira this winter.
  • Though Brian Fuentes has many suitors, the Rockies have actually exchanged names with only the Marlins and Yankees.  GM Dan O’Dowd has not dropped his price.  By the way, Todd Helton’s injury takes Garrett Atkins off the market.  As for Matt Holliday, many execs believe the Rockies will never trade him.
  • The Phillies are focused on a left-handed reliever, with Fuentes, Damaso Marte, George Sherrill, and Jack Taschner in the mix.
  • The Phillies were scared off by the asking prices on Holliday and Xavier Nady, and never even made an offer.  They still could acquire a lesser hitter.
  • The Pirates are inspiring much grumbling with high asking prices for Jason Bay, Nady, Marte, John Grabow, and Jack Wilson.
  • The Rangers are looking for young, controllable starting pitching.  Vicente Padilla is available, with the Tigers and Yankees showing mild interest.  Eddie Guardado and Jamey Wright are not available.
  • In pursuing Jarrod Washburn, Bronson Arroyo, and Padilla, the Yankees are demonstrating their plan to reduce the prospect price for pitching by taking on a decent-sized contract.
  • While A.J. Burnett is "eminently available," no trade talks are cooking.  The Jays apparently won’t deal him within the division.  Other Jays veterans might be available, though Roy Halladay isn’t among them.
  • The Tigers are looking for pitching and a long-term shortstop.  They’d be willing to move Gary Sheffield, though they’d have to eat salary.
  • Top Rays prospects such as Wade Davis, David Price, and Jeremy Hellickson are off-limits. Rays Index recently ran through the more likely trade candidates.
  • The Braves asked the Royals about Jose Guillen, but Dayton Moore is asking for a ton.
  • Stark says the Twins’ talks for Adrian Beltre are "far from dead."  The Twins are zeroed in on a third base upgrade.  Beltre, by the way, has the Dodgers on his no-trade list.  Joe Christensen says the Twins have found the asking price prohibitive for various third basemen.
  • The Rangers are looking for a young pitcher for Hank Blalock, who is drawing interest from the Twins, Giants, and Dodgers.  The Dodgers also like Casey Blake, who is likely to be traded somewhere.

Molony’s Latest: Francoeur, Bay, Blalock

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MLB.com’s Jim Molony has a new column up.

  • The Braves will listen to offers for Jeff Francoeur and Will Ohman, and maybe Mark Teixeira if the Braves struggle in the next week.  The Royals are said to be interested in Francoeur.  Mike Gonzalez is unavailable.
  • The Braves have scouted Jason Bay and Xavier Nady, in case they decide to become buyers.
  • The Phillies had an exec scouting the Pirates recently.  The Phils are looking for a lefty reliever.  The Phillies also may be looking at relievers on the Jays and Orioles.
  • Molony rattles off Freddy Garcia suitors: Astros, Cardinals, Phillies, Rangers, Red Sox, Royals, Tigers, Mets, White Sox and Yankees.  The Royals might be a new one.
  • At least five teams are in on Casey Blake, including the Twins.  However the Twins seem to prefer Hank Blalock.  I like the Blalock idae for the Twins.
  • Molony sees A.J. Burnett staying put.

Heyman’s Latest: Sabathia, Dunn, Blake

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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.

Will Carroll’s Latest: Blake, Mike Gonzalez, Fuentes

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Baseball Prospectus’ Will Carroll checks in with a slew of rumors.

  • Carroll believes Orioles relievers Jamie Walker and Chad Bradford would clear waivers.  Bradford isn’t striking anyone out, but he does have a 2.45 ERA by virtue of good control and tons of grounders.  He has a reasonable $3.5MM commitment for ’09.
  • Casey Blake suitors: Mets, Rays, and Twins.
  • Carroll wonders if the Rangers could send an outfielder to Atlanta for closer Mike Gonzalez.  MLB.com’s T.R. Sullivan also linked the Rangers to Gonzalez.  Gonzalez is under team control through ’09; I’d be surprised to see him traded.
  • The Marlins are "very aggressively" pursuing Rockies closer Brian Fuentes.

Tim Brown’s Latest: Peralta, McPherson, Putz

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Yahoo’s Tim Brown posted a new column this evening.

  • The Nationals got an OK return for Jon Rauch, acquiring second baseman Emilio Bonifacio.  That could set the pace for reasonable reliever prices.
  • The Indians are listening on Casey Blake, Paul Byrd, and Jamey Carroll, as you know.  Jhonny Peralta isn’t off-limits either.
  • Here’s a new name of interest for the Dodgers: Marlins minor league third baseman Dallas McPherson.  He’ll be 28 soon, and carries a .287/.400/.650 line with 32 home runs in 314 Triple A at-bats.  This could be the second time McPherson blasts 40 home runs in a minor league season.
  • The Red Sox inquired on J.J. Putz, but the Mariners say he’s not available.

Heyman’s Latest: Holliday, Teixeira, Burnett, Blake

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10:19pm: Angels GM Tony Reagins laughed at Charley Walters’ Teixeira rumor, blaming it on…"those bloggers."

11:16am: The latest from SI.com’s Jon Heyman.

  • The Rockies and Braves will wait until right before the July 31st deadline to decide whether to trade Matt Holliday and Mark Teixeira.  The Rox have been more active calling around about Holliday, though.  Heyman notes that Rockies GM Dan O’Dowd has spoken to the Mets, Angels, Phillies, and other teams about him.  The Rockies are seven games out, while the Braves are six back.
  • The Braves are reportedly making a list of trading partners for Tex, including the Red Sox, Angels, Rays, and D’Backs.
  • Charley Walters has a rumor: Teixeira to the Angels for Robb Quinlan and Brandon Wood.
  • The Yankees haven’t even considered signing Barry Bonds, despite the Hideki Matsui injury.
  • Heyman spoke to a "Yankees person" who is fearful of A.J. Burnett’s contract.  I could see an acquiring team pushing for more certainty by buying out or guaranteeing the contract.
  • Heyman considers Manny Ramirez’s $20MM option for ’09 a bargain.  For me, it’s not nearly as clear-cut.
  • Omar Minaya is "especially" a fan of Cleveland’s Casey Blake.  He would be a great fit for the Mets.
  • Heyman is still hearing the rumor about the Mariners trying to lure Pat Gillick for an upper management position next year.

Rosenthal’s Latest: Fuentes, Sherrill, Nady, Kemp, Guthrie

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New Rosenthal.  Let’s take a look.

  • Rosenthal says the Marlins are in on Brian Fuentes and other top relievers, and they’re more focused on bullpen help than a catcher.  The Marlins’ interest in Fuentes was first reported by the Denver Post’s Troy E. Renck on July 9th.
  • Sources tell Rosenthal that the Brewers aren’t likely to pay up for a top reliever like George Sherrill.  Rosenthal considers the Angels the best fit for Sherrill, but doesn’t say whether they’re actually interested.
  • The Braves probably won’t discuss Tim Hudson; they’ll need him for next year.
  • Rosenthal wonders whether the Phillies will entertain trades for Brett Myers in the offseason.
  • The Phillies inquired on some interesting hitters: Matt Holliday, Xavier Nady, and Matt Kemp.
  • The Rockies asked the Orioles about Jeremy Guthrie, but he’s not available.
  • The Mets may not consider Casey Blake even of a difference-maker, though Blake is popular on the trade market.  The Rays are one team looking at him.

Dodgers Sign Ozuna, Look To Stay Active

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Ken Gurnick from MLB.com writes that the Dodgers signed veteran utility player Pablo Ozuna today. The White Sox designated Ozuna for assignment on July 8 to make room for Paul Konerko when he returned from the DL. He elected to become a free agent after clearing waivers. Ozuna had posted a mediocre line of .281/.313/.328 in 69 plate appearances for the White Sox this year.

Luis Maza was designated for assignment to make room for Ozuna, Gurnick writes. Maza was called up as a quick shortstop fix earlier in the year, but had posted an abysmal .228/.278/.282 line through 79 ABs with the Dodgers.

Manager Joe Torre refers to Ozuna as a "safety net" at three positions, and also expects the Dodgers to continue to be active over the next 10 days:

"I know Ned [Colletti, general manager] is on the phone, trying to make our club better," Torre said. "Chances are, we’ll be active. Having said that, we’re trying."

Gurnick mentions that the Dodgers are hesitating to bring pinch-hitting specialist Mark Sweeney off the DL, perhaps signaling that an additional move is near on the horizon. General Manager Ned Coletti said that with shortstop options limited in Rafael Furcal’s absence, his desire to acquire a run-producing third baseman would intensify.

Personal speculation: Adrian Beltre is available, and the Twins look to have thrown in the towel on their attempt to acquire him, but the asking price there is quite high. Minnesota could still offer competition to the Dodgers in an attempt to acquire a third baseman. Here’s a look at the third base market.

Casey Blake’s name has been tossed around with the Dodgers. Hank Blalock could be another option, if he can remain healthy and return to his old self. His great run from 2003-2005 seems like a long time ago at this point, but a turnaround would be a tremendous boost to the Dodgers’ lineup.

Rosenthal’s Latest: Fuentes, Holliday, Sherrill

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Ken Rosenthal tops off the day with a column full of rumors.

  • Signing Mark Teixeira as a replacement for Manny Ramirez doesn’t make sense for the Red Sox, who don’t want to take on that kind of mega-contract.
  • The Phillies were recently working on a blockbuster with Colorado that would have netted them Brian Fuentes and Matt Holliday for something like Shane Victorino, J.A. Happ, Carlos Carrasco, and Lou Marson.  Those talks have stalled, and the added payroll might’ve been a problem for the Phillies anyway.
  • Though Frank McCourt denies it, Rosenthal says the Dodgers owned vetoed a CC Sabathia/Casey Blake/Jamey Carroll blockbuster because of a desire to keep trades payroll-neutral.
  • The Rockies, as well as the many suitors for Brian Fuentes, fear he could accept an offer of arbitration and saddle them with an $8MM salary in ’09 instead of two draft picks.  Given Fuentes’ stated desire to close, I find this unlikely.
  • A Pirates scout watched David Price’s last start, though he was likely looking at other members of the Montgomery Biscuits.  The Rays are known to be interested in Xavier Nady.
  • The A’s, stacked with second base candidates, are already getting calls on Adrian Cardenas.  Trading Mark Ellis would make more sense though.
  • Rosenthal believes the Orioles are reluctant to trade George Sherrill because they don’t have a suitable replacement for him in the ninth inning this year.
  • Brewers minor league shortstop Alcides Escobar is untouchable, and his ascent could lead the team to shop J.J. Hardy this winter.
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