Olney On Mets, Holliday, Snell
ESPN.com's Buster Olney says the Mets have begun discussing which hitters they want to target. Here's what Olney has heard about the Mets, along with the rest of his rumors:
- It's fair to assume the Mets would like to acquire a "big-time bat."
- Omar Minaya could pursue Nick Johnson. He already traded for him once as the GM of the Expos.
- Other players that could play first and hit: Aubrey Huff, Jorge Cantu, Mark DeRosa and Dan Uggla.
- Uggla's an outside-the-box solution, but the Mets could use his power.
- Don't assume the A's will be able to collect compensation picks for offering arbitration to Matt Holliday if they don't trade him at the deadline. Holliday's numbers have fallen off, making him more likely to accept arbitration if the A's offer it. He could make upwards of $16MM, meaning the surest way for the A's to get something back would be to deal him now.
- Olney says the Rockies don't have interest in Ian Snell. Yesterday John Perrotto suggested they could trade for him.
- Colorado will likely wait another month before deciding whether to deal Huston Street.
- The Mariners don't have to rush their deal-making either, especially since their division looks winnable.
Gammons On Street, Amezaga, Tejada
It's a fantasy baseball show, but Peter Gammons discussed the trade market on ESPN's Fantasy Focus today. Here are his latest rumors:
- The Red Sox like Ryan Spilborghs, but the Phillies and other teams are interested, too. Plus, the Rockies are looking much better under Jim Tracy, so they're not dealing yet.
- The Angels have targeted Huston Street, in case the Rockies become sellers.
- Several teams have interest in Matt Murton.
- Gammons compares Eric Young Jr. to a young Chone Figgins because of his versatility.
- Another versatile player, Alfredo Amezaga, would interest 6-8 contenders if the Marlins shopped him, but they're not about to make him available.
- The market for Miguel Tejada should be pretty good, if the Astros decide to trade him. The Red Sox could be among the interested teams. Tejada would be a good fit for the Cardinals, but Gammons doesn't see Drayton McLane allowing Ed Wade to trade a key player to their divisional rival.
Rosenthal On Yankees, Angels, Glavine
Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reports that the Yankees will eventually "target the best available late-inning relievers." Here are some names to watch and the rest of Rosenthal's rumors:
- The Yankees have already expressed interest in Huston Street.
- The Rockies, on an eight-game win streak, are just 4.5 games back in the NL Wild Card race and don't want to deal Street until closer to July 31st.
- Chad Qualls and Jose Valverde could be options for the Yankees, but both have dealt with health issues and the Yankees would have to be certain they're healthy.
- The Yankees could pursue Danys Baez.
- Angels GM Tony Reagins says other teams are calling him regularly, but there's "nothing on the horizon."
- The Angels could use help just about everywhere and they could deal from depth in the middle infield and behind the plate.
- Brandon Wood has been playing some first base in Triple A.
- Andy Sonnanstine and Jeff Niemann could be traded if the Rays don't start winning.
- The White Sox may not receive good prospects in return if they deal Jermaine Dye, since "few clubs, if any" can afford to take on his $11.5MM salary and surrender top young players in the same deal.
- Rosenthal hears that any grievance Tom Glavine files against the Braves would be out of principle; he would donate any money awarded to charity.
- Gregor Blanco could play right field for the Braves if they deal Jeff Francoeur.
- Rosenthal heard from one scout who was "decidedly unimpressed" with Doug Davis.
Stark On Rockies, Angels, Pierre
In his latest article, Jayson Stark also discusses the many Rockies and Angels thought to be available. Here are the latest rumors:
- The Phillies are "hunting quietly" for right-handed outfielders. Ryan Spilborghs is on their radar.
- One official said Dan O'Dowd would consider moving "anyone" on the Rockies.
- The Rangers are believed to be watching Huston Street closely.
- Jason Marquis could become available too, but some think the Rockies should hang on, given his success.
- The Angels seem willing to listen on Mike Napoli, Jeff Mathis and their entire infield, which consists of Kendry Morales, Howie Kendrick, Erick Aybar and Chone Figgins.
- They appear to have interest in young, high-upside pitchers, which could mean they're unsure they'll re-sign John Lackey after the season.
- The Dodgers are "sending out signals" that Juan Pierre could be available when Manny Ramirez returns. It's unclear whether the Dodgers would pick up any of the $15MM or so remaining on Pierre's contract.
- Among top starters, Erik Bedard is "most frequently connected with the Phillies," but many people around baseball doubt he would fit in Philadelphia.
- Phillies prospects Lou Marson and Michael Taylor are likely available, but J.A. Happ, Antonio Bastardo, Dominic Brown, Kyle Drabek, Jason Knapp, Jason Donald and Carlos Carrasco would be much harder to acquire.
- One scout thinks the Pirates may have acquired three future stars for Nate McLouth.
Rosenthal On Spilborghs, Peavy, Aybar
Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports hears that teams began calling the Rockies about Ryan Spilborghs last week when Carlos Gonzalez was called up. Here are the details from Rosenthal's column:
- The Phillies, Red Sox and Tigers were among the teams inquiring about Spilborghs.
- The Rockies will likely take their time fielding offers for Spilborghs and their other trade candidates. Jason Marquis, Huston Street and Brad Hawpe could all be dealt, but the Rockies aren't in a hurry to part with them.
- Rosenthal finds it hard to imagine the Padres trading Jake Peavy before the offseason unless the Cubs get permission to take on his contract or a surprise bidder emerges.
- The Angels could trade Erick Aybar for a bat or a reliever and make Brandon Wood their everyday shortstop. The Red Sox, Mets, Royals and Cardinals could use help at short.
- The A's, riding a seven game win streak, are not involved in any trade talks right now.
- The Angels would love to deal Gary Matthews Jr. for another overpaid player, but it's tough to match up bad contracts.
- The Mets made a "blunder" when they paid $36MM for Oliver Perez when they could have gone after, Randy Wolf, who's only guaranteed $5MM.
Gammons On Ackley, Red Sox, Relievers
ESPN's Peter Gammons has a new blog post up. Let's take a look.
- Gammons writes in praise of North Carolina's Dustin Ackley, who is likely to be chosen by the Mariners at #2 in June. Ackley may wind up at center field or second base.
- The Red Sox don't appear willing to trade young pitchers like Clay Buchholz, Michael Bowden, and Nick Hagadone. The Sox have looked at bats such as Colorado's Matt Murton and Ryan Spilborghs, but for now aren't desperate enough to trade pitching. Gammons wonders if, for the right bat, Boston would part with Manny Delcarmen. He believes Delcarmen could close in the NL.
- Gammons says the Mets think they could have Carlos Delgado back by August if he has hip surgery, allowing them to stay in-house for his replacements.
- The Dodgers, Indians, Yankees, and Twins are looking for relief help. Gammon names Jose Valverde, Huston Street, Danys Baez, Russ Springer, and John Grabow as future trade candidates.
Heyman On Rockies, Wedge, Strasburg
The latest from SI.com's Jon Heyman…
- Heyman says Rockies manager Clint Hurdle "appears to be on the firing line" after the team's 12-18 start. GM Dan O'Dowd called the speculation "unfair at this time," talking to Troy E. Renck of the Denver Post. O'Dowd's job seems safe and he could direct a "July tradeoff." Heyman speculates on Garrett Atkins and Huston Street as candidates. Heyman doesn't mention them, but Brad Hawpe and Jason Marquis seem like other possibilities.
- Indians manager Eric Wedge, on the other hand, does not appear likely to be fired.
- Heyman says Stephen Strasburg is still expected to aim for $50MM after the Nationals select him first overall in June.
Rockies Avoid Arb With Huston Street
According to ESPN’s Jayson Stark, the Rockies avoided arbitration with reliever Huston Street by signing him for $4.5MM for ’09. This is Street’s second arb year, so he’ll be a free agent after the 2010 season. His future contracts will be greatly affected by whether he can re-establish himself as a closer.
Mets Bullpen Rumors
The Mets signed Francisco Rodriguez yesterday, but GM Omar Minaya is not done tinkering with his bullpen. SI.com’s Jon Heyman says Matt Capps, Huston Street, and others are on the radar as setup possibilities. However, teams are asking for Jon Niese and the Mets don’t want to give him up. Heyman adds that the Mets have talked to the Mariners and Cubs about relief help as well.
Mets Bullpen Rumors: Monday
11:56pm: Rodriguez’s agent Paul Kinzer on whether the rumored two-year, $25MM offer with a third-year option is true: "Absolutely not." It will require three guaranteed years at least to sign K-Rod.
8:43pm: K-Rod gave some quotes to the media, nothing interesting.
7:14pm: Stark says the Mets finished their meet with Fuentes; Hoffman is up next. Wood is not in Vegas. Stark adds that the Mets discussed concepts but did not make a formal offer to K-Rod.
6:45pm: Sherman now says the Mets’ offer was for $25MM over two years plus a third year option.
6:03pm: Rodriguez’s agent Paul Kinzer told Sherman he’ll try to be creative with this contract. Sherman asked whether that could mean an opt-out clause, and Kinzer responded in the affirmative. Sherman says the Mets’ offer is in the range of three years, $33MM; no talk of the vesting option Heyman mentioned.
5:26pm: Jon Heyman says the Mets offered K-Rod a two-year deal worth about $12MM per with a third-year vesting option. Doesn’t sound like something he’ll jump at.
2:14pm: Joel Sherman rejects Graziano’s report. Sherman says the Mets have not talked to the Jays about B.J. Ryan.
1:39pm: Gerry Fraley learned from a team official that the Mets made a three-year offer to K-Rod, but they don’t expect him to take it immediately.
12:06pm: Joel Sherman has details on the Mets’ talks for Huston Street. Omar Minaya called the Rox a few weeks ago suggesting Aaron Heilman and Pedro Feliciano for Street. The Rockies took the weekend to think about it, but when they called back Minaya had changed his mind.
In another article, Sherman says Omar Minaya’s approach toward free agent closers is Boras-like. He believes the Mets’ offer to K-Rod last night was three years with an option.
11:16am: Jon Heyman and Ken Davidoff/David Lennon agree that the Mets are meeting with Fuentes and Hoffman shortly. And Heyman believes the Mets’ offer to K-Rod last night was for three years.
10:33am: Dan Graziano of the Newark Star-Ledger says the Mets and Blue Jays had discussions about B.J. Ryan. However, the Jays want Fernando Martinez and the Mets don’t want to trade the young outfield prospect.
7:50am: According to David Lennon of Newsday, the Omar Minaya and other Mets officials dined at a steakhouse with Francisco Rodriguez for over four hours Sunday night. Lennon believes the early presence of Mets COO Jeff Wilpon implies that negotiations with K-Rod may have reached a critical stage.
SI.com’s Jon Heyman wrote earlier yesterday evening that the Mets were expected to make an offer to Rodriguez at the meeting. Maybe three years with a vesting option.
The Mets also plan to meet with Brian Fuentes and Trevor Hoffman today, with Kerry Wood also on the radar. Ken Davidoff looks at the options and says, "It’s gotta be K-Rod." The Rangers like Wood as well, by the way.