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Joe Blanton

Gammons On Available Pitchers

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ESPN’s Peter Gammons names ten starting pitchers who could be available in the coming months.  We’ll try to devise a comprehensive list when we get to the position in our Trade Market series.

Gammons’ trade possibilities: Paul Byrd, Jeremy Sowers, Derek Lowe, Rich Harden, Odalis Perez, Brett Tomko, Jarrod Washburn, Zach Duke, Vicente Padilla, and Kevin Millwood.  Byrd, Lowe, Perez, and Tomko will be free agents after the season.  Sowers and Duke are the kids.  Harden is the oft-injured ace.  Washburn, Padilla, and Millwood bring burdensome contracts.

Gammons also five "unlikely, but not impossible" scenarios.  He suggests A.J. Burnett, Bartolo Colon, Joe Blanton, Greg Maddux, and Ben Sheets could be moved under the right circumstances.

Rockies Looking For Starting Pitching

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7:22pm: Walt Jocketty did not deny the Fogg-Rockies rumor when asked.  Maybe he’ll be a little more loose with the rumors than Krivsky was.

9:18am: Troy E. Renck of the Denver Post has details on the Rockies’ pursuit of starting pitching.  Their search includes some familiar names.

  • Josh Fogg seems like the most likely acquisition; he’s a DFA candidate for the Reds.  Fogg received an early one-year offer from the Rockies this winter that was later pulled back.
  • Julian Tavarez, another former Rockie, is on the radar again.  The Red Sox don’t seem to have much use for him.
  • Kevin Millwood figures to be a popular name in the coming months.  Renck says the Rangers want "the right players in return, not salary relief."  Millwood makes $8.5MM in ’08, $11MM in ’09, and $12MM in ’10 (if he reaches certain innings incentives).  He also has a limited no-trade clause.
  • Rich Harden may come off the DL soon, but he’d have to remain healthy for probably a month before teams become seriously interested.
  • Renck says Joe Blanton is "currently not available."  The A’s are the current Wild Card leader, after all.

Odds and Ends: Harden, Bonds, Ramon Hernandez

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Time to round up today’s linkage.

Rosenthal’s Latest: Reed, Aardsma, Cueto

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Rumor king Ken Rosenthal has the latest at FOXSports.com.

  • Looks like the Padres will give near-regular playing time to Jody Gerut, at least until Jim Edmonds returns.  If Gerut performs, Kevin Towers may be able to stop his outfielder search.  Still, Rosenthal notes the Padres’ interest in Seattle’s Jeremy Reed.  Reed has two options left, by the way.
  • Rosenthal names three Boston players who are out of options and probably available for little: David Aardsma, Bryan Corey, and Kyle Snyder.  The O’s are known to be eyeing Corey.  You can check out our running out of options list here.
  • The A’s wanted spring sensation/top pitching prospect Johnny Cueto from the Reds for Joe Blanton – no deal.

Odds and Ends: Jerome Williams, Linden, Lo Duca

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Below you’ll find the day’s random rumors and links.

Yankees Not Scouting Joe Blanton?

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5:05pm: Joel Sherman of the New York post says the Yankees were not watching Blanton specifically.  The scouts were just doing normal coverage.

12:22am: According to John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle, the Yankees had a scout watching Oakland starter Joe Blanton on Sunday.

Blanton, 27, saw his salary escalate to $3.7MM this year as he reached his arbitration years.  He’ll remain under team control through the 2010 season.  The projection would change if Blanton switched to pinstripes, but PECOTA sees a 4.36 ERA in 187 innings from him this year (a performance valued at $8.8MM).

The Yankees are relying on Chien-Ming Wang and Andy Pettitte to front their rotation.  They’ll round it out with Phil Hughes, Mike Mussina, and Ian Kennedy.  Joba Chamberlain is expected to join the rotation mid-summer.  I imagine the Yanks are just doing their due diligence with Blanton; a preseason trade doesn’t seem likely.

Fogg Signs With Reds

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THURSDAY, 2:20pm: It’s official – Fogg has signed with the Reds.  He’s no lock for the rotation though.

WEDNESDAY, 10:43pm: Ken Rosenthal says the Reds are just one of three teams pursuing Fogg.  The other two are unknown, but Boston is not one of them.  I wonder if these mystery teams are coming from Fogg’s agent.

7:04pm: Tracy Ringolsby of the Rocky Mountain News reports that the Reds are on the verge of a one-year deal with Josh Fogg, with a base salary of just $1MM.  Ringolsby was not able to get confirmation from Wayne Krivsky quite yet, but Krivsky isn’t one to show his hand.  Hal McCoy of the Dayton Daily News is also reporting the expected signing.

I had Fogg pegged for a $20MM deal at the beginning of the offseason.  Many have suggested that GMs are simply being smarter about free agent valuations.  I don’t think there’s collusion going on here.

The Reds now set up with Aaron Harang, Bronson Arroyo, Matt Belisle, and Fogg in the first four spots.  They could use Jeremy Affeldt as a starter, or go with one of Homer Bailey, Edinson Volquez, or Johnny Cueto.  As one MLBTR commenter pointed out, this might signal and end to the Reds’ pursuit of Joe Blanton.

Dusty Talks To Lofton, Patterson

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Cubs center fielders hit a fine .302/.344/.466 for Dusty Baker’s 2003 club, which came within five outs of a World Series appearance.  Most of the ABs at the position went to Corey Patterson and Kenny Lofton that year.

Dusty’s managing the Reds now, and both center fielders remain free agents as of February 17th.  The Reds have some uncertainty in center field, though Jay Bruce is a stud and Ryan Freel is said to be 100%.  According to John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer, Baker has spoken to both Lofton and Patterson recently.  They are options for the Reds; Baker says Lofton seeks a Major League deal. In that case someone would have to be booted off the team’s 40 man roster.  Six days ago, Ken Rosenthal reported that the Reds’ interest in Lofton might depend on who they might trade for another starter (with Joe Blanton as the main target).

The Reds currently have Kent Mercker and Paul Bako in camp as non-roster invitees; both played for Baker in ’03.

Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Joe Blanton

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After letting Barry Zito walk last year and trading Danny Haren in December, the A’s appear to be entertaining offers for Joe Blanton. While the Reds and the Dodgers appear to be the most aggressive suitors, Ken Rosenthal speculated that Blanton would be a good fit for the Twins or the Rays and Buster Olney named several other clubs that could be interested in acquiring the right-hander. Blanton, 27, is still three years from free agency, and will make $3.7MM this season. With pitchers and catchers due to report this week, let’s take a look at reactions to the Blanton rumors from the blogosphere.

  • Athletics Nation is surprised that Blanton has not been moved yet. They expect that a deal is more likely now that Johan Santana has been traded, and the free agent market is drying up.
  • Redleg Nation thinks the Reds should be willing to part with Homer Bailey or Johnny Cueto in addition to Joey Votto for a proven pitcher.
  • On the other hand, Red Reporter believes the Reds should only take Blanton if they do not have to surrender one of their top prospects.
  • Pinstripe Alley wouldn’t mind the Yankees acquiring Blanton as long as the trade does not require Joba Chamberlain or Phil Hughes. The would be willing to part with Alan Horne or Austin Jackson from the lower levels.
  • Rays Anatomy believes that Blanton is an asset that the Rays could use (an innings eater), but ultimately does not think the trade makes sense for the Rays.  They are hesitant With so many pitching prospects knocking on the Rays’ door and do not want to part with prospects such as Wade Davis, Jake McGee or Desmond Jennings.
  • Over the Monster does not see the Red Sox giving up Coco Crisp for Blanton as that would be a deviation from their plan to develop pitchers in their system. Rather, they think it is more likely that the Sox sign a free agent or move Julian Tavarez to the rotation.

By Cork Gaines

Dodgers, Reds Pursuing Blanton

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The Dodgers’ rotation stands at Brad Penny, Derek Lowe, Chad Billingsley, Hiroki Kuroda, Jason Schmidt, and Esteban Loaiza – six deep on the surface.  But Kuroda has never pitched in the Majors, Schmidt is a question mark, and Loaiza may not have much left.  More and more, it’s looking like Ned Colletti wants to add one more veteran starter.   

Troy E. Renck believes the Dodgers are after Joe Blanton, with the A’s asking for Andre Ethier, Andy LaRoche, and a prospect.  I could see this happening.  Ethier is fairly expendable, and the Dodgers have not seemed keen on LaRoche recently.  Maybe L.A. would move separately to acquire Joe Crede or even try to get Eric Chavez along with Blanton.  Renck thinks the Dodgers may be interested in Livan Hernandez as an alternative to Blanton.

He also says the Reds are "pushing hard" for Blanton, which jives with the previous info.  The Reds are still kind of shaky behind Aaron Harang and Bronson Arroyo.

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