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Odds & Ends: Halladay, Rays, Indians, Rockies, Draft

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With another round of deals today, we're reminded that the trade deadline is just three weeks away. Here's some evening linkage…

  • Joe Haggerty rounds up Peter Gammons' weekly appearance on ESPN Radio's Mike & Mike this morning. Among many other topics, Gammons touched on Roy Halladay, saying that he believes "there’s about a 20 percent chance that Halladay gets traded."
  • MLB.com's Zach Schonbrun writes that Rays owner Stuart Sternberg says the team is unlikely to cut payroll during the season, assuming they stay in the hunt of course.
  • The Indians aren't so lucky. Paul Hoynes of The Cleveland Plain Dealer says that when "it comes to setting next year's payroll, the Indians are going to be looking to cut corners because of the economy." He mentions Rafael Betancourt and Kelly Shoppach as candidates to be moved because of their salaries.
  • The Denver Post's Troy Renck says the Rockies are unlikely to move Ryan Spilborghs and "aren't in a hurry" to trade Garrett Atkins.
  • Team president Frank Coonelly refuted a report saying that the Pirates had "essentially completed a deal" with fourth round pick Zack Dodson, according to Dejan Kovacevic.
  • Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com reports that the Orioles have signed four more draft picks.

The Jason Bay Trade Revisited

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Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsbugh Post-Gazette recounts the details of the deadline deal that sent Jason Bay to Boston, specifically the final 7 minutes that reshaped the future of the Pirates organization. It's a really interesting read for any rumor-enthusiasts. Some points of interest:

  • According to Kovacevic, before finally dealing Bay at the buzzer, Pittsburgh had been working on dealing Bay for over a year and a half.
  • Before the 2008 season, the Bucs had come close to dealing Bay and catcher Ronny Paulino to Cleveland for Cliff Lee, Franklin Guttierez, and Kelly Shoppach. The Pirates did not feel it was enough and killed it.
  • Just 20 minutes before the 4p.m. deadline, Kovacevic says the Braves and Rays were considered the primary trading partners, particularly the "prospect-rich Rays." But with only 15 minutes left, "the Pirates called each [team] to insist upon a specific prospect package and summarily were rejected," writes Kovacevic.

The Rays Index takes a look at this article from a Tampa Bay perspective.

Rangers Could Still Trade Another Catcher

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3:58pm: Both Peter Gammons and Ken Rosenthal are saying the Rangers could still trade another catcher (for a young starter).  Gammons cites Salty specifically.

10:48am: WEEI’s Alex Speier takes a look at the market for catching.

  • Dodgers GM Ned Colletti is on record saying he’s "probably not" interested in Jason Varitek.
  • The Red Sox, Reds, Marlins, and Astros continue to hunt for catching.
  • Speier talked to an official who believes the Rangers would have to be overwhelmed to trade a second catcher.  Keeping in mind that Max Ramirez may have to move out from behind the plate, it may make sense to just let Jarrod Saltalamacchia and Taylor Teagarden compete for the job.
  • The Red Sox have talked to the Indians about Kelly Shoppach; the Reds like him as well.  The Indians would want a big league second baseman, third baseman, or closer back for Shoppach.  The Indians have not entertained offers for Victor Martinez.
  • The D’Backs would like a second baseman or pitching for Miguel Montero or Chris Snyder.

Looking Beyond Varitek

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According to Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald, a slew of catchers are being shopped to the Red Sox.  Among them: Jeff Mathis, Mike Napoli, Brian Schneider, Miguel Montero, John Buck, Ramon Hernandez, Bengie Molina, Carlos Santana, Kelly Shoppach, Victor Martinez, Jesus Flores, Kenji Johjima, Jeff Clement, Yorvit Torrealba, and the Rangers’ guys.  Silverman says the Braves, Cardinals, and Rays also have catchers available.  It seems that teams are asking for players like Justin Masterson, Clay Buchholz, or Lars Anderson in some cases.

On the Jason Varitek front, Scott Boras told the AP yesterday that he’s had no financial discussions with the Red Sox.  He expects the matter to be discussed after Thanksgiving.  Curt Schilling commented last week about Varitek possibly playing fewer games in 2009, but Boras shot down the idea of a reduced role.

Indians Rumors: Shoppach, Roberts, Street

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Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer discusses the Indians’ offseason needs.

  • With Victor Martinez, Kelly Shoppach, Carlos Santana, and others, the Indians have a surplus of catching (and mad guitar skills).  The Red Sox, Marlins, Reds, and Tigers are known to be in the market, so maybe the Indians can deal a catcher to fill another need.  Those other needs: an infielder, a late inning reliever, and a starter.
  • Hoynes believes the Indians will fall short of meeting the demands of free agents Francisco Rodriguez, Brian Fuentes, and Rafael Furcal.
  • Hoynes implies the asking price for one year of Brian Roberts is Fausto Carmona and Asdrubal Cabrera.  That won’t work for the Tribe; they are looking to add a starter.  They might have the same problem if they try to acquire Garrett Atkins.
  • As we’ve heard, the Indians are in on Huston Street.
  • Hoynes tosses out a couple of possible free agent bargains that may come with the necessary price break: Joe Crede and Jason Isringhausen.

Cafardo Rumors: Wigginton, Ibanez, Rodney

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A few rumors we missed from Nick Cafardo’s Sunday column…

  • The Indians would want a young closer type in return for catcher Kelly Shoppach.
  • The Tribe has Houston’s Ty Wigginton on the radar as a third base possibility.  But then who would play third for the Astros?
  • The Yankees have been calling around aggressively, even inquiring on Roy Oswalt and Lance Berkman.  They’re not available.
  • The Mets are said to be eyeing Raul Ibanez for left field.
  • The Tigers are dangling setup man Fernando Rodney, hoping to acquire a better closer.  Jon Paul Morosi believes the Tigers might aim for a reliever they control for a year or two, as their in-house options should be ready by 2010.
  • A conflict might arise with the Angels hoping to sign Mark Teixeira quickly while Scott Boras plans to let the market develop.

Odds and Ends: Indians, Rays, Jays

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Time to cobble together today’s links.

Rosenthal’s Latest: Giles, Dodgers, Indians, Fielder

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Ken Rosenthal has a new Full Count video up over at FOX Sports. Here’s the highlights:

  • The Red Sox wanted to use Brian Giles in right field against certain right-handers, and shift J.D. Drew over to center field for those games. Giles blocked the trade for family reasons, according to Rosenthal, despite the chance at an increased pay day and an opportunity to play in the postseason.
  • Rosenthal says that while the Dodgers are under pressure to re-sign Manny Ramirez, there may be more pressure to sign Casey Blake after this season. Rosenthal points out that Blake is batting .333 in his first 16 games in Dodger blue, and the Dodgers traded away their best young third baseman in Andy LaRoche in order to get Manny. The Dodgers aren’t sold on Blake DeWitt as a long-term option.
  • Rosenthal feels that the Brewers are now less likely to shop Prince Fielder in the offseason, though he points out they could fetch quite a nice haul of Major-League-ready talent if they shopped Fielder as an alternative to Mark Teixeira. Rosenthal feels that J.J. Hardy is a much better bet to be shopped though, as Alcides Escobar could be used to replace him in 2009.
  • Rosenthal wonders if, given Kelly Shoppach’s emergence, the Indians could try to trade him for a top-end starter. Rosenthal offers two scenarios for Cleveland: Trade Shoppach and sign Jason Giambi, or keep Shoppach, sign Orlando Hudson, move Victor Martinez to first base. Both scenarios have the same goal of adding offense and allowing Matt LaPorta to remain in the outfield.

Pirates Pulled Out Of Bay To Cleveland Deal

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Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette has some new information for us regarding an aborted Jason Bay deal.  Kovacevic says the Bucs made a decision through the entire chain of command that Franklin Gutierrez, Kelly Shoppach, Cliff Lee, and a minor league pitcher wasn’t enough for Bay and Ronny Paulino.

This situation has been confusing to follow from the start, with plenty of conflicting information floating about.  For instance, the Cleveland Plain Dealer’s Paul Hoynes said on Wednesday that Lee and Shoppach were never involved in these talks – the Bucs wanted three to five of the Indians’ top prospects.  Before that there was that whole business about whether talks had occurred at the Winter Meetings and been revived.

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