Cardinals get Wells, Kennedy
The Cards finally made their first moves: they signed Adam Kennedy, brought in Kip Wells, resigned Gary Bennett, and gave Eli Marrero a minor-league deal. No monetary details, but Bernie Miklasz guesses $15M for three years, while Rosenthal thinks it’s three years for $10M.
With Kennedy, Bennett, Scott Spiezio, and Jim Edmonds on board for 2007, the Cardinals appear to have their position players mostly set. They’ll probably still add an outfielder, but that would seem to be a low priority. Wells is a nice addition to fill out the rotation, but even counting on Adam Wainwright in the rotation, that leaves one more hole to fill. My money’s on Jeff Weaver coming back, but surely Walt Jocketty is exploring plenty of options, including some via trade.
By Jeff Sackmann
Cardinals Tidbits
Several good items from Bernie Miklasz of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch:
- Scott Spiezio is resigned to a 2-year deal.
- Jocketty’s focus seems to be on pitching at the moment: talking about Vincente Padilla, Adam Eaton, and Kip Wells, and trying to bring Jeff Weaver back.
- Also looking for a Mark Mulder-like rotation filler–a nice thought, but I would think that a pre-FA starter would be incredibly pricey in this market.
- Luis Gonzalez and Julio Lugo are unlikely.
By Jeff Sackmann
Rosenthal: Kip Wells To Texas
Though the Red Sox seemed close, Ken Rosenthal now reports that the Rangers have acquired righty Kip Wells from the Pirates. Guess Jon Daniels stepped in with something better than Abe Alvarez.
UPDATE: The Pirates snagged 22 year-old reliever Jesse Chavez in the deal. Chavez just got promoted to Triple A.
Edes: Red Sox Inquire On Kip Wells
Check out Gordon Edes’s latest blog posting for the Boston Globe. Through a Pirates source, Edes has learned that the Red Sox are discussing a trade for starter Kip Wells. Wells has been decent with a 3.16 ERA this month. He shut down the Giants last time out.
UPDATE: ESPN’s Amy Nelson says this one is on the verge of getting done. Also, word via Sons of Sam Horn is that this deal could be for Abe Alvarez.
Pirates Trade Rumors
Let’s run down all the possible trades Dave Littlefield and the Pirates have brewing.
The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review still has Oakland as the favorite for Sean Casey, a move that makes little sense to me.
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette mentions a possible swap of John Grabow for Ryan Shealy. That sounds reasonable.
Dejan Kovacevic’s article also indicates that the Mets and Yankees are leading the charge for Kip Wells. The Yankees also want Craig Wilson and Roberto Hernandez. Wilson and Wells seem unlikely at this point, though, as the Abreu deal looks close.