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Lastings Milledge

Mets and Devil Rays

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Ryan McConnell of the New Jersey Star-Ledger posted a run-down of Mets’ rumors, mostly old hat by now.  Items of note:

  • The Mets are being asked too much for both Chad Cordero and Octavio Dotel, causing them to take another look at Eric Gagne.  They are also looking at Matt Thornton (White Sox), Shawn Chacon (Pirates), Chad Bradford (Orioles) and Jon Rauch (Nationals).  I think they should go for Chad Bradford, silly contract be damned.
  • We’ve all heard about second base possibilities in Mark Grudzielanek, Mark Loretta and Luis Castillo.  I think that of these candidates, Grudzielanek is the best defender, while Castillo is the best offensive player, even though Loretta is putting up better numbers this year.  All three will be free agents this off-season, with the exception of Grudzielanek if he earns the $4M player option for 2008 which vests with 500 plate appearances, a slim possibility.  Castillo is the youngest player and the best choice for the Mets, if they can get him.  He’s likely be a Type A free agent if the Mets let him go; if they don’t, he could be their 2008 second baseman.  All in all, though, I’d prefer the Mets stick with Damion Easley and Rubén Gotay.
  • Now the kicker.  This is what makes trade deadlines fun (and painful).  From McConnell:

And, finally, the hot, completely unsubstantiated rumor floating around my workplace was that the Mets and D-Rays were discussing a Lastings Milledge and "a Minor League pitcher" (probably Pelfrey, maybe Humber) for Carl Crawford. It didn’t pass my smell test — I’d think Tampa would command a lot more for their stud outfielder — but it’s fun to think about regardless. Plus, for what it’s worth, a Met scout was spotted at Tropicana Field last week.

It doesn’t pass my smell test either, but it’s still fun to think about, unless you’re convinced that Lastings Milledge is the next Gary Sheffield, like I am.

John Peterson writes for the Met-blog Blastings! Thrilledge.

Rosenthal’s Latest: Nats After Dunn

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Ken Rosenthal’s got a new column up; let’s dive in.

  • Fun new rumor: the Nationals are pursuing Adam Dunn.  Huh?  Makes no sense on the surface.  Jim Bowden’s possible motivation would be to sign Dunn long-term and make him the cornerstone of the franchise.  If he fails at that, all would not be lost given the draft pick compensation.  Rosenthal says the market for Dunn beyond Washington is a bit foggy – the Twins, Angels, Yankees, Red Sox, and Padres could all get involved but none stand out.
  • Rosenthal adds some color to my recent Nationals post.  He mentions that Ron Belliard is a name that might interest the Mets, an idea that has come up before.  Rosenthal says the Mets will not do a Lastings Milledge for Chad Cordero trade.
  • The Dodgers have jumped to the forefront on Octavio Dotel, with Takashi Saito ailing.  According to Rosenthal, the Royals aren’t demanding the very specific bounty Joel Sherman claimed.  Instead, they just want a near MLB-ready player.  Rosenthal says Tony Abreu is out of reach but Chin-Lung Hu might not be.  He suggests moving Hu to second base to accomodate Tony Pena Jr., which should probably be reversed.   It appears the Indians wouldn’t surrender Franklin Gutierrez or Ben Francisco for Dotel.  I’d give one up, personally.
  • I didn’t know this: Jermaine Dye can veto a deal to four clubs.  With his solid play, interest is picking up.  As are Kenny Williams’ demands; he wants an elite prospect.  The Indians and Red Sox have inquired; the Cubs might make sense too.  I thought we had ruled out the Red Sox earlier though.
  • The Padres are looking for bench help, perhaps in the name of Ryan Klesko, Mike Piazza, Mark Loretta, or Mike Lamb.  Couple of prodigal sons there.  Would Piazza be happy as a pricey bench player?  Rosenthal says Matt Stairs isn’t available.  Why not?

Nationals Looking To Deal

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MLB.com’s Bill Ladson has the lowdown on the Washington Nationals.  They’ve got several pieces they’re looking to move.

Chad Cordero and Jon Rauch remain popular names on the market, but it still seems like Jim Bowden is holding out for something amazing.  Ladson says Bowden is asking the Mets for Lastings Milledge and Mike Pelfrey in a deal.  It is known that the Mets would move Pelfrey in a major trade (per Jayston Stark).  Pelfrey would be a great guy for the Nats to acquire; they really need some MLB-ready pitching depth.  Another name on the Nats’ radar is Double A righty Kevin Mulvey of the Mets – they were openly scouting him on Thursday.

Cordero is aware of the rumors, and will move into a setup role for another team graciously.  He hopes to stay in Washington though.

Ladson also says Ryan Church is being offered up; contenders would use him as a fourth outfielder. Church has been connected to the Cubs in the past, but I don’t think they’d go for him now.  He’s at .262/.342/.420 this year, good fourth outfielder numbers.  He’s capable of knocking 3-4 homers a month.

Finally, Ladson mentions that the Nationals recently scouting the Tigers’ Double A Erie affiliate.  The SeaWolves’ more interesting prospects include Jair Jurrjens, Dallas Trahern, and Jeff Larish.  It is known that the Nats were watching Jurrjens’ last start.     

MetsBlog On Cordero, Rauch, Milledge

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Matthew Cerrone of MetsBlog says recent buzz in Washington, D.C. has linked the Mets to relievers Chad Cordero and Jon Rauch.  He also adds that Nationals manager and former Mets’ third base coach Manny Acta is a fan of Lastings Milledge.

Milledge suffered from a sprained foot ligament for most of the season, but finally returned to the Triple A lineup on Friday. [Correction: Milledge is still on rehab and won’t return to the Triple A New Orleans club for another week or two.]  It figures that many GMs will try to pry away the 22 year-old this month.  It’s been said that Minaya wouldn’t trade him for a rental, but Cordero and Rauch are both under contract for a while.  Both relievers have strikeout rates around seven per nine innings; the Mets might prefer someone more dominant.

Has Omar Minaya ever struck a deal with Jim Bowden?  Sure.  Back in June of ’02, when Minaya was GM of the Expos and Bowden was in charge of the Reds.  Minaya sent lefty Bruce Chen to the Reds for reliever Jim Brower.

Stark’s Latest

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ESPN’s Jayson Stark has his latest Rumblings and Grumblings column up, and it’s chock full o’ rumors.

  • Stark speaks to one NL exec who thinks any Barry Bonds trade rumor is hogwash.  That source believes that there would be no market for him.  Personally, I don’t buy it.  There would only be $8MM or so left on the deal, and as a two-month DH Bonds could make a huge impact on a contender.  And he did indicate he’d waive his no-trade clause.
  • Word is that the Mets wouldn’t trade Lastings Milledge for an impending free agent – Mark Buehrle included.  Milledge could go in a Dontrelle Willis deal though.
  • The Braves are seen as a more likely suitor for Buehrle, once he’s truly made available in a week or two.  Atlanta won’t settle for a Mike Maroth type.  What would the Braves give up for Buehrle?  Kenny Williams should pry away Jarrod Saltalamacchia if he can.  Otherwise a package involving Brent Lillibridge or Brandon Jones would make sense.
  • Meanwhile, the market on Jermaine Dye seems tepid.  It would help if he was healthy and hitting.  Ah, alliteration.
  • Stark debunks the popular Ken Griffey Jr. to Atlanta rumor.  He says the Braves aren’t looking for big contract commitments and are more focused on pitching than offense.  Rightfully so.
  • The Yankees have added Scott Hatteberg to their list of first base targets.  As if they needed more OBP. 

Pressure On Mets To Trade Milledge

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In general, it seems the New York media would like to see Lastings Milledge pushed out of town.  They don’t like his cocky attitude and can’t comprehend his rap music.  He’s not seen as a humble team player.

Far more important, though, is that the 22 year-old still looks like he will be a very valuable center fielder.  I keep going back to this post from Nate Silver in January.  Milledge remains underrated, and his mild transgressions plus this year’s foot injury may only further improve the opportunity to buy low.  So he has too much swagger and said some standard stuff in a rap song?  To me those are really weak reasons to trade a top prospect for fifty or seventy-five cents on the dollar. 

Mets Still Trying For Dan Haren?

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UPDATE: Spoke to my Mets source, and he indicated that the below trade possibility could be expanded to include Michael Devaney and Santiago Castilla.

According to a Bay Area official speaking to Gotham Baseball, the Mets and A’s "are finally discussing a deal that could send right-hander Danny Haren to the Mets in return for Aaron Heilman, Lastings Milledge and a minor league pitcher."

Gotham’s source goes on to say that the A’s would prefer to put Joe Blanton in that deal instead but the Mets are holding out for Haren.  Can Omar Minaya and Billy Beane find common ground here?

Milledge-Blanton Swap?

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Ray Ratto of the San Francisco Chronicle slipped in this nugget:

"The Athletics are likely to also dispatch their winningest pitcher, Joe Blanton, to New York as part of a deal that would fetch one of Billy Beane’s longest-held desirables, outfielder Lastings Milledge."

I’m not sure if Ratto is just making this assumption based on past rumors from this winter, or if this is a brand new rumor.  But he seems fairly certain that Blanton will be dealt.  That would leave the A’s with a Haren-Loaiza-Harden-Kennedy rotation, with a fifth starter battle between Chad Gaudin, Jason Windsor, Kirk Saarloos, and the like. 

A groundballer like Blanton could be a nice fit for the Mets, whose middle infield defense was among the game’s best in 2006. 

Buehrle For Milledge?

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Here’s a new one, courtesy of Scott Merkin of MLB.com.

The White Sox could send Mark Buehrle to the Mets for Lastings Milledge.  An interesting idea, kind of the opposite of Kenny Williams’s Chris Young for Javier Vazquez deal last winter.

However, Merkin quotes Williams as desiring young pitching as the return for one of his veteran starters.  Would the Mets entertain Mike Pelfrey for Buehrle?  Just throwing it out there.

Kenny Williams has made a couple of deals with Omar Minaya in the past.  In January of 2003, the Sox sent Rocky Biddle, Orlando Hernandez, Jeff Liefer, and cash to Montreal for Bartolo Colon and Jorge Nunoz.  And in July of 2004, Williams acquired Carl Everett for Jon Rauch and Gary Majewski.

Gotham Baseball: Rockies Want Milledge?

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One oif the more interesting things I heard in this week’s follow up calls after the GM Meetings was the Colorado Rockies’ interest in Lastings Milledge. 

Though I keep hearing from those inside and outside of the team’s inner circle that Milledge is still a player they expect to blossom in New York, I can’t help but think that the Mets are focused on moving forward…without Lastings.

Another very interesting tidbit was a rumor of the Tigers and Reds talking Adam Dunn

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