Stark’s Latest: Santana, Hamilton, Snell
Ah, a new Rumblings and Grumblings from Jayson Stark. Let’s dig in.
- It sounds like the Yankees would discuss Phil Hughes and the Red Sox might part with one of Ellsbury/Lester/Buchholz to acquire Johan Santana. The acquiring team would need an extension window though. The Mets are in on Santana big-time and would have to give up Carlos Gomez and then some. If the Twins do trade Santana, they would probably hang onto Matt Garza. But otherwise Garza could be traded for a young hitter, as we’ve been hearing.
- The Fish want four 0-3 players for Miguel Cabrera, pretty much the names we’ve been tossing around here at MLBTR for a while.
- The Marlins would ask for two 0-3 guys for Dontrelle Willis, but aren’t inclined to trade him unless they’re blown away. Stark names the Mets, Mariners, and D’Backs as suitors. So think Gomez, Adam Jones, or Carlos Gonzalez.
- The Orioles and Cardinals don’t want to eat any money on Miguel Tejada and Scott Rolen, respectively. The Cards were asking for too much from the Yanks for Rolen – one of their top three young pitchers (you know the trio).
- The Reds are willing to trade Ryan Freel or Josh Hamilton to clear space for Jay Bruce.
- Ian Snell could be available. It’s not the first time his name has appeared in the rumor mill. Hell, Snell for Hamilton kind of makes sense.
Twins Willing To Trade Garza
Terry Ryan hung on to his fine corral of young pitchers, and it’s hard to find fault with that. However, new GM Bill Smith is open to dealing one of them for a high impact young hitter.
Specifically, Joe Christensen says the Twins are willing to move 24 year-old Matt Garza, who posted a 3.69 ERA this year. The price would be huge – the names the Twins have in mind are Delmon Young, B.J. Upton, and Carlos Gomez. Upton, a favorite of theirs, seems like the least available of the three. Marc Topkin agrees that a Young-Garza rumor has been floating around.
If the Twins want to make a lesser deal, teams have also been asking about Kevin Slowey and Scott Baker. But those two aren’t chopped liver, and Rocco Baldelli doesn’t seem like enough. The Padres want in on the young pitchers, but aren’t willing to give up third baseman Chase Headley.
There’s also word in Christensen’s article that the Twins haven’t heard back from Torii Hunter and Carlos Silva regarding their weak offers. A more legitimate effort will be made to re-sign Johan Santana.
Mets Rumors: A-Rod, Kim, Silva, Kuroda
Plenty of new hot stove talk involving the Mets. Let’s get into it.
- First off, there’s the fact that Omar Minaya met with Scott Boras yesterday. Minaya says he talked to Boras about all the players he represents. Besides Mr. Rodriguez, Eric Gagne, Byung-Hyun Kim, Kenny Rogers, and Kyle Lohse may be considerations for the Mets. Indeed, there is some buzz that the Mets could bring Kim in to compete for a rotation spot.
- So what about A-Rod? He’d cost the Mets a ton of money, plus the #22 overall pick in the 2008 draft. It sounds like the Mets may hear Boras out as a courtesy, and even put in an offer they feel is reasonable. That number might fall far short of what it will take, as did theirs for Daisuke Matsuzaka and Barry Zito a year ago. That said, Mets insiders aren’t afraid of the full retail price of Rodriguez.
- The top priority remains pitching. Carlos Silva, Tom Glavine, Hiroki Kuroda, and A.J. Burnett are on the radar. On the relief side, Chad Cordero and Jon Rauch could again be in the mix. The Nats’ are said to have their eye on Carlos Gomez and Mike Pelfrey. Gomez is a hot topic these days – the Twins want him too, and could offer up Matt Garza, Kevin Slowey, or Scott Baker.
More on Jason Bay to the Twins
Yesterday, Joe Nathan said his re-signing was contingent on the Twins remaining competitive. Today, Jake at Bucco Blog discusses a rumor to that fact: The Twins’ interest in Jason Bay is real and hinges on whether or not they retain Torii Hunter.
Tim breaks it down here. Hunter wants 5/75. The Twins are offering 3/45. If the they are serious about retaining him and Hunter in fact wants to stay then that discrepancy doesn’t seem insurmountable. However, if Hunter leaves…
Jason Bay had a down year (.248/.328/.420) and yet almost certain to be dealt by new Pirates GM Neil Huntington this winter. Shipping Bay is a launch pad for restructuring the Pirates’ system. Tim notes the viability of a Bay for Matt Garza deal. He’s signed for a mere $5.75MM in ’08 and an only slightly less mere $7.5MM in ’09, so the Twins would have no financial qualms if Hunter walks.
Posted by Nat Boyle
Will D’Backs Add A Starter?
There are two schools of thought regarding the young, successful Arizona club. The Arizona Republic’s Nick Piecoro seems to think Josh Byrnes will stay quiet this winter, re-signing Tony Clark and letting Randy Johnson replace Livan Hernandez. The East Valley Tribune’s Scott Bordow would rather not rely on The Big Unit, instead trading a young position player for a young starter.
Specifically, Bordow notes that Carlos Quentin and Conor Jackson could be expendable. However, injuries complicate possible trades of either player. With Quentin it’s direct – he had surgery to repair the rotator cuff and labrum of his non-throwing shoulder in October. It’s a six-month timeline for recovery, so he could be ready for Spring Training. Jackson is fine and healthy, but trading him becomes easier if Chad Tracy can prove his health. He had microfracture knee surgery and also expects to be ready in March.
Jackson seems to be the best trading chip – even if Tracy has complications, Clark wouldn’t be a terrible full-time stopgap. Jackson, who turns 26 next May, has a respectable if not spectacular .280/.362/.441 line in 310 games. He slugged .555 after the break this year. Which team has an available young starter and badly needs position players? The Giants, with Noah Lowry. I’m not sure if Lowry would impress the D’Backs, though. Plus, the teams are in the same division. The Twins also make for an interesting match, as they might be able to use Jackson in left field. The D’Backs could ask for Matt Garza or Kevin Slowey. The White Sox could use an outfielder; would one year of Jon Garland be an even swap?
Twins Interested In Jason Bay?
Bucco Blog reports that the Twins may have some interest in Pirates outfielder Jason Bay. It’s possible the Bucs would want Matt Garza in return. It would be a blockbuster introduction for Neal Huntington and Bill Smith.
It’s always hard to part with young pitching (especially with the likely departure of Johan Santana), but the Twins have needed an offensive boost for a while now. Bay is signed for 2008-09 at just $13.25MM, so the Twins can definitely squeeze him into the budget. Garza looks like at least a #3, especially in the NL Central. This seems like a trade that could benefit both teams. Thoughts?