Dodgers Acquire Lilly, Theriot For DeWitt
The Dodgers acquired veteran lefty Ted Lilly, infielder Ryan Theriot, and $2.5MM from the Cubs for second baseman Blake DeWitt and minor league pitchers Brett Wallach and Kyle Smit today. Lilly has $4.24MM remaining on his contract, while Theriot has $918K. The Cubs are picking up about half of the tab on the players they're sending.
Lilly set himself apart from the many brutal pitching signings made in the 2006-07 offseason by making 113 starts for the Cubs with a 3.70 ERA, 7.6 K/9, and 2.3 BB/9 over the four-year deal. Though he began this season on the disabled list due to November shoulder surgery, Lilly sports similar numbers in 2010. He serves as proof that velocity isn't everything, with the sixth-slowest average fastball velocity in baseball at 86.1 mph. Lilly currently projects as a Type A free agent, though the Dodgers' recent history suggests they will not offer him arbitration and therefore will not receive draft pick compensation if he signs elsewhere.
Theriot, 30, has a .284/.320/.327 line on the season. He'd been the Cubs' starting shortstop for a few years, but moved to second base when they promoted Starlin Castro in May. Theriot's walk rate reached 11.0% in 2008, but is down to 4.6% this year. He's under team control through 2012, if the Dodgers want to tender a contract two more times.
DeWitt, 25 next month, is having a better season than Theriot at .270/.352/.371. He's under team control through 2014, so the Cubs acquired a long-term asset for second base. Baseball Prospectus' Kevin Goldstein calls his the "prettiest swing you'll see never turned into results," calling DeWitt a "constant source of disappointment" for the Dodgers.
Wallach, son of former big leaguer Tim, was a third-round pick of the Dodgers last year. Baseball America ranked him 20th among Dodgers prospects heading into the season, saying he could blossom into a No. 3 in time. He's currently in Low A. Smit, a reliever, spent most of this year in High A ball where he posted a 2.49 ERA, 8.2 K/9, and 1.8 BB/9 in 50.6 innings. He's now in Double A.
Jayson Stark, Ken Rosenthal, Joel Sherman, and Tim Brown reported on the trade as it developed.
Dodgers Acquire Lilly, Theriot For DeWitt
1:15pm: Stark tweets that the pitching prospects going to the Cubs are Brett Wallach and Kyle Smit.
1:09pm: The Cubs will get DeWitt and two minor league pitchers for Lilly, Theriot, and $2.5MM tweets Yahoo's Tim Brown.
1:03pm: Lilly and Theriot for DeWitt is done, tweets Joel Sherman of the New York Post.
12:53pm: Stark tweets that the Dodgers and Cubs are on the verge of a deal that would send Lilly and Theriot to L.A. Dylan Hernandez of the L.A. Times agrees.
12:34pm: Blake DeWitt and at least one other player would go to the Cubs as part of a Lilly-Theriot deal if the sides can reach an agreement, tweets Rosenthal. The inclusion of Theriot will seal the deal from the Cubs' point of view, tweets Chris De Luca of the Chicago Sun-Times. Lilly doesn't appear to have many suitors aside from the Dodgers.
11:39am: The latest on Cubs southpaw Ted Lilly…
- The Cubs are likely to send Lilly and Ryan Theriot to the Dodgers, tweets ESPN's Jayson Stark.
- The Dodgers are growing more optimistic about acquiring Lilly, tweets Yahoo's Tim Brown.
- The Yankees are not pursuing Lilly, tweets ESPN's Buster Olney, unless the Cubs "put him on a platter and give him away."
- The Dodgers, Twins, Tigers, and Yankees have varying degrees of interest in Lilly, reports Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. A deal with the Dodgers seemed fairly close last night.
Dodgers, Cubs Discussing Ted Lilly Deal
12:29am: The Cubs are sitting on multiple proposals for Lilly, tweets Rosenthal. The Dodgers are in the mix, but the two sides are still apart on money and players. He adds that the Dodgers find themselves in a similar position with the Pirates' Paul Maholm.
11:49pm: It's unlikely that the two sides get a deal done tonight, but talks are moving in a "positive" direction, a source tells Jayson Stark of ESPN (via Twitter).
10:53pm: The Dodgers and Cubs are closing in on a deal, according to ESPN.com's Buster Olney (via Twitter).
10:37pm: The Cubs are discussing two possible scenarios with the Dodgers, according to ESPNLosAngeles.com's Tony Jackson. One would send Lilly to LA and the other would send Lilly to LA along with teammate Ryan Theriot. FOX Sports reported early this morning that the Dodgers could acquire Theriot. ESPN.com's Jayson Stark confirms that the Yankees are in on Lilly and notes that they also inquired on Theriot (Twitter link).
10:21pm: The Cubs continue discussing Lilly with the Yankees and Dodgers, according to Ed Price of AOL FanHouse (Twitter link).
9:49pm: The only thing preventing the Cubs from sending Lilly to the Dodgers is money, according to ESPN.com's Jayson Stark (via Twitter). The clubs can't agree on how much money the Cubs would take on, but it could be enough to prevent a deal from happening.
8:59pm: The Yankees are still in on Lilly, according to Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times (Twitter link). The Padres had discussions about Lilly, but nothing is imminent, according to Dan Hayes of the North County Times (Twitter link).
8:24pm: The Dodgers remain active on Lilly and seem intent on acquiring him or Pirates lefty Paul Maholm, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (Twitter link). Click here for the latest on Maholm.
3:18pm: The Reds have a "remote" chance of obtaining Lilly, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports (Twitter links). The clubs haven't spoken in recent days, but the Reds are not on Lilly's no-trade list.
2:10pm: The Tigers still aren't out on Lilly, reports ESPN's Jayson Stark. He adds that a mystery team is in the mix. Hard to pin down a reasonable match, with the Padres not interested.
Rosenthal tweets that the Dodgers are more inclined to get Lilly without Theriot.
2:05pm: The Dodgers are talking to the Cubs about a multiplayer deal that would include Lilly and a position player, tweets Dylan Hernandez of the L.A. Times. Hernandez does not believe Theriot would be the position player. By the way, Tom Krasovic of AOL FanHouse tweets that the Padres are not a fit for Lilly.
11:58am: The Dodgers are waiting for Lilly's cost to come down, tweets Yahoo's Tim Brown. He notes that they're also monitoring Paul Maholm and Jason Frasor. The Pirates are willing to move a starting pitcher for the right price, GM Neal Huntington told Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
7:10am: The Dodgers and Cubs are discussing a trade that could send Ted Lilly and Ryan Theriot to Los Angeles, report Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. They say it's not known whether a deal is close. The Cubs would need to kick in cash – Lilly has $4.3MM remaining and Theriot has $933K.
Theriot received a $2.6MM salary for 2010 after losing an arbitration case to the Cubs in February. He's under team control through 2012; the FOX writers see him taking over at second base for the Dodgers. It doesn't seem to be the strongest need for them, with Blake DeWitt currently outperforming Theriot and Jamey Carroll and Ronnie Belliard also on the roster.
There aren't a ton of great matches for Lilly at this point, as action with the Tigers, Twins, and Mets has cooled and the Phillies are out of the mix. I wonder if we'll hear anything about the Cardinals and Padres looking at the lefty.
Morosi On Giants, Downs, Myers, Tigers
Let's check out the latest updates from Jon Paul Morosi at FOX Sports….
- The Giants continue to search for a left-handed reliever, with Jeremy Affeldt and Dan Runzler injured. While we've heard the club had been eyeing lefties such as Will Ohman and Scott Downs, Morosi indicates that, like every other team that has inquired on Downs, the Giants weren't enthused by Toronto's asking price. CSNBayArea.com's Mychael Urban (via Twitter) reports that the Giants are "working hard" to complete a trade tonight, though there's no indication of whether it would be for bullpen help or another piece.
- Starters like Ted Lilly and Brett Myers appear unlikely to be traded to Minnesota. The Twins would need to overpay to pry Myers away from the Astros.
- The Tigers aren't looking to make a blockbuster deal, but could still make minor moves to upgrade their roster. The club doesn't want to "overexpose" their young players, which played a part in their acquisition of Jhonny Peralta. A bullpen addition is still a possibility for the Tigers, who were scouting the Blue Jays on Wednesday night.
Ted Lilly Rumors: Thursday
The latest on Cubs lefty Ted Lilly…
- The Tigers are not pursuing Lilly, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports.
- The Twins, who are on Lilly's no-trade list, are unlikely to acquire him, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports (on Twitter).
- The Mets are still engaging the Cubs about Lilly, according to Newsday's Ken Davidoff, who suggests a deal is unlikely (Twitter link). The Mets don't want to trade Josh Thole for Lilly, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (Twitter link).
- A Mets official told Joel Sherman of the New York Post it's "very doubtful" they acquire Lilly. The Mets do not want to take on most to all of the $4.37MM left on Lilly's contract and give up prospects too. As for Brett Myers, the Astros are "almost completely unwilling to engage in serious discussions." Sherman says the Mets might wait until August to acquire a pitcher.
- Yesterday we learned that the Dodgers and Twins are still in on Lilly.
Ted Lilly Rumors: Wednesday
Ted Lilly may have made his last start as a Cub last night, tossing five-plus shutout innings in Houston while lowering his ERA to 3.69. The latest on the lefty up top:
- The Dodgers are more focused on Lilly and Paul Maholm than Roy Oswalt, according to ESPN.com's Jayson Stark.
- The market for Lilly has picked up, according to Stark (on Twitter). The Tigers are involved, and so are the Dodgers, Twins and Phillies.
- The Phillies have inquired on Lilly, according to Rosenthal (on Twitter). Ed Price of AOL FanHouse hears rumblings about a possible Lilly-J.A. Happ deal (Twitter link). However, Stark hears that the Phils, who are on the lefty's no-trade list, won't deal Happ for Lilly. The Twins and Dodgers remain involved, but the Mets are waiting to hear "from above" before pursuing Lilly more aggressively, according to Rosenthal.
- The Cubs have indicated a recent willingness to assume some of the $4.43MM owed to Lilly, reports ESPN's Jayson Stark. That'd help the chances of a Dodgers deal. Unfortunately for the Cubs, potential Lilly suitors like the Mets and Tigers may be reassessing their chances.
- The Twins have asked about Lilly, reports Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports, but their presence on his no-trade list means he'd require additional compensation to accept a deal.
Stark On Werth, Willingham, Cantu, Theriot
Phillies outfielder Jayson Werth told ESPN's Jayson Stark he's "not up late reading the blog sites" regarding trade rumors, but he doesn't expect to be dealt. Stark agrees, though he notes that the Phillies did toss Werth's name out there to many teams. On to Stark's other rumors…
- The Dodgers are looking at Ted Lilly, but they haven't completely abandoned the idea of acquiring Roy Oswalt. Still, the impediments to an Oswalt deal remain significant. Lilly appears certain to be traded.
- Josh Willingham is drawing interest from the Braves, Rays, and Red Sox. Adam Dunn remains a trade candidate as well, but the Nationals would only deal one of the two.
- Money might be holding up a Jorge Cantu-Rangers deal, as the Rangers can't add any payroll and would want the Marlins to pick up the entire $2.25MM tab.
- The Padres have been linked to infielders Ryan Theriot and Jeff Keppinger, as outfield targets such as David DeJesus, Corey Hart, and Jayson Werth drop out of the picture for various reasons.
- Don't look for anything major from the Red Sox outside of some bullpen tweaking. They will prowl the waiver wire in August, though.
Yankees Rumors: Soria, Dunn, Lilly
11:23am: The Yankees dangled Jesus Montero in talks for Joakim Soria, reports ESPN's Jayson Stark, but the Royals weren't interested.
7:31am: SI's Jon Heyman dished Yankees rumors in yesterday's column…
- The Yankees "made a big proposal" for Soria. With three club options, the 26-year-old righty is under team control through 2014. Had Soria not signed a team-friendly extension in May of 2008, he'd be eligible for free agency after the 2012 season. The only blemish on his record was missing most of May last year with a sore shoulder. How do the Yankees and Royals match up? You'd expect Dayton Moore to pursue Montero or Austin Romine, though the Royals already have Billy Butler and Wil Myers in the organization.
- Heyman notes that the Yankees "have been in touch" with the Nationals about Adam Dunn, but "so far found the price prohibitive." With six days until the trade deadline, will Mike Rizzo drop the price on Dunn? Heyman also links the Yankees to familiar names Ty Wigginton, Jhonny Peralta, and Cody Ross.
- Heyman doesn't see the Yankees going after Roy Oswalt, but tweets that they like Ted Lilly. Teams like the Cubs and Astros have to hope the Diamondbacks' unimpressive return for Dan Haren doesn't have a ripple effect on their available starters.
- Heyman tweets that the Yankees' offer for Haren consisted of righties Ivan Nova and Zach McAllister plus one or two prospects. Baseball America viewed Nova and McAllister as future No. 4 types heading into the season.
Odds & Ends: Reds, Happ, Edmonds, Rangers, Tigers
Links for Sunday, as Jim Thome cranks his 576th career home run….
- Reds GM Walt Jocketty tells MLB.com's Mark Sheldon that he's actively talking to clubs, but nothing is imminent.
- MLB.com's Corey Brock offers his opinion (via Twitter) of how the Padres should prioritize their needs at the deadline: a starting pitcher and middle infield depth.
- CSN's Jim Salisbury tweets that the Astros, Rays, Giants, and Pirates all have scouts at today's Phillies game. Both J.A. Happ and Jayson Werth are appealing to other teams.
- Jim Edmonds implied that he's leaning toward retiring at season's end, writes Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
- A close friend of Josh Byrnes tells Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe that the former Diamondbacks GM has no shortage of job offers. Within the column, Cafardo also speculates on the availability of players such as Joakim Soria, Livan Hernandez, and Mike Gonzalez.
- Rangers president Nolan Ryan reiterated that a right-handed first baseman was at or near the top of the club's wish list, according to Richard Durrett of ESPNDallas.
- Jim Leyland tells Mark Snyder of the Detroit Free Press that Dave Dombrowski hasn't informed him of any trade targets during the last two weeks. Specifically, Leyland hasn't heard anything about Ted Lilly or Mike Lowell from the Tigers' GM.
- Referring to trade rumors or contract years as a "distraction" is overblown, according to MLB.com's Alyson Footer.
- Frank Fitzpatrick of the Philadelphia Inquirer has six tips for Ruben Amaro Jr. to keep in mind as the trade deadline approaches, while John Tomase of the Boston Herald would like to see Theo Epstein exercise restraint this week.
Gorzelanny, Lilly Both Drawing Interest
We've heard for weeks that Ted Lilly will be one of the more attractive pitchers available at this year's July 31 deadline. According to Chris De Luca of the Chicago Sun-Times, Lilly's not the only Chicago southpaw drawing interest either.
Tom Gorzelanny, in the midst of one of his best seasons at the Major League level, is getting some attention as well. He's posted a 3.22 ERA and held opposing hitters to a .242 average through 86.2 innings (14 starts). His 3.33 FIP and 8.7 K/9 support his success, but control is an issue, as he's also walking 4.6 per nine innings.
In contrast, Lilly's overall numbers are weaker than Gorzelanny's, but he allows far fewer baserunners. He's walking significantly fewer hitters (2.1 BB/9) and opponents are batting just .236 off him. Lilly's drawn greater interest, according to De Luca, but the Mets are currently backing down their pursuit. Part of their hesitation lies in the Cubs' asking price for the veteran lefty, but also contributing to their concerns is Lilly's drop in velocity. He's never been a flamethrower, but his fastball is averaging just 86mph, which is down from his career mark of 88.2mph.
Gorzelanny is the cheaper option between the two. He's making just $800K in 2010 and is eligible for arbitration following the season. Lilly is a free agent following the season, and while his no-trade clause is believed to include the Phillies, Twins, and Rays, he's unlikely to block a trade to a contender. His current Type A status is appealing, though he's far from a lock to be offered arbitration.