Cardinals Rumors

Cardinals Unlikely To Trade Rasmus

By Tim Dierkes | July 17, 2008 at 11:32am CDT

The contending Cardinals might even consider parting with top outfield prospect Colby Rasmus, a major surprise. If so, it may put them in line to land Pittsburgh’s Xavier Nady, or even Jason Bay.

Cardinals fans can rest easy about their top prospect, however. Joe Strauss asked team chairman Bill DeWitt Jr. if there is any chance Rasmus could play his first MLB game in another uniform. DeWitt’s reply: "I don’t anticipate that. No." In a recent updated Top 100 Prospects list from Baseball America, Rasmus ranked #4.

DeWitt also indicated that the Cardinals would be able to add another $1.5-2MM in payroll this year if need be.

Odds and Ends: Rasmus, Ozuna, Giles

By Tim Dierkes | July 16, 2008 at 4:00pm CDT

Time to run down today’s links.

SI.com’s Jon Heyman heard the Cardinals "might even consider parting with top outfield prospect Colby Rasmus."
Here’s a feature on Baseball Prospectus’ Nate Silver in University of Chicago Magazine.
According to Bud Selig, the idea of an international draft won’t be debated until the next collective bargaining agreement, which will start in 2012.
I did a Q&A with The Chuck Knoblog.
Pablo Ozuna is a free agent.
Paul DePodesta explains why the Padres intend to keep Brian Giles.
RotoAuthority has some disabled list hitters to consider picking up for your fantasy team.
Jeff Zrebiec discusses the Orioles’ trade candidates.

Carroll’s Latest: Burnett, Twins, Cardinals

By Tim Dierkes | July 16, 2008 at 12:01pm CDT

Baseball Prospectus’ Will Carroll has plenty of rumors in his latest post.

Pat Gillick "doesn’t seem that interested" in going back to work for the Mariners.
One team asked the Blue Jays to include players to be named later on both sides of an A.J. Burnett deal, to serve as a balance for the pitcher’s uncertain tricky contract. The Jays passed on that idea. By the way, the Toronto Star’s Richard Griffin thinks the Jays will keep Burnett unless offered a player who can improve the ’08 team.
Carroll wonders whether the Pirates would consider trading Ian Snell. Snell is signed through 2010 with club options for ’11 and ’12.
Beyond Adrian Beltre, the Twins "have taken a hard look" at Hank Blalock, Garrett Atkins, and Casey Blake.
The Cards are searching the Triple A ranks for the next Ryan Ludwick. Maybe they were one of the teams inquiring on Nelson Cruz?

Odds and Ends: Sexson, K-Rod, Halladay

By Tim Dierkes | July 15, 2008 at 10:54am CDT

Random links for the day…

We’ll have our weekly live chat here today at 2pm CST.
R.J. Anderson of DRays Bay writes the Rays Comprehensive Trade Post.
Brian Cashman confirmed interest in Richie Sexson.
Danny Knobler quotes Francisco Rodriguez as saying that the Angels offered him three years, $34MM in November.
Josh Hamilton called all his friends to tell them he was a Cub, then had to call them all back.
People in Pedro Alvarez’s neighorhood expect him to sign.
Blue Jays ace Roy Halladay wants to see the team make some progress.
Viva El Birdos would like to see the Cardinals acquire Jarrod Washburn.
Ichiro’s profane, annual AL All-Star team pep talk.

Jason Bay Rumors Debunked

By Tim Dierkes | July 14, 2008 at 12:04pm CDT

You may recall Jon Heyman’s article from Friday, where the Diamondbacks and Cardinals were said to be among "the most ardent pursuers of Jason Bay." However, Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette spoke to sources with all three teams – and all of them denied the rumor.

Kovacevic has been reporting for a while now that the Bucs prefer to keep Bay, though they’ll listen. That remains unchanged. Kovacevic’s article describes a hot market for two other Pirates – Damaso Marte and Xavier Nady.

Pirates GM Neal Huntington hinted that he might soon trade some of the team’s veterans:

"We’re not content. We need depth to add to this group. How do we get that? As we’ve said from day one, there are going to be times when we make unpopular decisions, but those decisions might be necessary to take next step."

Rosenthal’s Latest: Holliday, Burnett, Rauch, Ibanez

By Tim Dierkes | July 12, 2008 at 10:23pm CDT

Ken Rosenthal has a new Full Count video up.

The Angels are not interest in Matt Holliday, while the Dodgers and Red Sox "could play" on him. Rosenthal names the Nationals as an "intriguing dark horse," saying they’ve been checking up on Holliday. They like the idea of having him for ’09, and could even entertain signing him long-term.
The Phillies have minimal interest in A.J. Burnett, plus they’re on his 15 team no-trade list. Rosenthal notes that Burnett nearly signed with the Cardinals a few years back, but their interest is not mutual.
Jon Rauch is a hot commodity, drawing interest from the Rays, Red Sox, and Diamondbacks. His price will exceed that of Brian Fuentes, since he’s under team control through 2010.
The D’Backs would like to add a left-handed hitting outfielder, and Raul Ibanez is under consideration. Rosenthal suggests Matt Stairs or Tony Clark as possible bench additions.

Heyman’s Latest: Bay, Rivera, Chacon

By Tim Dierkes | July 11, 2008 at 1:45pm CDT

New column from SI.com’s Jon Heyman.

Fresh Jason Bay rumors: the D’Backs and Cardinals are in pursuit. The Mets and Rays have kicked the tires as well. Heyman believes the Pirates want Emilio Bonifacio from the D’Backs, and maybe Colby Rasmus from the Cards. At any rate, the price will be steep with Bay signed for ’09.
Juan Rivera is a "surprise target" of the Mets, though they’ve had interest in him since March. Rivera will be hard to acquire, though, because he’s gaining playing time for the Angels.
Heyman believes Shawn Chacon will win his grievance and get paid his full salary.

Cardinals Scouting Nationals

By Tim Dierkes | July 11, 2008 at 1:04pm CDT

Here’s a nugget from MLB.com’s Jim Molony:

The Cardinals had a scout watching the Nationals recently, though it is unclear which player(s) were being scouted — perhaps Tim Redding or Odalis Perez, both available inexpensive options who have been pitching well lately.

You’ll find both starters in our recent Trade Market post, and they do make sense for St. Louis. However, Tony La Russa is primarily pushing for a bat to protect Albert Pujols. Nationals shortstop Cristian Guzman wouldn’t qualify, but he would be an improvement over Cesar Izturis and Brendan Ryan.

Odds and Ends: Kemp, Kearns, Carrasco, Garcia

By Tim Dierkes | July 11, 2008 at 10:32am CDT

Friday linkage…

Yesterday I linked to Dave Cameron’s piece, in which he wondered whether Matt Kemp is overrated. Here’s the other side of the debate, a response from Mike Scioscia’s Tragic Illness.
Joe Sports Fans names the seven worst trades of the decade. I have some arguments here; what do you think? I wrote this post on the Pierzynski/Nathan/Liriano/Bonser deal two years ago, but I still think it holds that Brian Sabean’s trade looked reasonable at the time.
Joel Sherman wonders if the Mets and Yankees should consider trading for Washington outfielder Austin Kearns.
Matt Gelb takes a look at Phillies prospect Carlos Carrasco, who does not want to be traded.
The Yankees rightfully don’t view Freddy Garcia as much of an upgrade, since he won’t be ready until late August at the earliest.
Tracy Ringolsby runs through various players on the trade market. Interestingly, he does not see A.J. Burnett being traded.
Cardinals Diaspora suggests the Cards tangle with Billy Beane again, this time for Joe Blanton.
Dave Dombrowski doesn’t see Ryan Perry in the Tigers’ bullpen this year, after all.
Armchair GM challenges SI.com’s Jon Heyman to put his money where his mouth is.

No One Wants Bonds

By Tim Dierkes | July 11, 2008 at 9:25am CDT

FRIDAY: Just to hammer it home a little further, we have Bonds rejections from the Dodgers, Yankees, Cardinals, and Phillies today.

THURSDAY: Barry Bonds’ agent Jeff Borris makes it clear that none of the 30 teams are interested in his client:

"I am not talking to any club about Barry Bonds, because they all made it very clear to me they are not interested in him. Every club. I can’t believe he doesn’t have a job. No one has offered even the minimum salary. He made the All-Star team last year, and there’s no reason to believe he wouldn’t have a repeat performance in 2008, except for the conspiracy against him."

Borris says Bonds could be ready in ten days. Contenders such as the Angels, Rays, Tigers, and A’s have gotten subpar performance out of the DH spot but they’ve all decided to pass on Bonds for various reasons. Borris would have to admit that even some of these clubs would have trouble fitting Bonds onto the roster.

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