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Quick Hits: Gregerson, Rangers, Indians, Escobar

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As usual, the market for relievers is developing late.  One name to watch, according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports (via Twitter) is Padres right-hander Luke Gregerson.  The 28-year-old could appeal to clubs as he has a 3.05 ERA with 9.5 K/9 and 2.6 BB/9 on the year.  While Gregerson could be a valuable trade chip for San Diego, the Mets reportedly turned down a proposal that would have sent Gregerson to Queens for Daniel Murphy.  Here's a look around baseball as we burn the midnight oil on MLBTR..

  • One AL scout told Joel Sherman of the New York Post that if he were a betting man, he'd put his money on the Rangers landing Zack Greinke.  Meanwhile, if the Rangers or Angels land Greinke, the Rays could get the other club to overpay for James Shields.
  • After talking with Indians GM Chris Antonetti, Jordan Bastian of MLB.com (via Twitter) believes that the Tribe is looking to add or stand relatively pat at the deadline rather than sell.
  • Yunel Escobar's clubhouse reputation has been a red flag for some teams and is hurting his market value, tweets Buster Olney of ESPN.com.  The A's have been linked to the shortstop but are lukewarm on him as they are wary of disrupting their locker room atmosphere.

Quick Hits: Indians, Scutaro, Twins, Polanco

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The Indians are focused on trade candidates who are under team control beyond 2012, ESPN.com’s Buster Olney reports (on Twitter). This means players such as Shane Victorino aren’t ideal targets for Cleveland. Here are more links from around MLB for Thursday afternoon…

  • Marco Scutaro is the most likely Rockies player to be dealt this month, Troy Renck of the Denver Post writes. The Nationals and Rays are among the teams watching Scutaro, Renck notes.
  • The Twins are hoping Carl Pavano and Matt Capps get healthy and pitch well in August so they can pass the pitchers through waivers and consider trading them, Joel Sherman of the New York Post reports (on Twitter).
  • The Orioles, who continue looking for a third baseman, would have "tried hard" to acquire Placido Polanco if the Phillies hadn't placed him on the disabled list, Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com reports (on Twitter).

Stark On Greinke, Headley, Indians, Wells

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The market for Zack Greinke appears to consist of the Rangers, Angels, White Sox and Braves, ESPN.com’s Jayson Stark reports. Rival teams say the Red Sox, Blue Jays and Dodgers aren’t involved on Greinke, and the Indians and Orioles have limited interest in pitchers headed for free agency, Stark writes. Here are more notes from Stark:

  • The Yankees are exploring their third base options with Alex Rodriguez out, Stark reports. Marco Scutaro could be an option for New York.
  • There’s an expectation that Chase Headley will be traded, but the Padres continue saying they’re happy to keep him, Stark writes.  One team says the Padres are looking for a Mat Latos-like return if they trade the third baseman.
  • The Phillies are looking for a proven, young setup reliever and a young outfielder or third baseman for Victorino, Stark reports. They’ve asked about relievers Brad Lincoln, Wade Davis and Logan Ondrusek in trade talks.
  • It’s already been a busy month for the Astros, but they’re still willing to consider trades for anyone but Jose Altuve.
  • The Indians and Cardinals have talked to the Rays about James Shields, Stark reports.
  • The Angels are telling teams they’d rather trade Vernon Wells than keep him when he returns from the disabled list. They’re looking for a trade partner and saying they don’t want to eat all of his salary, Stark reports. It’ll be challenging to find a taker for Wells’ salary; he earns $21MM per season through 2014.
  • The Indians aren’t likely to deal Chris Perez or Shin-Soo Choo, but they’ll listen on either player.

AL East Notes: Davis, Yankees, Beckett, Escobar

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The Angels are talking to the Rays about Wade Davis and other available pitchers, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reports. James Shields has drawn interest from Los Angeles, but Davis might represent an alternative for the Angels’ bullpen or rotation. Here are the latest notes from the AL East…

  • Joel Sherman of the New York Post can’t imagine the Yankees trading for Mark Reynolds or Chone Figgins even with Alex Rodriguez on the disabled list. However, an AL executive said there’s “zero chance” Eric Chavez can replace Rodriguez on a daily basis without breaking down. The Yankees are expected to consider available third basemen in the coming week.
  • The Red Sox have fielded some exploratory inquiries on Josh Beckett, but the calls amount to preliminary check-ins at this point, Rob Bradford of WEEI.com reports. There’s “nothing close” regarding a potential deal, according to Bradford. Beckett, who can veto any trade with his ten and five rights, does not interest the Rangers.
  • Blue Jays shortstop Yunel Escobar remains a possible option for the A’s, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle writes. However, the shortstop says he likes playing in Toronto and doesn’t want to be traded, according to Slusser.

Rangers, Dodgers Pursuing James Shields

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The Angels aren’t the only team in pursuit of James Shields. The Rangers and Dodgers have also made the Rays trade offers for the right-hander, Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com reports.

The Rays are saying they’d move any pitcher except David Price and Matt Moore, but Shields is the most likely one to be traded, Knobler tweets. The Angels have discussed a package that includes center fielder Peter Bourjos and catcher Hank Conger. However, they were rebuffed when they offered Bourjos for Shields, Bob Nightengale of USA Today reports.

Shields earns $7MM in 2012 and his contract includes club options for 2013 ($9MM with a $1.5MM buyout) and 2014 ($12MM with a $1MM buyout). Shields, the third-place finisher in last year's AL Cy Young voting, has completed at least 200 innings in every one of his five full seasons. The 30-year-old has a 4.39 ERA with 8.5 K/9 and 2.7 BB/9 in 131 1/3 innings so far in 2012. 

AL East Notes: Rays, Shields, Red Sox, Oliver

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Last night we learned that the Rays discussed a deal with the Angels to send right-hander James Shields to Anaheim for Peter Bourjos, Hank Conger, and possibly Ervin Santana.  Here's more on the Rays and other items out of the AL East..

  • The Rays are telling teams Rays that they're getting encouraging reports on Evan Longoria and if he's back sooner than originally thought, they'll be less likely to move Shields and others, tweets Jayson Stark of ESPN.com (via Twitter).
  • ESPN.com's Buster Olney told Mut & Merloni of WEEI Radio that he doesn't expect the Red Sox to make a move before the deadline, writes Alex Speier of WEEI.com.  Olney also said that rumors of Boston being interested in acquiring Hanley Ramirez were overstated, though reports suggested that their intent was to flip him to a third club.
  • A league source told Sean McAdam of CSNNE.com that the five most sought-after Red Sox are pitcher Matt Barnes, shortstop Jose Iglesias, outfielder Jackie Bradley Jr., infielder Xander Bogaerts, and catcher Ryan Lavarnway.  However, Boston hasn't internally discussed making any of them available, making their chances of landing an elite starter slim.
  • The Blue Jays hold a $3MM option on Darren Oliver for next season, but the soon-to-be 42-year-old hasn't thought about whether he wants to pitch in 2013, writes Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.

Stark On Marlins, Phillies, Dodgers, Garza, Twins

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Here's the latest from ESPN's Jayson Stark…

  • One official who spoke with the Marlins brass estimates that the odds Josh Johnson remains with Miami are "95 percent." The Red Sox, Angels, Rangers, White Sox, Blue Jays, and Royals have all checked in.
  • Carlos Lee, Ricky Nolasco, Heath Bell, and Gaby Sanchez are all very available. Other than Johnson, Giancarlo Stanton will be the toughest player to pry away from the Fish.
  • The Phillies have talked about trading Cliff Lee following the Cole Hamels extension and they haven't discouraged other teams from inquiring, but their game plan right now is to keep their trio of aces intact.
  • Shane Victorino and Joe Blanton are good bets to be dealt and the Phillies will listen on Hunter Pence. They want multiple young big leaguers to plug holes at third base, in the outfield, and in the bullpen in return.
  • The Dodgers are in on a number of starting pitchers, including Nolasco, Blanton, Kevin Millwood, and Jason Vargas in addition to Ryan Dempster and Matt Garza. They've also checked in on outfield and first base help, including Victorino and Justin Morneau.
  • Clubs have not been assured by the Cubs that Garza will make another start before the trade deadline due to his triceps issue. He's more likely to be dealt in the offseason.
  • In the wake of acquiring Wandy Rodriguez, the Pirates are sending signals that they could trade away a starter like Jeff Karstens or Kevin Correia.
  • The Twins' asking prices for Morneau ("pricey"), Denard Span ("more pricey"), and Josh Willingham ("it made me laugh") are high. Minnesota insists they will listen on anyone and Stark says Morneau is the bat they're most likely to move. Francisco Liriano is "nearly 100 percent" likely to be traded.
  • The Orioles continue to look for pitching, someone they consider a number three starter or better. Garza and Vargas have their eye but Dylan Bundy and Manny Machado are off the table. They've gotten hits on Jake Arrieta but won't move him unless they get a similar young arm with several years of team control remaining in return.
  • The Brewers will trade Randy Wolf "for nothing if you take the money," according to one official. 
  • The Rays have "got a big market" for Wade Davis. 

Rays Designate Hideki Matsui For Assignment

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The Rays announced that  they designated Hideki Matsui for assignment to create roster space for newly-acquired infielder Ryan Roberts. They now have ten days to trade Matsui, release him or place him on waivers. 

The Rays signed Matsui to a minor league deal in April and he appeared in 34 games with the team. The 38-year-old posted a .147/.214/.221 batting line with two home runs in 103 plate appearances.

Rays Acquire Ryan Roberts From Diamondbacks

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The Rays have acquired utility infielder Ryan Roberts from the Diamondbacks in exchange for minor league second baseman Tyler Bortnick, the clubs announced.

Roberts, 32 in September, was designated for assignment earlier today in what was a procedural move to clear space on Arizona's 40-man roster. The right-handed hitter owns a .250/.330/.398 career batting line in 1,288 plate appearances, most of which came with the Snakes. He enjoyed a breakout campaign in 2011, when he mashed 19 homers and became something of a cult hero for his all-out style of play and trademark tattoos.

Bortnick, 25, was a 16th-round pick of the Rays in 2009 and has posted a career minor league batting line of .289/.396/.431 in 1,773 plate appearances, none above the Double-A level.

Roberts, meanwhile, will be under the Rays' control through 2015.

Rays, Angels Have Discussed James Shields Trade

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The Rays and Angels have talked about a deal that would send right-handed starter James Shields to Anaheim in exchange for outfielder Peter Bourjos and catcher Hank Conger, and possibly right-hander Ervin Santana, a source tells Tim Kurkjian of ESPN.com.

The deal is complex because of the money involved, the source tells Kurkjian, which accounts for Santana's possible inclusion. Santana makes $11.2MM this season with a $13MM club option for 2013. He can become a free agent at season's end with a $1MM buyout.

Shields, 30, could be locked up through 2014 and is considered quite affordable. He's owed $7MM this year with a $9MM club option for 2013 and an $11MM club option for 2014.

Bourjos, Kurkjian reports, would be a likely replacement for B.J. Upton, whom the Rays plan to allow to walk as a free agent this offseason. Conger, meanwhile, was once a pretty well regarded prospect, and the Rays have been rumored to be seeking a catcher.

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