Today's roundup from ESPN:
Yankees are apparently interested in acquiring Jon Gardland from the White Sox as well as left-handed reliever Matt Thornton. No mention of who might be going back the other way in such a deal.
The Dodgers are the front-runners to acquire Octavio Dotel from the Royals. The Royals' preference in return is second baseman Tony Abreu but the Dodgers are reluctant to send him. Apparently, another possibility in this deal is a minor-league shortstop prospect. Other teams listed as interested include the Mets, Red Sox, and Indians.
Oh, and Mike, you might like or not like this: the As are looking to move Joe Kennedy. The teams interested include the Dodgers, Phillies, and Brewers.
From yesterday, this notable thing: the Jays are apparently interested in Pittsburgh SS Jack Wilson. The article only notes that the trade would likely only happen after the non-waiver deadline passes because the Jays will want Pittsburgh to pick up the bulk of his remaining salary.
Peter Gammons posted a blog on Friday, regarding the deadline, titled "Don't Expect Race-Altering Moves". Here is an excerpt:
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Originally Posted by Peter Gammons
So while the Mets, Braves, Phillies, Red Sox, Dodgers and Padres would like a starter, nothing race-changing is likely to occur. And while the Astros convene next week to decide whether or not to weigh their options on Brad Lidge, Chad Qualls and Dan Wheeler, while the Rangers continue to market Eric Gagne and Akinori Otsuka, while the Pirates shop disgruntled Salomon Torres and the Royals take bids on Octavio Dotel, what general managers like Omar Minaya, Pat Gillick, Dave Dombrowski and Mark Shapiro won't do is make a deal similar to Jeff Bagwell for Larry Andersen.
"I don't know of anyone who will trade a potential impact everyday player for a relief pitcher, especially one who isn't a dominant closer," says Minaya. Another contending GM says, "I don't blame Dayton Moore for trying to rebuild, but he wants a major league-ready positional player for Dotel."
Hey, what outsiders don't understand is ownership pressure. Drayton McLane has to sign off on rebuilding before Astros GM Tim Purpura can even begin to market Lidge, who could mean the World Series to Detroit, Cleveland, Boston or the Mets. Those kinds of pressures are on Moore, Wayne Krivsky in Cincinnati, Jon Daniels in Texas and Andrew Friedman in Tampa Bay, pressures no one else knows who hasn't sat in their chairs in buildings operated by their respective owners.
As odd as it may seem, Brian Cashman in many ways is the most relaxed of the GM bunch. On Friday morning, the Yankees are six games behind the Indians in the loss column for the wild card and seven games behind the Red Sox in the AL East (in New England, that's Anxt Legion), and Cashman on Wednesday took a leisurely drive to Trenton, N.J., to watch Philip Hughes. Cashman is looking to add a first baseman if it isn't Shea Hillenbrand, find someone to take Kyle Farnsworth, maybe move a Scott Proctor for depth (the NY Post has been on Wilson Betemit), and await the reconstruction of the Yankee pitching staff.
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Now, one wonders why Cashman might not be interested in Shea Hillenbrand? Well ... he IS a head case ... and he has been doing terribly since leaving the Jays.
I wonder what a team could acquire in terms of promising young minor-leaguers in exchange for a young, cheap, MLB positional player? You'd think, if the market was as hot for these guys as it apparently is, that some brave and enterprising GM would take advantage and get a number of prospects a year or two away and hope that you can turn that one guy into two or three ...
Gammons also lists these points I selected at the end of his blog (I've quoted easily less than half of the article, mods, hope that is fine):
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Originally Posted by Peter Gammons
- Has the window of opportunity on trading Dontrelle Willis begun closing on the Marlins. "As much as we all like and respect Dontrelle, there are major doubts about him now," says one GM. "An ERA over 5.00 pitching in that park? Come on. Right-handers hitting .330 with a .927 OPS against him? I have to believe the innings and the delivery may have worn him down, and the novelty has certainly worn off."
- The Wily Mo Pena era may soon come to an end, but unless something falls in their laps, Boston's right-handed-hitting outfield addition will be from the list floating: Bobby Kielty, Lew Ford, Reggie Sanders, et al.
- No, the Dodgers will not entertain trading James Loney, Matt Kemp, (obviously) Russell Martin, Chad Billingsley or Jonathan Broxton. Ned Colletti is looking for a starter or reliever, expecting Randy Wolf back around the deadline. A numer of teams, including Boston, have been trying to get in on Andy LaRoche.
- Yes, the Cubs are really enthused about Kerry Wood, expecially because he is so revered by teammates. Not only did Wood hit 95 Thursday in Arizona, but, in a better indicator of his health, he had exquisite command.
- But the Mets seem to be backing off their intrepid predictions on Pedro Martinez's return. Not a good sign.
- Two great GM trade deadline quotes: 1. "Hopefully, the names we're discussing on July 31 are different from the ones on July 20"; and 2. "Just because someone's available doesn't mean he's good."
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Interesting that perpetually-injured Kerry Wood actually seems to be putting things together. I always enjoyed watching him pitch, he seemed like the next Roger Clemens. And that comment about the talent available is awesome.