Baseball Rumor News

In a Cubs Press Release today the team announced that they have acquired two pitchers from the A’s, Rich Harden and Chad Gaudin. While many people will speculate that this is a direct response to the Brewers acquisition of CC Sabathia, but this move was something the Cubs have needed all season. It is true that the Brewers move may have forced Chicago GM Jim Hendry’s hand a bit, but another top of the line starter was something that the team had coveted for some time. With the depth that the two new pitchers bring to the rotation and bullpen, the Cubs pitching just received a huge shot in the arm.

It appears to me that the Cubs really come out on top with this deal, even though it is hard to second guess A’s GM Billy Beane and his eye for talent. I thought that the Cubs would have had to give up more for these two pitchers. The A’s will receive four players in return: SP Sean Gallagher, OF Matt Murton, 2B Eric Patterson, and C Josh Donaldson. Gallagher and Murton have shown their potential, so they are both very low risk and will probably benefit the A’s this year. Particularly Murton should benefit from increased at-bats. Patterson has speed, but hasn’t shown he can hit Major League pitching consistently and Donaldson was the Cubs 2nd round pick in 2007. Donaldson was also very expendable do to the success of rookie Geovany Soto. The one way the Cubs might get hurt by this trade is if Harden is unable to remain healthy, but they are still deep at the position, having not included lefty starter Sean Marshall in the deal. Only time will tell, but the Cubs have reaffirmed that they are shooting for the top in 2008.

At this ate, expect the Cardinals to make some decisions very soon about where they want to take this season.

ESPN is reporting that the Brewers have acquired Indians ace C.C. Sabathia. Last years AL Cy Young award winner was the biggest name to be thrown out as a possible trade candidate this season. With the Indians unable to resign their star, it was inevitable that he would be traded. Outfielder Matt LaPorta along with a couple other Brewers prospects will be on their way to Cleveland in return for the huge addition to their starting rotation.

One thing is for sure, the NL Central race just heated up big time. The Brewers are only a few games behind the Cubs, who will need to make a huge splash on the trade market if they hope to maintain the lead in the division. Expect the Cubs, and possibly the Cardinals, to do something soon because if they don’t, they will see the Brewers pass them by. Milwaukee is a team that is playing great baseball right now and Sabathia will only add to their momentum.

In Ken Rosenthal’s most recent story (for Fox Sports) he touches on a plethora of trade possibilities that I found very intriguing. It’s a lot of information, so here are some of the key points:

Dodgers after a slugger: Some of the names that came up as targets for L.A> are Detroit’s Maglio Ordonez, Pittsburgh’s Jason Bay, and maybe even Colorado’s Matt Holliday. Bay and Ordonez seem like more realistic options. Holliday would require a boatload of young talent and I don’t think the Dodgers would love the idea of seeing Kemp, Loney, Ethier, or any other guys they have been developing playing for a division rival. For any one of the three OF vets, expect that Kemp would likely have to be included.

Milton Bradley: Rosenthal sees him as a very valuable commodity if the Rangers give up on the season. They got him on the cheap and could collect a couple high-level prospects for him. Bradley is currently leading the AL in OPS. Starters Kevin Millwood and Vicente Padilla are two other players that the Rangers will entertain offers for.

Pirates OF available: Either Bay or Nady will be traded, but probably not both. One point that surprised me, the Pirates’ outfield ranks first in the majors in OPS.

Cubs want pitchers: The story is already out there, but the Cubs will strongly pursue C.C. Sabathia, as he is the best starting pitcher who appears available. Chicago is also asking about Rockies’ reliever Brian Fuentes. Fuentes, who has assumed the closer role in Colorado, would be used as a setup man if the Cubs acquired him so that the workload for Carlos Marmol and Kerry Wood could be lessened.

Brewers still looking for a starter: This is nothing new, but the Brewers are still looking. Rosenthal thinks that they have the minor league talent to bring in just about whoever they want. Whether or not they will be in contention when trades start happening is another question, which may take them out of the ‘buyers’ market.

Yankees making LaTroy available:The Yankees are aggressively shopping right-hander LaTroy Hawkins, two rival executives say, intending to clear a spot for a reliever who currently is at Triple-A, Righty J.B. Cox. Hawkins has a 6.08 ERA in 22 appearances, so don’t expect there to be much interest.

Phillies want relief: Philadelphia wants to add another left-handed reliever to complement J.C. Romero. They really want another starter (C.C. Sabathia) but they realize they don’t have the prospects that the Indians will want.

If you want anymore details, click on the link at the top of the page.

According to The Kansas City Star, Gil Meche is not on his way to Chicago.

“How’s that going to happen?” was what Meche had to say regarding a trade. He has a no trade clause and doesn’t seem to be interested in waving it. One team executive seemed to echo Meche’s sentiments “If we’re going to make a run at this thing in 2010, how are we going to do it without Gil Meche?”

The rumor never held much weight with me anyway. It was probably a combination of the cubs going after Meche when he was a free agent and the new rumor that the Cubs are after a starter. While I see where the connection is made, Meche really wouldn’t fit with the Cubs. He hasn’t been very good this season (3-8 with a 5.54 ERA) and wouldn’t fill the top of the rotation spot the Cubs seem to be aiming for. Then there is the problem of Meche having more than 3 years left on his contract…which he is being overpaid for.

Today, Steve Stone was on The Score 670 Chicago discussing what moves he expected the Cubs to make by the trade deadline. He said he is almost certain that the Cubs will try and acquire a top level starting pitcher. Cubs beat reporter Carrie Muskat also thinks the club is in the market for starting pitching due to the unexpected decline in performance of both Rich Hill and Sean Marshall. While no names have surfaced as to who they may be targeting, here are some possible candidates…keep in mind, I’m leaving out starters of lesser effectiveness because I believe what Lou wants is another starter come playoff time. That means that this guy has to be better than what the Cubs already have.

C.C. Sabathia: I see Sabathia as a strong possibility. He isn’t going to sign an extension with the Indians and if they slip further out of contention, which seems likely, they are going to trade him. By not sending a ton of players to Baltimore for Roberts, the Cubs have enough to get this done…especially with Sabathia’s shaky performance so far.

Rich Harden: If he stays healthy Harden could be a great asset to any team. He would fit in nicely at the top of the Cubs rotation. Another Oakland pitcher the cubs might be interested in is Joe Blanton, but Harden has pitched much better this season. Oakland is always looking to make a deal to get valuable young players in return for proven vets.

Erik Bedard: Most people don’t think that the M’s will part with Bedard, after they gave up so much to get him. With the reality setting in that they are a team much further from competing than they thought, Bedard could garner them the up and comers to rebuild quickly.

Ben Sheets: You would have to think that the Brewers wouldn’t want to trade him to a division rival, but if they find themselves out of the picture, it could happen. They would want to move him rather than lose him to free agency and I’m sure the Cubs wouldn’t mind having him around.

Derek Lowe: This is a veteran pitcher who has been dominant this season. An experienced playoff competitor, Lowe could be a great addition for the short term, as he will be a free agent after this year.

- Scott Munter is back with the Giants after signing a minor league deal. Munter, now 28, was recently released by the Rays Triple-A affiliate. In 2005, Munter was a solid performer for the Giants, coming away with a 2.56 ERA.

- A partial tear of a tendon sheath in his left wrist will sideline Bostons DH, David Ortiz, for a minimum of 2 weeks, according to USA Today. This should create more playing time for Jacoby Ellsbury and Coco Crisp, who have been splitting OF time. It could also result in Manny spending time at the DH spot.

- OK, this one happened a few days ago, but I missed it and decided to put it in anyway…The Daily Herald reports that Jim Brower was sent to the Cubs from the Reds for cash considerations. Its not really a big deal, but the journeyman reliever has pitched for 8 teams throughout his career and had some success in the majors at a few points. With a very overworked bullpen in Chicago, Brower may only be an injury or two away from a shot at the big league team.

- The New York Yankees Kei Igawa is homesick. Igawa asked the Yankees if they could send him back to Japan, but they couldn’t find any takers. He has not performed since coming to America and probably misses succeeding, but for now, he’s stuck in New York while the Yankees are stuck paying him $11 million.

Jonathan Mayo now has his predictions for the upcoming draft for picks 1-30. Some have changed, but for those of you that haven’t been keeping up with the predictions here is a list:

1. Tampa Bay Rays: Tim Beckham, SS, Griffin HS, Griffin, Ga.
2. Pittsburgh Pirates: Pedro Alvarez, 3B, Vanderbilt
3. Kansas City Royals: Eric Hosmer, 1B, American Heritage HS, Plantation, Fla.
4. Baltimore Orioles: Aaron Crow, RHP, University of Missouri
5. San Francisco Giants: Buster Posey, C, Florida State
6. Florida Marlins: Brian Matusz, LHP, University of San Diego
7. Cincinnati Reds: Yonder Alonso, 1B, University of Miami
8. Chicago White Sox: Gordon Beckham, SS, University of Georgia
9. Washington Nationals: Kyle Skipworth, C, Patriot HS, Riverside, Calif.
10. Houston Astros: Justin Smoak, 1B, University of South Carolina
11. Texas Rangers: Andrew Cashner, RHP, Texas Christian
12. Oakland A’s: Aaron Hicks, OF/RHP, Woodrow Wilson HS, Long Beach, Calif.
13. St. Louis Cardinals: Ryan Perry, RHP, University of Arizona
14. Minnesota Twins: Christian Friedrich, LHP, Eastern Kentucky
15. Los Angeles Dodgers: Zach Collier, OF, Chino Hills HS, Calif.
16. Milwaukee Brewers: Brett Lawrie, C/3B, Brookswood SS, Langley, B.C.
17. Toronto Blue Jays: Brett Wallace, 1B/3B, Arizona State
18. New York Mets: Ike Davis, OF, Arizona State
19. Chicago Cubs: Casey Kelly, SS, Sarasota HS, Fla.
20. Seattle Mariners: Shooter Hunt, RHP, Tulane
21. Detroit Tigers: Ethan Martin, RHP, Stephens County HS, Toccoa, Ga.
22. New York Mets: Jason Castro, C, Stanford
23. San Diego Padres: Daniel Schlereth, LHP, University of Arizona
24. Philadelphia Phillies: Anthony Hewitt, SS, Salisbury School, Conn
25. Colorado Rockies: Jake Odorizzi, RHP, Highland HS, Ill.
26. Arizona Diamondbacks: Josh Fields, RHP, University of Georgia
27. Minnesota Twins: Brett DeVall, LHP, Niceville HS, Fla.
28. New York Yankees: Brett Hunter, RHP, Pepperdine University
29. Cleveland Indians: Jemile Weeks, 2B, University of Miami
30. Boston Red Sox: Lance Lynn, RHP, University of Mississippi

Those are the predictions, but we’ll find out for sure in two days.

ESPN reports that Sammy Sosa has decided to retire after the next World Baseball Classic, which is scheduled to start in March of 2009. He wants to get the chance to represent his country before he calls it a career.

“That doesn’t mean I’m retiring. It’s not time for that yet.”

I think Sosa now realizes that with no approaching career milestones, he really doesn’t have much to offer a team. With all the available DH’s out there, he doesn’t have a shot at the MLB. He is pretty much a god in the Dominican, so it will be a good way for him to end his playing days.

Tim Brown reports that the Kevin Towers, GM of the Padres, has had enough. The Padres find themselves in last place, with the worst record in all of baseball, which would signal that extensive changes are necessary. To top it all off, Jake Peavy will now be headed to the DL, so things aren’t getting any better.

“I’m certainly not going to watch this for another four months,” Towers said.

Now that they find themselves so far out of first and only 40 games into the season, you would have to assume that San Diego is headed in the direction of a fire sale. The offense is so bad that adding one piece later in the season won’t make a difference. With that in mind, who might be on their way out of San Diego? Here are a few veterans that would be able to net the Pad’s some prospects that could help them turn things around in the future…

Greg Maddux: While Maddux has a full no-trade clause, it would seem likely that he would want to go somewhere that has a chance of actually competing. The future Hall of Famer doesn’t look like he has much left, but he could be used to eat up some innings somewhere. Atlanta has been rumored to desire a reunion with Maddux, and he could be a big draw for them if he closes out his career with the Braves.

Randy Wolf: Wolf is another vet that could be used to shore up a rotation for the playoff push. He might actually be more valuable than Maddux, as far as performance goes. He has pitched well, and if the Padres are moving into a rebuilding phase they won’t need him around. I would expect his ERA to jump quite a bit if he moves to a team with a more hitter friendly ballpark.

Brian Giles: Giles could become one of the best bats available around the trade deadline. Even with the rest of the offense struggling (and playing in that San Diego pitchers park) he is still batting .311, with 3 HR and 19 RBI’s. You would expect those numbers to look better if he was at just about any other park, so he could turn out to be a valuable trade piece.

Khalil Greene: The SS has struggled offensively the last few years, but a change of scenery could do him well. He is fantastic defensively, so teams may be willing to take a chance on his offense. He has also been the focus of many trade rumors over the last year, so there is clearly interest in him. Most notably, the Cubs and Blue Jays have inquired about his availability. At the moment, both of those teams seem set at SS, but you never know what will happen by the deadline.

- As far as the rest of the team goes, expect that just about everyone is available except: Adrian Gonzalez, Jake Peavy, Chris Young, and Kevin Kouzmanoff. None of these guys are old enough that they wouldn’t figure into a rebuilt team a few years from now.

Edmonds is now officially a Chicago Cub. He agreed to a deal with the Cubs last night and passed his physical. He will be in the lineup today against the team that released him about a week ago, the Padres. With the addition of Edmonds, the Cubs will send struggling young CF Felix Pie down to Triple-A to get more consistent at-bats.

This signing is about as low risk as it gets. The Cubs will be paying Edmonds the league minimum and don’t have to give up any players to get him. If it turns out that he really is not capable of performing anymore, they can just release him and bring Pie back up.