Some Quick Notes and Rumors: MLB Winter Meetings Day 2

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Day 2 was busier than day 1. Tons of news coming out of Indianapolis. First, congrats to Whitey Herzog on being inducted into the Hall of Fame. Whitey was the first manager that I was exposed to growing up. He’s a class act and deserves this like you wouldn’t believe…

Granderson to Yankees Official

The Yankees finally landed Curtis Granderson. The final deal was Granderson to the Yankees; Edwin Jackson and Ian Kennedy to the D’backs; Max Scherzer, Daniel Schlereth, Austin Jackson, and Phil Coke to the Tigers. The 2 D’back prospects to the Yankees and Michael Dunn to the Tigers became Schlereth, formerly of the D’Backs, to the Tigers. Schlereth was seen as the closer of the future for Arizona, so I’d assume he’d fill the same role for the Tigers.

The Red Sox inquired on Granderson before the trade went down. They balked at the asking price of Jacoby Ellsbury and Clay Buchholz.

Blockbusters Part 2

This one has died out, but there was talk between the White Sox and Rays about a deal centering around Carl Crawford and Carlos Quentin. They’ve been the only names released, but I’d have to think there would be more too it.

The Rays would have been winners if it was a straight up deal. Crawford is a nice player, but only has 1 year left on his contract. Quentin, a polar opposite of Crawford, is good for 4 more years before he hits the open market.

Rangers Offer Top Prospects for Josh Johnson

The Rangers, looking for immediate help in the rotation, offered top prospects Neftali Feliz and Justin Smoak for Marlins ace Johnson. Feliz is considered a top of the rotation arm for the Rangers. Smoak is their top hitting prospect. To me, that seem like a high price for Johnson; while he’s a great arm, the move to Arlington would inflate his stats a bit.

Johnson is also due a decent raise in arbitration, which makes it surprising that the Rangers are interested. Rangers owner Tom Hicks is selling the team due to financial problems. The team has been known to be looking to shed some payroll, so adding Johnson doesn’t make sense.

The Milton Bradley Monopoly of Chicago is Close to Being Over

There are rumors that the Cubs are close to trading the disgruntled Bradley. Some say it’ll be a three way trade, while other think that the deal is not going to happen. One shot down rumor is sending him to the Mariners for Carlos Silva.

The most persistant rumor is Bradley to Tampa Bay for Pat Burrell. Tampa is pushing for the Cubs to pay most of the money that is off-set by the difference in contracts. The Cubs don’t want Burrell and would possibly trade him.

The Pirates are going to Make a Signing?

The Pirates are expected to announce today that they have agreed to a contract with former Rookie of the Year Bobby Crosby. The deal is for $1.5MM over a season. Crosby will be given an opportunity to compete with Ronny Cedeno for the starting shortstop job.

Crosby fell out of favor in Oakland after he never lived up to the potential he showed as a rookie, battling numerous injuries along the way. He lost his starting job last season when the A’s signed Orlando Cabrera.

Kevin Kouzmanoff Getting Attention

Kouzmanoff is set to get a raise in arbitration, so it’s only natural that the Padres would explore moving him. They have Chase Headley waiting to take over 3B after a stint in the outfield.

The Giants have been one team that’s show interested. They proposed a deal with Kevin Frandsen and/or Fred Lewis; the Padres aren’t interested in those players.

The Padres also turned down Glen Perkins from the Twins; Perkins has been squeezed out of the rotation with Carl Pavano accepting arbitration.

The Orioles are also interested.

And Now a Word From ESPN…

It was announced today that HOF writer Peter Gammons is leaving ESPN. They mentioned it on the early Baseball Tonight. It was revealled later in the day that Gammons is jumping ship for the MLB Network. So don’t worry, Gammons will still be in the baseball world.

Everything else…
Ross Gload is getting a 2 year deal from Phillies to round out their bench…The Angels would be able to deal Erick Aybar in a chance to get Roy Halladay…The Astros, Diamondbacks, Rays, and Orioles are in on LaTroy Hawkins…Freddy Sanchez is open to moving to 3B if the Giants sign a second baseman…Low end options for catcher have become a priority for the Royals…Rafael Soriano has OKed a trade if one comes up…The Rockies have a 2 year deal out to Yorvit Torrealba with Miguel Olivo as a fallback option…The Brewers are planning on meeting with Mark Mulder, and the Royals already met with him…Tony LaRussa is pushing for the Cardinals to sign Miguel Tejada…C.J. Wilson was “borderline offended” that the Diamondbacks only offered Chris Snyder for him…The Orioles have backed off Kevin Millwood since the Rangers asked for Chris Tillman…Mark Teahen and the White Sox have agreed to an extension worth $14MM over 3 years…