B & G's 7/31/09

Baseballs:

**Lastings Milledge, Pittsburgh Pirates- Lastings had 2 hits tonight against his former team, and he drove in 2 runs, giving him 3 RBIs on the season. Lastings is hitting .214 after a 2-3 evening.

**Kevin Youkilis, Boston Red Sox- Kevin went 3-4 at the plate and hit his 18th Home Run of the season, drove in 2 runs, giving him 61 RBIs. Kevin is hitting .301.

**Wes Helms, Florida Marlins- Wes hit a pinch hit double that drove in 2 key runs in the 8th inning to stretch the Marlins lead to 3 runs. Wes has 20 RBIs and is now hitting .273.

**Chris Iannetta, Colorado Rockies- Chris had a hit, but that hit gave his Rockies the win in the 8th inning, his 12th Home Run of the season. Chris went 1-3 with 2 RBIs and a sacrifice fly, giving him 40 RBIs. Chris is hitting .226 on the season.

**Cleveland Indians- The toughest day for any of the players because their heart and soul, Victor Martinez was traded to the Boston Red Sox for Justin Masterson and 2 prospects. Did they feel sorry for themselves? No, they found a way to win against the first place Detroit Tigers. It's going to be tough to find a leader that Victor was, but for tonight, it's enough to win.

**David Price, Tampa Bay Rays- 7 strong innings, giving up 1 run (1 earned), he walked 2 and struck out 3. David won his 4th game and he now has a 5.10 ERA.

**Mark Reynolds, Arizona Diamondbacks- Mark went 2-3 tonight with a walk, a double and his 29th Home Run of the season. Mark is now hitting .278 with 69 RBIs.

**Jason Schmidt, Los Angeles Dodgers- Jason threw 6 fantastic innings, giving up 1 hit, he did walk 5, but he limited the damage, he struck out 3 too and Jason has a 4.50 ERA.

A.J. Pierzynsky, Chicago White Sox- A.J. went 4-5 with a double and drove in his 30th run of the season, A.J. is now hitting .311.

**Bobby Abreau, L.A. Angels- Bobby finished the game 3-5 and hit his 8th Home Run of the season, driving in 4 runs, giving him 72 RBIs. Bobby is hitting .321.

**Matt Holliday, St. Louis Cardinals- Matt finished the night off at 4-4 and drove in 2 runs, giving him 62 RBIs, Matt is hitting .309 on the year.

**Marlon Byrd, Texas Rangers- Marlon hit his 11th Home Run of the season, a 3 run shot to give the Rangers the lead for good. Marlon now has 51 RBIs and he is hitting .278 after his 1-4 evening.

**Cliff Lee, Philadelphia Phillies- Cliff made a great first impression to the National League and to his new teammates. A complete game, giving up 1 run (1 earned), he walked 2 and struck out 6. Cliff had a no hitter into the 6th inning, and he had 2 hits, including a dobule in the game. Cliff now has a 3.02 ERA and is hitting .222 on the year.

**Rajah Davis, Oakland Athletics- Rajah went 2-3, drove in 2 runs, giving him 20 RBIs. Davis walked 2 times and he is now hitting .275.

**David Eckstein, San Diego Padres- David went 2-3 at the plate, he hit a double and drove in 3 runs, giving him 36 RBIs, and David is now hitting .267.

Goofballs:

**Adam Dunn, Washington Nationals- Struck out 3 times tonight.

**Jeremy Guthrie, Baltimore Orioles- Jeremy had a tough ending to the night, giving up the winning run. He worked 6 2/3 innings, giving up 6 runs (6 earned), he walked 2 and struck out 4. Jeremy now has a 5.37 ERA.

**Carlos Marcol, Chicago Cubs- Gave up 3 runs (3 earned) in 2/3 of an inning, he walked 2 and didn't strike anyone out. Carlos now has a 3.60 ERA, losing his 2nd game.

**David Weathers, Cincinnati Reds- David gave up back to back Home Runs to lose his 3rd game. David threw 1 inning, giving up 2 runs (2 earned), he didn't walk anyone and struck out 1. David now has a 3.46 ERA.

**Casey Fen, Detroit Tigers- Casey came in and couldn't retire an Indians, giving up the losing run. He have up 1 run (1 earned) in 0 innings and now has a 5.40 ERA.


**Sidney Ponson, Kansas City Royals- Sidney was awful, only lasting 4 1/3 innings, giving up 7 runs (7 earned), he walked 3 and struck out 2. Sidney now has a 7.36 ERA and is 1-7 this year.

**Mets Offense- 2 runs on 4 hits tonight, 7 walks and 4 strikeouts. The Mets left 8 men on base, they needed this win tonight.

**Braves Offense- Was shutout tonight, they could only get 3 hits, walked 6 times, struck out 8 and left 10 men on base.

**Alfredo Aceves, New York Yankees- Alfredo gave up 4 runs in the 7th inning to put the game out of reach. So, he did work 1 2/3 innings, giving up 4 runs (4 earned), he walked 2 and didn't strike anyone out. Alfredo now has a 3.54 ERA.

**Bobby Keppel & Jessie Crain, Minnesota Twins- Both pitchers couldn't retire anyone in the 11th inning, Keppel gave up 3 runs (3 earned), he walked 1 and didn't strike anyone out. Keppel lost the game and he now has a 4.58 ERA. Crain gave up 3 runs (3 earned), he walked 1 and didn't strike anyone out. Jessie has a 7.58 ERA.

**Astros Offense- 3 runs on 10 hits tonight, they walked 5 times and struck out 8. The Astros left 11 men on base.

**Jason Vargas, Seattle Mariners- Jason threw 5 innings, giving up 5 runs (5 earned), he walked 1 and struck out 2. Jason lost his 5th game and now has a 4.71 ERA.

**Giants Offense- Had no answers for Cliff tonight, 1 run on just 4 hits, 2 walks and 6 strikeouts.

**Scott Richmond, Toronto Blue Jays- Scott threw 3 innings, giving up 6 runs (4 earned), he walked 3 and struck out 2. Scott now has a 3.97 ERA.

**Braden Looper, Milwaukee Brewers- Braden lasted 5 innings, giving up 6 runs (6 earned), he 1 walk and 3 strikeouts. Braden now has a 7.03 ERA.

Trade Discussions

• D'Backs GM Josh Burns thinks that It'll will be a busy August around the leagues. The D'Backs could be very busy this upcoming month.
  
• The Scott Rolen deal is very shocking with the Reds 9.5 games out of first place.
• Thank god the Roy Halladay saga is over! Wait, Wait, its not over! Expect it to get even bigger this off-season.
• It's great that the White Sox got Jake Peavy, but he's still injured. He's coming of a 2008 season with elbow issues, and 2009 with an ankle problem that is still inured. Peavy is owed $56MM through 2012, or $74MM through 2013 if the Sox exercise his option. "Frankly I am flabbergasted that the White Sox would want to make this deal with him in his physical condition," Axelrod said.

Peavy to the White Sox

Jake Peavy, out of the clear blue, has been traded to the White Sox for the second time. Sources are saying that this time Peavy approved the trade. Aaron Poreda, Clayton Richard, Adam Russell, and Dexter Carter, all pitchers, are going to the Padres in this trade.

More later...

Heath Bell Rumors

We've passed the 4:00 Eastern Trade Deadline, but there are still some trades that could be completed that have not been announced yet. One of them could be Heath Bell, but The Twins talks for Bell are dead according to FOX Sports. We'll see if there are any last minute trades, and if so, I'll pass them along to you.

Reds Acquire Scott Rolen, Trade Hairston

Update 3:00 PM CT The Blue Jays will get Edwin Encarnacion and a minor leaguer in this deal. Rolen is expected to approve the deal.

According to Jon Heyman, the Reds have added third baseman Scott Rolen. The next step is Rolen approving the trade.

In another minor trade, the Yankees have acquired infielder Jerry Hairston Jr. from the Reds.

Will there be any more last minute deals? Stay tuned!

Marlins Closer to Getting Nick Johnson?

3:03 PM CT: Wow a total twist, right after I heard the Johnson was not headed to Miami, we've heard that the Marlins have acquired Nick Johnson from the Nationals for AA pitcher Aaron Thompson.

2:54 PM CT: The Marlins are no longer pursuing Johnson or Heath Bell.

11:29 AM: The Marlins have increased there offer for Nick Johnson, adding another minor leaguer to the package that already includes Ryan Tucker.

11:07 AM:Peter Gammons reports that the Marlins "appear to be moving closer" to acquiring Nick Johnson. We heard earlier that the Fish offered Ryan Tucker to the Nats and had asked them to pay the remaining of his contract (2 million remaining.) With Johnson OBP, he'd be perfect in front of Hanley.

Rockies Looking for Bullpen Help

Update 2:50 CT The Rockies have acquired Joe Beimel from the Nationals. The Nats received 2 minor leaguers.

Update 2:00 PM CT: The Rockeis are still interested in acquiring Nationals lefty Joe Beimel. The Nats asked for Eric Young Jr. in return, but the Rockies quickly said "no thanks" according to Bill Ladson of MLB.com.

The Rockies haven't closed the dooer on their attempts to add Orioles LHP Mark Hendrickson or Nationals lefty Joe Beimel to fill their bullpen need. Both teams have asked for Eric Young Jr. Scott Downs of the Jays is also a possibility according to MLB.com.

Braves Interested in LaRoche

Updated 2:40 PM CT The Red Sox have traded LaRoche to the Braves, Casey Kotchman has been traded to the Bo-Sox in return.

The Boston Red Sox could trade Adam LaRoche if they complete the deal for Victor Martinez. The Braves are interested according to Jon Heyman.

We're less than an hour away...

Adrian Gonzales Rumors

Here's the Latest on Adrian Gonzales:

1:55 PM CT: According to Ken Rosenthal, the Dodgers are making a run at both Gonzalez and Heath Bell. James Loney could go to the Padres in that deal.

12:26 PM: A Jayson Stark source says the asking price for Gonzalez is "astronomical, three times the asking price on Halladay."

12:05 PM: Jon Heyman is reporting that the Red Sox are still in the mix for Gonzales while the Padres asking for Westmoreland and Anderson.

11:35 AM: According to Jonathen Mayo: "I'm hearing odds of Padres dealing Gonzalez are very low at this point."

The Latest: According to Jayson Stark the Red Sox still "have pokers in the fire" on Gonzalez, Martinez, and Roy Halladay. Stark suggest the the Red Sox could use a 3rd team to facilitate one of those deals.

Earlier Today: The Red Sox are in "full pursuit" of Gonzales and could get Heath Bell if they're willing to include phenom Daniel Bard.

Martinez to Boston, other trades, and more

• The Red Sox are close to trading for Indians first baseman/catcher Victor Martinez. Ed Price says the trade is looking good. This might kill the Adrian Gonzalez to Boston talks. Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com reports that Nick Hagadone and Justin Masterson, both pitchers, are in the deal for Victor.
• Orlando Cabrera was traded to the Twins today. The A's will get SS prospect Tyler Ladenorf, and the Twins will also get cash.
• The Brewers acquired pitcher Claudio Vargas from LA today. In return, catcher Vinny Rottino was sent to the Dodgers.
• The Pirates are most likely done dealing, but not necessarily. They will listen to offers for pitcher like Paul Maholm, Zach Duke, and Matt Capps.
• The Angles and Dodgers are battling for Heath Bell.
• Jayson Stark has heard that the asking price for Adrian Gonzalez is way too high.

80 minutes to the deadline... More on the way!

B & G's 7/30/09

Baseballs:

**Johan Santana, New York Mets- Johan shut down the Rockies in game 1 of the double header. He threw 7 innings, walked 1 and struck out 8. Santana lowered his ERA to 2.96.

**Brad Bergesen, Baltimore Orioles- 7 strong innings, giving up just 1 run (1 earned), he walked 2 and struck out 6. Brad won his 7th game and he has a 3.43 ERA.

**Will Veneble, San Diego Padres- Will finished the day 4-5, including hitting his 2nd Home Run of the season, he drove in 4 runs, giving him 9 RBIs. Will is now hitting .235.

**David Ortiz, Boston Red Sox- Found out the news earlier he had failed a 2003 test, but it didn't matter. He still delivered a winning hit, finishing up 2-3 with a walk and hit his 14th Home Run. David drove in 3 runs, giving him 58 RBIs, and is now hitting .228.

**Yovanni Gallardo, Milawaukee Brewers- 7 strong innings, giving up 3 runs (3 earned), he walked 1 and struck out 11. Yovanni won his 10th game of the season and he has a 3.13 ERA.

**Michael Young, Texas Rangers- Michael finished up 3-4 and hit 2 Home Runs, hitting his 15th and 16th of the season, drove in 2 runs, giving him 47 RBIs and Young is now hitting .326.

**Kosuke Fukodome, Chicago Cubs- Kosuke finished the day perfect, he went 3-3 with 2 walks. He hit a double and a triple plus drove in 4 runs, giving him 35 RBIs. Fukodome is now hitting .274 on the season.

**Dewayne Wise, Chicago White Sox- Delivered the walk off single to drive in his 8th run of the season and help the Sox win the game. Dewayne is now hitting .193.

**Jorge De La Rosa- Winning his 7th game in a row is nice, but winning the 2nd game to avoid being swept in a double header was better. Jorge threw 6 1/3 innings, giving up 2 runs (2 earned), he walked 3 and struck out 5. De La Rosa now has a 4.68 ERA.

**Brian McCann, Atlanta Braves- Brian had a great night at the plate, going 3-5 with his 12th Home Run of the season, driving in 3 runs, giving him 52 on the year. That Home Run gave the Braves a 6-3 lead in the 10th and the lead stayed. McCann is now hitting .303.

**Matt Kemp, Los Angeles Dodgers- Kemp finished the night 3-5 and he drove in 3 runs, giving him 59 RBIs. Matt is hitting .316 on the season.

**Pablo Sandival, San Francisco Giants- Pablo finished up 2-4 with 4 RBIs, giving him 63 RBIs and he now has 16 Home Runs. Pablo is now hitting .331.

Goofballs:

**Jason Hammel, Colorado Rockies- Jason just threw 1 1/3 innings, giving up 5 runs (5 earned), he didn't walk anyone and struck out 1. Jason now has a 4.66 and lost for the 6th time.

**Royals Offense- 3 runs on 10 hits, they left 9 men on base and despite scoring 3 runs, they couldn't get the big hit to turn things around.

**Johnny Cueto, Cincinnati Reds- Johnny lasted 5 innings,giving up 6 runs (6 earned), he walked 2 and struck out 3. Johnny now has a 4.06 ERA.

**Craig Breslow, Oakland Athletics- Craig only threw 1/3 of an inning, he gave up the winning runand lost his 5th game. Craig now has a 4.57 ERA.

**Nationals Offense- 3 runs on only 5 hits, they walked 2 times and struck out 13. Had some bad at bats.

**Mariners Offense- 1 run on 3 hits, 2 walks and 10 strikeouts. They might now give up on the rest of the season.

**Russ Ortiz, Houston Astros- Russ was awful, only lasted 2 1/3 innings, giving up 9 runs (9 earned), he walked 2 and struck out 2. Russ was now released from his contract and he finished up with a 5.57 ERA.

**Yankees Offense- 3 Yankees struck out 3 times, Alex Rodriguez, Mark Teixara, and Nick Swisher. As a collective unit, they struck out 14 times and could only get 6 hits with 2 runs.

**Mets Offense- 2 runs on just 6 hits, 3 walks, and 7 strikeouts. They left 6 men on base and when De La Rosa left the game, the Mets couldn't score on their bullpen either.

**Luis Ayala, Florida Marlins- Luis lost the game, he threw 1 inning, giving up 3 runs (3 earned), he walked 2 and struck out 1. Ayala now has a 4.42 ERA.

**Dennys Reyes, St. Louis Cardinals- Lost the game for the Cards, throwing 1/3 of an inning, giving up 2 runs (2 earned), he walked 1 and struck out 1. Dennys now has a 4.50 ERA.

**Phillies Defense- 4 unearned runs, so errors did hurt them. Pedro Feliz (10th), Chase Utley (8th), and Jayson Werth (3rd) all contributed to the errors.

Victor Martinez Rumors

12:25 PM: Jayson Stark says "The Rays continued to talk with Cleveland about Martinez Friday afternoon, but clubs they've spoken with say they're more focused on "under-the-radar" bullpen arms." They discussed Heath Bell but balked at the Padres asking price.

11:48 AM:Jonathan Mayo reports that the chances of a Victor Martinez trade is 50-50 as of right now.

M's Reject Offers for the King

12:12 PM: Jon Heyman says the Red Sox and Tigers inquired on the King.

11:14 AM:According to ESPN; the M's rejected offers from six different teams involving Felix Hernandez. M's GM Jack Zduriencik admitted he listened, but didn't find anything even worth discussing.

Twins Acquire O-Cap

12:08 PM: Tim Brown reports it was a done deal, with the Twins sending shortstop prospect Tyler Ladenorf to Oakland for Cabrera.

11:56 AM:Susan Slusser kills any trade talk that O-Cap will not be traded. When in-fact Cabrera to the Twins is "very close."

Pirates Done?

The Pirates are probably done, but could possibly deal away pitchers Paul Maholm, Zach Duke, and Matt Capps (not necessarily shopping them.)

Tigers like Luke Scott

Ken Rosenthal is reporting that the Tigers may not be done dealing, they "have remained in contact with the Orioles about outfielder Luke Scott." While the Tigers have the prospects to pull it off, the O's are asking for a lot, and hes under team control through 2012.

Tigers Acquire Washburn

The Tigers have acquired M's pitcher Jarrod Washburn for prospects Luke French and Mauricio Robles. Somehow Washburn has managed a 2.64 ERA in 133 innings for the M's, with Washburn as a free agent at seasons end (Type B) look for him to make some change this off-season especially as a Boras client.

MLB Network Updates

The first guest today on the MLB Network Trade Deadline Special was Jordan Bastian of MLB.com.

• Bastian, a Blue Jays writer, says that the closer we get to the deadline, the less likely it is that Roy Halladay will be moved.
• Once the Phillies traded for Lee, Jordan thought the chances of Halladay being moved were much less likely, because the Phillies were the best fit.
• The Blue Jays are looking for major league ready pitching, and a short stop prospect in return for Roy.
• The Rangers were in the mix earlier today, and they are the most likely to get Halladay if he is traded. However, the Red Sox, Yankees, and Dodgers are still there.

Tom Verducci doesn't think the Blue Jays will end up trading Halladay.

More Updates:

• The M's are still not sure if they will trade Jarrod Washburn.
• The Rangers bid for Halladay is over according to Paul Morosi and Rosenthal.
• The Brewers made an offer for Brian Bannister of the Royals yesterday, but the Royals are not motivated to move him.

MLB Corner Deadline Coverage!

Phil and I will have you covered today leading up to the MLB Trade Deadline at 4 PM ET. We'll post ALL rumors that we hear as always! Let's jump right into it today:

• We heard yesterday that the Red Sox and Padres were talking Adrian Gonzalez. According to Mark Feinsand and Bill Madden, the Bo-Sox are in full pursuit of Gonzalez. Boston could also get Heath Bell if they are willing to include pitcher Daniel Bard.
• Jon Heyman thinks Boston prefers Gonzalez to Victor Martinez.
• Ken Rosenthal says that the chances of the Indians trading Martinez are not good.
• The Orioles will keep lefty Mark Hendreson according to Rosenthal.
• Roy Halladay talks are heating up with the Rangers according to some sources. However, Blue Jays GM J.P. Ricciardi says the talks are almost dead about Halladay.
• The Padres wanted Cameron Maybin and Andrew Miller from the Marlins for Heath Bell.
• Juan C. Rodrigez says the best thing for Florida might be to bring Carl Pavano back.
• From the great MLB Blog by FOX Sports: The Tigers are trying to improve bon't don't have enough trade bait. They could use a starting pitcher.
• The Angles, Marlins, Red Sox, and Tigers are 4 teams to watch today.

There's plenty more to come, so stay tuned!