As we head towards the trade deadline at the end of the month, it looks like the Diamondbacks are going to be sellers. The likes of Doug Davis, Jon Garland and Felipe Lopez seem the most plausible names, both in terms of interest from other teams, and due to their contracts being up at the end of the season anyway. However, it seems that other names, including Chads Qualls and Tracy, have also been mentioned, though whether there is any substance to these rumors is less certain.
Therefore, as a public service, we have collated these trade whispers with our usual impeccable research [ok: largely through a Google News search for the word "Diamondbacks"], and present them together with our comments on their credibility or otherwise. We'll probably do so again for the remaining Mondays in the month - as the deadline gets nearer, expect the gossip mill to roll on faster: for the moment, after the jump is what has cropped up there so far. Not really very much, but things should ramp up after the holiday weekend.
Beginning with the difficult to conceive, is the notion of the Diamondbacks trading Dan Haren, as reported by Ken Rosenthal. While there's no doubt that Haren would be a massive addition to any rotation, not least because of the team-friendly nature of his contract, he seems destined to be the foundation around which Arizona build for the next foundation, despite claims to the contrary. The story quotes an unnamed D-backs official as saying, "I almost can't conceive of a package that would motivate us to move him," and fans certainly hope that's the case.
Somewhat more plausible is Arizona talking to Milwaukee, most likely about starting pitching. Maybe we could send Doug Davis back there, then resign him in the off-season? Though the way he has played to date, his price will likely be out of our price-bracket. Said Brewers' GM Gord Ash of the D-backs "Because they're one of the few clubs with available pieces, their asking price is way too high, So they don't have to make a deal yet." I
t certainly helps that ten teams in the AL and thirteen in the NL can still make some claim to be in the race i.e. seven or less games out of either their division or the wild-card. While that continues, sellers outnumbering buyers, demand will exceed supply. Could be a good year to have tanked it. :-) Jon Heyman says there's been "little progress" since between the teams with regard to Doug Davis, due largely to the Brewers lack of pitching prospects, but also that we could try and sign Davis to an extensions.
The Boston Globe says we spent a lot of time scouting the Red Sox lately - which is certainly odd, since we don't play them this year. The paper speculates it may be connected to the Sox acquiring Chad Tracy as a fill-in to replace Mike Lowell (he's on the DL with a hip issue - it was surgically repaired earlier, though they are still hoping to have him back soon after the break): Tracy being a left-hander, who hits the ball the opposite way could make him appealing to Boston, if it turns out a longer stay is required for Lowell.
Chad Qualls to the Yankees? That's one of the names mentioned in another Rosenthal piece, from earlier in June. He says the MFY are in desperate need of a set-up man and have been looking at Qualls, Jose Valverde and Huston Street as possible replacements. However, he says they don't want any health issues, and the forearm tightness which saw Qualls sidelined for a week or so, could be a show-stopper there.