OK, now that we've got your attention ... the Marlins made sure nobody would even waste their time asking about Willis this weekend. How? They put both Willis and their other walking trade rumor, Miguel Cabrera, on waivers late last week, according to multiple sources in both leagues. Those waivers were a meaningless technicality, and the Marlins clearly would have revoked both names if any team claimed them. So the only possible reason to place those particular players in waiver limbo at that particular moment in pre-deadline time was this: Players aren't allowed to be traded until their waivers expire. In the case of Willis and Cabrera, that happens to be just after Monday afternoon's trading deadline. So any Dontrelle rumors that pop up between now and the deadline are as fictional as "Gone With The Wind." And that's official.
Meanwhile, apparently Jason Schmidt is back in the mix:
Clubs that made contact with the Mets on Sunday say they were talking to the Giants about a potential deal to bring Schmidt to New York. And the Giants were said to be listening...
[The Giants] would want at least two players back -- either two top-tier young players they can rebuild around or one player like that and a young starting pitcher who could replace Schmidt in the rotation now and down the road. But the Mets are adamant that they aren't trading Lastings Milledge for a rent-a-pitcher. So an official of one team described this deal Sunday as "more unlikely than likely."
If you could get Schmidt (another 3 month rental, like Zito) for, say, Heilman and a mid-tier prospect, would you make the deal? I would.
4 comments:
If we can wrangle Schmidt, then I say "go for it."
His #'s this year do not necessarily impress on their own but they are very similar to Willis' this season. Granted, he is about a decade older than Wilis but Schmidt can be devastating.
My only concern is the same that I had with the Zito deal--you are giving up a lot for a potential rental. The Giants should be backing off on their demands and getting something in return.
I think Minaya is playing it ultra-low-key. Every signal he sends out is that he's content with the team he has. I think he probably has a bunch of low-ball offers out there for various pitchers, and he'll wait for 4 PM to see if any other GM's are desperate enough to offload payroll that they'll cave.
That said, I could see Schmidt for Heilman, straight-up, or with a meaningless prospect tacked on.
in a heartbeat
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