Rumors to Pass By

[jalenrose#5]

The Blue Jays and Giants have floated the idea of an Alex Rios trade for Tim Lincecum or Matt Cain. Another name that's come up in discussions is third baseman Troy Glaus. But there are some health issues surrounding Glaus, who had surgery in September to repair a nerve in his left foot. If the Jays move Glaus, they would have to consider adding offense.

The Jays are kicking the tires on Erik Bedard, and they could include A.J. Burnett in a package for the Orioles' ace. Bedard is Canadian, and Burnett, who could opt out of his contract next winter, has family ties to the Baltimore area -- something that is important to O's owner Peter Angelos

That's from ESPN (Steve Phillips)

I really don't know what to think...

A rotation of Doc/AJ/Dustin/Lincecum/Marcum sounds great but costs us Rios

while...

A rotation of Doc/Bedard/McGowan/Marcum/Chacin sounds just as great, but we'd have to give up much more than just AJ/prospect.

Those are some of the deals being talked about at the winter meetings. Don't expect one to be completed though.

[arrpy]

I really don't want to give up Rios, he has done so much for our team. But they are some good offers, it's hard to tell what's going to happen.

Hopefully JP makes a "Good" move.

[risktaker91]

How serious are the talks with Bedard?

[OldNo7]

There was also something on ESPN indicating the Orioles WILL NOT trade Bedard within the division.

[asif9t9]

I'm not a believer in Bedard. Would he have the cajones to win on the road in Boston or New York?

[jalenrose#5]

These are legit rumors....just saw the evidence on the bluejays site....for those who think I'm blowing smoke

[cb4_89]

how about we do them both?

Doc
Bedard
Linecum
Marcum
McGowen

= best pitching in the game

[tempests_dawn]

The hot stove is on fire!

I'd definitely consider a Rios for Cain/or Lincecum deal. Adding good offence later would be much easier than acquiring good pitching.

These rumours flying about are crazy...

[Griff83]

I'm not a believer in Bedard. Would he have the cajones to win on the road in Boston or New York?

August 15th @ New York

7 innings pitched, 4 hits, 0 earned runs, 8 strikeouts,

July 31st @ Boston

6 innings pitched, 2 hits, 2 earned runs, 6 strikeouts

April 8th @ New York

7 innings pitched, 5 hits, 3 earned runs, 5 strikeouts

[Mak]

Whats with this Tim Lincecum guy? He was not that impressive in his first year, in the best division to pitch. I have not seen him pitch but i dont like this deal.

[OldNo7]

I've seen him, he is going to be a very, very good pitcher. He has serious movement on his off speed pitches, big life on his fastball and a super-deceptive delivery. If we do that deal, I wouldnt mind trading AJ for an outfielder. But my guess is, JP being the genius he is, wants to play Stairs full time.

[tempests_dawn]

I've seen him, he is going to be a very, very good pitcher. He has serious movement on his off speed pitches, big life on his fastball and a super-deceptive delivery. If we do that deal, I wouldnt mind trading AJ for an outfielder. But my guess is, JP being the genius he is, wants to play Stairs full time.

I hope not. I hope AJ stays to give the rotation a really strong 1-2-3 with a 4-5 that could be most teams' 2-4.

I really like Rios, and think he's just on the verge of stardom. But getting a young pitching stud (22-23) doesn't happen very often. Good young pitching > good young hitting - always.

At the very least...these rumours wok eme up n got me posting on the Jays board/thread again.

[SmallTownJournalist303]

I'm not a believer in Bedard. Would he have the cajones to win on the road in Boston or New York?

You're not a believer in a guy that can strike out that many guys? What do you believe in?

[fame]

Whats with this Tim Lincecum guy? He was not that impressive in his first year, in the best division to pitch. I have not seen him pitch but i dont like this deal.

He's basicly one of the top pitching prospects to come out in a long long time. For the last couple years everybody has been talking about Tim Lincecum, Yovani Gallardo, and Andrew Miller to be the next big things in baseball.

Anyway I've seen a few start from Lincecum last year, because he was in a deep fantasy team of mine. He started of his career on fire. Averaging something like 6-7k's per game to go along with an era under 3 in his first 5 starts or so...Then he seemed to falter a little and had some bad starts.

The guy needs to get his head on straight if he want's to reach his potential, but man I gotta tell you guys...HE HAS NASTY STUFF, I mean disgusting...Speed, delivery, movement. It's funny because he's a small funny looking guy, but when he pitches he looks vicious, very intimadating.

Anyway pitchers like him only come once every couple years. Even if he doesn't pan out..If we can get him, we have to do it...We might be thanking JP 10 years from now.

He has the EXACT SAME DELIVERY AS NOLAN RYAN.
http://www.pitchingclips.com/videos/tim_lincecum.htm

[tempests_dawn]

- Would the Giants trade Matt Cain for Alex Rios?

Late Tuesday, it was learned that the "interesting" proposal Brian Sabean had mentioned on Monday involved Rios, the Blue Jays outfielder. He has three more years of arbitration eligibility before becoming eligible for free agency after the 2010 season.

The Blue Jays want Cain for Rios, according to a high-ranking Toronto official, while the Giants seem more willing to part with Lincecum.

Rios, who turns 27 in February, batted .297 with 24 homers and 85 RBIs in 161 games. He scored 114 runs and stole 17 bases. He could be a perfect fit for the Giants and the National League, considering his vast all-around game (minus his range in right field) and favorable contract situation. He made $2.5 million this year.

The Giants need a young hitter with pop to replace Barry Bonds and make the team respectable again, and the Blue Jays need more pitching to keep up with the Yankees and Red Sox in the American League East.

While Sabean has suggested Cain and Lincecum are virtual untouchables, the Blue Jays could have an offer that's too good to pass up as they zero in on the promising young pitchers, who are either the foundation of the Giants' future or the bait that rebuilds an anemic offense.

Toronto wants Cain instead of Lincecum because Lincecum isn't as proven as a big-leaguer and could have durability issues because of his slight frame and irregular mechanics. Conversely, Cain could evolve into a Curt Schilling type, a horse of a pitcher with an overpowering repertoire.

"There's only one scenario that is intriguing," said Sabean, referring to trade offers for either of his two young pitchers. "But it's not intriguing enough to pull the trigger."

That could change. The teams were scheduled to talk again here. The Giants could sweeten a Lincecum package with other players or agree to surrender Cain.

"We need to decide internally the weight of it," Sabean said.

It's a tough call for Sabean, who hasn't had the luxury of two starting pitchers with so much upside since he became the GM more than a decade ago. Cain and Lincecum are both 23.

Cain's 7-16 record last season is misleading. The bullpen blew five saves while the offense scored two or fewer runs in 21 of his 32 starts. He had a 3.65 ERA, and batters hit .235 off him, seventh lowest in the league.

Lincecum debuted in 2007 and went 7-6 with a 4.00 ERA in 24 starts. He struck out 160 batters and 1461/3 innings. With the Giants out contention early, Lincecum was a refreshing newcomer and helped keep Giants fans awake with his young looks and impressive stuff.

The Blue Jays' brass got familiar with Lincecum on Monday after watching video of his delivery, and general manager J.P. Ricciardi seemed determined to move Rios to upgrade his rotation.

"You have to pitch to win our division," said Ricciardi, who spoke to reporters of an outfield without Rios, including Adam Lind in left, Vernon Wells in center and Reed Johnson and Matt Stairs in right.

There was talk that the Blue Jays spoke with the Giants about Lincecum, offering Lind instead of Rios. The Blue Jays would probably need to offer more, but the Giants have no interest in taking on third baseman Troy Glaus.

Rios is familiar with the Giants' ballpark, having played in this year's San Francisco-hosted All-Star Game. Unlike Bonds, he participated in Home Run Derby and hit the most homers (19) but finished second in the competition after losing the final round to Vladimir Guerrero.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/12/04/SPVKTOFV9.DTL

[OldNo7]

Lincecum avg a strikeout per inning I think...

I would prefer him to Cain personally

[fame]

Wow! I like Cain, but if JP gets offered Lincecum instead of Cain and doesn't take it, then he's officially a moron.

But if they can keep Rios and get some sort of package with Lind together, that would be amazing.

[tempests_dawn]

Wow! I like Cain, but if JP gets offered Lincecum instead of Cain and doesn't take it, then he's officially a moron.

But if they can keep Rios and get some sort of package with Lind together, that would be amazing.

No. JP would be a moron if he holds out for the one who SF is not offering, and ends up losing BOTH.

[tempests_dawn]

Blair! @ 1201AM - 39 minutes ago

But here's the catch: The Blue Jays have not heard back from Giants GM Brian Sabean after an initial meeting on Monday

[kavan]

Giving up AJ and RIOS does not make us a better team. We need to ADD talent not give and take. We still stand at the same place.

We need to add talent to push us over the edge. AJ and GLaus maybe expendable for the right price.