Let’s start out with a sigh of relief, courtesy of SI.com’s Jon Heyman:
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Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe previews the Rays intentions at this week’s winter meetings this way:
Their attention must be on relief pitching, preferably a closer. Of course, we’re hearing the “no money’’ mantra, so they will likely think outside the box. Ben Zobrist is playing either second base or right field, so they need to fill whichever position Zobrist doesn’t. They would obviously love to move DH Pat Burrell and are reportedly still contemplating a Milton Bradley-Burrell swap. Dioner Navarro is available in trade, and there’s a possibility that Dan Wheeler and his $3.5 million price tag could be available. There’s intrigue about what might happen with left fielder Carl Crawford ($10 million option) or even first baseman Carlos Pena. They will likely stay, but would the Rays listen to offers? Probably.
Overall, I’d say that’s fairly accurate, although I don’t think the Rays see the Zobrist situation the way Cafardo describes it. It would seem the Rays are content using some combination of Ben Zobrist, Sean Rodriguez, Matt Joyce and others to fill their 2B/RF platoon.
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FoxSports.com’s Jon Paul Morosi figures there are two questions to be answered at the meetings:
Two big questions: Will Friedman finally consummate a deal for Milton Bradley? And will anyone give him a compelling offer for B.J. Upton?
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Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times discussed the possibility of the White Sox trading closer Bobby Jenks and concluded this:
Teams will inquire about the availability of closer Bobby Jenks, but unless that team is the Tampa Bay Rays and they are talking about a mega-package with Carl Crawford or B.J. Upton somehow involved, forget it.
Yep, forget it. Unless the “mega-package” is a whole-lot more appealing than Bobby Jenks, the White Sox need to keep their mitts off CC and BJ.
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