The Friday Night Rumor Mill

There are lots of dissatisfied customers around the major leaguers. Specifically, they are current minor leaguers who are upset that they failed to make their teams’ Opening Day rosters. And that makes for a convenient theme to this week’s rumor mill…

The Devil Rays aren’t finding much of a market for erstwhile second baseman Jorge Cantu, who finally agreed to accept a minor league demotion after initially balking at the move. There just aren’t that many teams in need of second basemen, and there remain severe doubts as to whether Cantu can play the position sufficiently well at the major league level. Despite whispers to the contrary, the Mets currently have no interest in Cantu, in part because they value the improving defensive play of Jose Valentin at the position. The Devil Rays’ best bet would appear to be to hold on to Cantu and wait for an injury to develop with another team’s second baseman…

Another disgruntled player can be found in Milwaukee, where Jose Capellan is unhappy with his recent demotion. Capellan has requested a trade—and the Brewers are trying to oblige. (By the way, where does a guy like Capellan, who had an ERA of 4.40 last year, come off making complaints and trade requests?) Unlike Cantu, Capellan can expect a trade more quickly. Moving aggressively on Capellan, the Rockies appear to be the favorites for his services…

Yet another dissatisfied customer resides in the Los Angeles organization, where James Loney has politely asked the Dodgers to trade him after not seeing fit to include him on the big league roster. Unlike Cantu and Capellan, Loney has real value; he’s a good defensive first baseman with line-drive power and a sweet swing. The Dodgers have no intention of trading Loney right now, in part because they don’t want to be seen as caving in to the whim of a young player, but a deal down the road could be a possibility…

Don’t be fooled by the Phillies’ acquisition of Francisco Rosario; Pat Gillick isn’t done searching for bullpen help. With Charlie Manuel having confidence in only Flash Gordon and Mad Dog Madson, Gillick knows he will have to make additional moves. He’s considering signing Ron Villone, who has initially opted not to report to the minor leagues after being cut by the Yankees. Villone’s conditioning and arm strength are major questions, but his recent track record against left-handed hitters indicates he could have a role in Philly. If Villone doesn’t sign a major league contract with the Phillies or the Rockies, he could still return to the Yankees’ organization and report to Triple-A Scranton-Wilkes Barre.