The Friday Night Rumor Mill

With the reality setting in that Johan Santana and probably Erik Bedard are out of their reach, the Mets have stepped up talks with the A’s about Joe “Bulldog” Blanton. The rumored names from the Mets’ perspective include outfielder Carlos Gomez, Aaron Heilman, and minor league right-hander Kevin Mulvey, which is a pretty good package for a No. 3 starter like Blanton. Heilman would theoretically replace Blanton in Oakland’s rebuilt rotation, while Gomez and Mulvey would likely start the season at Triple-A Sacramento. With the addition of the Bulldog, the Mets’ rotation would feature Pedro Martinez, Oliver Perez, John Maine, Blanton and one other starter to be named later. That rotation, while not great, would represent an upgrade over what the Mets used for much of 2007…
The Brewers are considering a free agent signing that would greatly alter their defensive structure. The target is Kenny Lofton, who would play center field in Milwaukee, freeing up Bill Hall to move back to the infield (specifically third base). Ryan Braun would then move to left field, where he figures to be far less of a defensive liability than he has been at the infield corner. How bad of a defensive third baseman is Braun? Let’s just say that he brings back memories of Harmon Killebrew playing the hot corner in the Twin Cities and Beltin’ Bill Melton doing the same in the Windy City…

There hasn’t been much talk about it, but the Yankees have approached the Indians about a possible Hideki Matsui deal. Matsui has been connected to the Giants for two weeks, but Cleveland, in hot pursuit of a new left fielder, offers the Yankees another possibility. The Indians are probably offering a similar package to what has been linked to the Pirates in the Jason Bay talks: Cliff Lee, Kelly Shoppach, and Franklin Gutierrez. It’s debatable whether the Yankees would have interest in those three players; ideally, they’d like a catcher who is a little bit younger than Shoppach (who’s 27) or a pitcher with more upside than Lee. But there may be enough there to keep the two teams talking through the holidays…

The Yankees have dropped out of the Mark Prior derby, as have the Rangers. Both teams were turned off by medical reports on Prior, who didn’t pitch at all in 2007 after a miserable 2006 season. Still, 12 teams remain interested in the fragile Prior, including the Padres, who appear to be the frontrunners…

With 30 teams and over 700 available roster spots, old ballplayers don’t step into retirement as quickly as they once did. Consider the case of Gabe “The Body” Kapler, who did not play in 2007 but was just signed to a contract by the Brewers (maybe he’ll platoon with Lofton or some other free agent acquisition). Then there’s Todd Walker, whose career was given up for dead last summer after being released by the A’s. Now there’s talk that Walker will sign with the Rockies, where he would presumably back up Garret Atkins (third base) and Ian Stewart (second base). Walker is still only 34 and just two seasons removed from a relatively productive campaign with the Cubs.