 Yankees. Imagine if they signed Sabathia and traded for Peavy, adding two of the top 30-and-under starting pitchers in the game to a rotation that already includes Chien-Ming Wang, 28, and Joba Chamberlain, 23. Yankees second baseman Robinson Cano, owed $25 million over the next three seasons, should be affordable for even the Padres. But would Peavy be willing to pitch in the AL East? Mets. Definite interest on the club's part; the question, as with the Yankees, is whether Peavy would be willing to play in New York. The Mets could offer lefty Jon Niese or righty Robert Parnell, and the Padres no doubt would want Daniel Murphy, an impressive hitter who is defensively challenged. Red Sox. The team, while currently occupied, can not be ruled out of any Peavy discussion. The Red Sox are deep in pitching prospects as well as young shortstops, they control Josh Beckett only through 2010 and G.M. Theo Epstein enjoys an excellent relationship with his Padres counterpart, Kevin Towers. One rival executive's proposed package: Center fielder Jacoby Ellsbury, shortstop Jed Lowrie, right-hander Justin Masterson. Cubs. They always have liked Peavy, but probably would enter the discussions only if they lost right-hander Ryan Dempster as a free agent, which is unlikely. Even then, the Cubs might not match up with the Padres. Astros. Roy Oswalt can lobby all he wants for Peavy; his team is not nearly deep enough in prospects to satisfy the Padres. Dodgers. When the Rockies were entertaining offers for Holliday last summer, they told the Dodgers that the price for them, as a division rival, would be higher than it was for any other club. The Padres almost certainly would take the same approach with Peavy. Cardinals. Another of Peavy's preferred teams that is not a good fit.The Cardinals, facing multiple needs, do not want to invest in all of their available payroll and top prospects in one move. Brewers. Their fear would be that Peavy could turn into another Ben Sheets, suffering frequent injuries while earning $48 million from 2010 to '12. A Rickie Weeks-J.J. Hardy offer would snap the Padres to attention — look ma, a new middle infield! — but the Brewers are not going to part with their best young pitchers, righty Yovani Gallardo and lefty Manny Parra. Rays. The addition of Peavy would be ideal for a rotation that already includes James Shields, Scott Kazmir, David Price and Andy Sonnanstine. Tampa-St. Pete is relatively close to Alabama, and an Edwin Jackson-Reid Brignac-Jeff Niemann package might entice the Padres. The Rays, however, are wary of taking on significant payroll while parting with top young players. Rangers. The Padres surely are intrigued by the Rangers' farm system, but moving from pitcher-friendly Petco Park to hitter-friendly Rangers Ballpark would not be Peavy's idea of fun.New Blue Jays president Paul Beeston intends to meet personally with right-hander A.J. Burnett, who could opt out of his contract and become a free agent. The Blue Jays plan to make a creative push to keep Burnett, and Beeston is known for his persuasiveness. However, it is all but certain that Burnett, 31, will test the market. He has two years and $24 million remaining on his current deal ... In a recent item, I started that the Yankees shouldn't be confident of landing right-hander Derek Lowe in free agency, saying that some rival clubs believe that Lowe wants to stay on the west coast. Lowe told me that my information was wrong, that he actually wanted to go east. He backed up that remark by telling the Boston Globe's Nick Cafardo that the Red Sox were his first choice ...
Author:Fox Sports
Author's Website:http://www.foxsports.com
Added: April 29, 2009
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