In an effort to sure up their rotation the Minnesota Twins have acquired right-hander Carl Pavano from the Cleveland Indians for a PTBNL, this according to The Plain Dealer.

The 33-year-old Pavano went 9-8 with a 5.37 ERA in 21 starts for Cleveland this season, giving up 150 hits and 23 walks with 88 strikeouts in 125-plus innings.

Pavano is only owed about $500,000 for the remainder of the year, but with incentives still remaining he could earn as much as $1.75 million when all is said and done.

The Twins are 53-55 this year and currently sit 4 ½ games behind the first place Tigers.

However, good news for the Twins is that Pavano is 5-1 this year against the Tigers and White Sox, both of whom the Twins trail in the AL Central.

The New York Yankees have acquired right-handed Chad Gaudin from the San Diego Padres for a PTBNL, this according to Tyler Kepner at the New York Times.

Gaudin has primarly been a starter this year for the Padres, but according to Kepner, the Yankees will start Gaudin off in the bullpen. However, odds are in the end Gaudin will put pressure on struggling starter Sergio Mitre who eventually could lose his place in the rotation to Gaudin.

Gaudin's numbers are nothing to write home about this year, and considering he's now shifting to the most prominent offensive division in baseball, I don't imagine they'll get much better.

Regardless of his numbers Gaudin is a very affordable risk for the Yankees. The Yankees are expected to only pay him $650,000 for the remainder the year, says Joel Sherman of the NY Post.

The Yankees spent nearly $500 million in new contracts during the offseason; so don't expect to see the Yankees make any big splashes in the August waiver period. However, I do think they'll still be active, and probably will make a few more small additions such as Gaudin.

The Philadelphia Phillies and Boston Red Sox were the big winners during the non-waiver trading period, both on the field, and in Vegas, this according to Erik Matuszewski of Bloomberg.

Both teams acquired all-star talent, as the Phillies bulked up their rotation with the addition of former Cy Young Award winner Cliff Lee, and the Red Sox further solidified their lineup with the addition of C/1B Victor Martinez.

The fine folks in Vegas certainly took notice as both teams chances to win a World Series greatly improved following their deadline deals.

Prior to their acquisition of Lee, the Phillies had 8-1 odds at winning the fall classic, but after Lee their odds improved to 6-1. Furthermore, the Red Sox pre deadline odds were 9-2, but after the addition of Martinez they vaulted to 4-1 odds.

Now neither team was able to grab to top spot, which is still currently held by the Yankees at 3-1, but there's no denying that Vegas took notice of both the Red Sox and Phillies recent moves.

Here's a look at all of the rest of the odds to win the World Series.  

Team World Series Odds

--------------------------------------

New York Yankees 3-1

Boston Red Sox 4-1

Los Angeles Dodgers 5-1

Philadelphia Phillies 6-1

Los Angeles Angels 8-1

St. Louis Cardinals 8-1

Chicago Cubs 9-1

Detroit Tigers 12-1

Tampa Bay Rays 20-1

Colorado Rockies 28-1

Minnesota Twins 33-1

San Francisco Giants 33-1

Atlanta Braves 35-1

Chicago White Sox 45-1

Milwaukee Brewers 50-1

Texas Rangers 65-1

Florida Marlins 70-1

Houston Astros 125-1

Seattle Mariners 250-1

New York Mets 300-1

Cincinnati Reds 750-1

Toronto Blue Jays 1,000-1

Arizona Diamondbacks 5,000-1

Cleveland Indians 10,000-1

Oakland Athletics 10,000-1

Baltimore Orioles 10,000-1

San Diego Padres 10,000-1

Washington Nationals 10,000-1

Kansas City Royals 10,000-1

Pittsburgh Pirates 10,000-1

UPDATE: Not only did Shields lose his no-hitter bid in the eighth inning to John Buck's leadoff single, but the Rays wound up losing the game 4-1.

James Shields

#33 / Pitcher / Tampa Bay Rays

Height: 6-4

Weight: 215

Bats: R

Throws: R

Born: Dec 20, 1981

We all know how this ends once we mention it, but we'll see.

(via chicagoist.com)

The sad story that is Mark Prior continued today, when the Padres released the oft-injured right-hander, this according to Corey Brock of MLB.com.

Prior was trying to make a comeback to the major leagues after having two major shoulder surgeries in the last three years, but an unexpected setback in the rehab process forced the Padres to finally cut their ties.

Prior to his release he was rehabbing at the Padres spring training facility in Arizona, but he'd never reached the point where he was facing live batters.

Prior was at one time considered a cant miss prospect, when he was selected number two overall in the 2001 draft, behind the Twins Joe Mauer. To put it into prospective he was basically the Stephen Strasburg of his time.

He hasn't pitched at the major league level since 2006, but before that Prior had recorded 613 innings between 2002-2005,. During that span Prior had an ERA of 3.24 ERA, including 2003, when he went 18-6 with a 2.43 ERA.

This is really a story about a kid who was blessed beyond belief with ability, a kid who had the chance to be one of the best pitchers of his generation. However, his inability to remain healthy for any length of time has all but ended his major league career.

For Prior's sake I hope all works out well. By all accounts he seems like a good guy who's been working tirelessly to get back to the big leagues. We can only hope this story ends well for Prior, but it's certainly not looking that way.

The non-waiver trade deadline has passed, but that doesn't stop FOXSports.com baseball guru Ken Rosenthal from dishing the dirt. In his latest full count video Rosenthal touches upon a few interesting stories that we didn't see prior to July 31. Have a look at some of the things Rosenthal had to say.

Yankees:

• Rosenthal spoke with Yankees GM Brian Cashman who said he was heavily involved in everything. According to Cashman he was after high-end starters, low-end starters and relievers.
• The Yankees were most interested in Mariners starter Jarrod Washburn, but the Mariners wanted Yankees CF prospect Austin Jackson, which the Yankees weren't willing to give up.
• The Yankees were one of several teams, including the Red Sox, to inquire about Mariners starter Felix Hernandez.
• As for relievers the Yankees top target was Heath Bell, the Yankees were hoping to land Bell and move him to the set up role, and possibly put either Phil Hughes or Alfredo Aceves back into the rotation.

Dodgers:

• The Dodgers were never close to pulling off the supposed blockbuster with the Padres that would have sent them Heath Bell and Adrian Gonzalez.
• Rosenthal wonders what the Dodgers would have looked like had they just gotten Bell.
• As Rosenthal puts it, the Dodgers would have acquired two all-star closers in one day, which certainly would have made their starting rotation much less of an issue. Furthermore, he notes that the Dodger rotation still is an issue. Only two fewer teams are getting less innings pitched out of their starters than the Dodgers.

Pirates:

• We wont know the returns on the Pirates trades until at least 2012.
• Early returns on the Jason Bay trade aren't good. The Pirates acquired Craig Hansen, Brandon Moss, Andy LaRoche and a minor league pitcher name Brian Morris. None have been serious contributors to the major league club.
• The Rays were also after Jason Bay, and might have offered a superior package.
• Rosenthal believes that the Rays would have probably parted with either Edwin Jackson or Jason Hammel in a package for Bay, both Jackson and Hammel were later traded from the Rays.

August Waiver Period:

• Rosenthal says relievers and hitters will be in abundance during the August waiver period.
• However, the market for quality starting pitchers will be very weak.
• The best starting pitcher who might be available could be Diamondbacks left-hander Doug Davis
• Davis likely will clear waivers, and Rosenthal believes the team needs to be realistic about what they expect in return, because it's unlikely the D-Backs will offer him arbitration.
• Rosenthal says there was very little action on Davis in July. Rosenthal noted to a D-Backs official that the offers likely wont be any better in August, and the official replied, "They can't be much worse."

The Padres may have pulled off one blockbuster deal when they sent former Cy Young Award winner Jake Peavy to the White Sox, but according to John Heyman of SI.com, the Padres were also talking to the Dodgers about an even bigger blockbuster that ultimately failed to go through.

Lets have a look at the proposed deal.

Dodgers:

1B- Adrian Gonzalez

RHP- Heath Bell

Padres:

1B- James Loney

C- Russel Martin

2B- Blake DeWitt

RHP- James McDonald

SS- Ivan DeJesus

Now as we know this deal never went through, so in the end it's all a moot point, but considering we're winding down on the evening I thought it would be fun to listen to the debate over this proposed deal.

Good deal? Bad deal?

Let's hear what you guys think.

Update 4:13PM ET (Eric Simon): Per Ken Davidoff, the Yankees have traded minor league catcher Chase Weems for Hairston. Weems is 20 years old and is hitting .260/.317/.347 with Single-A Charlston.

According to Joel Sherman of the NY Post, the New York Yankees have acquired Jerry Hairston Jr. from the Cincinnati Reds    

Update 3:29 ET: MLB Networks Tom Verducci says the third player going to Cleveland is Bryan Price.

Update 3:07 ET: USA Today's Bob Nightengale tweets "Done Deal," but no conformation on the return.

Update 2:45 ET: Mayo updates (via twitter) that Masterson and Hagadone are part of the deal, but the teams are still working to see who will go along with them.

Update 2:41 ET: Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com tweets that Justin Masterson and Nick Hagadone are part of the deal, but no word if that's it.

Update 2:33 ET: Rosenthal and Morosi say neither Clay Buchholz or Daniel Bard is in the deal.

Update 2:26 ET: Ed Price of AOL Fanhouse tweets that if the Red Sox need to flip Adam LaRoche to make room for Martinez the Marlins aren't interested.

Update 2:22 ET: Ken Rosenthal and John Paul Morosi of FOXSports.com confirm the report that the Red Sox are on the verge of acquiring Victor Martinez.  They duo reports that it's a straight up deal between the Sox and Indians, and that no third team is involved.  However, still now word on what the Red Sox are giving up.

Update 2:04 ET: Ed Price of AOL FanHouse tweets, that it "looks good" for Victor Martinez to the Red Sox, but still no word on the haul.

USA Today's Bob Nightengale is reporting that the Red Sox are on the verge of acquiring Victor Martinez from the Indians.  

Details to follow...

Update 1:53 ET: According to LaVelle E. Neal of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune, the Twins are also getting cash in the deal, but she doesn't mention how much.

Update 1:18 ET: According to Bob Nightengale of USA Today the Minnesota Twins have acquired A's shortstop Orlando Cabrera for prospect Tyler Ladendorf.  

According to ESPN The Magazine's Buster Olney, the Twins and Athletics are making "steady progress" on a deal that would send A's shortstop Orlando Cabrera to Minnesota.

The twins have been seeking infield help for some time now, and following the trades of Freddy Sanchez and Jack Wilson, Cabrera likely becomes the next best available.

Cabrera signed a one-year $4 million contract this offseason, so he will be a free agent after the season, which means most likely this would be 2 month rental at worst for the Twins.

At 34, Cabrera isn't getting any younger, and likely wouldn't command a huge market as a free agent, which should give the Twins a chance to resign him in the offseason, should they choose to do so.

Okay so we're down to the final hours, and the news and reports are going to be flying off the ceiling.  Where will Roy Halladay go?  Where will Victor Martinez go?  It's going to get hot and heavy, so the open thread format should give us a great platform to keep you up to the minute.

Keep an eye out for any updates you guys might pick up along the way, if you read anything drop us a line, and we'll go ahead and discuss it.  If you're going to post anything please try to link the credible source, so we don't waste our time talking about made up garbage.

Here we go....

According to ESPN  (via their baesball trade deadline show) the Brewers have acquired RHP Claudio Vargas from the Dodgers in exchange for C Vinny Rottino.

Update 1:07 ET: John Heyman of SI.com reports that the Red Sox and Padres continue to talk about an Adrian Gonzalez deal, but the Red Sox want to include Clay Buchholz, Jed Lowrie and Justin Masterson, however, the Padres also want Lars Anderson and Ryan Westmoreland.  Yikes! 

According to Mark Feinsand and Bill Madden of the New York Daily News, the Boston Red Sox are in "full pursuit" of San Diego Padres first baseman Adrian Gonzalez.

Furthermore, the duo notes the Padres may be willing to include closer Heath Bell in the deal if the Red Sox agree to throw in young right-hander Daniel Bard.

Presumably any package for Gonzalez would also include the Red Sox's top prospect Clay Buchholz.

Update 12:35 ET: According to Ken Rosenthal and John Paul Morosi of FOXSports.com, the Marlins have upped their offer for Nick Johnson, and have now included another minor leaguer to go along with Class-AAA right-hander Ryan Tucker.

According to ESPN's Peter Gammons the Marlins are getting close to acquiring Nationals first baseman Nick Johnson.

We reported yesterday that the Marlins were making a "strong push" for Johnson, and as early as this morning it was reported that Johnson was the Marlins top target.

As Gammons notes the Nationals were content on letting their players test the free agent market, and receive compensation picks, but because Johnson has missed so many games with injuries it's likely he wouldn't qualify for any sort of compensation.  

The Marlins and Angels are now the leaders to acquire Padres closer Heath Bell, this according to Bill Center of the San Diego Union-Tribune.

It was reported that the Marlins and Padres were discussing potential deals, but the latest had the Padres requesting Cameron Maybin and Andrew Miller in return for Bell, and the Marlins quickly rejected that deal.

The Angles could be a sleeper in this whole Bell deal. The Angels have been quiet up to this point, but rumors that the Rangers are heavily working the phones could entice the Angels to get a bit more aggressive.

Here's a few other notes from Center:

• Heath Bell just signed a new one-year lease on his home in San Diego. I wonder what the refund policy is?
• The Boston Red Sox are still the leading candidate for Adrian Gonzalez, but the price will be very high.
• The Brewers had interest in Padres pitcher Kevin Correia , but that seems to have cooled.
• The Minnesota Twins have showed interest in Padres second baseman David Eckstein.
• Padres manager Bud Black said that if Bell is traded the team would move Mike Adams into the closer roll.

According to Ken Rosenthal and John Paul Morosi of FOXSports.com, the Tigers are continuing to work the phones, with the hopes of adding another player, but the team may lack the necessary prospects to making anything happen.

The duo notes that the Tigers continued to talk to the Mariners about Jarrod Washburn late last night, but the sides aren't optimistic a deal will get done.

One area the Tigers are clearly lacking is the ability to provide any top notch position player prospects, however, the Tigers do have some good pitching prospects, but up to this point GM Dave Dombrowski has been unwilling to deal any of them.

Here is a look at what John Sickels of Minor League Ball thinks of the Tigers minor league system, which is just about right in line with this thinking.

Sickels: "The Tigers have a weird system: they have one impact talent (Porcello), then a whole slew of power bullpen arms. Their position players are either future role players, or "future regulars" who are (in my opinion) dramatically overrated by other sources."

The Mariners and Yankees continued to talk about a deal for M's left-hander Jarrod Washburn late last night, and the latest offer was for Yankee prospect Jesus Montero, which was immediately rejected, this according to John Heyman of SI.com.

The Mariners have made it clear that they think Washburn has tremendous value, and they're not just going to give him away. However, the Yankees are hoping the M's consider a lesser package of prospects.  Montero was recently ranked by Baseball America as the third best prospect in baseball.

Some of the names that are thought the Yankees might be willing to deal are pitching prospects Mark Melancon, Mike Dunn, Ivan Nova and Paul Bush, catcher Francisco Cervelli and infielders Eduardo Nunez and Ramiro Pena.

In a related story the Yankees also inquired about Royals starter Brian Bannister, but that deal broke down when the ever money conscious Yankees were asking the Royals to throw in the $650,000 remaining on Bannister's contract.

The Marlins have been busy over the last few days, and here's a little update, this from Juan C. Rodriguez of the South Florida Sun Sentinel.

• The Marlins biggest target right now is Nationals first-baseman Nick Johnson. Don't ask why because this makes no sense to me.
• Rodriguez does note that Johnson can only play first base, which would likely mean the Marlins would have to move Jorge Cantu to third base.
• The Marlins were in on George Sherrill, but ultimately they lost out to the Dodgers.
• The Marlins would love to have Heath Bell, but the Padres are asking for Cameron Maybin and Andrew Miller, and unless that price drops, consider the Marlins out.
• The Marlins did contact the Blue Jays about Roy Halladay, but talks didn't go far. The Blue Jays were demanding outfield prospect Michael Stanton in any deal, and the Marlins have no intentions of trading him.
• The Royals rejected offers from the Marlins for Brian Bannister.
• The best possible pitching upgrade for the Marlins might be former Marlin Carl Pavano.

Any deal sending Roy Halladay to the Rangers appears to be dead, this according to John Heyman of SI.com.

Last night it was reported that the Rangers and Jays were having extensive talks about a deal for Roy Halladay, and while it appears the teams did come close, no deal is on the horizion.

It's believed the teams were discussing top young pitching prospect Derek Holland and top hitting prospect Justin Smoak in various packages.

Furthermore, it's believed that the Rangers were trying to get the Jays to pay a portion of Halladay's contract for this season. No word on what broke the deal down, but as of last night the Rangers were believed to be serious about taking on most of Halladay's contract, which likely means it was haul of prospects in return that broke the deal down.

The Rangers are just the latest team to fall victim of J.P. Ricciardi's rath. The teams believed to still have a chance at Halladay are the Red Sox, Yankees and Angels, but as of now it looks like Halladay may be a Jay for at least the remainder of this season.

According to Ken Rosenthal and John Paul Morosi of FOXSports.com, the Baltimore Orioles have changed their position on left-hander Mark Hendrickson, and the team is now electing to keep the veteran lefty.

Yesterday, it was reported that the Orioles were talking to the Rockies about a deal for Hendrickson, but that deal appears to be off at the moment, which is about par for the course for this time of year.

According to a source in the story the Orioles have decided that they want to keep Hendrickson to protect their young pitchers, and following the injury to Brad Bergesen last night, the Orioles may use Hendrickson to replace him in the rotation temporarily.

According to Ken Rosenthal and John Paul Morosi of FOXSports.com, the Cleveland Indians are officially "pessimistic" about the idea that Victor Martinez will be traded before the deadline.

When asked about the idea of Martinez being traded one Indians official said, "Not much here."

Their has been rampant speculation over the last few days that Victor Martinez would ultimately end up a Red Sox, but as we've learned the Sox now appear to have shifted their focus to Adrian Gonzalez.

The Red Sox have also been in discussions with the Blue Jays about Roy Halladay, but that appears to have come near an end as well.

Remember a lot can change over the next few hours, but as of now it looks like Martinez is staying, and the Sox are focusing on Gonzalez.

Update 8:48 ET: ESPN's Buster Olney and Jayson Stark note that the Yankees are among the teams interested in acquiring Brian Bannister, however, to this point no deal is close because the Yankees have asked the Royals to throw in the $650,000 remaining on Bannister's contract.  I swear that last part isn't a joke.

According to Buster Olney of ESPN The Magazine, the Kansas City Royals are getting several calls on right-hander Brian Bannister, but as of Thursday night the team was not close to making a trade.

Olney notes that Bannister would likely draw a lot of interest because of his very club friendly contract.

Bannister is 6-7 on the year with a 3.80 ERA, which considering his $1.74 million price tag is not all that bad.

Furthermore, Olney notes that the Royals are also listening to offers for left-handed reliever Ron Mahay.

Mahay is in the final year of a two-year $8 million deal, and presumably the Royals would love to rid themselves of his contract. The 38-year-old has been somewhat inconsistent this year, sporting a 4.09 ERA, but he has held lefties to a .207 OBP.

The Marlins are making a "strong push" for Nationals first baseman Nick Johnson, this according to Ken Rosenthal and John Paul Morosi of FOXSports.com

The duo notes that the teams have had extensive conversations, but have been unable to agree on the players the Nationals would get in return.

Among the names being discussed are Class AA left-hander Aaron Thompson and Class AAA right-hander Ryan Tucker.

Johnson, 30, is due roughly $1.8 million for the remainder of the season, and essentially would be a three-month rental for the Marlins.

All reports have indicated that the Marlins were desperately seeking adding another reliever, so this recent report comes as a bit of a surprise.

Johnson is batting .295 this season with six homers and 44 RBI's, which isn't far off from the Marlins current first baseman Jorge Cantu, who's batting .285 with 10 homers and 57 RBI's.

The Dodgers seemed to sure up a need in their bullpen this afternoon with the acquisition of reliever George Sherrill, but according to ESPN.com's Jayson Stark, the Dodgers may not be done yet.

Stark notes that the Dodgers may still be looking to add another reliever, preferably a right-hander.

He mentions that the Dodgers could be interested in Seattle reliever Mark Lowe, Pirates reliever Matt Capps, Blue Jays reliever Jason Frasor, and a pair of Reds relievers in David Weathers and Arthur Rhodes.

It's been well documented that the Dodgers bullpen has been heavily overworked this year, so the idea of continuing to add depth certainly makes sense.

Of the group listed I would think Lowe and Frasor would be the most likely candidates, mostly because of their production and their club friendly contracts.

Update 5:39 ET: ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick reports that it's "unlikely" that the Diamondbacks trade Qualls

Momentum is beginning to build on Diamondbacks reliever Chad Qualls, this according to ESPN The Magazine's Buster Olney.

Olney notes that the D-Backs have been fielding a lot of calls on Qualls, but the team isn't likely to trade him unless they are blow away with an offer.

Two teams that have been looking for relievers are the Dodgers and Marlins, and presumably both would have interest in Qualls.

Qualls has pitched 42.2 innings this year for the D-Backs, and sports a respectable 3.38 ERA to go along with 18 saves.

Update 5:37 ET: ESPN's Peter Gammons is reporting that the Reds have backed off on a potential deal for Rolen.

A few days ago it was reported that the Cincinnati Reds and Toronto Blue Jays were discussing a trade that would send Jays third baseman Scott Rolen to the Reds, and now today it appears those rumors are heating up.

Joe McDonald of the Providence journal is reporting that the Reds and Jays are discussing a deal that would send Rolen to the Reds in exchange for young first baseman Yonder Alonso.

Alonso was the Reds first round pick (7^th overall) in the 2008 draft, and is currently ranked the teams' number one overall prospect, according to John Sickels of Minor League Ball. Sickels grades the former Miami Hurricane standout as a B+, and says that he loves his walk total and power.

Adding to the speculation, Bob Elliot of the Toronto Sun tweets "looks like this Rolen to Reds thing has a pretty good chance of getting done," however, Elliot makes no mention of Alonso.

We'll keep you posted on any new developments in this story, but as of now it looks like Rolen to the Reds is getting close.

Ed Price of AOL FanHouse tweets that the Orioles have traded left-hander George Sherrill to the Dodgers.

However, Price says he still needs to confirm the story, but according to his source the deal is done. 

Update 3:45 ET: Gordon Edes of Yahoo Sports says the Dodgers are close to acquiring Sherrill for prospects Scott Elbert and Josh Bell.

Update 3:50 ET: Ken Gurnick of MLB.com says the Dodgers are getting Sherrill for Bell and right-handed pitcher Steve Johnson.  Conflicting reports, so we'll have to see which one comes to fruition, but the Bell/Johnson seems more realistic.

Update 4:10 ET: Ed Price of AOL FanHouse confirms that the Dodgers acquired Sherrill, and he appears to agree with the MLB.com report that suggests it was for Johnson and Bell.

Quick look at the prospects:

Johnson began the year in Single-A going 8-4 in 16 starts, while posting a 3.82 ERA, and striking out 102 in 96.2 innings pitched. Following that he made the jump to Double-A where he's had two starts going 1-1, and recording 15 strikeouts in only 10.2 innings.  John Sickels of Minor League Ball doesn't rate Johnson as one of the teams' top 20 prospects, but he does list him among others to watch.

Bell also plays for the Dodgers Double-A affiliate Chattanooga, and has batted .296 with 11 homers and 56 RBI's in 334 at bats.  Sickels grades Bell as a C+ prospect, and has him ranked as the teams 10th best prospect.  Sickels says "Making progress, but reports about weight are disturbing and he might not hit enough for first base."

How do the Dodgers counteract the Phillies recent addition of Cliff Lee?

How about adding Roy Halladay? According to Ken Rosenthal and John Paul Morosi of FOXSports.com, the Dodgers may be able to catch the attention of the Blue Jays by putting together a large package of minor league players.

The Dodgers have made it clear they don't want to part with any players from their major league roster, and maybe now they've found an alternative. However, I'm not sure how enticing the idea of emptying their minor league system is either.

Rosenthal and Morosi note that the Dodgers may be putting together a package that includes third baseman Josh Bell, shortstop Devaris Gordon and hard-throwing pitching prospects from among the group of Josh Lindblom, Ethan Martin and Nathan Eovaldi.

The duo says that while the Dodgers would probably prefer not to part with Bell and Gordon, the team does have depth at both positions, which may allow them the ability to pull off this deal.

To give you a better idea of this package, consider this, excluding Eovaldi every other player is ranked within the teams' top 10 prospects, according to John Sickels of Minor League Ball.

Difficult to imagine the Dodgers giving up potentially four or five of their best prospects, but if they want Halladay, that's going to be the price.

ESPN The Magazine's Buster Olney reports that the Red Sox and Padres continue to talk about a possible Adrian Gonzalez deal.

Olney notes that the two teams spoke at length last night, and it's expected that they will resume conversations today.

The Padres have said that they'll listen to offers on Gonzalez, but the team is under no pressure to deal the all-star slugger.

The Red Sox continue to look for an impact player to add to their roster, and they still remain involved with the Indians for Victor Martinez and the Blue Jays for Roy Halladay.

Olney believes that some of the names mentioned in a possible deal for Gonzalez are young pitchers, Clay Buchholz and Junichi Tazawa, along with young slugger Lars Anderson.

Up to this point the Red Sox have seemed reluctant to deal Buchholz, but it's becoming more obvious that if the Red Sox want to pry an impact player away from another team, they'll have to part with the 24-year-old starter.

For what it's worth, Olney still feels that among these three players the one most likely to be a Red Sox by Friday is Victor Martinez.

From The NY Times:

The information about Ramirez and Ortiz emerged through interviews with multiple lawyers and others connected to the pending litigation. The lawyers spoke anonymously because the testing information is under seal by a court order. The lawyers did not identify which drugs were detected.    

Is anybody shocked anymore?