MLB Trade Deadline: Astros Finish Teardown, Trade Philadelphia Phillies Hunter Pence

The Houston Astros finished tearing down their long-struggling club ahead of the MLB Trade Deadline Saturday, trading kind-of-star Hunter Pence to the Philadelphia Phillies for top prospects Jonathan Singleton and Jarred Cosart, as well as reliever Josh Zeid and a player to be named later.

Pence was the Astros' All-Star in 2011 and the last vestige of the competitive teams of the middle of the last decade, and ownership was apparently reluctant to trade the last star the fans had to hang onto. But the Phillies' offer will go a long way toward rehabilitating a minor league system that was often treated as though the Astros were still perennial contenders, and with 2012 already a lost cause GM Ed Wade pulled the trigger on Pence, who will replace departed free agent Jayson Werth in the Phillies' order.

Singleton, a 19-year-old outfielder/first baseman who's already arrived in high-A ball, has hit .284/.387/.413 with nine home runs in 93 games in the pitcher-friendly Florida State League. Cosart, 21, is 9-8 with a 3.92 ERA in 19 starts in the same league and possesses a mid-nineties fastball.

The Astros appear to have gotten the better of this deal at first glance, but fan reaction is understandably mixed; the Astros' last recognizable player is Michael Bourn, and their current leader in home runs is Carlos Lee, with 10. With Wandy Rodriguez still on the block, this team is going to get more anonymous still before it gets better...

MLB Trade Rumors: Heath Bell To Cardinals Rumors Finally Fizzle Out

It took until July 31, but with the St. Louis Cardinals preoccupied by acquiring Edwin Jackson and Rafael Furcal and dumping Colby Rasmus for pennies on the dollar the MLB trade rumors that connected them to San Diego Padres closer Heath Bell seem finally to have fizzled out. The omnibus trade that was supposed to send Bell and shortstop Jason Bartlett to the Cardinals has been rendered obsolete by less-abrupt upgrades, leaving Heath Bell speculation to the Texas Rangers.

The relief problem was solved, in the end, by trading for a starting pitcher. Jackson came with two relievers, lefty Marc Rzepczynski and righty Octavio Dotel, and Wally Pipped erstwhile set-up man Kyle McClellan back into the bullpen by taking his spot in the rotation. The result wasn't a name-brand closer, but it was a fully renovated bullpen.

As for shortstop, if the Rafael Furcal deal goes through as expected the Cardinals will have gotten a Bartlett-style upgrade by picking up a player who was just as expensive and struggling even more.

In the end it ended up that the Cardinals traded Colby Rasmus for unnecessary help in the bullpen, but it didn't quite go the way anyone expected on July 1. Truth be told, this turned out better than it could have gone--even if it still didn't turn out especially well. 

MLB Standings Could Depend On Trade Deadline Moves

The St. Louis Cardinals under Walt Jocketty developed a strange midseason trope out of their habit of collecting veterans in exchange for their mid-range prospects--rather than rounding in midseason form they were said to be holding on until the trade deadline, or staying in contention in spite of their problems, no matter how far ahead of the NL Central they were at the time.

In that sense: The Cardinals are holding on up to the trade deadline. After topping the Houston Astros twice in a row they find themselves a half-game up in a tight National League Central. But the trade deadline thing could come back to bite them if they decide to trade Colby Rasmus in a misguided attempt to shore up their (very real) problems.

The Walt Jocketty Cardinals rarely had a great young outfielder to trade, but given his proclivity for thirtysomethings we'd probably be in the same situation if he were still around--the Cardinals have held on up to the trade deadline, but it's difficult to tell whether that will make them better or worse.

For a full look at the NL Central standings, check out Viva El Birdos's handy sidebar.

MLB Trade Rumors: Carlos Beltran Could Stay East If Phillies, Braves Have Any Say

The Pittsburgh Pirates and the Cincinnati Reds have both been bandied about as potential Cardinals-ruining suitors for Carlos Beltran, the New York Mets' very own spoiler and top trade chit ahead of the MLB trading deadline on July 31. But with the Mets more or less out of contention Beltran has gotten some significant heat--or at least columnist heat--as a potential difference-maker for the Atlanta Braves and the Philadelphia Phillies, both locked in a dogfight atop the NL East.

The Braves have plenty of pitching prospects the Mets would covet--this blogger suggests Mike Minor--but at 34, injury-prone, and headed toward free agency Beltran is the ultimate rental, and teams have lately been reluctant to part with cost-controlled talent for even Carlos Beltran types. (Especially when that Carlos Beltran type is mentioned as possibly platooning with Jordan Schafer and Jason Heyward, which is probably not the situation Beltran is looking for.)

The Phillies are no strangers to high-cost veterans and gutsy moves, and with Ryan Howard's absurd contract still not set to begin until 2012(!) they can afford to pay the last stretch of Carlos Beltran's old megadeal.

And both of them would be fine with me, so long as they keep Beltran away from the Cardinals. Without Adam Wainwright's curveball I just don't want to think about it.

MLB Trade Rumors: Ubaldo Jimenez, James Shields Top List Of Available-But Starters

In 2010 Ubaldo Jimenez was supposed to be having a kind of latter-day Bob Gibson season; in 2011 he's just another brick in the 2011 MLB Trading Deadline wall. Rumor has Jimenez available, but even the most optimistic rumor-mongers aren't quite convinced he's available-available; the Colorado Rockies would trade him, sure, but only if they were offered something unspeakably brilliant in return. (Like a young ace signed to a below-market-value deal who has shown flashes of total dominance, for instance.)

The St. Louis Cardinals happen to have some unspeakably brilliant things available--Shelby Miller and Carlos Martinez, their not-even-a-little-available top pitching prospects, and Colby Rasmus, who is for whatever reason being run out of town on a rail for not hitting enough like center fielders are supposed to hit--but with the National League Central still perfectly winnable without a dramatic move I'm not sure they have the desperation to pull something Ubaldian off.

Enter the Cincinnati Reds and former Cardinals GM Walt Jocketty. Nobody made his name trading prospects for veterans like Jocketty, and a move for Jimenez or the also-not-really-available James Shields, who Rays manager Joe Maddon has repeatedly declared an unlikely trade candidate would be right in his wheelhouse.

MLB Trade Rumors: Carlos Beltran Could Join Pirates, Haunt Cardinals Forever

I want to be gentle with this, so—sit down, please. Carlos Beltran, the official supervillain of the St. Louis Cardinals' 2004 NLCS victory over the Astros and the New York Mets' major trade chit as they look to rebuild and get considerably cheaper, could end up in the National League Central. Beltran, now a right fielder thanks to his recurring leg problems, nevertheless has an OPS+ of 153 in 2011—the best figure of his career, with a league-leading 30 doubles and 14 home runs. And there's an outside chance that the Pittsburgh Pirates attempt to make a trade for him. 

More recent talk has the Pirates "not going full-speed" after Beltran, but as desperate as they are to prove to fans they're serious about competing for once—and to actually make a mostly luck-driven run a little more for-real in the second half—a look at Beltran, a free agent after this year, makes surprising amounts of sense for the light-hitting Pirates, who with Andrew McCutchen would be under no temptation to move Beltran back into center. 

In case you forgot, in 2004 Beltran hit .417/.563/.958 with four home runs and 12 runs scored in the Astros' losing effort. In 2006, with the Mets, he was again foiled by a World Series-bound MV3 squad, but he still hit .296/.387/.667 with three more home runs in that seven-game series. Woody Williams has a lightning bolt-shaped scar that burns every time Carlos Beltran feels joy. 

Colby Rasmus Trade Rumors Remain Infuriating Ahead Of Deadline

Heath Bell Trade Rumors Quiet Ahead Of MLB All-Star Game

Heath Bell will be representing the San Diego Padres in the 2011 MLB All-Star Game. That much is certain, or at least all-but-certain—where he'll be by the trade deadline on July 31st is a different story entirely, if you believe the trade rumors that have swirled around the Padres' closer almost from the moment he became the Padres' closer. Recent reports have mentioned that the Padres' current asking price is too rich for the St. Louis Cardinals' blood, which could be part of the reason the trade talks have gone quiet ahead of the All-Star Break. 

Bell might be the best closer available at the deadline, but with a player's cost-controlled years more highly valued than ever teams are increasingly unwilling to surrender a lot of young talent for a free-agent reliever who's likely to pitch no more than 30 innings in a team's uniform. Part of any value equation for a Heath Bell deal at this point might be whether or not he's a Type-A free agent, and how likely he is to reject salary arbitration; a team might be willing to trade prospects for Bell if they could get extra draft picks in return. 

MLB Trade Rumors: Heath Bell Among Pitchers On Block, All-Star Team

Heath Bell is the San Diego Padres' lone representative in the 2011 MLB All-Star Game, but he might not be representing them in the regular season much longer, if the six months' worth of trade rumors we've seen have anything to do with real life. Bell is the most frequent visitor of the rumor mill on either roster's bullpen, but a team like the St. Louis Cardinals that is allegedly looking for veteran relief help might have a few other options to look for if they plan on trading with the National League All-Star Team.

Tyler Clippard, for instance, the Washington Nationals' bespectacled set-up man, is in the middle of his best season yet after lowering his walk rate while maintaining his high strikeout rate. Clippard is just 26 but threw an impressive 91 innings in relief last year; Clippard has long been seen as potential trade bait, though the Nationals rumor mill has churned around former Brewer Todd Coffey more frequently. 

MLB Trade Rumors: Jason Isringhausen On Block; How About A Cardinals Reunion?

Heath Bell remains the apple of most St. Louis Cardinals-pointed MLB rumor-mongers' eye, but there are plenty of other relievers on the trading block—and some of them even have a ton of closing experience and solid numbers in 2011! For a particularly low price, owing to his injury history, advanced age, and recent comeback, the Cards could pluck from the New York Mets a pitcher with 293 saves and a 2011 ERA of 3.38. The only problem is that he would have to be Jason Isringhausen.

That's right: Izzy, the Cardinals' occasionally dominating, perpetually anxiety-inducing all-time saves leader has made a mostly successful return to the Major Leagues after most of two seasons in injury-induced quasi-retirement, and now the Mets are apparently looking to shop him around.

As much as I would love the wild cheers and subsequent boos that would be inevitable when Jason Isringhausen returned to Busch Stadium, there's one massive caveat: After a strong start, Izzy's peripherals have taken a serious nosedive and now resemble nobody's so much as the recently released Miguel Batista. It's too small a sample size to have any idea about what kind of pitcher Isringhausen is today, so any team looking to acquire him will have to base their decision mostly on his scouting results and his history.

MLB Trade Rumors: Left-Handed Relievers Also A Need For Cardinals

The St. Louis Cardinals' bullpen troubles—and the MLB trade rumors that are spun around them—are, on a national level, usually wrapped tightly around a core that contains Ryan Franklin's sudden and complete collapse after two-plus seasons as the team's closer and Heath Bell's clear status as a top trade chit ahead of the trade deadline. But in St. Louis the left-handed relief has caused just as much grief as the right, with no young flamethrowers on the horizon to solve the problem. Brian Tallet and Trever Miller have each struggled as the primary left-hander in the pen, and thirtysomething Memphis arrival Raul Valdes has been unspectacular in his second MLB season. Trade prospects, unfortunately, look just as uncertain. 

Former Pirates closer Mike Gonzalez, currently struggling with the Baltimore Orioles, won't be a great fit in any pitch-to-contact system but still knows his way around a strikeout. The prize of the list, such as it is, is the brilliant and troubled Hong-Chih Kuo, a typically unhittable left-hander whose injury problems and recent anxiety issues have combined with the Los Angeles Dodgers' financial and on-field woes to put him on the market.

One interesting option: intermittently successful Japanese import Hideki Okajima of the Red Sox, who has spent much of the season in AAA, posting impressive numbers. A LOOGY whose success is predicated on deception and a blooper curveball might get more than the usual player from a change of leagues. 

On the minor league front the Cardinals could look at well-traveled ex-prospect Royce Ring, who recently left the Mariners' system after a less-than-steller half-season at AAA. A first rounder back in 2002, Ring spent 2009 with Memphis and was, once upon a time, traded to the San Diego Padres—along with fellow Mets prospect Heath Bell. 

MLB Trade Rumors: Heath Bell To St. Louis Cardinals Won't Die, Should

It looks like the MLB rumor mill has chosen its newest future-St.-Louis-Cardinal: Heath Bell, the San Diego Padres' post-Hoffman closer who's vaulted into the top of the not-top-tier of baseball's closers, has been linked to the Cardinals in any number of configurations almost from the moment the himself tolled on Ryan Franklin's career, and as the trade deadline approaches it's only getting louder. Only a sterling run from Fernando Salas, the team's rookie closer-by-default, could keep Bell's name out of the headlines before July 31, and even then I think the headline would be that the Cardinals didn't need to trade for him, after all. 

Bell is a great reliever, but Petco Park is a great place for a guy with a hard fastball to go and throw hard fastballs, and as a free agent at the end of the season the Cardinals would be paying out the nose for maybe 30 innings from their new closer. If free agent compensation survives unscathed the team could also count on two draft picks after losing him to the market, but teams have of late become exceptionally reticent about losing their picks. 

Bell—and the related Heath Bell-and-Jason-Bartlett-for-no-reason trade—won't be a panacea; he'll make the team better in 2011, but it's easy to see a route in which he makes them worse in 2012.