The Seattle Times' Larry Stone is reporting that the Mariners will trade Carlos Silva to the Chicago Cubs for outfielder Milton Bradley.

The Cubs have been unhappy with Bradley's performance after giving him a 3 year, $30 million deal last off-season. However, the enigmatic outfielder could provide the Mariner offense with solid production from the left-field or DH positions.

Pitcher Carlos Silva found himself in a similar position with the Mariners, getting a 4 year, $48 million deal two years ago but putting up an ERA over 6 in '08 and spending most of '09 on the DL.

There's no word whether the Mariners will be sending any money to Chicago to make up the difference in contracts. Silva is still owed $25 million while Bradley is only owed $21 million. Even if the Mariners send $4 million along to even things out, it's tough not to LOVE this deal for the M's.

Combined with the previous additions of Chone Figgins and ace Cliff Lee, the Mariners look to be a drastically improved team adding even more potential firepower in the form of Bradley.

The trade deadline has come and gone and left a TON of trades in it's wake. We've compiled a list of all the trades that occurred during the entire month of July in one giant trade recap. One interesting note, unless I've missed something, 27 of the 30 teams completed at least one trade last month. The Astros, Angels, and Rangers were the thre teams to stand pat in July.

• The Cubs traded for Jeff Baker from Colorado for Alberto Alburquerque.
• The Indians traded Joan Meloan from the Rays for Winson Abreu.
• The A's traded Ryan Webb, Greg Italiano, and a PTBNL (Sean Gallagher) for Scott Hairston from the Padres.
• The Orioles traded Ryan Freel to the Royals for a PTBNL.
• The White Sox acquired Tony Pena from Arizona in exchange for Brandon Allen.
• The Royals acquired Yuniesky Betancourt from Seattle for Danny Cortes and Derrick Saito.
• The Mets and Braves made a straight up trade of Ryan Church and Jeff Francoeur.
• Seattle acquired Jack Hannahan from the M's for Justin Souza.
• The Brewers traded for Felipe Lopez from the Diamondbacks for Cole Gillespie and Roque Mercedes.
• The Orioles and Padres made the second straight up trade of Oscar Salazar and Cla Meredith.
• With the third straight up trade, the Cards sent Chris Duncan to Boston for Julio Lugo. Lugo was recently DFA'd by the Red Sox.
• The Red Sox added another left-handed bat when they acquired Adam LaRoche from the Pirates for Hunter Strickland and Argenis Diaz.
• The Cardinals acquired slugger Matt Holliday for Brett Wallace, Shane Peterson, and Clayton Morentsen.
• The Giants trade Scott Barnes to the Indians in exchange for Ryan Garko.
• The Pirates and Mariners made a 7 player deal that sent Jack Wilson and Ian Snell for Jeff Clement, Ronny Cedeno, Nathan Adcock, Brett Lorin, and Aaron Pribanic.
• The Reds acquired Wladimir Balentien from Seattle in exchange for reliever Robert Manuel.
• The Yankees acquired Jason Hirsh from the Rockies for a minor leaguer and released Brett Tomko to make room.
• The Phillies traded for Cliff Lee and Ben Francisco for Carlos Carrasco, Jason Donald, Lou Marson, and Jason Knapp.
• The Giants acquired Freddy Sanchez from the Pirates in exchange for Tim Alderson.
• The Royals acquired Josh Anderson for cash considerations after he was DFA'ed by the Tigers.
• The Dodgers acquired George Sherrill from Baltimors for Josh Bell and Steve Johnson.
• The Cubs acquired both Tom Gorzelanny and John Grabow from the Pirates for Kevin Hart and Jose Ascanio.
• The Tigers acquired Jarrod Washburn for Luke French and Mauricio Robles.
• The Dodgers and Brewers swapped Vinny Rottino and Claudio Vargas.
• The Red Sox made the biggest trade by acquiring Victor Martinez in exchange for Justin Masterson, Nick Hagadone, and Bryan Price.
• The Blue Jays acquired Sean Smith from the Pirates for future considerations.
• The Yankees added Jerry Hairston Jr. from Cincinatti for minor leaguer Chase Weems.
• The Red Sox then went ahead and traded Adam Laroche to the Braves for Casey Kotchman straight up.
• The Marlins traded for Nick Johnson in exchange for Aaron Thompson.
• The Rockies added two pieces to their bullpen, a righty and lefty. Joe Beimel and Rafael Betancourt.
• The White Sox acquired Jake Peavy surprisingly and they traded Aaron Poreda, Clayton Richard, Dexter Carter, and Adam Russell for him.
• The Reds and Blue Jays exchanged third basemen, with Scott Rolen going to Cincinatti in exchange for Edwin Encarnacion, Josh Roenicke, and Zach Stewart.
• The Twins got Orlando Cabrera from the A's for Tyler Ladendorf.

Update 7-31 3:30 CST:

It looks like Halladay is indeed staying put. While the Angels were making a late push, nothing got done before the deadline passed.

Update 7-31-09:

While there has been no news on a Roy Halladay trade 15 minutes after the official deadline, there are still rumblings that we may still hear about a deal similar to the Manny Ramirez trade last season that wasn't announced until after the deadline had passed.

Joel Sherman points out that the Jays had said Scott Rolen wouldn't be traded unless Halladay was and Rolen was traded to the Reds. So, there may be a deal we've not heard about.

Throwing more fuel on this possible rumor fire, ESPN's Jayson Stark is reporting that the Angels have made a late push for Halladay with a deal centering on young pitcher Joe Saunders.

If there's a deal, we should certainly begin to hear about it soon and of course, we'll keep you updated.

Update 7-30-09:

FoxSports' Ken Rosenthall is reporting that while the Red Sox, Rangers, Rays, Dodgers, and Angels are all still interested in acquiring the Jay's ace, it is "very quiet" on the Halladay front.

With the Phillies out of the running and Blue Jays' GM J.P. Ricciardi sticking to his high asking price, it seems more and more likely Halladay will remain with Toronto for the rest of the year.

I don't see the Jays getting the same quality offers this off-season and certainly not at next years deadline. While I understand Ricciardi wants to get the most he can for his ace, the offers that have been floating around in the media seem more than fair.

Update IV 7-24-09

Man the Halladay info is flying fast and furious today. While the Sirius report was apparently false, Ed Price is now reporting that the Blue Jays are "considering [the] Phillies offer of RHP Drabek, 3B Donald, C Marson and OF Taylor."

More as we get it...

Update III 7-24-09:

Andrew Fitzpatrick of Sirius Radio dropped the following note to me about the previous MLB XM report saying "Please be advised:  SIRIUS XM Radio is NOT reporting that the Phillies are close to a Halladay trade."

This would seem to confirm the statements of Jonathan Mayo we reported below. Also of note, the same Twitter account which made the false MLB XM claim is now reporting Buster Olney is reporting that the deal is close. Given the fallacy of the previous report, the latest alleged report should be viewed skeptically.

Update II 7-24-09:

MLB.com's Jonathan Mayo is refuting the earlier report that the trade is close saying the deal is "no where near being done; Not saying it doesn't happen, but it's not close."

Mayo still expects Halladay to end up in Philadelphia saying "usually, where there's smoke there's fire" but doesn't think it will happen as soon as is currently being reported.

Bottom line: it sounds like Halladay's probably a Phillie but will give a fairwell performance tonight in Toronto.

Update 7-24-09:

MLB XM and MLBNetwork are reporting that the Philadelphia Phillies are "close" to trading for Toronto Blue Jays ace, Roy Halladay.

An announcement could apparently come within the next 24 hours but considering Halladay is scheduled to start tonight for the Jays I would expect the deal to be completed within the next couple of hours. If Halladay is scratched from the start or pulled early, it will be a clear indication that a trade has been agreed upon.

If the Phillies do indeed land Halladay, it could set up a showdown with the St. Louis' newly acquired slugger Matt Holliday with the Cardinals in town for a three game set against the Phils.

Update 7-22-09:

It's time to catch up on all the latest rumblings & grumblings about Roy Halladay. This has all the hallmarks of being one of those deals that's talked about for the whole month of July and then nothing happens. Thankfully though, the Jays have put a deadline on negotiations of July 29th when Halladay is schedule to make a start in Seattle.

ESPN Insider (subscription required) lists the Phillies, Rays, and Rangers as the front-runners to land the coveted pitcher. However, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch's Joe Strauss reports that the Cardinals are still in the mix, and could get a deal done without trading Colby Rasmus.

Yahoo Sports' Gordon Edes reports that the Phillies and other teams will likely turn their attention to other targets such as the Indians' Cliff Lee if the Jays don't come down off their sky high demands.

At the same time, the Toronto Sun's Bob Elliot quotes Jay's GM Ricciardi as saying "It's unlikely Halladay will be dealt."

Before Halladay hopefulls everywhere get too upset, ESPN's Jason Stark reported this morning that Ricciardi expects talks for Halladay to heat up next week.

With all that being said, we still don't know all that much more than we did a week ago. It sounds like the Red Sox, Yankees, Mets, and Cubs are out of the running for Halladay. However, GM's don't exactly like to negotiate trades in full view of the public & the media. Most of what we hear from Ricciardi and other sources from around the league could just as easily be posturing to manuever the price more to their liking.

Nevertheless, we'll keep you up-to-date on all the rumors as we hear them!

Update 7-16-09:

Lots of Halladay related news today. Ken Rosenthal started his most recent article with this tidbit:

"The Angels and Cardinals are among the teams interested in Roy Halladay, but rival executives are skeptical that either club can produce a strong enough package to land the Blue Jays' ace."

Rosenthal lists the Phillies and Yankees as the favorites to land Doc Halladay.

SI's Jon Heyman says the Blue Jays have "told AL East contenders they much prefer to trade Halladay out of the division" which would seem to knock the Yankees back out of it.

Cardinals reporter Joe Strauss reported today that the Cardinals recently contacted the Jays but are now "downplaying" the possibilities of a trade due to the Jay's high demands which apparently included Colby Rasmus. Rasmus would obviously be a deal breaker for the Cardinals and Strauss mentioned in a chat that he believes the Cardinals' best shot at landing Halladay may require a third team involved.

That's quite a few snippets of Halladay news today but as expected, it doesn't appear anything is in the works yet & the only teams I'd really count "out" of it are the Red Sox and Yankees. Even then if one of them (read as Yankees) got desperate enough, even they could make a late surge.

Update 7-13-09:

Speaking in St. Louis before his All-Star game start, Roy Halladay estimated his chances of being traded at 50/50. That's considerably better than the 20% chance Peter Gammons gave last week, but not quite as certain as Jon Heyman seemed yesterday.

Halladay once again cited his desire to play for a winner but failed to specify whether a contract extension would be required for him to waive his full no-trade clause.

While it's probably anyone's guess at this point where or even if Halladay gets traded, I'd be surprised if one contending team (most likely the Phillies) didn't make a big push to land the ace.

However, if Cleveland begins to seriously consider trading lefty Cliff Lee, Toronto may be forced to either come off their sky-high demands, or wait to trade Halladay in the offseason or even at next year's deadline.

Update 7-9-09:

Baseball Prospectus' Will Carroll just Tweeted that the Jays may try to "hang" Vernon Wells onto any Roy Halladay deal similarly to how Mike Lowell was included in the deal that netted the Red Sox Josh Beckett.

Of course, Wells is still owed over $100 million by my count and Halladay is making quite a bit more than Beckett was back then as well.

To be honest, I don't know that the Jays would find a team willing to take on Wells' contract if Toronto threw in Halladay for free.

Update II 7-8-09:

The New York Post's Joel Sherman says that the Phillies should be viewed as the favorite to land Halladay from the Jays. He quotes on GM as saying "No team in baseball is more motivated to get a starter than the Phillies."

Sherman also lists the Cardinals and Rangers as darkhorses in the bidding. As mentioned previously, the Cardinals have two top prospects the Jays are known to covet and as Sherman notes, have nearly $30 million coming off the books next year.

Despite that increased flexibility, Bernie Miklaz of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch makes a pretty convincing case on why he doesn't the Cardinals are a fit.

Last but not least, Sherman finally gives some ink to the Rangers who have been rumored to be limited by payroll issues but certainly have the players possible to grab Toronto's interest.

Update 7-8-09:

As expected, lots of talk around the league about Halladay. The NY Daily News doesn't expect Toronto to trade within the division and also doesn't think the Yankees would pay the price in players it would take to land the ace.

The Philadelphia Inquirer believes the Phillies will make a big push to land Doc Halladay, and they would seem to have the trade chips to do so. The only problem of course is that they're not the only team that will be vying for his services.

MLB.com's Dodger beat writer doesn't seem to like the chances that Halladay will be wearing Dodger blue any time soon.

Future Redbirds author Erik Manning points out that Jay's GM J.P. Ricciardi has long coveted Brett Wallace (who was drafted by the Blue Jays back in '05 before attending ASU). Manning speculates that Wallace and highly touted prospect Pete Kozma would be the likely starting point if St. Louis were to acquire Halladay.

While some onlookers faulted Ricciardi for not trading Halladay sooner, when more teams would be able to afford to take on his salary, the feeding frenzy that has ensued after the announcement makes it clear he's still going to get plenty of bang for his buck.

7-7-09

As the Toronto Blue Jays have fallen out of contention, the pressure to trade ace Roy Halladay has been mounting. Halladay's a free agent after the 2010 season and with so few impact players on the trade market this year, the Jays could make a killing by trading the hurler.

Blue Jays GM J.P. Ricciardi was quoted as saying "I'm not saying we're going to shop him. But if something makes sense, we at least have to listen. We're (leaning) more toward listening than we've ever been."

Halladay, 32, has a full no trade clause but has reportedly stated he'd wave it to play for a contender.

When a pitcher like "Doc" is moved AND is more than just a rental, the entire league gets interested. And, according to a tweet by Jordan Bastian, MLB.com's beat writer for the Jays, more than a dozen teams "have asked about Halladay [but] "Serious" interest [came from] NYY, NYM, STL, MIL, LAD, LAA, BOS"

While it's going to take a king's ransom for anyone to pry the former Cy Young winner away, I have a hard time believing the Jays would trade him within the division.

Sports Illustrated's Jon Heyman tweeted that the "Jays may want top SS prospect in package for Doc." Which, he points out would be "good for #phils (donald), #brewers (escobar), #chisox (beckham)."

We'll undoubtedly be hearing MUCH more about possible trades in the coming days and we'll keep this post updated with up to the minute news as we hear it. I get the feeling this year's trade deadline is going to be a wild one!

The Chicago Cubs have reportedly traded for two Pittsburgh Pirate pitchers, John Grabow and Tom Gorzelanny, in exchange for "RHP Kevin Hart, RHP Jose Ascanio, 3B Josh Harrison."

The Cubs have been looking for a left-handed reliever and Grabow certainly qualifies with 16 holds and an ERA of 3.42 ERA. They also receive an enigmatic starter, in Gorzelanny, who is just two years removed from a 14 win season.

The Pirates are continuing their massive overhaul/fire-sale having traded away 13 players from their opening day roster.

Update: The Chicago Sun Times is reporting that Peavy has rejected the trade to the White Sox, citing a desire to stay in the National League. It probably wouldn't hurt if his new team was willing to pick up the pitcher's $22 million option for the 2013 season either. Don't be surprised if we start to hear Peavy to the Cubs rumors again soon.

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Update: ESPNchicago.com is reporting that the Padres will receive "left-handed pitcher Clayton Richard and former No. 1 draft pick Aaron Poreda, ... a 6-6, left-handed pitcher" in exchange for Peavy.

One of Peavy's former teammates, Scott Linebrink, now with the White Sox reportedly spoke with Peavy about the possibility of playing on Chicago's south side. Linebrink was quoted as saying "Right now, I'd say it's 50-50 as to whether he accepts it or not. He'll get with his family today and make a decision."

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The last off-season was filled with rumors that Jake Peavy was headed to Chicago. And, if reports out today are accurate, he may finally complete that journey in short order. Unlike the winter rumors, it appears to be the White Sox, not the Cubs, who have landed the Padre pitcher.

While the deal between the Padres and the White Sox has reportedly been agreed to in principle, Peavy must still wave his no-trade clause in order for the deal to be finalized.

ESPN is reporting that a fellow Padre "believes Peavy respects the White Sox for pursuing a trade for him, but may have reservations about playing for White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen."

We'll keep you updated as more information on this possible blockbuster trade becomes available.

The St. Louis Cardinals have reportedly traded outfielder Brian Barton to the Atlanta Braves for right handed reliever Blaine Boyer.

Barton was fairly productive last year for the Cardinals playing largely in a utility role in the outfield. Batting .268 last year and providing speed off the bench, Barton will likely prove useful for the Braves but was part of a glut of outfielders in the Cardinals organization.

Boyer, a 27 year old reliever, had a mediocre year for the Braves last year, turning in a 5.88 ERA over 72 innings. The stat is a bit misleading however, as Boyer had a respectable first half (3.93 ERA) and then exploaded after the All Star break (11.17).

Boyer is off to a rough start this year as well giving up 6 runs on just 1.1 innings pitched, but the Cardinals bullpen is in serious need of some help. If St. Louis pitching coach Dave Duncan can figure out a way to get Boyer back to the pitcher he was in the first half of last year, the Cardinals will have gotten a decent return for Barton who was a rule 5 draftee from the Indians last year.

Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post Dispatch is reporting (via twitter) that the Cardinals have reached a one year deal with Ryan Ludwick avoiding arbitration. The deal is said to be slightly above the mid-point between the club's offer of $2.8 million and Ludwick's request of $4.25 which would put the value somewhere around $3.75 million. Considering the outfielder made just $411,000 last year, that's a pretty decent raise.

The Cardinals recently came to a similar deal with Ludwick's fellow arbitration elligible outfielder Rick Ankiel for $2.85 million and have not gone to a hearing since their 1999 case against Darren Oliver.

We'll update this post when the final details of the deal become known.

Update: Goold has the story up over at stltoday.com but the official word on the financial details is still unknown.

Update: Jayson Stark of ESPN says the deal is for $3.7 million with another $100,000 possible if he hits 675 plate appearances.

The Chicago Cubs and Seattle Mariners today swapped a couple of player that had yet to play an inning for their new teams. The Cubs have sent Ronny Cedeno and former Oriole pitcher Garrett Olson to the Mariners for former Met pitcher, Aaron Heilman.

The Mariners have added to their haul from the J.J. Putz trade, swapping out Heilman, for 25 year old infielder Ronny Cedeno and 25 year old southpaw starter Garrett Olson.

The Cubs, on the other hand, essentially parlayed Felix Pie and Ronny Cedeno into a 30 year-old right-handed reliever who put up a 5.21 ERA last year, and right handed minor leaguer Henry Williamson.

Granted, Olson had an ERA of 6.65 last year, but I would certainly think that a 25 year old left handed starter would be much more valuable than a 30 year old righty reliever, even with the run and a half difference in their ERAs. Add into the mix a 25 year old infielder who batted .269 last year and it's to see how the Cubs didn't get fleeced in this one.

And, if you'd have told a Cubs fan two years ago that Ronny Cedeno and Felix Pie would bring Heilman and a minor leaguer in return, they'd probably have punched you in the face.

The Chicago Cubs have reportedly traded once highly heralded outfielder Felix Pie to the Baltimore Orioles for southpaw Garrett Olson and right handed minor leaguer Henry Williamson.

The 24 year old Pie hit just .223 in 130 games in the big leagues and became expendable when the Cubs signed Milton Bradley. The 25 year old Olson started 26 games last year for the O's compiling a 9-10 recored with an ERA above 6.

Olson was rumored to be on the San Diego Padres' list of players they'd want in return for ace pitcher Jake Peavy earlier this offseason and the trade could signal a renewed attempt by the Cubs to trade for the Padres' Cy Young award winner.

The Chicago Cubs finished out 2008 by trading super-sub Mark DeRosa to the Cleveland Indians for three minor league pitchers and signed former St. Louis Cardinal, Aaron Miles, to replace him. Miles' deal is a 2 year agreement reportedly worth $4.9 million. Along with the three young hurlers, right-handed closer Jeff Stevens, right-hander Chris Archer and south-paw John Gaub, the Cubs gained more payroll flexibility for next year with DeRosa due $5.5 million next year.

That payroll, along with the savings from trading starting pitcher Jason Marquis, was used, as expected to ink the switch-hitting outfielder, Milton Bradley to a 3 year deal worth $30 million. The deal is still contingent on Bradley passing a physical, which given his history of injuries is no small matter. I would expect the deal to be completed barring some major health related red flags, and the Ken Rosenthall is reporting that the Cubs plan to use Bradley primarily in right field, spelling him occasionally with Kosuke Fukudome. Despite Bradley's injury riddled past, the 30 year old should provide the power the Cubs had been looking for this offseason.

Bradley smacked 22 home runs last year, dividing them evenly between the left and right sides of the plate, driving in 77 runs with an average of .321 in 126 games last year for the Texas Rangers. The Cubs had long been reported to be seeking a left handed bat for the outfield and with his switch hitting abilities, Bradley fit the mold perfectly.

Over the course of a week the Cubs will have replaced Marquis and DeRosa with 3 minor league pitchers, Luis Vizcaino, Aaron Miles, Milton Bradley, and about $24.5 million in debt payed out over the next three years. While the DeRosa to Miles switch is likely a step backwards, it's tough not to like the Cubs flury of moves. Assuming Bradley can stay healthy (which might prove to be a big assumption) the holiday season of 2008 will have been a VERY productive one for Cubs GM Jim Hendry.