Lukewarm Stove: Peavy, Kennedy, Gregg, Villanueva, More

stoveA late night look at some of the later-developing bits on Tuesday …

  • That Jake Peavy deal is official, with Peavy and reliever Brayan Villarreal going to Boston, shortstop Jose Iglesias going to Detroit, outfield prospect Avisail Garcia, minor league pitchers J.B. Wendelken and Francellis Montas, and minor league shortstop Cleuluis Rondon going to the White Sox. Gut says that was a steep price for Detroit to pay for Iglesias, and a so-so return for the White Sox on Peavy. The Red Sox gave up no top prospects and a superfluous infield glove for a big pitching upgrade. They win this round.
  • Peavy not going to the Diamondbacks has apparently not cooled their interest in moving Ian Kennedy, which Bob Nightengale says has to do with a crowded rotation (and, presumably, Kennedy’s rough go this year and impending arbitration raises). A Danny Knobler report makes it sound as though the Padres and Angels are the primary suitors for Kennedy, though. We learned of possible Cubs interest earlier this evening.
  • We touched on this a bit earlier, and query whether his blown save tonight will have any impact, but Phil Rogers suggests there’s a rather robust market for Kevin Gregg, including the Tigers, Indians, Red Sox, Rockies, and a mystery team (because then it’s really just every team). The Tigers might still be interested, but the Indians and Red Sox each picked up a reliever today.
  • Patrick Mooney offers an all-purpose round-up of where things stand with the Cubs right now. Good deals done, further deals explored.
  • Jesse Rogers wonders why Carlos Villanueva, who pitched well earlier today, isn’t being included in more rumors. (If I had to guess? He’s a nice swing piece, but very few playoff-bound teams or contenders are looking for a swing guy right now. They want a sure-fire bullpen piece, or a clear starter upgrade. I’m not sure Villanueva offers those things, or, if he does, that the value in trade exceeds his value to the Cubs.)
  • The Angels and A’s swapped Alberto Callaspo and prospect Grant Green, which is moderately interesting deal with very little visible impact on the Cubs, even tangential.
  • The Rangers are apparently willing to listen “on anyone,” which is probably not surprising. Smart organizations listen on anyone. Jon Morosi mentions Elvis Andrus by name … he of the .250/.310/.289 line this year, and recently-signed $118 million extension that doesn’t kick in for another year and a half.
  • Some of you will sleep tonight, obviously, so I don’t mean this literally … but don’t sleep on late-night rumors. Last year around this time is when word broke that Alfonso Soriano was close to being dealt to the Giants, but ultimately nixed the deal.
  • written by

    Brett Taylor is the Lead Cubs Writer at Bleacher Nation, and you can find him on Twitter at @BleacherNation and on LinkedIn here. Brett is also the founder of Bleacher Nation, which opened up shop in 2008 as an independent blog about the Chicago Cubs. Later growing to incorporate coverage of other Chicago sports, Bleacher Nation is now one of the largest regional sports blogs on the web.

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