Wednesday, July 30, 2008

Bay talks still going

Lest you were worried that Neal Huntington was done after last Friday's trade:

The Pirates are deep into trade talks with the Tampa Bay Rays and other parties regarding left fielder Jason Bay, one team source with direct knowledge said yesterday, but it remains far from certain that Bay will be moved by Major League Baseball's deadline tomorrow afternoon.

DK says it's a slightly better than 50% chance that Bay stays in Pittsburgh, but geez, a deal with the Rays just makes SO MUCH SENSE for both sides that I find it hard to believe that Huntington and Friedman won't find a way to make it happen.

UPDATE: From ESPN's trade deadline blog:

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported Wednesday that the Pirates are deep into talks with the Rays about Jason Bay. Separately, with about 29 hours to go before the trade deadline, sources indicate to ESPN that while nothing is imminent, the two sides are talking constructively and trying to bridge the gap.
We won't get Price, but Huntington may be able to pull a good amount of prospects out of Tampa in a trade like this. Rather than shooting for one or two uber-prospects, casting a wide net isn't an awful idea when your farm system is as empty as ours is.

UPDATE #2: Dejan is following closely on his blog and makes things sound pretty serious. Apparently Brignac and Hellickson's names have come up. I doubt we can pry Hellickson, but I'd be trying like hell if I was Huntington.