Kent,

If you read Gammons comments again, it is Cincinnati that shows interest in Lopez, not Cleveland.

The Indians likely will not play on Casey now they have Travis Hafner, and while trying to work a three-way to get Felipe Lopez from Toronto (which entails acquiring Tony Armas or some similar pitcher for the Jays), Bowden may have to move a couple of contracts, which he can do by sending Gabe White and Todd Walker to Boston.

I admit I had to read it twice to figure that one out. Not exactly well written by Gammons. But like you I'm skeptical of any truth to the rumour.

It would be a shame if the Expos had to trade Gurrero. I thought maybe MLB would want to make the team as good as possible to make it attractive to potential suitors. Guess not.

Also, beginning to think maybe the Jays should hold on to Lopez, Id hate to see him become the next Nomar and us with an unremarkable pitcher to show for it. But so far, I trust in the JP.

Worst coach's error since Al Newman threw the stop sign at Torii Hunter like it was David Ortiz rounding third (Game Five ALDS) but of similarly little consequence. (E-10 if you're scoring at home, which is unlikely if you're reading this.) Thanks for the correction, DS.

Not sure where the fit is between the Reds and the Jays, but then obviously, I am misconfused, as Joe Carter says. I suppose a three-way deal bringing Armas and/or Vazquez to Toronto, could also put Colon in Cincinnati and half the Reds farm system in San Juan; in other words there are numerous possibilities, with almost every team.

I agree with Jason, who passed along this link to a related story in the Sun -- I trust team Ricciardi to make at least one more deal of some magnitude, which will make sense competitively and finacially.

I don't know how enamoured I am of Tony Armas Jr. He's never thrown 200 innings, he's often hurt, his strike zone command is wanting and he's rather homer-prone. That's not a combination I'd much like to see pitching in Skydome, at least not for the home team. I can see where the Reds, belatedly realizing that signing Barry Larkin to that extension maybe wasn't the best idea ever, would have interest in Lopez, but I'm not sure what they have that would interest Montreal sufficiently. You can safely ignore any trade rumour that involves either Austin Kearns or Adam Dunn; you'll see Halladay and Hinske dealt by Ricciardi before either of those guys moves anywhere.

The market has really been shaken up by the Expos fire sale. At this point, as Kent says, it's anybody's guess what happens next. But here's my two cents: JP isn't afraid to overpay for something if he really wants it. He has sufficient confidence in what's in the low minors and in his own talent-spotting ability that if he has to mortgage the farm to get what he wants, he'll do it. The man is no shrinking violet. My hunch is that the Jays will pull off something major; but fans might be shocked at the price he pays. We shall see.

Hello, Kent. I'm your ESPN counterpart for the Rangers. As to the pitchers involved in the Rangers-Indians trade, their careers are similar. Both have pitched very well in AAA but has done little in the majors. Drese is older than Myette but has only two years of ML experience, thus has an option remaining. Myette is out of options; the Rangers would probably have waived him barring an outstanding spring training. Myette isn't pitching well in the DR winter league. Myette has better pure stuff but tends to lose focus. I think his best shot is as a reliever. Drese might turn into an adequate #4-#5 starter.

Hart continues to trade offensive talent for players of very modest value. The opinion of most knowledgeable Ranger fans is that trading Hafner was defensible, but not for as little as the Rangers got in return.

Good to hear from you, Scott. Keep us posted on the view from Texas, which is one of those organizations -- like the Rockies -- I find difficult to understand. Do you think Blalock will be moved to 2B to make room at third for Teixeira? Or will we see another Hart trade of Giles-Rincon proportions?