Two trade rumors from the weekend…
-The Boston Red Sox have a hole at catcher. Their starter, Jarrod Saltalamacchia, is currently off to a .186/.255/.233 start, with 17 stolen bases allowed in 23 attempts over 13 starts. They have Jason Varitek, although Varitek is off to a worse start at the plate, and isn’t really a starting option behind the plate anymore. Ken Rosenthal mentioned that if the poor start continues, the Red Sox could look to deal for a catcher. He mentioned Chris Snyder as a possibility, and added that the Red Sox have been interested in Snyder in the past.
The Pirates are basically paying Snyder $2.75 M this year, due to the $3 M payment from Arizona from the 2010 trade. They also have Ryan Doumit, who is making $5.2 M this year. Both players have options in 2012. Doumit’s will likely be declined, since it is also tied to his 2013 option. Snyder’s is for $6.75 M, and is a possibility, since the Pirates don’t have any catching options to start the 2012 season, and since Tony Sanchez probably won’t be ready until mid-way through the 2012 season. This is just a case of Rosenthal mentioning Snyder as a possibility for Boston, but it should be an interesting situation to track. I don’t think the Pirates would be unwilling to deal Snyder, but I would guess that they’re more open to dealing Doumit, since they’re paying him more to play in a lesser role, and since Snyder’s option is much more favorable to the Pirates.
–Rob Biertempfel mentions that the Pirates are trying to trade Josh Rodriguez, their 2010 Rule 5 pick that was recently designated for assignment to clear space for Brandon Wood. I can’t imagine the return for Rodriguez would be anything great, since he still has the Rule 5 requirements attached to him. If no team trades for him, and no team claims him on waivers, the Pirates could try and work out a deal with the Cleveland Indians to retain him.
