Mets send Milledge to Nats for two

The New York Mets sent outfielder Lastings Milledge to the Washington Nationals for catcher Brian Schneider and outfielder Ryan Church on Friday.

Milledge was touted by the Mets as a top prospect for the past several years, but attitude problems and mediocre performance prompted New York to deal the 22-year old who batted .272 with seven homers and 29 RBI last season.

Schneider leaves the Nationals after spending his entire eight-year career with the organization. He batted .235 with six homers and 54 RBI in 2007 and is a lifetime .252 hitter. Church, 29, hit .272, belted 15 long balls, and drove in 72 runs last year.

Santana sweepstakes drawing to a close?

• The Yankees are still the top dogs in the chase, but are very reluctant to offer Philip Hughes. They are currently offering Minnesota a package including Ian Kennedy and Melky Cabrera, but the Twins would prefer Hughes to Kennedy.
  
• Boston is giving the Yankees a run for their money, but they are still refusing to include Jacoby Ellsbury in any deal and will not budge on Clay Buchholz. They will, however, to send Jon Lester Minnesota's way along with some prospects, namely Brandon Moss, Jed Lowrie, and pitchers Michael Bowden and Justin Masterson. Obviously all four would not go in the trade, but I would assume at least two would have to be dealt.
  

Santana updates

• The Yankees have stated that Joba Chamberlain and Robinson Cano are untouchable, so one would assume that Philip Hughes and Melky Cabrera would be the main pieces of this deal. Jose Tabata and/or Alan Horne, another one of the Bombers' young pitchers, are other candidates who might be involved in the package. If New York does in fact deal Cabrera, they would be interested in Aaron Rowand.
• Boston is doing everything they can to keep Clay Buchholz and Jacoby Ellsbury out of these talks. They are reportedly offering Kevin Youkilis and prospects Jed Lowrie and Brandon Moss. However, Minnesota wants Ellsbury, and if the Red Sox decide to include the young outfielder in the deal, Santana will be playing in Boston next season.
  
• The Angels are trying to jump in on the Santana chase as well, and they have loads to offer including top pitching prospect Nick Adenhart. The Twins would probably also ask for Brandon Wood and another player, possibly Reggie Willits or Jeff Mathis. Ervin Santana may also be discussed.
  

Twins, Rays close to deal

The Minnesota Twins and Tampa Bay Rays are close to completing a significant trade, and no, it does not involve Johan Santana. In the deal, the Twins would send Matt Garza, Jason Bartlett, and Juan Rincon to the Rays for Delmon Young, Brendan Harris, and Jason Pridie.

Breaking down the candidates for Santana

1. New York Yankees- The Yankees are clearly the frontrunners for Johan Santana's services, and they have the goods that Minnesota wants. Melky Cabrera would have to go in any deal for the left-hander, and he would most likely have to be accompanied by Philip Hughes. New York probably will not be forced to include Robinson Cano, and if the Twins asked I'd imagine they would be turned down immediately. The Yankees have also deemed Joba Chamberlain untouchable. Don't be surprised to see a deal that would send Cabrera, Hughes, and another pitching prospect (maybe Alan Horne or Humberto Sanchez?) for Santana.
2. Boston Red Sox- Boston has enough to acquire Santana, but the question is whether or not they would give any of it up. The Red Sox have repeatedly stated that they are not trading Clay Buchholz, and although Jacoby Ellsbury is not untouchable, they would really like to do everything in their power to keep him as well. Jon Lester is another candidate to be involved in a potential deal, but Minnesota would want much more than Lester and some prospects.
3. Los Angeles Dodgers- The Dodgers have more than any other team on this list, but Ned Colletti has said that he does not want to give many of his young players up, and I can't blame him. The Marlins wanted some combination of Matt Kemp, James Loney, Andy LaRoche, Clayton Kershaw, and Chad Billingsley for Miguel Cabrera, but Colletti refused. For Santana, the Dodgers would certainly have to include one of Kershaw or Billingsley and then some. I would think the Twins would have the most interest in Kemp. The chances of Los Angeles making a deal for the two-time Cy Young award winner are very slim.
4. New York Mets- They are the least likely of any of the teams on this list to make a deal for Santana, especially because they will not include Jose Reyes in any trade for the 29-year old. The Mets could try and lure Minnesota into taking a deal consisting of either Mike Pelfrey or Philip Humber and Carlos Gomez or Fernando Martinez plus some other prospects, but I can't see the Twins biting on that. Pelfrey and Humber both saw their stocks drop this past season, and Gomez may never be anything more than a .240-.250 hitter on the major-league level.
5. Seattle Mariners- This one is really out there, but the Mariners are rumored to be in the running for the star pitcher's services. Things would start with Adam Jones, one of the top outfielding prospects in baseball. Minnesota may also ask for Jeff Clement and/or Wladimir Balentien, two more highly-touted minor-leaguers in Seattle's system. However, the Mariners love all three players, and it seems very unlikely that they would deal two of them in a deal for anyone.
   

Tuesday's MLB notes

• The Twins want Melky Cabrera and one of the Yankees' young pitchers for Johan Santana. Philip Hughes seems to be the most logical, as New York does not want to give up Joba Chamberlain and Minnesota will likely want more than Ian Kennedy. The Red Sox are also interested in Santana, but they would have to give up Clay Buchholz and Jacoby Ellsbury, something they are not willing to do.
  
• It's looking less and less like Miguel Cabrera is going to get traded. About a week after the Dodgers backed out of the Cabrera sweepstakes, the Angels are now pulling out because the Marlins are asking for much more than the Halos are willing to pay.
• The Dodgers are interested in Erik Bedard, but for some reason, the Orioles want to see what happens with Florida's Cabrera first before they try and trade the left-hander.
• Minnesota is very interested in Coco Crisp, and it has been reported that the Twins and Red Sox are in serious discussions about the center-fielder.
• Jose Guillen will probably wind up in either Kansas City or Baltimore.
  

Santana headed to the Bronx?

The Minnesota Twins and New York Yankees are in trade talks involving star pitcher Johan Santana. The Twins reportedly offered Santana a multi-year contract worth $93 million last week, but that seems to have fizzled out, and Minnesota is now shopping the two-team AL Cy Young award winner.

The Yankees would probably have to part with Philip Hughes and Melky Cabrera, and possibly more. Another candidate to be involved in a potential trade is Ian Kennedy. Both Hughes and Kennedy are two of New York's top pitching prospects, and each spent time in the majors last season.

However, the Yankees are not the only team making a big push for Santana. The Mets, Red Sox, and Dodgers are also trying to acquire the soon-to-be 29-year old left-hander, but the Bronx Bombers appear to be the frontrunners at the current time.

Santana went 15-13 with a 3.33 ERA and struck out 235 in 219 innings last season. He owns a lifetime record of 93-44 and an ERA of 3.22.

Preview: Vikings vs. Giants

The New York Giants have all but locked up a spot in the playoffs, while the Minnesota Vikings are fighting for their postseason lives. These two teams will meet on Sunday at the Meadowlands.

The Giants, 7-3, are sitting comfortably in the first wild-card spot in the NFC. They hold a two-game lead in the loss column over the 6-5 Detroit Lions, and that gap is essentially three games since New York holds the tiebreaker over Detroit. It would take a monumental collapse over the remaining several weeks of the season for the Giants to miss the playoffs.

Minnesota, on the other hand, owns a record of 4-6 and is tied for last in the NFC North. Excluding New York, five teams are positioned ahead of them for the sixth and final playoff spot in the conference. However, the Vikings will have a chance to make things much easier on themselves when they play some of those teams in the future, as they face off against the Lions next week and the 5-5 Redskins on Dec. 23rd.

On a negative note, Minnesota still isn't sure when star rookie halfback Adrian Peterson will return. The league-leading rusher tore his lateral collateral ligament in his knee two weeks ago against Green Bay and will most likely be on the sidelines for at least one more game. Fortunately for the Vikings, Chester Taylor was more than ready to carry the load in their last contest, rushing for 164 yards and three touchdowns against the Raiders in place of Peterson.

The Giants have some injury issues of their own. They lost second-year linebacker Mathias Kiwanuka to a broken fibula last week against Detroit, and halfback Brandon Jacobs left the game with a pulled hamstring. Kiwanuka is done for the year, and although Jacobs was last considered out for Sunday's game, there is still a chance he may play. Another New York halfback, Derrick Ward, is expected to miss his fourth straight game with an ankle injury. If neither player goes, Reuben Droughns will get the start and rookie Ahmad Bradshaw will handle some of the workload. Also, wide receiver Plaxico Burress is still being hindered by a bum ankle, and it has gotten worse over the past couple of weeks. He will play this weekend, but the 6'5" Burress is not close to 100%.

The last time these two teams met was back on Nov. 14th, 2005, a 24-21 Minnesota victory. Brad Johnson was the squad's quarterback that year, but the Vikings are now led by sophomore signal-caller Tarvaris Jackson. Jackson has struggled mightily in the six games he has played this season, throwing only two touchdown passes and compiling a paltry 55.5 quarterback rating. But, in the 24-year old's defense, Minnesota doesn't exactly have the greatest receivers. Bobby Wade leads the team in receiving yards with only 358, and the Vikings have only gotten three touchdowns from wide-outs this year, two of them coming from rookie Sidney Rice.

Giants' quarterback Eli Manning got back on track last week against the Lions, completing 28-of-39 passes for 283 yards and a touchdown. New York plays only one team over .500 the rest of the way, that team being the undefeated New England Patriots in week 17. The Giants sit two games back of Dallas for the NFC East lead, although the Cowboys hold the tiebreaker between the two squads, technically ballooning their cushion to three games.

Reds come to terms with closer Cordero

The Cincinnati Reds signed closer Francisco Cordero to a four-year, $46 million deal on Friday, the largest four-year contract ever for a closer. The deal also includes an $11 million club option for 2012.

Cordero, 32, saved 44 games in 51 opportunities and posted a 2.98 ERA last season for the Milwaukee Brewers. He also struck out 86 in 63.1 innings. The nine-year veteran spent most of his career in Texas with the Rangers (2000-2006), but was shipped to Milwaukee in a trade during the 2006 season.

Angels come out of nowhere to sign Hunter

It looked for sure that Torii Hunter would sign with either the Texas Rangers or Chicago White Sox, but he shockingly agreed to a five-year, $90 million deal with the Los Angeles Angels on Wednesday night.

The 32-year old Hunter spent all of his 11 seasons with the Minnesota Twins, collecting seven consecutive Gold Gloves (2001-2007) for his outstanding work in center field in the process. He also had the best season of his career at the plate this past year, batting .287 with 28 homers and 107 RBI. Hunter, a career .271 hitter, hit .278 while belting 31 homers and driving in 98 runs in 2006.

Hunter also hopes to bring some postseason experience for a club that has struggled in the playoffs their past few appearances. He is a lifetime .300 hitter in four October series'.

Kendall to Milwaukee; Hunter has five offers

• The Brewers signed Jason Kendall to a one-year deal. The 33-year old catcher batted .241 with three homers and 41 RBI with the Athletics and Cubs last season.
• The Angels may have interest in two of their former players: David Eckstein and Darin Erstad.
• The Yankees would consider trading Philip Hughes in a deal for Johan Santana. Boston might think about parting with Clay Buchholz.
• Cincinnati may deal either Ryan Freel or Josh Hamilton to clear a spot for prospect Jay Bruce. However, it seems very unlikely that they would trade Hamilton.
• Ian Snell of the Pirates may be on the trading block. The 26-year old right-hander posted a 3.76 ERA in 2007.
• It has been reported that Torii Hunter has at least five offers on the table. The Rangers and White Sox appear to be the two most aggressive teams in the sweepstakes, while the Nationals, Dodgers, and Royals have all made offers, as well.
• Troy Percival is drawing plenty of interest. Some teams chasing him include the Yankees, Giants, Brewers, Astros, and Rays. The 38-year old posted a 1.80 ERA and struck out 36 in 40 innings last season.
• There is a rumor that Oakland GM Billy Beane may trade both Danny Haren and Joe Blanton.
• The Mets may wind up non-tendering Johnny Estrada, whom they just acquired in a trade for Guillermo Mota yesterday.
• Texas is slightly interested in Scott Podsednik. The 31-year old outfielder was designated for assignment by the White Sox yesterday.
  

Brewers send Estrada to Mets

The New York Mets finally completed their search for their next catcher on Tuesday night, sending reliever Guillermo Mota to the Milwaukee Brewers for Johnny Estrada.

Estrada, 31, batted .278 with 10 homers and 54 RBI in 442 at-bats last year with Milwaukee. In 2006, he batted .302 and drove in 71 runs. He is a lifetime .280 hitter, his best season coming in 2004 when he hit .314 while driving in 76 runs for the Atlanta Braves.

The 34-year old Mota, once viewed as one of the league's best relief pitchers, is coming off a miserable 2007 campaign. He missed the first 50 games of the season thanks to a steroid suspension, and then proceeded to post a 5.76 ERA in 52 appearances. He also allowed eight home runs and blew three saves.

Around the majors

• The Yankees are reportedly interested in relievers Ron Mahay and Scott Linebrink. Because Linebrink is a type A free agent, they would have to relinquish their 28th overall draft pick to Milwaukee in exchange for the right-hander. The Astros, White Sox, and Pirates all have interest, as well. In Mahay's case, no draft pick would have to be given up in return because he is a type B free agent. Several other teams are also looking at him, namely Atlanta, the Brewers, Tampa Bay, Colorado, and Kansas City.
• The Rangers are discussing a potential five-year deal with Torii Hunter. Hunter met with Rangers' brass last night. The White Sox, Dodgers, and possibly even the Brewers will also make a play at the outfielder.
• The Indians signed Japanese reliever Masahide Kobayashi to a two-year, $6.25 million contract. Kobayashi, 33, went 2-7 with a 3.61 ERA in Japan last season.
• The Mets are rumored to be trying to make a trade with the Nationals involving catcher Brian Schneider and outfielder Ryan Church. Second baseman Ronnie Belliard was also a part of the talks at first, but the signing of Luis Castillo took Belliard out of the picture.
• The White Sox designated Scott Podsednik for assignment. They are also aggressively shopping shortstop Juan Uribe, as he is now out of a position due to the acquisition of Orlando Cabrera. The Devil Rays are showing interest in the 28-year old who hit 20 homers in 2007. Chicago, who just dealt Jon Garland for Cabrera yesterday, may be trying to clear payroll to sign Hunter.
  
• Pittsburgh relievers Solomon Torres, Damaso Marte, and John Grabow are all on the trading block and drawing interest. Marte is probably the most valuable of the three, as he posted a 2.38 ERA and struck out 51 in 45.1 innings last season.
• The Phillies may have interest in Baltimore's Melvin Mora. Mora would waive his no-trade clause should he get dealt to Philadelphia.
• Don't be surprised to see the Giants put Bengie Molina on the block, and with the scant supply of catchers in free agency, he would draw plenty of interest despite his old age.
  

Rollins captures first MVP award

Jimmy Rollins said at the beginning of the year that the Philadelphia Phillies were the team to beat in the NL East. He was right, and he backed up his talk with his play. The 28-year old shortstop won the National League MVP award, it was announced on Tuesday.

Rollins received 16 of a possible 32 first-place votes, edging out Colorado Rockies' left-fielder Matt Holliday, who received 11. Rollins also totaled 353 points in the balloting while Holliday finished with 336.

Rollins batted .296 with 30 homers, 94 RBI, and 41 stolen bases this past season and led the Phillies to their first NL East title since 1993. Philadelphia went 89-73, but was knocked out of the first round of the playoffs by Holliday's Rockies in three games. Rollins struggled in that series, batting only .182 (2-for-11). He did, however, knock in four runs.

Haynesworth to miss tonight's game

Tennessee Titans' defensive tackle and potential Defensive Player of the Year candidate Albert Haynesworth will miss tonight's game against the Denver Broncos due to a hamstring injury. Haynesworth has 30 tackles and a team-high 5.5 sacks. Cornerback Nick Harper and guard Benji Olson are also nursing injuries for Tennessee.

MNF: Titans, Broncos jockey for playoff position

What's at stake:

The Tennessee Titans come into this game with a 6-3 record. They are currently a half-game in front of the Cleveland Browns for the sixth seed in the AFC and a half-game behind the Jacksonville Jaguars for the five-slot. Tennessee lost to Jacksonville, 28-13, last week.

The Denver Broncos, despite entering tonight's game with a 4-5 record, sit only a half-game behind the first-place San Diego Chargers in the AFC West. They are coming off a 27-11 win over division rival Kansas City. With a win, the Broncos would not only move into a tie with the Chargers, but they would move to within one game of the sixth and final playoff spot in the conference.

Key offensive players:

LenDale White, halfback, Tennessee- The big 22-year old back has rushed for over 100 yards in three of his past four games, although he was held to only 12 yards on eight carries in the team's loss to Jacksonville last weekend. However, tonight would seem to be an ideal game for White to regain his form, as Denver has the 30th ranked run defense in the league.

Brandon Marshall, wide receiver, Denver- Although he is not very well known, Marshall is slowly developing into one of the NFL's better receivers. He has compiled 694 yards of 51 catches this season, and he is only 23. At 6'4", 230 pounds, Marshall also has great size. Look for him to take advantage of Tennessee's smallish defensive backs tonight. He is Jay Cutler's number one target.

Key defensive players:

Chris Hope, strong safety, Tennessee- Because Marshall is such a tough matchup for the Titans' cornerbacks, Hope is going to have to play a big role in providing some help over the top. One of the best safeties in the NFL, the physical 27-year old is not having near the impact that he had last season (121 tackles, five interceptions, 15 passes defended). He has only defended three passes all-year long. That needs to change, starting tonight.

Ian Gold, outside linebacker, Denver- Gold is going to need to help contain Vince Young and keep him in the pocket. Young obviously likes to run (217 yards on the ground this year), and when he is not allowed to roll out, his effectiveness is reduced quite a bit. The Broncos have to make him throw the football, as he the 2006-07 Offensive Rookie of the Year has only a 62.2 quarterback rating this season. Should Denver be successful in cutting off Young's rushing attempts, Gold will be a big part of it.

Keys to the game:

Tennessee- Don't allow out-of-nowhere rookie sensation halfback Selvin Young to beat you. If the Titans can contain him, it will force Cutler to throw the ball. Outside of Marshall, Cutler does not have many targets to throw to.

Denver- As stated previously, keep Young in the pocket. If they do that, they should win the game. However, it's much easier said than done.

Alex Rodriguez named AL MVP

Alex Rodriguez has won his third Most Valuable Player award, it was announced on Monday. Rodriguez won unanimously, getting 28 first-place votes and 382 total points. The closest competitor was Detroit's Magglio Ordonez, who received two first-place votes and 258 points.

Rodriguez became only the ninth player in MLB history to win the MVP award three or more times. He won the award for the first time with Texas in 2003 and then added two more in 2005 and 2007, both years with the Yankees. The 32-year old third baseman opted out of his contract with New York when the off-season began, but is now in the process of negotiating a 10-year, $275 million deal that would most likely keep him in the Bronx for the rest of his career barring a trade.

A-Rod batted .314 with 56 homers and 154 RBI this season. However, his playoff struggles continued, as he batted only .267 (4-for-15) with one homer that accounted for his lone RBI against the Cleveland Indians in the ALDS and went hitless with runners on base. Rodriguez is 8 for his last 59 (.136) in the postseason and 0 for his last 18 with men in scoring position.

Red Sox, Lowell agree to deal

The Boston Red Sox have reportedly agreed to a three-year, $37.5 million deal with Mike Lowell. Lowell batted .324 with 21 homers and 120 RBI last season and was named the World Series MVP. The 33-year old third baseman batted .353 with two long balls and 15 RBI in the postseason.

Angels send Cabrera to ChiSox for Garland

The Los Angeles Angels traded shortstop Orlando Cabrera to the Chicago White Sox for starting pitcher Jon Garland on Monday. Cabrera, 33, batted .301 with eight homers and 86 RBI in 2007. The 28-year old Garland went 10-13 with a 4.23 ERA for the White Sox last year. He threw 208.1 innings.

Glavine to Braves; Red Sox, Lowell closing in

• The Braves have agreed to a one-year, $8 million deal with Tom Glavine. Glavine spent the first 16 seasons of his career in Atlanta, winning one World Series and two Cy Young awards. The 41-year old left-hander was a member of the Mets the past five years. In 2007, he went 13-8 with a 4.45 ERA.
• The Red Sox are reportedly closing in on a deal with Mike Lowell. The terms of the contract are not yet known. Boston may also try to trade for Johan Santana if he becomes available, but Minnesota's recent offer to the 29-year old left-hander says otherwise.
• Torii Hunter will have dinner with Texas Rangers' owner Tom Hicks tonight. Although the Rangers are considered the frontrunners for his services, Hunter is also considering the Dodgers.