Well, it's been an interesting day for Twins fans. At about 1 p.m., it seemed the Twins were minutes away from completing a trade that would send J.J. Hardy to the Orioles for a pair of minor league pitchers. The post below covers the story pretty well, but it seems that even at this hour trade talks are ongoing. If something happens, we'll have the breaking news here.
The Hardy speculation has triggered some pretty heated discussions in our comment sections and on Twitter. As I said before, I'm reserving judgment until I see a final deal, but, from my perspective, the initial report was fairly troubling. Here's hoping Brett Jacobson isn't the big prize in any trade involving Hardy.
In related news, the Rays have shipped Jason Bartlett to the San Diego Padres for pitchers Cesar Ramos and Adam Russell.
There has also been a lot of new speculation on Carl Pavano. The local Fox affiliate tweeted early in the day that the Twins were on the verge of a multi-year deal with Pavano, a rumor that was not confirmed by any other outlet. MLB Trade Rumors has a good rundown on the Pavano rumor mill, but here's the gist: the Twins are the front-runners, but the Brewers are very serious about signing him and are willing to add payroll to accommodate the right pitcher. The Nationals and a mystery team have also been mentioned in the discussion.
The Twins are also kicking the tires on Octavio Dotel.
I think that about covers it. Tomorrow is the Rule 5 draft - here is a list of the eligible players.