Liar, liar, pants on fire.
Jayson Stark of ESPN talked to a baseball general manager who says that the Phillies are indeed talking to two teams about closer Jonathan Papelbon: the Boston Red Sox and the Detroit Tigers. Two unnamed executives he talked to thinks Papelbon could go to Detroit:
"They're talking to Boston and Detroit [about Papelbon] right now," an exec of one team said. "They may not say they are, but I know they are." Said another: "Don't be surprised if you see Papelbon end up in Detroit. If the Tigers have a chance to get the closer they need, they won't let [a big asking price] stand in the way. So if you're Ruben, how can you not do that if the Tigers step up the way I think they're about to step up?"
While earlier Amaro said he "wasn't trading anybody", he admitted that he would listen on anyone and could let himself be overwhelmed.
Let's face it, the Detroit Tigers need a closer and need one badly. Closer prospect Bruce Rondon and OF/3B Nick Castellanos, recently called the Tigers' "best trade chip" on Yahoo Sports, would be more than enough to get the deal done. Rondon was thrown into the closer's role this season and failed quickly, but remains a prospect.
As I said earlier: the Phillies only gave up money to acquire Papelbon. They can give up money again to get another closer later. The opportunity to re-stock on quality prospects could be limited.
