Trade Deadline Lacks Concrete Starting Points

With the Angels pretty much having decided to take Chuck Finley off the trade market (as if there was a market the way he’s pitching) and the Philadelphia Phillies intent on retaining Curt Schilling as they make a wild-card run, which starting pitchers remain available as baseball moves toward the non-waiver trade deadline of July 31?

Among the possibilities: Livan Hernandez of the Florida Marlins, Kenny Rogers of the Oakland Athletics, Kevin Appier of the Kansas City Royals, Jeff Fassero of the Seattle Mariners, Juan Guzman and Scott Erickson of the Baltimore Orioles, Jaime Navarro of the Chicago White Sox and maybe Andy Pettitte of the New York Yankees.

There has been loads of interest in Hernandez, Rogers, Guzman, Erickson and Pettitte, but limited response to Appier, who is coming back from shoulder surgery.

As Royal General Manager Herk Robinson noted: “Nobody has even whelmed me, much less overwhelmed me.”

Texas Ranger concern: Ivan Rodriguez, batting .326 on May 29, opened the second half at .295 and has always worn down after the all-star break because of his workload behind the plate and the summer heat in Texas.

He began the season with a .317 career average before the break and a .272 mark after it.

Manager Johnny Oates simply can’t bear to take baseball’s best catcher out of the lineup. Rodriguez caught 666 2/3 of a possible 767 2/3 innings during the first half, a demanding, wilting and ridiculous burden.

The Orioles have designated catcher Lenny Webster for assignment and the Dodgers may have interest once he clears waivers. The Dodgers also have an interest in left-handed reliever Arthur Rhodes, but the Orioles apparently have no interest in trading with Kevin Malone, their former assistant general manager--although they did participate in the three-way trade by which Charles Johnson and Roger Cedeno were heisted from the Dodgers.

Upon further review, Cleveland Indian Manager Mike Hargrove has decided to keep Jim Thome at first base rather than move him to third to replace Travis Fryman, who is out until Sept. 1, if not for the season, because of a torn ligament in his right knee. Enrique Wilson, a shortstop by trade, has refused to give up the position. He hit .468 in his first four games as Fryman’s replacement, and was hitting .405 in his last 22 games overall through Thursday.

“That was part of it,” Hargrove said of Wilson’s production. “But the other part is the uneasiness that Jimmy has about playing third base right now. It isn’t that he’s reluctant, he’s just not comfortable. To put him out there wouldn’t be fair to him or the team.”

New ballpark but same old Seattle Mariner bullpen. Jose Mesa’s blown save against the San Diego Padres in Thursday night’s opener at Safeco Field was the Mariners’ 13th in 34 opportunities this year. Manager Lou Piniella has operated a revolving-door pitching staff, but may have trouble making changes amid the spaciousness of the Mariner clubhouse at Safeco Field.

“You want to send someone [to the minors] around here, he can hide for a week,” Piniella said.

As part of a series of events commemorating the closing of Detroit’s Tiger Stadium, the home team brought in the fabled Bird, Mark Fidrych, who is 44 and noted that he doesn’t watch many games unless “I’m at a friend’s house and they’re on TV. If you asked me who is first and by how many games, I couldn’t tell you, but then I couldn’t tell you when I was playing either.”