Winter Meetings: Day 2

Notes from Day 2 of the Winter Meetings:

***Last night, Steve Phillips reported on ESPN that the Cubs and Rockies were in the midst of talks that would send Jacque Jones to Colorado in return for pitcher Jason Jennings. Later, the report turned in to a three way deal involving Pittsburgh. However, ESPNs Jayson Stark threw the BS flag on the rumors earlier today and quoted an official with knowledge of the talks as saying there is “no way” that is going to happen. As they say, where there's smoke, there's fire, So stay tuned.
***Ken Rosenthal from Fox Sports is reporting that the Cubs and Blue Jays are the leading candidates for Ted Lilly. Lilly’s agent Larry O’Brien is continuing to talk to other teams, but it appears the Cubs and Blue Jays have the inside track.
***Amidst all of the trade talk involving Jacque Jones comes the rather surprising revelation that Jones requested a trade at the close of the 2006 season. Initial reports indicated that Jones was upset that Dusty Baker’s services were not retained, but it may have just as much, if not more, to do with the run ins Jones had with some obnoxious Cubs fans early in the 2006 season.
***The Cubs continue to be a suitor of Jason Schmidt’s. Jim Hendry indicated that even if the club signs Ted Lilly, that does not mean they will not continue their pursuit of Schmidt. However, the Dodgers have emerged as a prime suitor for Schmidt today. Schmidt has ties to Dodgers GM Ned Colletti and new Dodger trainer Stan Conte from their days with the Giants.
***Rumors are circulating that the Cubs and Phillies may be working a trade that would send former Southsider Aaron Rowand to the Cubs. There was no word on who the Cubs would send to Philadelphia to make this happen. From the Cubs perspective, they could use the scrappy center fielder, who hit .262 for the Phillies in 2006 with 12 HRs and 47 RBI.
***Other Activity: J.D. Drew signed with the Red Sox for 5 years/$70 Million…The Dodgers signed closer Takashi Saito for 1 year/$1 million plus $300,000 in incentives…Oakland and Texas continue to be the teams pursuing Mike Piazza…The Dodgers former closer, Eric Gagne, is drawing interest from the Red Sox, Reds, Braves, Indians, Giants, and Phillies…Andy Pettitte is still contemplating whether or not he will pitch in 2007. The New York Yankees made his decision a little easier today by offering him a 1 year/$15 million contract…The Mets still seem to be the front runner for Barry Zito’s services, but the Rangers are rumored to be dangling an offer of 6 years and between $94 million and $102 million…The Brewers are talking to both the Phillies and Orioles about a trade for OF Kevin Mench. The Phillies have talked about sending Jon Lieber or Aaron Rowand to the Brewers, but Milwaukee would have to sweeten the deal a bit. The Orioles have discussed sending pitcher Rodrigo Lopez to the Brewers…Greg Maddux is on the verge of signing a 1 year/$10 million deal with San Diego. The deal would also include a team option for a second year.