Yankees Trade Rumors: Favorites for Scott Downs?

According to Jon Morosi of Fox Sports , the market for Blue Jays lefty reliever Scott Downs is heating up and the Yankees, along with the Red Sox, are said to be the favorites to land him. The Mets, Reds, and Twins are also said to be involved.

Morosi may be calling the Yankees favorites in this one, but I would suggest not getting too excited about this possibility.

For one thing the Yankees are division rivals of the Blue Jays and I’m sure they would prefer to deal him to a team they don’t have to face so much.

Another thing is Downs himself.

He’s a good lefty reliever in a market that isn’t exactly overflowing with good lefty relievers.

On top of that he’s going to be a Type-B free agent and has a real possibility of becoming a Type-A free agent, which means that the Blue Jays don’t have to deal him to get something in return.

So not only might the Blue Jays resist the idea of sending him to one of their biggest rivals, the cost will not be cheap. Actually, that cost could be Francisco Cervelli (pure speculation on my part).

I say that because the current Blue Jays catcher, John Buck , is a free agent after this season and the Jays may be looking for a cheap alternative for the future.

Again, this is pure speculation, but if the Yankees really wanted to land Downs, it’s hard to imagine the Jays turning down Cervelli.

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• July 23, 2010 -- Do The Yankees Really Need Francisco Cervelli Anymore? (12)
• July 18, 2010 -- 10 Potential Relief Trade Candidates for Yankees (1)
• July 1, 2010 -- Cervelli Makes Me Wonder if the Yankees Should Call Up Montero (4)