UPDATE, MIDNIGHT: Tim Brown TWEETS that Angels source tells him that they are not hot on the trail. Brown has EXCELLENT sources with the Angels (he worked at the LA TIMES when it was still good)... I'd put all my eggs in his basket before I would any "unnamed sources" anyone else delivers.
UPDATE, 6:00 PM: Marlins, rumored to be at $16 Million, are bowing out, according to a Miami Tweeter.
The internet is alive with updates on Cuban pitcher Aroldis Chapman and the bidding for his services by just about every team in major league baseball.
The latest, per Disney's Buster Olney:
Sources: The Mets are not in on Aroldis Chapman - just as the Yankees are not in on Aroldis Chapman. One talent evaluator expects the bidding on Chapman to go to $20 million. Concern in some quarters that he is better suited for relief than as a starter. (tweeted)
MLB's internal media arm quoted Astros GM Ed Wade about his abandoning of efforts to sign the star prospect:
"If there was an assurance that Chapman was going to be a top-of-the-rotation starter almost immediately, we would take a different approach. The kid has a great arm and stuff, but we'd rather have the flexibility to sign multiples. That's the approach I've taken since I've gotten this opportunity to be here and gotten our international and Latin American programs to the point they're at now."
All of this comes in addition to the Trade Rumors post that claimed the Florida Marlins had surpassed the Boston Red Sox bid of $15+ Million and that the Angels and Blue Jays appeared most serious of any teams, discussed in detail on Halos Heaven in a Commander_Nate POST yesterday.