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Tuesday Halolinks: Stupid Trade Rumor, and I Mean STUPID

I'm going to lead off a very short version of Halolinks with one of the stupidest rumors I've ever read: Angels Interested In Dioner Navarro - MLBTradeRumors.com. Yeah, this Dioner Navarro, "Navarro, 27, signed a one-year, $1MM deal with the Dodgers a year ago. He posted a .193/.276/.324 line in 202 plate appearances for the Dodgers this past season, preventing 14 of 55 stolen base attempts against him. He hasn't posted an OPS over .600 since making the All-Star team as a member of the 2008 Rays." Here's the Jon Heyman Tweet that this rumor is based on:

have interest in catcher dioner navarro. could be a good fit.
A "good fit"?!? A good fit for what? All I can say is, if this rumor is true AND it actually happens, it will cause me to utter the words, "Why didn't they just keep Mathis?" Welcome to Bizarro World. Wait, I can actually say more...I want a job like Jon Heyman. No, not the Boras part, but the part where I can sit around and make shit up. I'll send Tweets like, "Heard the Twins have interest in re-acquiring Torii Hunter, willing to deal Mauer." Or, "DiPoto has called Brewers about K-Rod." Hold on, that one's not funny.
What's interesting about this post, Why Los Angeles Angels' Albert Pujols deal means Bobby Abreu should be traded - FOX Sports on MSN, is the wording in the headline, "should be" traded. Not, "could be" or "might be", but "should be" which to me suggests Ken Rosenthal thinks the Angels owe something to Abreu and "should" trade him to a team will play him full time. "Right now, (Abreu) is a valuable asset," Dipoto said Monday. "I have a world of respect for Bobby. I want to make sure he’s in a position to be productive. Right now, we have that ability." In dealing Abreu, the Angels would be looking to not only save some cash, Abreu is owed $9M this season, but a useful roster piece. Another quote from the above post, "Then again, this no longer is about money; Abreu has made more than $115 million in his career, according to baseball-reference.com. This is about serving not only Abreu’s best interests, but the Angels’ best interests, too." Sorry, but who cares about Abreu's best interest? I know it's cold-hearted, but the Angels "should be" looking to improve their club, not worry about Abreu's feelings.

Good post (and free!) over at Baseball Prospectus: Overthinking It: Keeping Up with the Friedmans - Baseball Prospectus. "Five of the seven GMs who’ve been hired this winter—Jed Hoyer in Chicago, Ben Cherington, in Boston, Josh Byrnes in San Diego, Jerry Dipoto in Anaheim, and Jeff Luhnow in Houston—fit the mold of the young, progressive GM who marries an affinity for scouting with an appreciation for statistical analysis." And looks good in a suit!

Texas' new potential ace gets a good once over: Yu Darvish Scouting Report - MLB Bonus Baby

"Fastball: His 4 seam fastball can reach the upper 90's on occasion but is more likely to peak at 96. His 2-seam fastball will sit 91-94 mostly and has very good movement. It is a plus pitch."

That's all folks.