Morning roundup: Josh Beckett, Hunter Pence, James Shields

The Red Sox have explored the possibility of trading Beckett, and Pence and Shields are still with their teams, the Phillies and Rays, for now.

By Navin Vaswani

Jul 30, 2012 at 9:45 am ET • 3 min read

Baseball's non-waiver trade deadline is just over 24 hours away, and the rumor mill is spinning madly. Below, in our morning roundup, you'll find the latest on Josh Beckett, Hunter Pence, James Shields, Ryan Dempster, Shane Victorino, Shin-Soo Choo, and more.

As first reported by CBSSports.com's Jon Heyman, the Red Sox have indeed explored the possibility of trading starting pitcher Josh Beckett. There are obstacles in dealing him, though, including the fact Beckett has 10-5 no-trade rights, and a $15.75 million yearly salary through 2014.
Boston has called Atlanta and Texas to see if they're interested in Beckett, wrote Jeff Passan at Yahoo! Sports, and the Red Sox are willing to eat $37.3 million of what's left on Beckett's contract. No deal is imminent, however.
Beckett would waive his 10-5 rights to go to either Atlanta or Texas, according to Passan's source. The Dodgers could be in the mix, too, but it's unknown whether Beckett would accept a trade that has him sent out west.
Beckett's numbers aren't great, his velocity is down, and, as Heyman noted, there's a possibility, thanks to all the money he's owed, he passes through waivers and the Red Sox are able to trade him after July 31.
A Beckett deal before Tuesday's deadline is unlikely, tweeted ESPN's Buster Olney.
Sticking with Passan's piece, he wrote that the Rays, back in the thick of the wild-card race, will keep James Shields and make what's become an annual playoff push.
The Marlins want to continue to cut payroll, but teams aren't willing to accept Miami's asking price for Josh Johnson, in terms of prospects, so it's likely he stays put in South Florida, wrote Passan. The Marlins will try to deal Johnson in the offseason, when he should be the premier non-free agent pitcher available.
If Ryan Dempster is still a member of the Chicago Cubs on August 1, it will be a "surprise," wrote Passan. There's a chance, though, that the Cubs offer him a one-year contract in the range of $12.5 million, one that would guarantee the Cubs a compensatory draft pick should Dempster sign elsewhere.
The relief pitching market is heating up, wrote Passan, and Jonathan Broxton, Brandon League, and Rafael Betancourt could all be on the move over the next day and a half. The Braves, Rangers, Blue Jays, and Red Sox have inquired on Betancourt, who is signed through 2013 at $4.25 million, with a mutual option in his contract for the 2014 season at $4.25 million ($250,000 buyout).
The Padres are mulling over multiple offers for Chase Headley, wrote Passan, and both contenders and non-contenders have submitted offers. They're deciding in San Diego whether to trade Headley now or over the winter.
The A's are a long shot in the Headley sweepstakes, wrote Heyman. They're still scouring the market for a shortstop, with their top choices being Arizona's Stephen Drew and Toronto's Yunel Escobar.
The Cleveland Indians have the money to lock up Shin-Soo Choo, 30, long term, but they won't overextend themselves the way they did by signing Travis Hafner, so Choo, a Scott Boras client, could be on the move.
However, the Indians need "the perfect offer" to trade Choo, tweeted Olney, making Choo another unlikely trade candidate over the next 30 hours.
Shane Victorino "must go," wrote Passan, and if the Phillies can trade Hunter Pence, they'll shed payroll and bring back prospects, both of which they need to do.
Victorino isn't likely to end up in Pittsburgh, tweeted FOXSports.com's Ken Rosenthal.
A rumor was out there late Sunday night that Pence had been acquired by the Giants, who are known to be in the market for an outfielder, but there's no deal in place for Pence, wrote Heyman.
Milwaukee's Corey Hart would be a good fit in San Francisco, noted Heyman.
The Mets continue to search for a catcher, but the prices remain "too high," Heyman tweeted. The Mets' search will continue in the offseason.
The Rays are looking for a catcher, too, and a shortstop, tweeted Rosenthal.
Finally, both Texas and Boston scouted Cleveland's Justin Masterson on Sunday, wrote CBSSports.com's Danny Knobler. Masterson is under team control through 2014, and the Indians have fallen behind the pack in the AL Central.