Buzz: Haren will Still Cost Maine
In Newsday, citing ‘one person in the loop,’ Ken Davidoff says that the Orioles are not yet ready to ‘fully discuss’ Erik Bedard, while adding that the A’s may seek John Maine from the Mets, should they decide to trade Dan Haren.
For what it’s worth, a few weeks ago at Gotham Baseball Magazine, while 
citing a ‘West Coast source,’ Mark Healy also mentioned that the A’s would need Maine, Lastings Milledge and Aaron Heilman, if the Mets had any chance at acquire Haren.
…as i wrote a while back, the buzz from Oakland has long suggested that if the A’s decide to move a pitcher, they will first consider moving haren, but oakland may look to acquire a pitcher more like maine, instead of Mike Pelfrey or heilman, because Billy Beane wants a semi-established, zero-to-three starting pitcher…if they get no movement on haren, oakland may next consider moving Joe Blanton, who is still arbitration eligible, and essentially the type of pitcher they hope to get, not trade away, in a deal for haren……
Additionally, according to Davidoff, the Mets hurt their chance to acquire Haren by trading Milledge, because Beane still likes him.
…honestly, what’s the difference, though, unless milledge was going to drive to oakland with maine sitting next to him, which is never going to happen, whether or not beane liked milledge, or doesn’t like milledge, is irrelevant…the thing is, something tells me that if the Mets change their mind, and become willing to trade maine, beane will listen, with or without milledge in the deal…
…at any rate, the buzz from Nashville continues to suggest that beane will simply keep his pitchers…however, if the Angels acquire, say, Johan Santana, or bedard, it would certainly impact his plan for the immediate future…
By the way, in a report for the San Francisco Chronicle, Sussan Slusser writes that the Dodgers have backed off of Blanton, because, according to a ‘source,’ were are as ‘far away as the moon,’ based on the A’s demands.
