SI.com’s Jon Heyman is reporting that the Phillies are talking to the Red Sox about acquiring Manny Ramirez. Heyman writes that the Phillies are one of three teams the Red Sox are talking to.

The Phillies may be the front-runner for Ramirez, who has told people he probably will OK a deal to Philadelphia if the teams can agree on a trade.

Adam Rubin of the Daily News spoke with Pedro Martinez after his bullpen session and he asked him about the Manny trade talks:

“Manny is a great teammate. Manny is a great human being, too. … Manny is just Manny. He has his own way to do things. You know what? If you look at the numbers, it doesn’t affect anything in the game. A lot of people expect us to be perfect outside of baseball as well as in the field. And sometimes that’s not going to be possible. But I haven’t heard anything of Manny coming over. I haven’t heard from Manny yet, except for the condolences that his family sent along with his wife. As far as Manny being traded, it seems like every year - every spring training - it’s the same thing with Manny. He’s always in Boston putting up the numbers and he ends up being one of the biggest pieces for everything Boston does. So I’m wishing Manny the best. Whatever happens, happens. If he comes over, I’ll welcome Manny anytime. He plays on my team anytime.”

Omar, please get going. Don’t let this happen.

Added By Rob Harding

The way i see it, the only way this would work financially is if they traded Pat Burrell in the deal, and Burrell has had just a good a season, if not better, than Ramirez. I guess the fact of having Manny Ramirez in your lineup alone helps, but even if this were to happen, I don’t think it’d be a back breaker from the Mets perspective…

Added by Peter Wade

Update - 10:03 p.m. - Jayson Stark of ESPN.com is reporting that every report out there about Manny Ramirez is false.

A Phillies official told ESPN.com Tuesday night persistent reports that the Phillies are pursuing Manny Ramirez are “false” and said the Phillies have “nothing doing” with the Red Sox…a baseball man who speaks regularly with the Dodgers’ front office said that the Dodgers also have no interest in trading for Ramirez.

Stark also adds that the Mets and Diamondbacks have already denied any interest in Ramirez. So, even though the Red Sox are looking to rid themselves of Manny, they have yet to find a partner.

Update - 11:00 p.m. - SI.com’s Jon Heyman live on SNY said the Manny Ramirez to Philly deal is 50/50. Heyman said both sides are talking and he would consider the Phillies favorites to get Manny if he goes anywhere.

Asked if that would put pressure on Omar Minaya to make a move for a bat Heyman said, most teams are looking for Fernando Martinez in return. Heyman did not rule out a move by the Mets but he did say the Mets have a lot of “untouchables” and that makes if tough to make any significant trades.

Update 7/30 - 2:15 a.m. - Manny Ramirez in a Phillies uniform is laughable if you believe what MLB.com is reporting:

A team source laughed at the notion that the Phillies were the “front-runner” in the sweepstakes to land the enigmatic Red Sox slugger, as reported by SI.com. The team’s source called SI.com’s story “untrue” and added that the Phillies aren’t involved in talks to land Ramirez.

MLB.com also points out that Pat Burrell, the possible player that would go to the Red Sox in the SI.com story, would have to waive his no-trade clause. Burrell has refused to waive that right in the past.

FoxSports.com Ken Rosenthal is reporting that the Braves have traded Mark Teixeira to the Angels for first baseman Casey Kotchman and Class AA right-hander Stephen Marek.

According to the NY Post highly regarded and much sought after Mets lefty pitching prospect Jonathon Niese has been promoted to Triple-A New Orleans. The 21 year old will make his first Triple-A start Wednesday.

Also, the AP is reporting that the Yankees Jorge Posada will have season ending shoulder surgery.

Steve Henson of Yahoo Sports is reporting that a front office source from another team is telling him a trade between Atlanta and Arizona is “pretty far along”. The deal as reported would include Arizona getting Mark Teixeira in exchange for a prospect and Coner Jackson or Chad Tracy.

Update 8:05 - Jon Heyman of SI.com is reporting that Teixeira will be traded by Thursday’s deadline. The deal, according to Heyman, with the D’backs is not as close as reports may indicate. The Angels, Dodgers, Red Sox and Yankees may still be players.

According to John Delcos of The Journal Pedro Martinez will pitch in Houston on Friday night.

Pedro Martinez will throw a bullpen session tomorrow afternoon…Manager Jerry Manuel said Martinez will face hitters during tomorrow’s workout and be held to 80 pitches against the Astros.

Delcos also added that Jerry Manuel said he wouldn’t be surprised if the Mets made a trade before the deadline.

With the Mets playing well I still miss Pedro. Even the shots of him in the dugout are entertaining. Welcome back Pedro, hope your heart is not too heavy.

According to ESPN Deportes via the AP Manny Ramirez is willing to help the Red Sox trade him. Many reports have Manny going to Philly where he has a relationship with Phillies manager Charlie Manuel from their days in Cleveland.

Manny Ramirez is willing to work with the Red Sox on a trade that would get him out of Boston, according to .

I know there are people who don’t want Manny here but I’m not one of them. C’mon Omar work some magic.

Update 5:25 - The following are some quotes from ESPN.com:

“If the Red Sox are a better team without Manny Ramirez, they should trade me; I will not object,”…”I don’t have any preferences: I could choose a team that offers me the best conditions or one in the chase for the postseason. I don’t care where I play, I can even play in Iraq if need be. My job is to play baseball,” added Ramirez.

Update 6:35 - Adam Rubin of the Daily News writes:

Get ready for a whole bunch of stories linking the Mets to Manny Ramirez. And file it in the fertilizer category.

Way to be a killjoy there Adam.

Update 7:45 - Ken Rosenthal of FoxSports.com writes:

The Mets and Phillies have contacted the Red Sox about a possible deal, major-league sources say, but the Mets deny serious interest in Ramirez and the Phillies are even more of a longshot…The Mets can’t trade any more trade top prospects, can’t mess with their improved vibe under new manager Jerry Manuel.

ESPN.com’s Jayson Stark is reporting that the Mets and the Giants have spoken about Giants veteran OF Randy Winn. The switch hitting 34 year old Winn is hitting .274 and has 19 stolen bases.

Stark writes:

According to one baseball man who has spoken with the Mets, the two teams have had some recent conversations…An official of another club says, however, that he believes Winn is only a back-burner menu item for the Mets, so it’s unlikely they’ll opt to pursue him aggressively between now and the deadline….The biggest hang-up most teams have about Winn is that he’s signed for next season at $8.125 million — a salary that would rise by another $500,000 if he’s dealt.

If the main deterrent is money I hope that doesn’t stop the Mets from pulling the trigger here. I like Winn, a switch hitter with speed sounds good to me. Plus, the fact that he is pulling in some decent money may mean lesser prospects the Mets may have to part with.

After the game, closer Billy Wagner spoke with the press. Wagner literally laughed off the possibility of Shane Victorino “running him over” on the grounder that Carlos Delgado fielded and then flipped to Billy who was covering first in the ninth inning. The two crossed paths but did not collide. Wagner seemed to be in good spirits but said, “Of course you feel it,” when asked about his left shoulder that caused him to miss Tuesday’s game. When asked if it feels better or worse than yesterday, he said tomorrow will be the real test, because right now the adrenaline is flowing, so its tough to tell. Also, Wagner was asked, “Is it discomfort that you feel in the shoulder or pain?” Wagner deadpanned, “age”.

Billy’s answers seemed a bit abrupt and short and he may still be smarting over a column written by NYT writer William C. Rhoden. Before last night’s game, David Lennon of Newsday reported that Billy was asked which part of the column irritated him and…

Wagner reached into his locker and pulled out of copy of the Times’ sports section, then read the passage. As soon as he did that, Wagner said he wanted Rhoden to stand at his locker and apologize to him — and all of his teammates.

Steve Popper of The Record explained that Wagner felt the NY Times columnist took his post game comments, “I’d much rather be the guy taking the blame than sitting here having my teammates have to suck on this one.” and twisted them into Wagner saying that he “Opted to sit this one out.” Popper had the following quotes from Wagner:

“I can’t even get hurt without being thrown under the bus,” Wagner said. “I tell you – [the columnist] comes in here, you might see something. Tell me I’m dogging it? I know right now I didn’t say I changed my mind and wished I’d have pitched yesterday after seeing the bullpen get slapped around. I know I didn’t say that quote. He’s going to stand right in front of you guys and this team and apologize. … You can tell me I suck, that’s fine, but you ain’t going to do this.”

 

With the scare of losing Wagner we’ve already read Hot Foot’s own Anthony De Rosa report on names like Brian Fuentes and Huston Street and where they may end up. Well, The Star Ledger’s Dan Graziano is adding more names to the list of possible relievers the Mets may have some interest in. Graziano is reporting that the Mets asked Seattle about lefty RP Arthur Rhodes, but he thinks Rhodes will end up with the Marlins. There is also interest on the Mets end in Pittsburgh’s lefty RP Damaso Marte. The Mets also had someone scouting Monday’s Rangers-White Sox game to keep an eye on lefty RP Eddie Guardado.

If you feel confused about what the Mets are going to do with their corner outfield situations, you are not alone. According to Graziano, there is “industry wide confusion about what the Mets plan to do.”

Some say they’re in on Xavier Nady, Raul Ibanez, Casey Blake and others. Some say they believe Ryan Church will come back and plan to call up Fernando Martinez if he doesn’t.

For more on Roy Halladay, Mark Teixeria, Chad Bradford, Jamie Walker, Jay Payton and Brian Fuentes make sure you check out Graziano’s blog over at The Star Ledger.

Also, if you want to listen to Billy Wagner, Jerry Manuel, Jose Reyes and John Maine’s post game remarks, head over to WFAN.com.

One thing became abundantly clear last night and that was we need to appreciate Billy Wagner. Yeah, we are all well aware of our closer’s faults, but maybe last night was something we needed. It gives us a reality check on how good we actually have it. We all know that when Billy fails, it’s not because of a lack of guts or a lack of heart. He’s a stand-up guy who seems to actually enjoy pressure and he wants the ball in big spots. Well, after reading John Delcos of the Journal latest post the same cannot be said of Duaner Sanchez:

While we (the Beat Reporters) were in with Manuel, (Sanchez) tried to slip away. We got him in the hallway. I don’t even know if he showered…He tried to slip away. He answered questions because he was caught, not because he is stand-up…Then he says he made good pitches, but didn’t get the results. Sorry, you can’t say you make good pitches if you don’t get anybody out…It takes a certain mentality to be a closer, and Sanchez doesn’t have it.

I think Sanchez has shown a lot because he did battle back from a major injury. But, I think this is a sign that he may not have the make-up a closer needs, especially in NY. Hurry back Billy, I know I miss ya.