The Chicago Cubs have appeared ready and willing to trade starter Ryan Dempster for quite a while now, and talks are apparently advancing with the Detroit Tigers, Boston Red Sox and Los Angeles Dodgers. The Cubs have been busy exchanging prospect names with these three teams, according to a report from Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports, and it seems Chicago is even willing to pay most of Dempster's salary if it means they can get back better young players in a deal:
The Cubs are exchanging names with teams interested in right-hander Ryan Dempster, and the Dodgers, Tigers, Braves and Red Sox all remain in the mix, major-league sources say.
...The Red Sox, according to a source, maintain equal or greater interest in Cubs right-hander Matt Garza, who is under club control through next season...
...The Cubs are willing to pay the vast majority of Dempster's salary in exchange for better prospects - condition that likely would appeal to a team as budget-conscious as the Braves...
The Dodgers, meanwhile, are thin in upper-level position prospects, but rival executives say they could construct a Dempster trade with some of their pitching at Double A.
Dempster has full no-trade rights as a player with 10 years of MLB service and five years with the Cubs, but Rosenthals adds that a source close to the veteran starter said he would likely approve a deal to the Dodgers or Red Sox.
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