Deadline buzz: Cubs looking at Rays’ starters

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Updated: July 31, 2016

Many potential deals are in the works as the non-waiver Trade Deadline — Monday at 4 p.m. ET — approaches. Here is a look at the latest news, reports and rumors.

Cubs after a Rays starter? The Cubs could be targeting one of the Rays’ starting pitchers, according to multiple reports on Saturday.

ESPN’s Jim Bowden and the Tampa Bay Times’ Marc Topkin both reported that they’d heard the Cubs were “in pursuit” of a Rays starter, most likely left-hander Matt Moore or right-hander Jake Odorizzi.

Both Moore and Odorizzi have been linked to multiple teams in trade talks. On Friday, sources told Yahoo Sports’ Jeff Passan that Moore was the likeliest Rays pitcher to be dealt before Monday’s Deadline.

Odorizzi pitched Friday and beat the Yankees with 6 2/3 shutout innings. Topkin reported that at least 10 teams had scouts at Friday’s game — the Giants, Indians, Dodgers, White Sox, Royals, Blue Jays, Cubs, Marlins, Orioles and Rangers.

Orioles showing interest in Mariners’ Miley Adding depth at the back end of the rotation is a primary need for the Orioles, who have opened conversations with the Mariners about possibly trading for Wade Miley, Heyman reported on Saturday.

Heyman reported that the Mariners are shopping the veteran left-hander to multiple teams. Seattle general manager Jerry Dipoto has stated that he intends to keep young starters Taijuan Walker and James Paxton.

The Orioles saw the slow erosion of their lead in the AL East come to a head with a 9-1 loss on Saturday to Toronto, which took over the division lead by a half-game. Baltimore has been trying to address its rotation issues for weeks now; the team’s starters owned a collective 4.98 ERA — third worst in the Junior Circuit — entering Saturday’s games.

Meanwhile, Miley improved his own stock on Saturday, holding the Cubs hitless through the first six innings before eventually settling for one run allowed over seven strong frames at Wrigley Field. For the year, Miley is 7-8 with a 1.35 WHIP and 6.59 strikeouts per nine innings over 19 starts.

Multiple suitors interested in Bruce The chase for Reds outfielder Jay Bruce is continuing at a fever pitch.

With the Indians having reportedly reached an agreement on a deal for Brewers catcher Jonathan Lucroy, the Mets are turning their attention to Cincinnati’s left-handed-hitting slugger, according to Newsday’s David Lennon and Marc Carig. ESPN’s Jayson Stark reported that the Reds are not asking for “elite prospects” from the Mets, but rather for two or three good players a notch below elite status.

New York is not the only interested party, however. The Dodgers remain in discussions with the Reds about a possible deal, according to MLB.com’s Jon Paul Morosi, who reported that such a deal would likely remain between the two clubs, as opposed to being a three-team swap, as was widely reported on Friday. Rosenthal also reported that the Giants are among the teams still in the mix for Bruce.

Count the Rangers as another team at least pondering the possibility of adding Bruce to its lineup. Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News reported on Saturday that Texas had at least one scout present at the Reds-Padres contest on Friday night in San Diego to take a look at the slugger.

In fact, as many as six to eight teams are “still in the mix” for Bruce, according to ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick. Bruce could make an immediate impact to almost any lineup. Entering Saturday’s games, the lefty was leading the NL with 80 RBIs, batting .360 with runners in scoring position and carrying a higher OPS on the road (.919) than in …

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