Ryan Church's plans have changed again. He was originally supposed to drive from Miami to Port St. Lucie to begin a rehab assignment with the Class-A Mets, but has been advised by the Mets' medical team to travel with rest of the Mets to Houston so that his situation can be monitored more closely. He just began swinging a bat again on Tuesday, and the Mets are reluctant to accelerate his timetable again. Nothing tangible seems to have triggered the change in plans; everyone just wants to take things more slowly this time around.
As I mentioned in my post earlier, the Mets appear on the verge of doing nothing, which may be the best course of action considering what other teams are asking for their mediocre players, let alone their stars. Buried in the afore-linked article is a note about John Maine, who has a strained rotator cuff and is likely to miss at least his next start in Houston. Pedro Martinez and Billy Wagner, who have each had similar injuries in the past, recommended some time off so that Maine's shoulder can rest.
Ken Griffey Jr. has been traded to the White Sox, pending Griffey's 10-5 approval. Griffey is having a so-so year, posting a 103 OPS+, which is actually kinda crummy for a corner outfielder playing his home games in Great American Ballpark. We'll see how much he as left in the tank.
More to come, I'm sure. Use this space to dump and discuss all of the links/rumors you hear throughout the day.
UPDATE [10:55am]: Peter Gammons reports that the Marlins have acquired Arthur Rhodes in exchange for former Met prospect Gaby Hernandez. Hernandez has a 7.24 ERA with Albquerque of the Pacific Coast League. The Mets had traded Hernandez to the Marlins a couple of years ago in the Paul Lo Duca deal. [MetsBlog]
UPDATE [4:35pm]: Manny Ramirez appears to be headed to the Dodgers in a three-team deal that sends Jason Bay to Boston and a bunch of prospects to Pittsburgh. More as this develops. [SI.com]
UPDATE [4:47pm]: I'm hearing Craig Hansen and Brandon Moss coming from Boston and Andy LaRoche and Bryan Morris coming from L.A., all going to Pittsburgh. More coverage at Over The Monster.