Braves GM Frank Wren chatted with fans on MLB.com today and David O'Brien has some new Braves rumors as well.

• Wren told O'Brien that the Braves have had "a number of conversations" with Mike Hampton about keeping him in Atlanta. In his MLB.com chat, Wren said he thinks Hampton is still a "very good pitcher."
• O'Brien says that talks with the Cardinals about Ryan Ludwick "aren't dead." Wren doesn't comment when asked about Ludwick in the chat, but that is in itself something of a statement.
• O'Brien says that if Atlanta can't trade for Ludwick, Raul Ibanez would be an outfield target. Wren said in his chat that he'd like to acquire a "productive bat in the outfield," and that a right-handed hitter would be ideal.
• Not surprisingly, Wren writes in the chat that he'd like to have A.J. Burnett in the Braves' rotation next year. Wren adds that the Braves have had discussions about bringing back Paul Byrd for a third time.
• Wren told O'Brien that he's going to worry about assembling the 2009 team before working on extensions for players like Chipper Jones.
• And Brian McCann's already lost 22 pounds since the end of the season.

Let's take a look at the latest column from ESPN's Jayson Stark.

• Stark does the math and finds 15 potentially available closers versus six clubs in the market for one.  Should result in a few bargains or teams holding on to their surpluses.
• The Mets don't seem willing to extend to four years for Francisco Rodriguez.  Stark says J.J. Putz would become the Mets' top closer target if he's made available.  MetsBlog's Matthew Cerrone wrote a few days ago that the Mets are likely to trade for a reliever with closing experience before attempting to sign one.
• J.P. Ricciardi quote: "We won't be involved with Manny."  Ricciardi last month: "He's on our radar, but maybe not on our radar like some people will report."
• Despite reports to the contrary, Stark talked to a rival executive who says Jake Peavy made it "onto [the Angels'] radar pretty hard."  Stark speculates that Peavy could fit if the Halos sign Mark Teixeira.
• It seems likely that the Angels will put out an offer to Teixeira with a deadline, and then either sign him or move on.
• John Lackey's been telling friends he expects to have an extension with the Angels by Opening Day.  Lackey indicated last month he'd wait to see the Halos' offensive plans before re-signing.
• Stark suspects the Players Union might be OK with C.C. Sabathia turning down a larger offer from the Yankees if he still signed for more than Johan Santana's $23MM per year.  I don't really see why Sabathia would worry about the union in any regard.
• The Dodgers inquired on the asking price of Jason Varitek, with the idea of moving Russell Martin to third base in mind.  They balked at Scott Boras' demand for Tek, however.
• Curt Schilling is "more likely than ever" to attempt a late June or early July comeback.
• Tons of teams have expressed some degree of interest in Raul Ibanez: the Mets, Phillies, Cubs, Cardinals, Nationals, Braves, Royals, Rays, Blue Jays, Rangers, Angels, and Mariners.  Some interesting new ones in there.
• The Phillies never made a two-year, $21MM offer to Pat Burrell.  Will the Phils at least offer him arbitration?  The rumored offer was questionable from Day 1, as Paul Hagen said Burrell "reportedly turned down a two-year, $22MM offer" but didn't reference a specific report.
• Stark believes that the Brewers were not thrilled with the Yankees' "overbid" for C.C. Sabathia, and therefore would prefer not to trade Mike Cameron to them.  Dan Graziano wrote yesterday about the Yanks' conversations for Cameron.
• Roy Oswalt wants the Astros to sign Ben Sheets, but the price tag may be too high.  Stark has the following names on their radar: Randy Wolf, Mike Hampton, Freddy Garcia, Paul Byrd, and maybe Pedro Martinez.  Is Drayton McLane willing to bring Andy Pettitte back?  GM Ed Wade seemed interested in his chat yesterday, saying, "We'll have to see what develops down the road."

Collecting today's Red Sox rumors and links...

• Nick Cafardo says the Red Sox did not meet with C.C. Sabathia's agent and he doesn't appear to be in their plans.
• The Sox are eyeing southpaw reliever Billy Traber, according to WEEI's Alex Speier.
• Scott Boras believes Derek Lowe would be a good fit in Boston or New York.  Nick Cafardo says Lowe would like to return to Boston, maybe even at a slight discount.
• Jason Bay's agents say he's loving Boston and is open to a contract extension.
• When asked about the possibility of Manny Ramirez signing with the Yankees, Red Sox GM Theo Epstein basically said it's not his concern.
• Otherwise, the theme of Epstein's comments was flexibility.  Justin Masterson could be a starter or reliever, and Epstein won't get hung up on acquiring any one player.
• Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe says the Red Sox are heavily involved on Junichi Tazawa, though the Braves and Mariners are after him as well.  The Sox also like Kenshin Kawakami and may have interest in Paul Byrd and Javier Vazquez.
• Cafardo believes the Mets and White Sox have interest in Julio Lugo.  It would have to be a bad contract swap.  Cafardo adds that the Red Sox view Jacoby Ellsbury as their starting center fielder, and there has been trade interest in Coco Crisp.
• Boston's luxury tax threshold for 2009 is $160.5MM.
• By tomorrow the Red Sox should receive the Jason Varitek book compiled by the Boras corporation.  Boras gave a ridiculous Varitek pitch to the media; click the link for quotes.  Epstein will meet with Boras today to discuss his clients.
• The Red Sox plan to talk to the Rangers, with Taylor Teagarden, Jarrod Saltalamacchia, and Gerald Laird as possibilities.  For Teagarden, the Red Sox would probably have to give up Clay Buchholz or Michael Bowden.

Hot off the press from SI.com's Jon Heyman:

• An executive who knows C.C. Sabathia well told Heyman the pitcher's first choice in free agency is the Giants.  It's not a great fit, as starting pitching is the Giants' strength and Sabathia would add another $100MM+ contract to their rotation.  The Yankees are considered the offseason frontrunners for Sabathia, though former teammate Casey Blake sees C.C. in Dodger blue.
• Heyman believes a claim on Paul Byrd would've made sense for the Yanks.
• Heyman agrees with the Dodgers' choice not to risk a claim on Adam Dunn.  That decision is tough to defend, though, since no one expected Reds GM Walt Jocketty to give up two draft picks for $3.45MM in salary relief.
• No one's interested in Aubrey Huff or Melvin Mora, who have both cleared waivers.  The Orioles might have an easier time trading them this winter.

Taking a look back at this week's happenings here on MLBTR...

• The biggest move of the month was the Diamondbacks' acquisition of slugger Adam Dunn for Dallas Buck, Micah Owings, and Wilkin Castillo.  I can't remember any August trades of this magnitude.
• Bronson Arroyo told the media Dunn would be seeking over $100MM this offseason; Dunn denied the report wholeheartedly. I'd be surprised to see him get $100MM, but I also certainly don't think it would be the worst signing we've seen in the past few offseasons.
• The Red Sox acquired Paul Byrd from the Indians. Boston will pay the remaining portion of Byrd's salary. Byrd has been very good lately, and you can never have too much pitching depth. Not a bad move for Boston, in my opinion.
• The Twins were very active in discussions this week, though nothing surfaced as of yet. Minnesota claimed Jarrod Washburn off waivers from Seattle, but a deal wasn't worked out. Boof Bonser and salary relief was originally thought to be the offer, but that report was later denied. Passing a chance to unload Washburn's salary makes no sense to me. The Twins also claimed Alan Embree from Oakland, but he was pulled back.
• Freddy Garcia signed a minor-league contact with the Tigers. They must have liked what they saw at his audition. If he can return to be as effective as he was in his Chicago days, that would be a great signing. Nice low-risk move for Detroit.
• We've seen a lot of teams signing their young talent to long-term deals, but it looks like San Francisco ace Tim Lincecum will not be one of them. He'd prefer to go year-to-year.
• Minor moves happening around baseball: The Reds DFA'd David Ross, the Blue Jays released Shannon Stewart, and the Twins signed Bobby Kielty to a minor-league deal. The Giants DFA'd Jose Castillo, and Richie Sexson's time in New York was cut short when he was released after just 35 plate appearances. The Rockies added another arm, signing Oscar Villareal.
• And now, for the draft-pick signings! Here are all the signings and not-signings teams made with their top picks this week: The White Sox signed Gordon Beckham, the Orioles signed Brian Matusz, the Padres signed Allan Dykstra, the Rangers signed Justin Smoak, the Giants signed Buster Posey, the Pirates signed Pedro Alvarez, the Royals signed Eric Hosmer, and the Reds not only signed Yonder Alonso, but Venezuelan outfielder Yorman Rodriguez as well. The Nationals failed to sign Aaron Crow, and the Yankees failed to sign Gerrit Cole.
• And to cap things off, since we just covered a bunch of guys who probably weren't even alive when Jamie Moyer first started pitching in the Majors... he didn't deny the possibility of pitching until he's 50. He's 45 right now with 11 wins and an ERA of 3.64, who knows?

THURSDAY:  Tony Massarotti of the Boston Herald heard that the Indians will not receive a player in return for Byrd.  The Indians made the deal because the Red Sox were the only team willing to take on the full $2MM+ owed to Byrd.

TUESDAY: According to Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe, the Red Sox acquired starter Paul Byrd today for a player to be named later or cash.  Byrd, 37, has a 4.53 ERA in 131 innings this year.  He relies on pinpoint control and has strung together five solid starts.  Many are asking why the Yankees passed on him.

Byrd had cleared waivers on account of his $7.5MM salary.  He's still owed over $2MM; no word on whether the Red Sox will pay all of it. 

TUESDAY, 9:30am: De Luca's latest article confirms Chicago's lack of interest in Washburn.  De Luca says Washburn has "passed through waivers," by the way.

MONDAY, 10:22pm: Kenny Williams' comments to MLB.com's Scott Merkin seem to indicate a lack of interest in Washburn.

9:48am: According to Chris De Luca of the Chicago Sun-Times, the White Sox are pursuing Mariners starter Jarrod Washburn as a replacement for Jose Contreras.  Contreras may be out for the season with a ruptured Achilles tendon.

Geoff Baker of The Seattle Times heard from team sources on Saturday that Washburn cleared waivers.  Based on the Yankees rumors last month, it appears the Mariners are unwilling to unload Washburn solely for salary relief ($10.35MM in '09).

ESPN's Buster Olney had a conflicting report in yesterday's blog.  Olney heard the claiming window remains open on Washburn until 12:30pm CST today, and the White Sox are considering putting one in.  Additionally, <a href="<script%20type="text/javascript">showad();</script>" target="_blank">Ken Rosenthal said on Saturday that the Yankees will put a claim in for Washburn.  The Yanks have a worse record, so they'd win such a battle.

Olney also mentioned that Paul Byrd might make sense for the Sox.  Byrd has already cleared waivers.  Phil Rogers believes Aaron Poreda could be an option.

I will make this post a permanent sidebar link.  This is a running list of players who have cleared waivers, based on published reports.  Once a player clears waivers, he can be traded to any team (barring a no-trade clause).

Updated 8-18-08 at 9:57am.  Latest to clear in red.

• Paul Byrd - Byrd cleared waivers, but then was traded to the Red Sox.  They were the only team willing to pay his remaining $2MM.
• Aubrey Huff - Huff's .909 OPS ranks 10th in the league, but surprisingly no team wanted to take on his $10.1MM commitment through '09.
• Mark Kotsay - Ken Rosenthal says he cleared and a number of teams are interested.  Kotsay clearing is a bit of a surprise since the A's are paying most of his salary.  Kotsay can block trades to eight teams.  The center fielder is having a nice comeback season with a .782 OPS in 324 plate appearances.
• Greg Maddux - Maddux is earning $10MM this year and will only accept a trade to a West Coast team.  The Dodgers wanted him but asked the Padres to pay more than 80% of his remaining salary according to Peter Gammons.
• Kevin Millar - Millar has been OK this year; he may reach 20 home runs.  He is owed about $710K from here on out.
• Jay Payton - Payton is the O's regular center fielder with Adam Jones out for the season.  He is owed $1.3MM for the rest of the season.  He's been lousy offensively, though he can hit lefties and play all three outfield positions.
• Dave Ross - Ross had cleared waivers prior to being designated for assignment.  He is earning $2.525MM this year.
• Duaner Sanchez - His velocity is down 3.6 mph from '06.  Sanchez is under team control through '09.
• Scott Schoeneweis - His strikeout rate is down, but so is his ERA.  Apparently no team wanted to risk taking on his contract - $910K more this year, $3.6MM in '09.
• Gary Sheffield - No surprise here. Sheff is owed around $17.5 million between this year and next.
• Jamie Walker - The 37 year-old southpaw has a 5.00 ERA in 27 innings this year.  As usual, home runs have been a problem.  He spent time on the DL with elbow inflammation and is set to earn $4.5MM next year.