Reports continue to circulate about the trade market for right-handed pitcher Ryan Dempster, with some suggesting that the Chicago Cubs will possible deal him before his next start, on Friday, against the St. Louis Cardinals.
According to ESPN Chicago's Bruce Levine, the Cubs will have no shortage of teams interested in Dempster when they decide to make a deal.
"With a little more than two weeks until baseball's trade deadline, 10 teams have shown legitimate interest in acquiring Dempster's services for the remainder of the season, according to industry sources," Levine posted. "Those clubs include the Los Angeles Dodgers, Cleveland Indians, Detroit Tigers, New York Yankees, Chicago White Sox and Atlanta Braves."
While baseball insiders had considered the Los Angeles Dodgers a clear frontrunner for the last month, major league sources say that their pursuit may have cooled down enough to put other teams in the picture for Demspter.
Though Dempster's preference is to be dealt to the Dodgers, it doesn't seem like he's heading out to LA even with the Cub's efforts to help with his desires.
Reports suggest that the Cubs have asked about Dodgers' pitcher Zach Lee's availability, but handing over Dempster alone was not believed to be enough to make a deal to take Lee off the Dodgers' hands.
A Dempster deal is speculated to be made soon before the non-waiver trade deadline on July 31st.