Erik Bedard Trade Rumors

Even after his rocky return Friday night against the Rays, Erik Bedard is still reportedly being pursued by several clubs.  The Red Sox, Cardinals, Yankees and Tigers have all been tied to the Mariners’ lefty this summer.

Bedard was solid this season for Seattle before heading to the disabled list at the end of June.  The injury occurred at a very inopportune time, as Bedard was considered one of the top arms available on the market this summer.

But even with him missing the past month before Friday’s lackluster start, Bedard still remains one of the best arms available and has thus continued to draw significant interest.

Over his 16 starts this season, Bedard has an ERA of 3.45 and 1.17 WHIP with 87 strike outs in 91.1 innings.  The 32 year old has held opposing hitters to a .226 batting average in 2011.

With a record of 55-48 over his 8 seasons in the majors, Bedard has a career earned run average of 3.69 with a K/9 rate just under 9.  While those are certainly impressive numbers, Bedard has had a hard time remaining on the mound for clubs, as he’s only made 31 starts in his 3 seasons with the Mariners.

St. Louis has talked about Bedard with the Mariners this morning, even after acquiring starter Edwin Jackson earlier in the week.  The Cardinals and Red Sox along with one other team have been tied to Bedard today.  The duo scouted Bedard’s Friday start along with the Yankees and Tigers.

I would assume the third team would to check in on Bedard Sunday would be the Yankees as they are known to be pursuing pitching.  The Tigers acquired Doug Fister and David Pauley from the Mariners yesterday and are likely not in the market for another starter at this point.

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