Iwamura, 32 in February, hit just .173/.285/.250 in 229 plate appearances split between the Pirates and Athletics this season. In three seasons with Tampa Bay, he hit a far more respectable .281/.354/.393 while moving from third to second base. Iwamura played eight years with Tokyo Yakult Swallows before joining the then-Devil Rays, who won his rights with a $4.5MM bid.

Iwamura indicated a desire to remain in North America just last month, but perhaps the offer from Rakuten was just too good to pass up.

If this scenario doesn't play out for the 31-year-old and he decides to return to his native country after all, Newman believes that Iwamura's Japanese rights are still held by Yakult.  Iwamura played all nine of his professional seasons in Japan with the Swallows, and it was Yakult who acquired the $4.5MM posting fee for the infielder when his rights were obtained by Tampa Bay in the 2006-07 offseason. 

Iwamura, 31, was acquired by the Pirates from the Rays for Jesse Chavez in November.  The Bucs exercised Iwamura's $4.85MM option as part of the deal, making him their highest-paid player.  He was terrible for the Pirates and was designated for assignment by June.  Iwamura was released in September and signed with the A's.  He'll need to rebuild value with a minor league deal.

Iwamura, 31, failed to meet even the lowest of expectations after being acquired from the Rays last offseason. He hit just .182/.292/.267 in 193 plate appearances for the big league team in 2010, but was a bit better in Triple-A with a .264/.404/.393 line. This was the second time the Pirates designated Iwamura for assignment this season, certainly not what they expected to do with their highest-paid position player.

Kratz, 30, debuted in the major leagues this summer after a decade in the minors. His minor league numbers suggest he has some pop and patience, but he collected just four singles and two walks in 36 big league plate appearances.

The Pirates, who traded for Iwamura last offseason, have already designated the infielder for assignment once in 2010. Pittsburgh reportedly tried to find a trade partner, but ultimately kept Iwamura and demoted him to the minor leagues. The 31-year-old hit .265/.403/.395 at Triple A Indianapolis – much better than the .182/.292/.267 line he posted in 193 big league plate appearances this year.

Kratz, 30, debuted in the major leagues this summer after a decade in the minors. His minor league numbers suggest he has some pop and patience, but Kratz collected just four singles and two walks in 36 big league plate appearances.

If the 37-33 Rockies are contending in mid-July, Rosenthal suggests Wigginton and Dan Uggla as possible targets. Other infielders such as Adam Kennedy, Akinori Iwamura, Jayson Nix and Ryan Theriot could also draw interest from GM Dan O'Dowd and the rest of the Rockies front office. But at least for now, the team is in wait-and-see mode. 

5:27pm: ESPN's Buster Olney tweets that the Pirates are in fact willing to eat a lot of the money owed to Iwamura in order to trade him.

4:50pm: The Associated Press reports (via ESPN) that the Pirates will actively try to trade Iwamura. They would presumably pay most of the $2.5MM remaining on his salary in any deal.

WEDNESDAY, 2:43pm: The Pirates have designated Akinori Iwamura for assignment, according to MLB.com's Jenifer Langosch (via Twitter).

With top prospect Pedro Alvarez joining the team today and Andy LaRoche sliding into a utility role, there was no room left on the roster for the underachieving Iwamura. The Pirates acquired the 31-year-old infielder from the Rays in the offseason, making him their highest-paid player. However, in 193 plate appearances for Pittsburgh this season, Iwamura hit just .182/.292/.267.

The Pirates will be on the hook for the rest of Iwamura's $4.85MM salary, less the pro-rated portion of the major league minimum if he catches on with another club.

Realistically, the Pirates have to absorb salary if they want to move Iwamura. The 31-year-old hit .182/.292/.267 in 193 plate appearances this year. That's a steep drop from his established level of production (.281/.354/.393 entering the season), so teams could think of Iwamura as a good buy-low candidate, or a player in steep decline.

The Rockies, Angels and Twins are among the teams that could use infield help. Most clubs have not been interested, but Huntington said he expects some closure early this week.

One reason for such an approach is the fact that the Pirates just don't have that many appealing veteran players left on their roster. While the club probably wouldn't mind finding a taker for players like Akinori Iwamura (.178/.289/.258) or Octavio Dotel (5.40 ERA), their 2010 performances so far will make dealing them challenging, though Dotel has been more effective lately, as Tim pointed out earlier this week.

With no fire sale imminent, Coonelly even suggests it "could be the reverse" of the past two July 31st deadlines, hinting that the Pirates could be buyers rather than sellers. For a club currently sitting in the NL Central cellar, 15 games below .500 and 11.5 games out of first place, that would be a pretty shocking move.

The more likely scenario for the Pirates is letting young players like Neil Walker, Jose Tabata, Brad Lincoln, and eventually Pedro Alvarez continue to gain major league experience for the rest of the season. If the team makes a couple low-cost acquisitions this winter that work out a little better than Iwamura and Dotel have so far, there should be some optimism for 2011.

• The Orioles should put manager Dave Trembley "gently out of his misery" and fire him, if you ask Peter Schmuck of the Baltimore Sun.
• Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports says the D'Backs were smart to acquire Dontrelle Willis.
• Jack Moore of FanGraphs says Oliver Perez and Jeff Suppan have "parasitic" contracts.
• Paul Konerko told Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune that speculation linking him to the Angels is none of his business and a "non-issue" for him.
• If you're on your cell phone, consider checking out our mobile site at mlbtraderumors.mobi.  It's a stripped-down version of the site that just shows headlines on the front page.
• The Cardinals could use a starting pitcher, and Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch runs through some options.  One official told AOL FanHouse's Ed Price about a rumor that Roy Oswalt would only accept a trade to the Phillies, Cardinals, or Yankees.
• Josh Willingham, Corey Hart, Jose Guillen, Luke Scott, and Garrett Jones are a few speculative names tossed out by FOX Sports' Jon Paul Morosi as offensive additions for the Athletics.  Keep in mind, though, that Willingham is not known to be available and Jones is slugging .415.
• Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette wonders if the Pirates will release Akinori Iwamura, though he admits it'd be "an especially bitter pill for management."
• It's too early for the Rangers to think about trading Vladimir Guerrero, opines ESPN's Richard Durrett.  They're only one game out!
• Tony Massarotti of the Boston Globe looks at Theo Epstein's midseason work from years past.  This year, Massarotti feels that adding a late-inning reliever is a priority.
• Mike Axisa of River Ave. Blues hopes Kanekoa Texeira clears waivers and is offered back to the Yankees.  ESPN's Buster Olney tweets that he thinks the Yanks would take him back if given the chance.

• T.J. Simers of the LA Times offers a profile of refreshingly down-to-earth Angels owner Arte Moreno.
• Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune explains the dilemma the White Sox will face when they have the chance to select Ozney Guillen on draft day.
• Ryan Zimmerman would like to see the Nationals acquire Roy Oswalt, according to Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post (Twitter link).
• A scout told Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun that he would be interested in Adam Jones if the Orioles considered trading him, despite the young outfielder's 2010 struggles.
• MLBTR is looking for an intern with strong Excel skills and a willingness to contribute for 30 minutes a day. If you are interested in this unpaid data entry position, send a short e-mail to mlbtrintern@gmail.com by the end of the day.
• We will be giving away a DVD of the movie Sugar to our 30,000th Twitter follower (currently 584 followers away).  Sugar chronicles a Dominican pitcher trying to make it to the Majors.
• The Cubs announced the promotion of 2008 first-round pick Andrew Cashner.  The big righty will work out of the bullpen.  Richard Justice of the Houston Chronicle notes that several years ago, Cashner offered the Astros a hometown discount and they declined.
• The Pirates benched second baseman Akinori Iwamura in favor of Neil Walker, reports Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.  Iwamura, the team's highest-paid player, was an out-of-character acquisition for GM Neal Huntington.  At the time of the trade there had been talk about an extension, but we have to assume that idea has been tabled.
• Dontrelle Willis' agent Matt Sosnick spoke to MLB.com's Jason Beck, saying his client could benefit from a fresh start despite a fair chance with the Tigers.
• Rany Jazayerli says Dayton Moore is not the worst GM in baseball, and it is too early to judge his organizational rebuilding effort.
• With one week left, AOL FanHouse's Frankie Piliere has his third first-round mock draft.  ESPN's Keith Law also posted a mock draft, for those who have Insider. 
• Heath Bell explained to Bill Center and Chris Jenkins of the San Diego Union-Tribune why he still has hostility toward the Mets.

• Marc Topkin of The St. Petersburg Times spoke to Crawford, who said he was misquoted in the upcoming Sports Illustrated piece mentioned below. "Nothing's changed, no decisions," he said. "I don't know what Carlos [Pena] is doing.''
• Pirates' GM Neil Huntington told Chuck Finder of The Pittsburgh Post Gazette that he tried to made a deal with the Marlins that would allow Rule 5 pick John Raynor to remain with the Pirates, but to no avail. Raynor was returned to Florida today.
• John Lackey said he wasn't surprised when the Angels let him depart as a free agent given their trade record with letting home grown players leave, according to Mark Saxon of ESPN Los Angeles. "It's different," said Lackey. "The way they preach the team game and giving it up for the team. That's a little suspect. You're supposed to give it up for the team. When the time comes, they might not want to give it up for you. But I totally knew that was a possibility. I was prepared for that. That's the nature of the game today."
• Stephen Strasburg has been promoted and will make his Triple A debut Friday against Freddie Freeman and the Gwinnett Braves, reports MLB.com's Bill Ladson.  ESPN's Rob Neyer notes that Strasburg seems to be on the Mark Prior path to the bigs, perhaps delayed a few weeks for cost savings.
• MASN's Ben Goessling says Nats 2006 first-round pick Colton Willems has decided to retire.  The team has the pitcher on the restricted list in case he changes his mind.
• An upcoming Sports lllustrated piece on Carlos Pena features this quote from Carl Crawford: "This core group is going to still be together, me and Carlos are the only two guys that are going to be leaving."
• The Royals granted reliever Roman Colon his release so he can sign with the Kia Tigers of Korea, according to the team.  Just three months ago, Colon and Juan Cruz were in the mix to be Joakim Soria's primary setup man.  The Royals' bullpen sports an AL-worst 5.56 ERA in 81 innings.
• White Sox GM Kenny Williams wouldn't rule out a fire sale at a later date, but said the team's aggressive nature will probably prevent it (Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times reporting).
• ESPN's Buster Olney explains that his Saturday story about Cliff Lee being likely to reach free agency was prompted by a call Olney made to Lee's agent.
• Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports tweets that the Blue Jays attempted to sign Kelly Johnson to play left field during the offseason, offering more than the $2.35MM Johnson received from Arizona.  Johnson told Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic in March that he strongly considered offers from the Blue Jays, Pirates, and Indians.
• Joel Sherman of the New York Post points out that the upon acquiring Javier Vazquez, the Yankees considered two 2011 draft picks part of the deal.  Already, Vazquez's Type A status and arbitration offer are in question.  We'll be able to give you Vazquez's exact Elias standing later this month, when Eddie Bajek makes his first pass at 2009-10 rankings.
• Dejan Kovacevic's latest article for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette suggests the Pirates were overly optimistic about Akinori Iwamura, currently their highest-paid player.
• Click here to listen to my radio appearance on KFNS St. Louis from earlier today.

The Pirates, who made initial inquiries on Jose Valverde and Kevin Gregg before talks with the two relievers slowed, have offers out to Dotel and other relievers. As Ed Price reported yesterday, the Pirates are interested in Dotel's former teammate, D.J. Carrasco.

The Pirates aren't willing to promise any free agent – including Rick Ankiel – a starting job. The outfielder's agent, Scott Boras, hopes to find a full-time role for his client, so talks aren't developing, though the Pirates are open to signing the one-time pitcher.

Kovacevic also updates us on a couple former Rays. In this article, we hear that Akinori Iwamura has a release clause in his contract that allows him to become a free agent before he has six years of service time. He'll hit the open market after this year year if the Pirates don't lock him up. Also, the Pirates aren't interested in Jonny Gomes.

• MLB.com's Alden Gonzalez confirms that the Red Sox did indeed meet with John Lackey's agent. This morning we learned that Boston expressed preliminary interest in the free agent hurler.
• ESPN's Buster Olney tweets that the Rangers asked the Rays about outfielder B.J. Upton as part of their offseason routine, but no talks are ongoing.
• Rockies' GM Dan O'Dowd said that they will only look at a one year deal for the arbitration eligible Jorge De La Rosa, according to Troy Renck of The Denver Post.
• ESPN's Keith Law writes that Indians' closer Kerry Wood could be a "nice pickup on the cheap for a team unwilling to go multiple years" on some of the free agent closers. Wood is owed $10.5MM in 2010, with an $11MM club option for 2011 that could vest based on games finished.
• The Pirates intend to be more aggressive in Japan, says MLB.com's Jenifer Langosch. Picking up Akinori Iwamura will help put the team on the radar of Japanese players looking to come to the U.S.
• ESPN's Peter Gammons writes about the impact of the economy on the free agent market, among other things.
• Giants' prospect Angel Villalona had his visa revoked by the U.S. Embassy in the Dominican Republic, reports Jesse Sanchez of MLB.com. Villalona was charged with killing a man in the Dominican back in September.
• Ben Kabak at River Ave. Blues takes a look at each of the Yankees' five arbitration eligible players.