• The Dodgers and Phillies have not discussed a Cliff Lee trade recently, tweets Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports.
• Though the Phillies are discussing lefty Lee with other teams, Rosenthal sees plenty of obstacles to a trade.  One is his current stiff neck; it would definitely help if he jumps in to start Tuesday evening against the Giants.
• The Phillies are "marketing some players aggressively, including Michael Young," writes ESPN's Buster Olney, but not Lee or Chase Utley.  Reportedly, the Phillies are currently trying to extend Utley.
• Retired closer Brad Lidge will sign a one-day contract Thursday with the Phillies and retire in their uniform, tweets Bob Nightengale of USA Today.
• The Nationals do not want to part with high-end young pitchers such as A.J. Cole, Robbie Ray, and Sammy Solis, reports Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.

The 35-year-old signed a $1MM deal with the Nats in January but was sidelined by sports hernia surgery in late April and struggled in his June return.  “Lights Out” had a 9.64 ERA with ten strikeouts and eleven walks in 11 appearances for Washington in 2012.  In eleven big league seasons, the right-hander had an ERA of 3.54 with 11.9 K/9 and 4.3 BB/9 for the Astros, Phillies, and Nats.

Lidge has returned home to his native Colorado since being cut and said he is happy spending time with his family. Meanwhile, he has instructed his agents to take calls from interested teams.

Lidge, 35, came to the Nats on a $1MM deal in January but was sidelined by sports hernia surgery in late April and struggled in his return earlier this month.  "Lights Out" had a 9.64 ERA with ten strikeouts and eleven walks in 11 appearances for Washington this year.  For his career, Lidge owns an ERA of 3.54 with 11.9 K/9 and 4.3 BB/9 for the Astros, Phillies, and Nats.

June 17: The Nationals designated Brad Lidge for assignment, according to Amanda Comak of the Washington Times (via Twitter).  Lidge has appeared in just 9.1 innings this year, allowing ten runs with ten strikeouts and eleven walks.

The reliever known as "Lights Out" gave up a two-run double to Mark Teixeira in the 14th inning of yesterday's 5-3 loss to the Yankees.  Lidge had just recently come off of a stint on the DL which kept him out of action from late April until June 8th.  The 35-year-old has a career ERA of 3.54 with 11.9 K/9 and 4.3 BB/9.

• Center fielder Shane Victorino, entering his final season before free agency, said there haven't yet been any negotiations between him and the Phils regarding an extension, but he said wants to remain in Philly, according to Todd Zolecki of MLB.com. “I don’t plan on going anywhere else,” he said.
• Brad Lidge, now of the Nationals, said the Phillies reversed course after telling him that they wanted to re-sign him at the conclusion of 2011, according to Bob Brookover of the Philadelphia Inquirer. GM Ruben Amaro told Brookover that the sides discussed a modest deal early in the offseason but moved on to other options when Lidge passed in favor of seeking closing opportunities elsewhere.
• Now that Cole Hamels has expressed a willingness to remain with the Phillies — and perhaps even sign at a hometown discount — the onus is on the club to secure the left-hander with a long-term contract, opines Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports.com. Rosenthal adds that even with an already hefty payroll, the Phils can afford Hamels, as they've already sold 3.1MM tickets for 2012.

Lidge, 34, appeared in just 25 games in 2011 because of a rotator cuff injury. He posted a 1.40 ERA with 10.7 K/9 and 6.1 BB/9 in 19 1/3 regular season innings for the Phillies before pitching two scoreless frames in the Division Series. The ten-year veteran owns a career ERA of 3.44 with 12.0 K/9, 4.2 BB/9 and a 40.7% ground ball rate.

Lidge, who earned $12MM in 2011, did not receive an offer of arbitration from Philadelphia. Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com hears that the Phillies made Lidge a lowball offer (Twitter link).

This post was first published January 26th, 2012.

• The Phillies have stayed in touch with Brad Lidge this offseason, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com tweets.
• The Braves have not offered Roy Oswalt a contract, David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution tweets.
• The Braves offered Orlando Cabrera a one-year deal this winter, Yahoo's Tim Brown tweets. Cabrera, who announced his retirement yesterday, presumably obtained the offer before the Braves re-signed Jack Wilson six days ago.
• The Nationals could hope to double or triple the $29MM they obtained from MASN last year when they reset their regional TV deal, Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post confirms. The team hired an outside expert to re-negotiate the deal in the hopes of boosting revenues substantially, Kilgore adds. Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports reported earlier this month that the Nationals' TV revenues could “double, triple or more” when they reset the deal.
• Any team that acquires David Wright from the Mets this summer wouldn't get a draft pick if he opts out of his contract after the season and leaves as a free agent, Adam Rubin of ESPNNewYork confirms on Twitter. Wright can void a $16MM club option for 2013 if he's traded, so Rubin suggests the third baseman's trade value may be highest next offseason.

11:43am: The Phillies remain in touch with Brad Lidge and the Angels are on the periphery, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.  The Rockies are not on Lidge, he adds.

Lidge, 35, posted a 1.40 ERA, 10.7 K/9, 6.1 BB/9, and 57.4% groundball rate with no home runs allowed in 19 1/3 innings for the Phillies last year.  His season began in July after recovery from a shoulder injury, and the former flamethrower was down to 89 miles per hour for his average fastball.

• The Disney family has partnered with Stanley Gold and will make a bid for the Dodgers, reports Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times. With a handful of deep-pocketed bidders already in contention for the franchise, Shaikin says current owner Frank McCourt believes the sale could exceed $1.6 billion.
• Within his ESPN.com Insider blog, Buster Olney says the competition is good news for Dodgers fans, since no one who commits that type of money to purchase the franchise will "let it rot with a modest payroll." Cole Hamels should also be excited, Olney adds, implying the Dodgers could be in position to make the southpaw a significant offer if he becomes a free agent next winter.
• The Rockies, who we know have talked to Brad Lidge this offseason, are still interested in the Denver-area native, according to Troy Renck of the Denver Post. However, due to Lidge's injuries last year, Colorado only has interest "at minimal risk." Presumbly a deal heavy on incentives would be the Rockies' preference.

6:42pm: The Rockies have had discussions with Brad Lidge's representatives, reports Troy Renck of the Denver Post (Twitter link).  The Rockies have been mentioned as a natural landing spot for Lidge, given that Lidge grew up in nearby Englewood, Colorado and (according to Renck) still has a home in the state.  The Rockies are also in the market for bullpen help after trading Huston Street.  An experienced closer like Lidge would either be a nice complement to Rafael Betancourt or could supplant Betancourt entirely as the club's preferred ninth-inning option.

Lidge, who turns 35 next week, had his contract bought out by $1.5MM in October by the Phillies, who preferred the buyout to picking up Lidge's $12.5MM option for 2012.  The Phils also declined to offer Lidge salary arbitration, so Philadelphia won't get a compensatory draft pick should Lidge (a Type B free agent) sign elsewhere.  The veteran right-hander posted a 1.40 ERA last season but was limited to just 19 1/3 innings due to a rotator cuff injury. 

In addition to the Rockies, the Red Sox and Mets have also been connected to Lidge this winter. 

The Rockies' unloading of Street is also expected to kickstart their pursuit of free agent reliever Brad Lidge, a Denver-area native, tweets Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.

• GM Ben Cherington's comments today suggest the Red Sox won't be bringing back Tim Wakefield and Jason Varitek, says Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe.
• The Sox have talked to other clubs about Marco Scutaro and Jed Lowrie, tweets Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports.
• The Red Sox and White Sox met to discuss a possible Carlos Quentin trade, but there's no match at the moment, says Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe (on Twitter).
• Boston has checked in on Brad Lidge, tweets Scott Lauber of the Boston Herald.
• DeMarlo Hale, the club's bench coach for the last two seasons, won't be returning for 2012, writes ESPN Boston's Gordon Edes. Hale is expected to take a job in the Orioles' organization.

• Free agent relievers Jon Rauch and Brad Lidge are “strong” on the Mets’ radar, according to Mike Puma of the New York Post (on Twitter).
• The Mets inquired on Andrew Bailey, but they don’t seem to be willing to meet Oakland’s asking price, according to Joel Sherman of the New York Post (on Twitter). The Rangers, Red Sox, Blue Jays, Mariners and Reds are also interested in the former AL Rookie of the Year. 
• Though previous Mets administrations liked Orlando Hudson and he’s now “very available,” the Mets aren’t currently interested, according to Sherman (Twitter link). The Padres owe Hudson $5.5MM in 2012 and the team has an $8MM option for 2013 ($2MM buyout).

Updated team decisions:

• The Giants won't offer arbitration to Pat Burrell (B) or Cody Ross (B) according to John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle (on Twitter). Carlos Beltran (A) contractually cannot be offered arbitration.
• The Dodgers declined to offer Hiroki Kuroda (B) arbitration, according to Dylan Hernandez of the LA Times (on Twitter). Rod Barajas (B) already signed with the Pirates.
• The Pirates offered arbitration to Derrek Lee (B) while declining to offer Ryan Ludwick (B) and Chris Snyder (B) arbitration. Ryan Doumit (B) already signed with the Twins. 
• The Phillies did not offer Roy Oswalt (A) or Brad Lidge (B) arbitration, according to the AP (via ESPN). The team announced that it offered arbitration to Raul Ibanez (B), Ryan Madson (A, will not cost signing team a draft pick), and Jimmy Rollins (A), according to Todd Zolecki of MLB.com (via Twitter).
• The Cubs offered arbitration to Carlos Pena (B) and Aramis Ramirez (B) but not to Kerry Wood (B), according to Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune (on Twitter).
• The Cardinals offered Edwin Jackson (B) and Albert Pujols (A) arbitration, but declined to make offers to Rafael Furcal (B) and Arthur Rhodes (B), according to Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (on Twitter). That leaves Octavio Dotel (modified B, no arbitration offer necessary).
• The Mets offered Jose Reyes (A) arbitration, according to Newsday's Ken Davidoff (on Twitter).
• The Padres will offer arbitration to Heath Bell (A, will not cost signing team a draft pick) and Aaron Harang (B), tweets Corey Brock of MLB.com.
• The Brewers offered Prince Fielder (A) and Francisco Rodriguez (A, will not cost signing team a draft pick) arbitration. They declined to offer Yuniesky Betancourt (B) arbitration. Takashi Saito (A), contractually cannot be offered arbitration.
• The Braves did not offer arbitration to Alex Gonzalez (B), according to David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Teams with automatic decisions only:

• Reds: Francisco Cordero (modified B, no arbitration offer necessary), Ramon Hernandez (modified B, no arbitration offer necessary)
• Astros: Clint Barmes (B, already signed with Pirates)
• Rockies: Mark Ellis (B, already signed with Dodgers)