Tuesday afternoon's Major League trade deadline will see a load or rumors, but the bark this time of year is almost always worse than the bite.
Philadelphia ace Cliff Lee could be one of the big names on the move Tuesday afternoon. This is "the big day."
The Major League Baseball non-waiver trade deadline arrives at 4 p.m. Tuesday. That means an avalanche of rumors, chatter and near-trades will gain momentum all day.
Some deals will even be completed, but mega-deals -- some of which have been speculated about for months -- are less likely.
As of Tuesday morning, a lengthy list of big-name players have been discussed as possible trade chips:
Cliff Lee, Josh Johnson, James Shields, Josh Beckett, Jacoby Ellsbury, Hunter Pence, Shane Victorino, Justin Upton, Ryan Dempster, Matt Garza, Alfonso Soriano, B.J. Upton, Justin Masterson, Joe Blanton, Stephen Drew, and Shin-Soo Choo.
The long list includes many talented major league baseball players. But of the 16 players on the list, many are likely to remain with their current clubs past the deadline.
So which players will be dealt?
Boston Red Sox fans can probably forget about saying goodbye to any big names.
Josh Beckett is scheduled to pitch Tuesday night in Boston against reigning American League Cy Young and MVP, Justin Verlander. Count on seeing that match-up happen.
All signs point to Beckett remaining in Boston, at least past the deadline.
Jacoby Ellsbury has also seen his name show up in trade rumors. Ellsbury will almost certainly remain a member of the Red Sox for now as well.
Red Sox fans who are itching to see their team pull the trigger on some form of deal should focus on the less glitzy names on the big league roster.
Kelly Shoppach in particular seems like a prime candidate to be dealt. The Red Sox have 24-year-old catcher Ryan Lavarnway in Triple-A Pawtucket. Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe has reported that both the Milwaukee Brewers and Washington Nationals have interest in Shoppach.
Other members of the Red Sox who could be included in a trade include Mike Aviles and Aaron Cook.
What about the rest of Major League Baseball?
The team to watch Tuesday is the Texas Rangers.
The Rangers are the two-time defending American League Champions. They've also lost two consecutive World Series and are now looking at a division rival, the Los Angeles Angels, which is loaded up for a run at the American League West crown. The Angels have baseball's brightest young star in Mike Trout, added former Cy Young winner Zack Greinke to power their now-loaded rotation and sit just four games back of Texas after pounding the Rangers 15-8 on Monday night.
Texas has one of the league's great offenses, but could use pitching.
Japanese import Yu Darvish is not having the number one starter type of season that the Rangers expected him to.
Derek Holland who was 16-5 with an E.R.A under 4.00 in 2011 is 7-5 with an E.R.A of 4.74 this season. Colby Lewis has a torn ligament in his elbow and will miss the remainder of the season.
The Rangers are also waiting on young pitcher Neftali Feliz to return from an injury, but his recovery is not progressing at an encouraging pace.
Cliff Lee is the biggest name on that list of players who might be dealt, and even though as of Tuesday morning reports seem to suggest that the Rangers and Phillies have not found a path to a deal.
That could easily change this afternoon. Philadelphia has a bloated payroll, Lee is having a subpar season, and the Rangers really need starting pitching.
Another big name player who appears to be on the move is Philadelphia outfielder Shane Victorino. At 10:00 a.m. on Tuesday morning a deal that would send Victorino to the Los Angeles Dodgers appeared on the verge of completion.
The time leading up to the trade deadline will feature some trades. A few of them might be big, but the bark this time of year is almost always worse than the bite.