In the 2007 World Series, the Colorado Rockies appeared to be a team on the rise. Despite getting swept by the Boston Red Sox, the Rockies had a lot of young talented and an excited fan base.

Times are changing. On Friday, Colorado fired manager Clint Hurdle — the same manager who guided the Rockies to the 2007 World Series. In the history of the franchise, that was the first and only trip to baseball’s biggest stage.

Going into Friday’s game, the Rockies had a record of 19-28. In the National League West, the squad was already 14.5 games in back of the Los Angeles Dodgers.

To replace Hurdle, the Rockies named Jim Tracy as the manager for the rest of the 2009 baseball season. Tracy had been acting as the Rockies bench coach.

Depending on who you believe, San Diego Padres star pitcher Jake Peavy could be headed to the Chicago White Sox in what will be the first big baseball trade of the 2009 season. According to multiple reports, the Padres will receive multiple players in return including Aaron Poreda and Clayton Richards.

Jake Peavy Trade Rumors (Image: Zuma Press)

However, other sources indicate that the trade isn’t very close to happening. While a third commonly held opinion is that the Padres and White Sox have agreed on a deal and Peavy now has to decide whether or not accept the trade. Since Peavy has a no trade clause in his contract, he can decide whether to go to Chicago.

The 27-year-old Peavy has been named in many trade rumors over the last years. Previous rumors had him landing everywhere from the Atlanta Braves to the Chicago Cubs. This year in nine starts, Peavy has a 3.82 ERA with a 3-5 record. He has 69 strikeouts in less than 62 innings of work.

Peavy is such a hot commodity because he has had an ERA under 3.00 in four of the last five seasons. His best season came in 2007 when he had a 19-6 record with a 2.54 ERA. That year he took home the Cy Young Award for the National League.

If the trade with the White Sox is going to happen, expect it to be announced in the next 24-to-48 hours. If that traded doesn’t go down, expect to hear Peavy in a number of trade rumors up until the trade deadline.

Kason Gabbard was dealt in 2007 from the Boston Red Sox to the Texas Rangers in a deal that involved Eric Gagne. On Thursday, the Rangers traded him back to the Red Sox in exchange for cash.

The 27-year-old Gabbard is a 6-foot-3 left-hander from Ohio. At the time of the trade, he was pitching in the minor leagues.

Last season, Gabbard had a 4.82 ERA in 12 starts. In 56 innings, he gave up 64 hits and 39 walks, while striking out 33 batters.

In 2007, prior to being traded to the Rangers, Gabbard had a 3.73 ERA with the Red Sox in seven starts. As a rookie in 2006, he had a 3.51 ERA in 25.2 innings.

While the Rangers are in need of starting pitching, Gabbard wasn’t viewed by the team as a long-term solution. In fact, Texas was trying to turn him into a reliever.

According to various reports, Gabbard will likely be kept at the minor league level by the Red Sox.

Kason Gabbard is Back with Boston (Image: Flickr)

The Houston Astros have a new starting catcher. On Monday, the team reached an agreement with Ivan Rodriguez on a one-year deal worth as much as $3 million.

Last season, Rodriguez had an underwhelming campaign as he split time between the Detroit Tigers and the New York Yankees. Although interest in his was lukewarm in recent months, the Florida Marlins were said to be interested. However, after playing well for the Puerto Rico in the 2009 World Baseball Classic, the Astros came calling.

The contract reportedly guarantees Rodriguez at least $1.5 million. He could earn another $1.5 million through performance bonuses.

The Astros were ready to go young at catcher with Humberto Quintero and J.R. Towles. The signing of Rodriguez gives Houston a veteran presence who should help the team win right away. If his play for Puerto Rico is any indication, he could very well have a bounce back season.

Source: Newscom

Ivan Rodriguez, who is regarded by many as one of the best catchers in the history of the game, is still a free agent. While no deal appears imminent, rumblings have started to connect Rodriguez with the Florida Marlins.

Rodriguez has a history with the Marlins. Not only does he live in Miami, he spent one season of his career with team. That happened to be in 2003 when the Marlins won the World Series while Rodriguez was one of the team’s biggest stars.

After that season, he signed a big free agent deal with the Detroit Tigers. Last year, the Tigers traded Rodriguez to the New York Yankees. After a less than stellar campaign, the Yankees haven’t shown any interest in signing the 37-year-old catcher.

Once a fierce hitter, Rodriguez hasn’t had at least 15 homers or 70 RBIs since the 2004 campaign. He’s also not nearly as good behind the plate as he used to be in his prime.

If he ends up signing with the Marlins, Rodriguez will likely start and serve as a mentor on a team with a lot of young players. Although Florida doesn’t have many people picking them for a spot in the World Series, that was the case in 2003 as well.

After months of negotiations and constant rumors, Manny Ramirez and the Los Angeles Dodgers finally agreed to a contract. As a result, Ramirez will again be wearing Dodger blue in 2009.

The deal is valued at $45 million over two seasons. However, it’s much more complicated than it appears on the surface. First of all, Ramirez has the ability to void the second season and re-enter the free agent market again next offseason.

Another unique aspect about this contract is the amount of deferred money. Over the next two years, Ramirez would take home $10 million each year if he doesn’t void the second year. The deferred money is due in installments starting in 2010.

Re-signing Ramirez is a huge win for the Dodgers. They made a late season push in 2008 after acquiring the slugger from the Boston Red Sox. To continue that momentum into this year, it was necessary to retain Ramirez’s services.

He’ll once again play in the outfield and bat in the middle of the lineup. If he can have a huge season in Los Angeles, and assuming the economy recovers, it wouldn’t be too surprising to see Ramirez free agent drama all over again at this time next year.

Orlando Cabrera, who was arguably the best free agent shortstop still available on the open market, has signed a deal with the Oakland A’s. The contract will pay him $4 million over the course of one season. The deal will become official once Cabrera passes a physical.

Last season, Cabrera played for the Chicago White Sox and hit .281 with eight homers and 57 RBI. The 34-year-old native of Colombia will step right into the starting shortstop spot for Oakland.

Cabrera gives Oakland a proven defensive player who has a history of being a decent-to-good hitter. His lifetime batting average is a respectable .274 in career that has seen him play for the Montreal Expos, Boston Red Sox, Los Angeles Angels and the White Sox.

Once the offseason began, it was obvious that Chicago was going in a different direction. Oakland will hope that their loss is a substantial gain for the Athletics.

Garret Anderson, who had spent his entire career with the Los Angeles Angels, has agreed to switch leagues and go to the Atlanta Braves. Anderson signed a one-year contract and will form a platoon in the outfield with Matt Diaz.

Originally, the Braves wanted Ken Griffey Jr., however those talks ended after Griffey decided to sign with the Mariners. Compared to Griffey, Anderson offers similar upside with similar risks.

After being one of the best sluggers in the business, Anderson has slipped in the last handful of years. He hasn’t hit twenty homers or knocked in 100 RBIs since 2003. Last season, Anderson hit .293 with 15 homers and 84 RBI.

The contract Anderson signed with the Braves is rumored to be worth approximately $2.5 million. Performance bonuses are also thought to be included in the deal.

At 36, this may be the final stop in Anderson’s career. The Braves hope that he can find his power once again and add a little bit more production to their outfield.

Joe Crede, formerly of the Chicago White Sox, has signed a one-year contract with the Minnesota Twins. Crede is expected to play third base for the Twins on an everyday basis.

The contract Crede signed has a base salary of $2.5 million but with incentives, it could rise to as much as $7 million in value. Last season, Crede made the American League All-Star team but his bad back has plagued him the last two years.

In 2008, Crede hit .248 with 17 homers and 55 RBIs. The 30-year-old played less than 100 games last season, after playing less than 50 games in 2007. His bad back has required two surgeries during that time frame.

However, to begin last year’s campaign, Crede was swinging the bat as well as anyone in the majors. Although his bad back took away some of his pop as the season progressed, the Twins could have gotten a major steal if he can remain healthy during the 2009 baseball season.

The Los Angeles Dodgers signed Orlando Hudson to a one-year contract worth approximately $3.4 million. Although the Dodgers didn’t have a glaring need for a second baseman, they viewed Hudson as too much of a bargain to pass up.

Hudson gives the Dodgers a former gold glove second baseman who hit better than .300 last season with the Arizona Diamondbacks. Although Hudson doesn’t have much power, he fits in nicely with their current lineup — especially if L.A. is able to re-sign Manny Ramirez.

Prior to signing Hudson, the Dodgers were planning on starting Blake DeWitt at second base. With Hudson at second, DeWitt can be used as a utility man.

Last season, Hudson hit .305 with eight homers and 41 RBIs. He played in only 107 games but the 31-year-old had been relatively durable prior to last year.