The Los Angels of Anaheim may be looking for some solid pitching this off-season but the word is that of the two big trade chips of the Detroit Tigers, the Angels would rather have big bopper Curtis Granderson(notes) than pitcher Edwin Jackson(notes), according to FOXSports.

The word is that the Angels like Granderson more simply because his contract runs through 2012 and has a $13 million option for 2013 while Jackson's only goes till the end of 2011.

The Angels are supposedly good potential trading partners with Detroit because the three areas of depth - catcher, low-paying pitching, and shortstop - are what the Tigers need.

In 2009, center fielder Granderson hit 30 homers, had 71 RBIs, FOXSports, 91 runs scored, and 157 hits.

Source: FOXSports

Lefthander Jarrod Washburn(notes) grew up in Wisconsin and he apparently wouldn't be too upset to head back there and play for the Milwaukee Brewers. The team supposedly tried hard to get him from the Seattle Mariners back in July before the trading deadline but the M's ended up shipping him to the Detroit Tigers.

Washburn apparently is interested in signing with the Brewers or the Minnesota Twins so he can finish out his career not far from home, according to the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel.

The Brewers are also apparently looking at pitchers Doug Davis(notes), Randy Wolf(notes) and Mark Mulder(notes). Mulder apparently wants to get back together again with pitching coach Rick Peterson.

Source: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Chicago Cubs GM Jim Hendry spoke with seven or eight teams yesterday about what players are on the market and what players aren't on the market and it appears that he's identified two players who could be playing center field on Chicago's North Side next season, according to the Chicago Tribune.

Of course Hendry also needs to get rid of an outfielder who want be easy to get rid of: Milton Bradley(notes). The rumor is that the Cubs are interested in the Texas Rangers' Marlon Byrd(notes) and that it is possible that the Detroit Tigers might put Curtis Granderson(notes) on the market, which would be another prime target for Chicago.

Hendry could likely sign Byrd without dealing Bradley but Granderson has $25.75 million owed to him over the next three years so Hendry would have to clear up some salary space and he wouldn't likely be able to do that by trading Bradley to Detroit. Tigers manager Jim Leyland flipped his lid last summer when it was so much as suggested that Bradley might be coming to the Motor City via trade.

The Cubs' 2010 payroll is expected to go up to $145 million, more than anybody else in the National League Central.

Source: Chicago Tribune

Detroit Tigers starting pitcher Edwin Jackson(notes) won 13 games in 2009 and had a 3.62 ERA in 33 starts. But the Tigers may end up trading him away, anyway, according to FOXSports.

Financial hard times of the region, in particular the massive hit automakers have taken, have the Tigers considering some trades of their bigger names and Jackson seems to be the first one on the list that they'll look into ditching for younger, cheaper players.

"We're all aware that the economy is not the same all over the country," said Detroit GM Dave Dombrowski. "We've been hit hard in our area."

Source: FOXSports

Trying to do everything it could to win the American League Central, the Detroit Tigers traded two young pitchers to the Seattle Mariners for Jarrod Washburn(notes) right at the deadline this year. That didn't work out for them: He went 1-3 in eight starts and collected a 7.33 ERA. Oh, and a knee injury that put him under the knife on Oct. 20.

And now after all that the lefthander may be returning to play for Seattle, according to the Detroit Free Press. The 35-year-old free-agent lefty has apparently told the M's that Seattle is on the top of his list of teams to play for in 2010.

Washburn was a whole lot better for Seattle than he was for Detroit. He went 8-6 with a 2.64 ERA in 20 starts for the M's and was the American League pitcher of the month in July with Seattle.

Source: Detroit Free Press