January 2, 2009 Paul Byrd is considering hanging up his cleats, according to Tim Brown of Yahoo! Sports.
Our View:The 38-year-old hurler is mulling over retiring or joining a team in need at some point of the 2009 campaign. Byrd declined an arbitration offer from the Red Sox a few weeks ago.
December 10, 2008 The Marlins would like to sign free agent hurler Paul Byrd, according to BaseballProspectus.com.
Our View:Byrd held a 1.32 WHIP in 2008, and would serve as a solid mentor to the younger pitchers in the Marlins' rotation.
December 8, 2008 Paul Byrd has declined the Red Sox offer of arbitration, according to SI.com. Apparently, he has decided to continue his pursuit of a multi-year deal, rather than accepting a guaranteed salary that likely would have been in the $7-8 million range for 2009. Should he sign with another team, the Red Sox would receive a compensatory draft pick.
Our View:With the depth of starting pitching available and the decline of the economy, this seems like a curious choice for Byrd who could have stayed with a championship contender for a nice price.
December 7, 2008 The Baltimore Orioles need starting pitching and aren't willing to spend huge dollars on the likes of A.J. Burnett, so they are interested in hurlers like Paul Byrd and Mark Hendrickson, among others, the Baltimore Sun reports.
Our View:Byrd is a decent hurler who will eat up innings for the O's, but do little else. For fantasy purposes, he'd be useful in AL-only leagues.
December 5, 2008 Paul Byrd wants to pitch close to his Atlanta home and is almost certain to decline Boston's arbitration offer, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports.
Our View:The Braves, Marlins, and Rays could all be favorable destinations for him. Among the three, the Rays are the least likely to target him unless they trade away Edwin Jackson or Andy Sonnanstine from the back of the rotation.
