Either Jim Leyland reads the Tigers blogs and national baseball sites or someone told him about the rumor going around about Rick Porcello being trade bait. Regardless, he would like you to not always believe what you read.
“There’s a rumor going around, I don’t know if anybody’s read it, about Rick Porcello being traded,” Leyland said. "I want to make this perfectly clear: That is a blatant lie. I don’t even know where it came from. That’s a blatant lie and it’s irreponsible journalism. There’s not a chance that Rick Porcello is going to be traded. That’s a lie. That’s not even speculation. That’s a total lie.
Hmm, I wonder how Leyland will greet Jon Paul Morosi next time he enters the manager’s office at Comerica Park?
Leyland backed up his statement by confirming that Porcello will start for the Tigers when they have a day-night doubleheader in Cleveland next Saturday. So Kid Rick presumably can’t be traded before then.
Beck went on to cite "a Major League source" that told him the Tigers aren't shopping Porcello. He also said that Arizona shortstop Stephen Drew might be a more realistic trade target at this point than Haren, though didn't elaborate on that point.