A's Sign Loaiza to 3-year Deal - Zito to be Traded?

This is a move that really came out of nowhere for me. Blindsided I was.

Why do the pitching rich A's want Estaban "50-cent head million-dollar arm" Loaiza?

The A's already have Barry Zito, Joe Blanton, Rich Harden, Joe Kennedy and Kirk Saarloos. Blanton and Harden have shown the stuff aces are made out of - so the obvious inference is that Loaiza is being signed just in time for the GM meetings because Billy Beane plans to trade Barry Zito. The question is "to who?"

The Yankees are a suspect. They need pitching but do they have the prospects the A's want? I don't think so. It also hurts the Yankees that the A's really don't have any dead contracts on their books. The closest dead money contract would be Jason Kendall but he has a no trade clause (and he wants to live on the West Coast). Mark Ellis and Robinson Cano are about equal at 2nd - so I don't see Beane trading Zito to the Yankees.

The Orioles are a suspect but again - do they have prospects the A's would want? A Hayden Penn or Nick Markakis maybe? The have lost Sidney Ponson and BJ Ryan and would like to make a splash.

With Kevin Millwood leaving - the Indians are running short of starters (I thought Loaiza was going to end up in Cleveland after a one-year Millwood like deal but the A's scooped them here). The Indians do have some decent talent in the minors but the Indians don't like trading their prospects.

The Twins, White Sox, Giants, Rockies, Padres, Marlins, Nationals, Cardinals, Pirates, Astros, Tampa Bay, Tigers and Toronto I wouldn't bet on for various reasons. Also forget the Angels, Rangers or Mariners because Zito's not staying in the division. The Diamondbacks want to shed salary and they have a pitcher of their own they need to trade (Javier Vazquez).

How about the Phillies? Do the Phillies trade Bobby Abreu or one of their top prospects like Cole Hamels? Would the Cubs part with Felix Pie? The Mets with Lastings Milledge? The Reds have Wily Mo Pena or Adam Dunn as bait - that's a possibility. The Brewers have some prospects and with Zito - they would be a team to be reckoned with (and that means ticket sales).

For some reason I'm thinking the answer is "none of the above". I'm thinking that Barry Zito is heading to the Dodgers.

Ned Colletti wants to (needs to?) make a splash as GM. Barry Zito is a West Coast guy and whatever team trades for him will want to have a good shot at a long term deal if they are going to give up something decent. Plus the Dodgers have a decent minor league system. The pieces seem to fit together.

I also wouldn't be surprised if Beane brings another team or two into this deal.

Anyway - that's my guess - Barry Zito Dodger in 2006.