Pitching to be had beyond Halladay

CARL PAVANO (33, turns 34 on Jan. 8) 14-12, 5.10 ERA with Indians and Twins in 2009
Pavano had four miserable seasons in New York, as everything went wrong and he just couldn’t stay healthy.

But his reincarnation this year in Minnesota showed that he can still be the pitcher he was with the Marlins in 2003-04. He had a very consistent year in 2009 with the Indians and Twins, pitching 199 1/3 innings.

Hopefully the Twins will keep him in the fold. He was a good leader and a strong presence in the clubhouse, taking a lot of pressure off young pitchers like Nick Blackburn and Scott Baker. I was very impressed with his work ethic and the way he went about his business. That’s just what the Twins need.

He had very good control on the mound, walking only 39 and averaging 6.6 strikeouts per nine innings.

There will be a lot of clubs interested in Pavano, so it may be tough for the Twins to keep him, but one heavy hitter you can rule out is the Yankees. They’re just not going down that road again.

J.J. PUTZ (32, 33 on Feb. 22) 1-4, 5.22 ERA in 2009 with Mets
We’ve focused entirely on starters, but in today’s game the bullpen is so important, so we’re giving you a talented reliever who can likely be had at a discount.

Putz has been hurt a lot over the last couple of years. The Mets took a gamble on him as a bridge to Francisco Rodriguez, but injuries derailed his season and it just didn’t work out.

But I would think there would be a lot of clubs that would love to have Putz either as a closer of a bridge to the closer.

He would fit in nicely in Detroit, which has had trouble keeping Joel Zumaya on the field. If Putz were in the fold, that would give the Tigers nice depth at the back end of the bullpen, plus a nice security blanket in case closer Fernando Rodney, who has a history of arm troubles, gets hurt.

Remember, Putz saved 76 games for the Mariners in 2006-07. If he gets healthy, he can be a dominant reliever.

Also on NBCSports.com College basketball: Tournament brackets  |  Schedule   College basketball: 10 teams who can win it all College basketball: Stars to watch in NCAAs O'Neill: Tiger faces major challenge in return Twitter: Follow us @nbc_sports

MORE FROM BASEBALL

Baseball Section Front

Rangers manager tested positive for cocaine HBT: ‘Wash handled it well,’ Josh Hamilton says HBT: 5 games seems a little harsh for M’s Lee HBT: Yankees won't make run at Mauer if available FanHouse: Will changes pay off for Mariners? HBT: Nats cut Dukes; should Mets grab him? Mets-Marlins series moved to San Juan Lackey lights out before Mets rally past Red Sox Boston's Lowrie diagnosed with mononucleosis HBT: They want to put big ol’ billboard at Wrigley Baseball Section Front   Add Baseball headlines to your news reader: