Ryan Dempster Trade To Atlanta May Be Close [Report]

Is a Ryan Dempster trade in the works? The Chicago Cubs appear to be on verge of trading Major League Baseball’s ERA leader Ryan Dempster to the Atlanta Braves, although the Bleacher Report suggests the trade is in a “holding pattern.”

Various media outlets indicate that the deal may be awaiting Dempster’s approval. As a 10-5 player, Dempster has veto power over any trade, although reports are that the Braves are on his list. Another possibility is that the Braves want Dempster to ink an extension as a condition of the trade. Both Dempster and Cubs Manager Dale Sveum have yet to officially confirm any deal, which reportedly would send Braves pitcher Randall Delgado to Chicago.

Ryan Dempster, 35, has spent the past nine MLB seasons with the Cubs. He is currently 5-4 in 15 starts. Dempster broke into the big leagues with the-then Florida Marlins and then was a member of the Cincinnati Reds for two seasons. He is 117-120 for his pitching career to date.

ESPN has more on the motivation behind the Ryan Dempster trade:

Dempster is in the final year of his contract with the Cubs and widely is considered one of the top starting pitchers available in the trade market. The right-hander leads the majors with a 2.11 ERA and recently reeled off a streak of 33 consecutive scoreless innings…

Dempster would help stabilize and improve a Braves rotation that has struggled to replace Brandon Beachy, who suffered a season-ending elbow injury last month.

Going into tonight’s action, the Atlanta Braves find themselves 3-1/2 games behind the first place Washington Nationals in the National League East and very much in the thick of things for the Wild Card. The Cubs, on the other hand, are in fifth place in the National League Central.

MLB.com’s Ken Rosenthal tweets that the Braves believe that the Ryan Dempster trade will go through:

Source: #Braves remain confident of getting Dempster. #Cubs

— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) July 23, 2012