NEW YORK - The megadeal involving Randy Johnson, Shawn Green and Javier Vazquez grew to 10 players Saturday, with the Yankees, Diamondbacks and Dodgers hoping to present the proposed trade to the commissioner's office soon for approval.
Pitchers Kaz Ishii, Mike Koplove and Brandon Weeden are now part of the swap, the Associated Press reported.
The teams were aiming to put the deal on paper this weekend and give it to the commissioner's office perhaps by Monday. The deal needs permission because it involves more than $1-million; as it stands, the Yankees would pay $2-million of Ishii's contract.
There might be a spinoff trade. The New York Daily News reported the Dodgers might get Vazquez from the Yankees, then trade the right-hander to the White Sox for a package including first baseman and ex-Dodger Paul Konerko.
Johnson remains the centerpiece, with the Yankees trying to get the five-time Cy Young winner from Arizona. New York also would acquire the left-handed Ishii to help the Dodgers shed salary.
Johnson has a no-trade clause but wants to play for the Yankees. Green also has a no-trade provision, and the Dodgers outfielder has not yet waived it to play for Arizona.
If the deal goes to the commissioner's office, the Yankees plan to ask for a 72-hour window to negotiate an extension with Johnson.
If the deal is completed, reliever Koplove would go to Los Angeles with Vazquez. The Dodgers also would get two top prospects from the Yankees, catcher Dioner Navarro and third baseman Eric Duncan.
Arizona would wind up with Green and pitchers Brad Penny, Yhency Brazoban and Weeden.
Meanwhile, ESPN.com is reporting that the Yankees have finalized a four-year, $40-million contract with right-hander Carl Pavano. The deal also has a team option for a fifth year at $15-million with a $2-million buyout.
Pavano was one of the most sought-after pitchers on the market after going 18-8 with a 3.00 ERA for the Marlins. Until Florida's world championship season in 2003, he had struggled to stay healthy, never pitching more than 136 innings in a season.
A's deal another ace
OAKLAND, Calif. - The Athletics traded their second top starter in three days, sending left-hander Mark Mulder to the NL champion Cardinals for a package of prospects.
Mulder follows Tim Hudson out of town, leaving left-hander Barry Zito as the only remaining member of Oakland's vaunted "Big Three" pitchers. The right-handed Hudson was dealt to Atlanta on Thursday for three mostly unproven players.
Mulder could be the top-notch pitcher the Cardinals sorely lacked when they got swept by the Red Sox in the World Series, but that's if he's healthy.
In return, the A's acquired promising right-handers Danny Haren and Kiko Calero and minor-league catcher Daric Barton.
Mulder, the AL starter in the All-Star Game, was a Cy Young Award candidate midway through the season but went 0-4 with a 7.27 ERA in his last seven starts. There was speculation he was hurt and not telling anyone.
EXPOS MOVE: Major League Baseball is trying to negotiate a compromise with Linda Cropp, the chairwoman of the District of Columbia Council who last week introduced an amendment that could endanger the Expos' move to Washington, ESPN.com's Peter Gammons reported.
The proposed move hinges on the city having a stadium financing package acceptable to Major League Baseball in place by Dec. 31. Cropp's amendment to the mayor's stadium financing plan requires that at least half the stadium funding come from a private source. The amendment was approved late Tuesday night.
According to Gammons, Dec. 31 is a drop-dead date because Marion Barry takes office as a councilman the next day and will kill any park. Gammons reported that commissioner Bud Selig would refuse to let the team play at RFK Stadium and could make it play two seasons in Norfolk, Va.
RED SOX: Right-hander Matt Clement is close to agreeing on a three-year $25-million contract, the pitcher's agent, Barry Axelrod, said. The defending world champions targeted the hard-throwing free agent after losing right-hander Pedro Martinez to the Mets.
OBITUARIES: Lorenzo "Larry" J. Ponza Jr., who developed and perfected the modern pitching machine, died Wednesday at his Santa Cruz, Calif., home of a cancer-related illness. He was 86. ... Ted Abernathy, who twice led the NL in saves in the 1960s and pitched for seven teams in a 14-year career, died Thursday in Gastonia, N.C. He was 71.
