Conflicting reports on Cubs-Garza deal

Two inside fastballs were fired at Cubs fans Wednesday, but no one knows for certain which pitch found the plate.

Two conflicting reports surfaced Wednesday morning regarding the Cubs and their bid to obtain 27-year-old starting pitcher Matt Garza from the Tampa Bay Rays.

The Chicago Sun-Times, citing an anonymous source in baseball, was first to report that the Cubs were front-runners in the trade talks for the 15-game winner, and other reports followed suggesting that a deal was “close.”

But ESPN baseball analyst Buster Olney later reported a “well-placed source” told him that the Rays are unlikely to trade Garza before the July trade deadline, when they could get more in return.

Multiple people with the Cubs told the Daily Herald that the club was surprised by the report and had no knowledge that any such deal was close to being “imminent” even though the Cubs have talked with the Rays about Garza.

Garza went 15-10 last season with a 3.91 ERA.

At the winter meetings last month in Orlando, Rays manager Joe Maddon said he expected to start the season with Garza.

In other news, the New York Yankees have claimed reliever Brian Schlitter off waivers from the Cubs. Schlitter, from Park Ridge, made his major-league debut for the Cubs in 2010, appearing in 7 games and going 0-1 with an ERA of 12.38. The Cubs' 40-man roster now stands at 40.