The New York Yankees may now be the frontrunners in the Johan Santana sweepstakes. Reluctantly, the Yankees seem prepared to include young right-hander Phil Hughes in a three-player package for baseball's best pitcher. Outfielder Melky Cabrera and an undetermined player would also be included in the trade. If the Yankees ultimately surrender Hughes, league sources indicate they have a strong chance to complete a trade for Santana. The Yankees had been offering a package leading with young pitcher Ian Kennedy and Cabrera, but the Minnesota Twins insist that Hughes be included. The Yankees made Joba Chamberlain off-limits, but it appears the Twins would settle for Hughes if the other pieces are right.

The Nationals on Friday traded outfielder Ryan Church and catcher Brian Schneider to the Mets for right fielder Lastings Milledge. Both teams have scheduled news conferences for 3 p.m. to announce the trade.

Johan Santana has company on the trade market. According to league sources, the A's, within the past couple days, have begun calling teams to seek interest in star pitcher Dan Haren, one of the better right-handers in the American League. One difference between Santana and Haren: The Twins are under pressure to deal Santana as he has a year to go before free agency, while the A's have Haren under a team-friendly contract that will pay him $16.25 million through 2010 assuming his $6.75 million option for 2010 is exercised. The A's have contacted at least the Mets, Yankees and Red Sox -- three teams that also have showed interest in Santana -- about Haren, who was 15-9 with a 3.07 ERA in 2007. The A's are thought to be seeking from the Red Sox center fielder Jacoby Ellsbury -- who's currently the sticking point in Boston's bid for Santana -- plus either of two top young pitchers, Clay Buchholz and Jon Lester. The A's also will consider offers for their other top pitchers, including Joe Blanton and Rich Harden. Oakland is believed to have its sights on one or more of the Yankees' three top young pitchers -- Joba Chamberlain, Phil Hughes and Ian Kennedy. From the Mets, among those expected to interest Oakland include pitchers Mike Pelfrey and Kevin Mulvey and outfielders Carlos Gomez, Fernando Martinez and perhaps Lastings Milledge.

The Mets need pitching, and they'd love to land Johan Santana. Not enough to trade star shortstop Jose Reyes, though. "Jose Reyes is one of our core players," GM Omar Minaya said Thursday. "I don't see us trading Jose Reyes for one of those guys being mentioned. It just doesn't make sense for us."

The Red Sox and Twins are discussing the framework of a Johan Santana deal that would have Boston sending four players to Minnesota in return for the two-time Cy Young Award winner, including center fielder Coco Crisp, pitcher Jon Lester and minor-league shortstop Jed Lowrie, the trio that would anchor the deal. Red Sox pitcher Michael Bowden has been discussed as a possible fourth player, sources say, but the identity of the fourth player is in flux. Even if the Red Sox and Twins agree on the framework for a deal -- and as of early Thursday afternoon, that hadn't happened -- Boston would still face an enormous hurdle to complete the contract. Santana, who will be 29 at the outset of next season, has a full no-trade clause and is expected to ask for a market ceiling-type of contract of six years and about $150 million. No pitcher has ever received a multi-year deal for more than $18.6 million a year. Any team that agrees with Minnesota on the framework of a deal would probably ask the Twins for a 72-hour window to negotiate an extension with Santana.

Billy Beane has been in the baseball business long enough to know how all the offseason speculation fuels the sport until spring training rolls around. From whether Alex Rodriguez would head West or stay put in Yankee pinstripes to where Twins ace Johan Santana might land for 2008, it's already been an interesting winter on the baseball front. Now, as the winter meetings approach next week, everybody wants to know whether Oakland's crafty GM will offer up his top pitchers -- Dan Haren, Joe Blanton, Rich Harden or even closer Huston Street -- to better his own low-budget operation.

For the past three years, Phil Hughes has been widely considered to be the future of the Yankees' organization. Time and again, Brian Cashman would receive calls from other general managers, each trying to pry away the Yankees' top pitching prospect. Each time, Cashman would tell them Hughes was not available. That has apparently changed now that two-time Cy Young winner Johan Santana is being shopped by the Twins. While Hughes hasn't talked to Cashman recently, he does have a message for the Bombers' GM: He wants to stay with the Yankees. "It's not like you can get a guy like Santana away from the Twins for nothing. It's nice that other teams think highly of me, but I'm very happy with where I'm at. I'd love to stay," said Hughes, who went 5-3 with a 4.46 ERA in 13 starts for the Yankees this year. "I would definitely be disappointed, but it's business."

Speculation in MLB circles swirled Wednesday that the Mets, who desperately need to obtain a frontline starter this winter, were considering parting with Jose Reyes to obtain Johan Santana in the wake of a separate pending Twins deal yesterday that would send Minnesota's shortstop, Jason Bartlett, to Tampa Bay along with pitcher Matt Garza and reliever Juan Rincon for outfielder Delmon Young, infielder Brendan Harris and outfield prospect Jason Pridie. Still, Mets insiders were adamant early in the day that neither Reyes, David Wright nor Carlos Beltran (who has a full no-trade clause) would be traded this winter.

The Phillies are rumored to be interested in trading for Orioles' third baseman Melvin Mora. According to the Baltimore Sun, Mora, 35, is unhappy with the Orioles' rebuilding direction and would consider dropping the no-trade clause in his contract to go to a competitive team on the East Coast. "I can't tell you right now what I'm going to do," Mora told the paper earlier this month. "But I want to be on a winning team. I don't want to be like, 'Let's make the fans wait 6 more years and then we're going to try to start winning again.' You don't want to deal with that." The Phillies, who have Wes Helms, Gregg Dobbs and Eric Bruntlett at third, could suit Mora pretty well, although landing him could cost prospects with whom they don't want to part. The Sun, citing an industry source, yesterday reported that the teams have talked, but that the Phillies' interests were unclear. Phone calls from the Daily News to the Phillies were not immediately returned. The Phillies, as per policy, typically do not discuss other teams' players. Mora's agent Lon Babby also was not reached.

Club owner Arte Moreno made it crystal clear on Wednesday where the Angels of Anaheim stand with regard to Marlins' third baseman Miguel Cabrera, the biggest fish in the Major League marketplace. "I've felt we had a deal with them twice," Moreno said of the Marlins, who apparently cut bait and decided they needed more in exchange for the 24-year-old slugger. The door remains open to a Cabrera deal materializing with the Winter Meetings opening on Monday in Nashville, Tenn., but Moreno seemed frustrated with the negotiations with Florida.