Braves GM: No truth to Brad Penny trade rumors

General manager Frank Wren said there was no truth to an ESPN.com report Friday that the Braves expressed interest in a trade for Boston Red Sox pitcher Brad Penny.

“There is no validity to that,” Wren said. “That has not even been discussed.”

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AP

ESPN.com reported that the Braves had discussions with the Red Sox about trading for starter Brad Penny. Braves GM Frank Wren says there is no validity to the report.

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Several Braves players and manager Bobby Cox seemed equally surprised by the report, which speculated that the Braves might open a spot for Penny in their rotation by moving Kenshin Kawakami to the bullpen.

Kawakami is in the first season of a three-year, $23 million contract. He is 3-6 with a 4.63 ERA, including a 3.19 ERA in six starts since May 1.

Penny is 5-1 with a 5.63 ERA in 10 starts, and has been the beneficiary of the fifth-highest run support among major-league starters. The Red Sox have scored 7.95 runs per nine innings that he has pitched.

Kawakami has received the second-worst run support in the majors at 2.16 runs per nine innings pitched.

The main strength of the Braves this season has been starting pitching. Their starters had the National League’s fourth-best ERA (3.90) before Friday.

The Braves released 43-year-old starter Tom Glavine on Wednesday, at the same time they announced that elite pitching prospect Tommy Hanson would be brought from Class AAA Gwinnett and moved into the starting rotation.

Hanson is scheduled to make his major-league debut Sunday against Milwaukee, a day later than originally planned after Cox pushed back all his starters one day after Thursday’s rainout against the Chicago Cubs.

The ESPN.com report also said the Red Sox have been looking into Braves right fielder Jeff Francoeur as a possible backup outfielder.

Officials with both teams have downplayed recent reports of Red Sox interest in Francoeur, who was batting .251 with four homers and 25 RBIs before Friday, with a .275 on-base percentage that was the fifth-lowest in the NL.