Tuesday, 7 PM:

According to Ken Rosenthal members of the Mets front office had dinner with Ibanez’ agents at the Belaggio tonight. If Ibanez signs with the Mets, the Mariners would get their 2nd round pick. The Angels, Phillies, Braves, Nationals and Cubs are also showing interest in Ibanez.

Tuesday, 6 PM: Updated by Jon

We haven’t touched base with Raul Ibanez in a while, so let’s take a quick look.

At this point, Ibanez’s top suitors appear to be the the Phillies, Cubs, Mets and Braves, with the Angels viewing him as a backup plan.

According to ESPN’s Jayson Stark,  a friend of Ibanez’s said that the Phillies are Raul’s first choice.

Philadelphia would be a decent spot for Raul to land.  Seattle would get the 28th overall pick in the draft, and the Phils don’t appear likely to sign any other Type-A free agents.  Obviously it would be nice to get the Dodgers’ number 17 pick or something else a little higher, but I will be happy as long as Seattle can get something in the first round.

Monday:
From Steve Phillips:

The Braves are anxious to get the A.J. Burnett deal resolved. In addition to adding a starter, they’re also in the market for a left fielder. They’ve identified free agent Raul Ibanez as the best fit because he hits for power and plays solid defense. Pat Burrell and Bobby Abreu, both free agents, don’t interest the Braves as much because their defense is suspect. “

Disregard the fact that Steve Phillips has no idea what he’s talking about.  How this man got a GM job with the thinking that Ibanez is a solid defender is beyond me.

The Braves have been known to be one of the teams interested in Ibanez all offseason but this is the first we have heard them as identifying Ibanez as the “best fit.” It would not be good news if Ibanez signs with the Braves as their 1st round pick is protected and if they sign A.J Burnett the Blue Jays would recieve their 2nd round pick due to Burnett’s higher Elias ranking than Ibanez. I don’t know what pick the Mariners would get then in the event of this.

Ibanez, do us a favor and don’t sign with the Braves.