Aware of trade rumors, Garza sticking to business

DENVER -- Matt Garza is one of the most coveted names on this year's trade market. And he is still waiting.

Garza, the right-handed Cubs starter, is well aware he's at the heart of trade rumors, but he is waiting for the "could" to turn into an official deal.

"When [the phone] rings, then it will be real," Garza said before Friday's series opener against the Rockies. "Right now it's just rumors. It is what it is; you just keep going about your business."

While the Rangers are rumored to be the frontrunners to land the pitcher widely considered one of the top arms ahead of the non-waiver Trade Deadline, the Dodgers, Indians and Blue Jays are also rumored to be in the market for Garza. The right-hander is in the mist of a career year, boasting a 3.17 ERA, 6-1 record and 62 strikeouts in 11 stars.

Garza also said his agent was told a deal could happen, but this is not the first time Garza has been the subject of trade rumors. The Cubs were looking to trade him before a right elbow injury ended any potential for a deadline deal, and he has been traded twice in his career -- first from the Twins to the Rays following his 2007 season, then to the Cubs in 2011.

"Last year, they told me something could happen, and the year before that something could and did happen," he said, adding that his "entire career's always been a lot of 'coulds.'"

Cubs manager Dale Sveum has taken a similar approach and said he has not made any plans for who may start in place of Garza should Garza no longer be with the Cubs before his next scheduled start Monday.

"Obviously there's nothing going on that I know of or I'm aware of," Sveum said. "So it's a lot of rumors and all that right now. That's what most trades are anyway; they end up being nothing to them anyway.

"We'll cross that bridge when we get to it. But we're not worried about it right now."

That experience makes Garza hesitant to believe he will be out of a Cubs uniform in the next week until the pen hits the paper. For now, the waiting game continues.

"I'm just going to keep going until a 'could' turns into a 'does,' and I'll keep doing what I do," Garza said. "Just kind of stick with a nice time-old saying from Finding Nemo: 'Just keep swimming guys,' that's it."