This thought is meant to be conveyed in the most positive manner possible: General managers are vultures.
Out of necessity. It's part of the job. They see misfortune or mayhem with another team, and it's their job to circle and watch and perhaps swoop in to take advantage of the situation, yank away a few useful morsels from the turmoil. If they don't do it, one of their vulture peers will.
Which brings us to the Brad Lidge situation. A couple of executives privately speculated this week that they probably would check in with Houston GM Tim Purpura about whether he intends to trade the demoted closer. Reached by phone on Thursday, Purpura declined to talk about whether he has or hasn't received phone calls from other general managers generously offering to take Lidge off his hands.