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Odds & Ends: Blue Jays, Towers, Pirates, Mets

Here are some links to kick off Sunday morning:

• Some Blue Jays players approached CEO and President Paul Beeston with complaints about Cito Gaston, reports Ken Fidlin of the Toronto Sun.  “They raised the issues,” said Beeston. “They were listened to. They have not been addressed at this time. I had my ears open. I kept my mouth shut. I gave them some comments and that’s all I want to say about that.”
• Jordan Bastian of MLB.com writes that newly appointed Toronto GM Alex Anthopoulos was emotional in his introductory presser.  The article notes that the position of president and CEO will be filled soon, relieving the interim hire, Paul Beeston.  Beeston says that while the next president and CEO will have the authority to hire its own staff, he will recommend that Anthopoulos remain as GM.
• Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports writes that Kevin Towers didn't deserve to get fired considering all the obstacles he has had to work around in San Diego.
• Towers conducted a farewell press conference in San Diego and Craig Elsten of 619sports.net posted some key sound bytes.  Towers insisted that the organization maintained a strong focus on scouting and player development under his watch.  He also said that he has been contacted by seven or eight other teams to work immediately, but wants to take some time off before jumping into another job.  The 47-year-old made it known that he wants the opportunity to be a GM again.  Also available are team owner and CEO Jeff Moorad's post-podium comments.
• The Pirates have talked to Andy LaRoche about possibly moving from third base to second next year to make room for Pedro Alvarez, writes Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.  The Pirates would like to call-up Alvarez by the middle of the 2010 season, but first he must improve his strength and conditioning.  The 22-year-old excelled after his mid-season promotion to AA, posting .333/.419/.590 with 13 HR in 60 games.
• More from Kovacevic as he labels the Pirates' trade of Nate McLouth to the Braves to be the worst personnel move of the year.  Kovacevic says the deal hurt the players' trust in Pittsburgh management and was a poor public relations decision.
• Bart Hubbuch of the New York Post tweets, "Jerry Manuel was in meetings all morning and said he expects an announcement tomorrow on changes and the team's offseason plans."
• Jon Heyman reports via Twitter that Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria refused to comment on a possible manager change.  Recent reports suggest that Fredi Gonzalez could be on the way out and Bobby Valentine could be on the way in.

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