Odds & Ends: Astros, Indians, Reds, O’s, Reyes
Assorted rumblings from around the majors…
- Former MLB manager Ned Yost tells MLB.com's Alyson Footer that he thinks the Astros are just one starter away from having a quite a good rotation. (Footer agrees.) At the moment, the Astros have Roy Oswalt, Wandy Rodriguez, Brian Moehler, Bud Norris and Felipe Paulino.
- As Howard noted earlier, Yost is a candidate to manage the Astros next year.
- Former Nats manager Manny Acta confirmed to Anthony Castrovince of MLB.com that he interviewed for Cleveland's managerial opening.
- As Kevin Goldstein of Baseball Prospectus notes, Mike Leake will make his unofficial pro debut in the Arizona Fall League today. The Reds chose Leake in the first round of this year's draft.
- If the O's decide to pursue John McDonald, Roch Kubatko of MASN.com expects they'd want him to play a utility role.
- The AP (via ESPN) reports that Jose Reyes should be ready for the 2010 season after undergoing surgery on his right leg in Dallas today.
Orioles Have Interest In Kikuchi & Chapman
The Orioles have some interest in the world's most coveted amateur lefthanders. Director of international scouting John Stockstill tells Roch Kubatko of MASN.com that the club has some interest in Yusei Kikuchi, a top Japanese amateur. But Kikuchi's not the only big name the O's would consider.
"We're looking at all of them," Stockstill says. "It's the same thing with (Aroldis) Chapman and anyone else."
Stockstill says he isn't sure how interested the Orioles are at this point. Kikuchi will still have plenty of suitors to choose from if the O's decide not to pursue him. The Giants, Mets, Dodgers, Yankees, Rangers, Mariners and Indians are expected to start meeting with the 18-year-old lefty this week.
Odds & Ends: Cardinals, Rangers, Astros
Time for your afternoon snack!
- Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch weighs a reader question: is it time to trade Albert Pujols? As Goold writes, "Ain’t happening, shouldn’t happen (on both sides), but it makes for fine hot-stove jabber." Still, children all of St. Louis (and many adults) rightly shudder at even the hypothetical Pujols trade.
- The Cardinals are looking to bring John Smoltz back, according to the Associated Press. Smoltz had a 4.26 ERA and 40/9 K/BB ratio in 38 innings with the Cardinals, so their interest is understandable.
- The Dallas Morning News' Tim Cowlishaw worries that the uncertain ownership situation of the Rangers will keep the club from making big-ticket improvements for 2010.
- SI's Jon Heyman acknowledges these concerns, but still thinks John Lackey could end up in Texas.
- Ned Yost is interviewing for Houston's managerial job this afternoon, even though the Houston Chronicle's Richard Justice thinks Phil Garner should be the hire.
- And the Washington Nationals keep adding front office personnel.
Discussion: Jason Bay and Toronto
Dave Perkins has an interesting idea in the Toronto Star: should the Blue Jays go get Jason Bay this offseason?
Perkins points out that Bay's .921 OPS certainly didn't suffer after coming to the American League- it was best in the junior circuit among outfielders. He's also Canadian-born and would make a solid addition to an outfield that also figures to have Travis Snider and Vernon Wells returning in 2010.
Perkins also adds that Bay will be just 31 on Opening Day 2010, and the Jays will not only benefit from having Bay, they will also benefit by taking Bay from the Boston Red Sox.
The reality is that Bay will probably be too rich for Toronto's taste. After all, despite just $63MM committed to next year's players, they spent the run up to the non-waiver trade deadline this summer trying to deal Roy Halladay, rather than sign him long-term.
But if April is a time for every team to dream of how the season will go, shouldn't October be for how the off-season will go?
Mets Notes: Wilpon, Minaya, Jaramillo
According to Peter Gammons, Mets COO Jeff Wilpon is the general manager of the Mets, not actual GM Omar Minaya.
Gammons went on to describe Minaya as "the one out there to take the heat” on Michael Kay's 1050 AM radio show Wednesday.
This has implications for how the Mets will proceed this winter, of course. The good news is that if Wilpon wants to spend money on a player, he doesn't need to run it by ownership, since he is, in fact, ownership. The bad news is, no one knows exactly how much baseball expertise Jeff Wilpon has.
The quote from former Mets' co-owner Nelson Doubleday in 2003 isn't encouraging:
“Mr. Jeff Wilpon has decided that he’s going to learn how to run a baseball team and take over at the end of the year… Run for the hills, boys. I think probably all those baseball people will bail… Jeff sits there by himself like he’s King Tut waiting for his camel.”
This has ramifications for recently-jettisoned Texas Rangers hitting coach Rudy Jaramillo as well. After all, Jaramillo has been linked to the Mets before, and the well-respected coach once managed a young minor leaguer named Omar Minaya.
While a failure to bring in Jaramillo doesn't prove much, if the Mets do bring him in, it goes a long way toward showing that Minaya still has some power with the Mets.
Odds & Ends: Indians, Dodgers, Blue Jays
Because baseball should be in all four seasons, no matter what Forbes Magazine thinks…
- As Buster Olney first reported on October 3, Red Sox pitching coach John Farrell officially took his name out of the running for next manager of the Cleveland Indians.
- Joe Torre denied that life with the Dodgers is "a living hell", as Peter Gammons told Michael Kay on his radio show Wednesday. Torre did say, however, that he doesn't expect to manage past his 2010 contract.
- Perhaps the phrase will be used instead in the upcoming divorce proceedings between Dodgers owner Frank McCourt and his wife, Jamie. As a source described it to Ken Rosenthal: "They've already 'lawyered' up. They're trashing each other terribly. It's going to be World War III."
- Orlando Hudson is glad the Blue Jays traded him. Considering that he's still playing, and J.P. Ricciardi is out of a job, one can guess Ricciardi feels otherwise.
Odds & Ends: Lansford, Rangers, Jaramillo
A few more links, including big news out of L.A. and San Francisco…
- According to the Los Angeles Times' official Twitter account, Dodgers owner Frank McCourt and his wife, CEO Jamie McCourt, have separated in "a move that could place the future ownership of the team in doubt." Tim Brown of Yahoo! Sports notes that a similar situation in the Moores family resulted in the sale of the Padres last spring.
- Andrew Baggarly of the San Jose Mercury News reports the Giants have fired Carney Lansford as hitting coach. Giants manager Bruce Bochy informed him of the news with a phone call Wednesday night.
- According to Tim Cowlishaw of the Dallas Morning News, Rangers fans who bought playoff tickets this season were told they won't see a refund until November because it's "tied up with MLB." Clearly the club is having serious financial issues and it'd be a surprise to see them chase any major free agents this offseason.
- As Bart Hubbuch of the New York Post points out, highly touted hitting coach Rudy Jaramillo has been represented by agent Scott Boras in the past and Jaramillo is likely to use Boras again this winter. The Cubs, Mets and Astros are thought to have interest in adding him to their coaching staff.
O’s Interested In John McDonald
According to Bob Elliott of the Toronto Sun (via Twitter), the Orioles are interested in free agent infielder John McDonald.
McDonald, 35, hit .258/.271/.384 with four home runs and 13 RBI in 152 plate appearances this season for the Blue Jays. The Orioles are expected to let Melvin Mora walk this offseason in lieu of exercising his $8MM option for 2010 and could use some inexpensive infield depth. McDonald was well above average defensively this season with a 10.5 UZR/150 (per FanGraphs). He made $1.9MM in 2009.
Odds & Ends: Red Sox, Bell, Acta, Rays
Another October day without baseball? Drown your sorrows in some links…
- Peter Abraham, in his new gig with the Boston Globe, thinks the Red Sox will tread cautiously with Japanese players like Yusei Kikuchi because of the "tug-of-war" they've gone through with Daisuke Matsuzaka concerning his conditioning methods. The Sox are among several teams scheduled to meet with Kikuchi in Japan later this week.
- MLB.com's Corey Brock fields a question about arbitration-eligible closer Heath Bell in his latest inbox. Bell is set for a substantial pay raise after tallying 42 saves in 2009. Should the Padres try to deal him this winter?
- Former Nationals skipper Manny Acta had a phone interview with Indians GM Mark Shapiro last week to discuss the Tribe's managing vacancy, according to Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer. Acta will also interview Friday for the Astros' opening.
- According to Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times, the Rays have hired former Astros pitching coach Dewey Robinson to their minor league staff.
Pujols Not Talking Extension Just Yet
According to the Associated Press, via ESPN Deportes, Cardinals slugger Albert Pujols said Wednesday that he's not interested in signing a new long-term deal this offseason. (The article is in Spanish, but we've translated some of the more telling quotes).
"I'm not desperate to sign a contract extension," Pujols said. "I still have a one year contract in 2010 with a club option for 2011. The rest I leave in God's hands."
Club chairman Bill DeWitt Jr. and general manager John Mozeliak have expressed a desire to make Albert a "lifetime Cardinal" before he nears the free agent waters in 2012. The 29-year-old first baseman hit .327/.443/.658 this season with 47 home runs and 135 RBI, and is likely to receive his third NL MVP award this winter. Pujols left open the idea of signing an extension somewhere down the line, as long as the Cardinals stay competitive.
"Last week, the GM (Mozeliak) called me and told them to communicate with my lawyer (or agent)," he said, "but I repeat that money is not everything, it's better to have a rival team that can go into the postseason."