The Cardinals’ signing of Bud Norris didn’t come with much fanfare, but he’s cemented himself in the ninth inning in St. Louis and now tells Rick Hummel of the Post-Dispatch that he hopes to remain with the Cardinals for the long haul. “I get chills on my neck thinking about it,” said Norris. “Yes, I would love to end my career here and I would love to have a multi-year contract here. That would mean the world to me and my family … There’s something very, very special about this place.” Norris said he’s willing to pitch in any role over the long run, though after originally being reluctant about the transition from rotation to bullpen, he’s now embraced the mindset of a late-inning reliever and enjoys the challenge. Through 33 2/3 innings this season, Norris has pitched to a 3.21 ERA with even better supporting metrics — 11.8 K/9, 1.3 BB/9, 1.07 HR/9, 2.65 FIP, 2.41 xFIP. He’s playing on a one-year, $3MM deal with the Cards, though he’s certainly well on his way to earning a raise.
More from the division…
- The Pirates announced this morning that left-hander Nik Turley has been reinstated after the completion of his 80-game PED suspension. He was, however, immediately placed on the 60-day disabled list to a left elbow strain. No further context or timeline was given in the team’s brief press release. It’s not clear at all, then, whether Turley will ever even suit up for the Pirates. Pittsburgh claimed the 28-year-old off waivers from the Twins over the offseason, but if he doesn’t end up pitching for the team this season, it’s hard to envision him keeping a 40-man roster spot in the coming offseason. Turley was hit hard in the Majors last year, allowing 22 runs in 17 2/3 innings, but he also posted an impressive 2.66 ERA with 10.5 K/9 and 2.9 BB/9 in 67 2/3 innings of work in Triple-A.
- The Reds have played at nearly a .500 clip since Jim Riggleman took over the team in April, and while there’ll be speculation about the possibility of him keeping the job, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic writes (subscription required) that the Reds “plan to conduct a wide search” at season’s end regardless of how the club finishes out the year. As Rosenthal notes, Riggleman joined the organization as the team’s Double-A manager in 2012 under then-GM Walt Jocketty, but current president of baseball operations Dick Williams may prefer to hire his own preferred choice rather than stick with a manager who was not initially his own hire.
Fire him he still sucks
Castellini needs to fire Dick Williams! Riggleman has done a heck of a job! Knowing the Reds they will make bad trades
Maybe, but I’d still love Gennett back on the Brewers.
Riggleman is a class guy who brings confidence to his players in a quiet kind of way. I hope he gets the opportunity to continue. Just check what he has done as of late. When he took over the team was a disaster.
I agree, Riggleman deserves to be named the manager! Get rid of Dick Williams and let the new GM pull the trades! He got more experience and has been around longer then Williams!
Riggleman has done well with this group. He’s a great strategist and the team is certainly attentive to detail and playing harder.
The moves out of training camp were odd with Pennington and Gosselin on the roster and Price mismanaged it about as badly as could be done. I do think Riggleman should get a long look along with John Farrell and possibly Barry Larkin. They can do an outside search but the baseball people are there and Riggleman has proven that. The front office….not so much.