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A.J. Hinch

Quick Hits: Tigers, Turner, Rays, Archer, Dodgers, McCullough

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Tigers GM Al Avila wants to remain patient and disciplined this winter when it comes to augmenting their young core through free agency, writes Chris McCosky of the Detroit News. Detroit will look to add a catcher, corner outfielder and first baseman, as well as a pitcher or two – but all in due time. Detroit hasn’t posted a winning record since 2016, and they haven’t reached the postseason since a four-year run ended in 2015. Those playoff teams, of course, were led by formidable pitching staffs that included Justin Verlander, Max Scherzer, Rick Porcello, Anibal Sanchez, and others, as well as an all-time bat in Miguel Cabrera still in his prime. These Tigers don’t yet have that kind of offensive force, but they’ve begun to graduate some of their highly-touted arms, such as Casey Mize and Tarik Skubal. For now, let’s take Avila’s lead and not get too far ahead of ourselves. Elsewhere…

  • Justin Turner is seeking a three-year deal, per Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe. That might be a tough sell for the 36-year-old. Three years might be the ask for Turner, who is represented by GEM Agency, but it’s just as likely a starting point to give their side some wiggle room in negotiations. That said, Turner was a central piece for the World Series champs, slashing .307/.400/.460 across 175 plate appearances in 2020. That’s good for a 140 wRC+. The immediate concern, rather, relates to his viability at third base that far into the future. His glovework earned marks of -2 OAA in 2020 and -1 DRS, both of which are palatable marks. But if there’s significant regression coming for Turner, the glove is where to look first. Regardless, for those clubs looking to add an impact bat in 2021, there aren’t many better than Turner.
  • The Rays have discussed the possibility of a reunion with Chris Archer, writes Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. Given the Rays’ tendency to limit starter innings, they need the whole of the staff to be capable of soaking up innings. Archer could certainly help in that regard. Besides, if anyone knows what Archer is capable of, it would be Tampa Bay. For the present, however, the Rays are focused on players who might accept minor league contracts. The payroll likely is what it is, notes Topkin, meaning that if they’re going to add much in the way of salary, we should expect a matching expulsion. They need a catcher, of course, probably a couple, and more generally, GM Erik Neander wants the club to make more contact.
  • Clayton McCullough will replace George Lombard as the first base coach for the Dodgers, per J.P. Hoornstra of the Southern California News Group (via Twitter). Lombard was named A.J. Hinch’s new bench coach in Detroit. The rest of the Dodgers’ coaching staff from 2020 are returning. McCullough has been with the Dodgers for seven seasons, serving recently as minor league field coordinator. Prior to joining the Dodgers, he managed at a number of different levels in the Blue Jays’ system.

Tigers Officially Name A.J. Hinch Manager

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12:02 pm: The Tigers have announced Hinch’s hiring on a “multi-year” contract.

12:01 pm: The Tigers are expected to officially announce the hiring of A.J. Hinch as the club’s manager by the end of the day, hears Jon Morosi of MLB Network (Twitter link). Lynn Henning and Chris McCosky of the Detroit News previously reported Hinch and the club were nearing agreement on a three-year contract.  The deal is done, hears Cody Stavenhagen of the Athletic (via Twitter).

The hiring process moved quickly, as Hinch first interviewed just yesterday. Almost immediately thereafter, it became clear he was overwhelmingly likely to get the position. Given that rapid turnaround, it seems likely the 46-year-old was the target (or at least a top candidate) for GM Al Avila and the rest of the front office from the moment Ron Gardenhire retired.

Given Hinch’s recent on-field success, it’s easy to understand the appeal. He managed the Astros to great heights between 2015-19, winning a pair of American League pennants and the 2017 World Series. He had plenty of extremely talented players with whom to work, to be sure, but Hinch was generally regarded as one of the top managers in the game just twelve months ago.

That all preceded the exhaustive reporting that emerged on the sign-stealing scandal perpetrated by the Astros during some of Hinch’s tenure, most notably throughout that World Series-winning season. Commissioner Rob Manfred suspended Hinch (and then-Houston GM Jeff Lunhow) for one year in January. Within hours, Astros owner Jim Crane ousted both Hinch and Lunhow.

In his report, the commissioner noted that Hinch did not approve of nor orchestrate the Astros’ illicit activities. Nevertheless, he was unquestionably aware of the scheme and didn’t do nearly enough to stop it. There’s no question the manager bears some of the responsibility for knowingly permitting players and other staff to brazenly conduct a cheating operation, regardless of his involvement (or lack thereof) in setting it up. There figures to be plenty of backlash if/when Hinch is officially hired, but the Tigers certainly don’t seem to be the only team comfortable granting those involved with the Astros’ scandal another chance.

Hinch was reportedly a candidate for the White Sox managerial vacancy, as well. Detroit’s division rival instead turned to Tony La Russa. There’s also speculation that Alex Cora, who was Hinch’s bench coach on the 2017 Astros (and by the commissioner’s account, more actively involved in orchestrating the sign-stealing operation than Hinch was) might return from his own suspension to again manage the Red Sox, as he did from 2018-19.

The Tigers’ roster isn’t one set up to contend immediately, but the organization is beginning to see the fruits of its rebuild. Top prospects Casey Mize and Tarik Skubal are already in the majors, while Matt Manning and Spencer Torkelson probably aren’t far behind. Jeimer Candelario and Willi Castro also impressed in 2020 and will continue to try to cement themselves as long-term pieces on the position player side. Hinch will be tasked with trying to guide that young core back to the postseason for the first time since 2014.

Tigers Likely To Hire A.J. Hinch As Manager

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OCTOBER 30: All signs are pointing to Hinch becoming the next manager in Detroit. The parties are nearing an agreement on a three-year deal, report Lynn Henning and Chris McCosky of the Detroit News, one which could be finalized as soon as today. Jon Heyman of MLB Network (Twitter link) also hears that Hinch “is the choice” for the position.

OCTOBER 29, 9:51pm: There has been “substantial progress” toward a deal, reports Morosi, who adds that Hinch is in line to become the Tigers’ next manager.

OCTOBER 29, 8:23pm: The Tigers and Hinch are progressing toward an agreement, Buster Olney of ESPN tweets.

OCTOBER 29, 6:34pm: Hinch is the favorite for the job, per Morosi and Beck.

OCTOBER 29, 5:10pm: The Tigers interviewed A.J. Hinch for their vacant managerial position on Thursday, Jon Morosi and Jason Beck of MLB.com report. Hinch is one of several candidates known to have spoken with the Tigers as they seek a replacement for the retired Ron Gardenhire.

Hinch, a former major league catcher, gained major league managerial experience in the past with the Diamondbacks and Astros. His resume includes a terrific 570-452 record, three 100-win seasons and a World Series title with the Astros in 2017. However, a sign-stealing scandal has called into question Hinch’s accomplishments in Houston. The league suspended him for all of 2020 as a result of the Astros’ violations, and the team fired him shortly after that.

Hinch’s ban expired after this year’s World Series, so he is now eligible to return in a prominent role if a team is willing to hire him. The 46-year-old previously garnered interest from the White Sox as they sought a new manager, but they elected to hire Tony La Russa on Thursday. That leaves the Tigers and Red Sox as the only teams looking for managers, though Boston hasn’t shown any reported interest in Hinch so far.

White Sox Managerial Rumors: Hinch, Cora, La Russa

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TODAY: The Angels have granted the White Sox permission to interview La Russa, Nightengale tweets.

OCTOBER 12: Despite earning their first playoff berth since 2008 this season, the White Sox have decided to make major changes in their dugout. The team parted ways with manager Rick Renteria and longtime pitching coach Don Cooper on Monday, leaving at least two significant holes in its coaching staff.

When discussing the White Sox’s vacancy at manager with reporters Monday, GM Rick Hahn said the club plans on finding someone with recent championship pedigree to replace Renteria, and that person’s likely to come from outside the organization, per Scott Merkin of MLB.com. Unsurprisingly, then, former Astros manager A.J. Hinch has emerged as a possibility, Bob Nightengale of USA Today tweets.

Hinch helped lead Houston to a championship in 2017, but that accomplishment has been marred by a sign-stealing scandal that caused Major League Baseball to suspend him for this season and Houston to part ways with him after last year. But Hinch’s suspension will expire after the World Series, and he has already drawn interest from Detroit – a Chicago AL Central rival that’s also looking for a manager – so he could get back in the game in short order.

It also wouldn’t be shocking to see Alex Cora – Hinch’s bench coach in ’17 – receive consideration, but the White Sox haven’t shown interest in Cora yet, according to Nightengale. Cora also had to sit out this season, but he is only two years removed from winning a title as Boston’s manager in 2018.

There also seems to be a possibility that the White Sox won’t opt for a recent major league manager to fill the role. Rather, one of their former skippers, 76-year-old Hall of Famer Tony La Russa, could be their answer. In an unexpected twist, the White Sox plan to reach out to La Russa, reports Nightengale, who adds that the position intrigues the four-time Manager of the Year. Since managing the White Sox, Cardinals and Athletics from 1979-2011 and combining for three World Series titles (one in Oakland, two in St. Louis), La Russa has worked in the front offices of the Diamondbacks, Red Sox and Angels. As Nightengale notes, La Russa is close friends with White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf.

A.J. Hinch, Alex Cora On Tigers’ List Of Managerial Candidates

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The Tigers are in the market for a new manager after Ron Gardenhire announced his retirement on the heels of a 16-year managerial career. Asked at today’s end-of-year meeting with Tigers beat writers, general manager Al Avila confirmed that former Astros manager A.J. Hinch and former Red Sox skipper Alex Cora are on what the Tigers expect to be a lengthy list of initial candidates (Twitter link via Chris McCosky of the Detroit News).

Both Hinch and Cora lost their jobs in the wake of the investigation in the Astros’ 2017 cheating scandal. Hinch oversaw the team that orchestrated that sign-stealing scheme, while Cora, the club’s bench coach that season, was listed as one of the architects of the entire operation in commissioner Rob Manfred’s report on the investigation.

Manfred suspended Hinch until January 2021, and Astros owner Jim Crane fired him less than an hour after the league announced the findings of its investigation. Cora, meanwhile, had already moved on to become the manager of the Red Sox by the time the Astros scandal had come to light. That didn’t stop the Red Sox from firing him, however, even with Boston’s 2018 World Series win barely in the rear-view mirror.

Of course, that 2018 team was similarly investigated by the league for additional sign-stealing improprieties. The league’s investigation into the Sox deemed their transgressions to be less severe, pinning advance scout/replay coordinator J.T. Watkins as the primary offender. Cora was suspended by Manfred through the 2020 postseason, although the commissioner made clear that that was for his role in the Astros’ scandal — not due to anything that transpired with the Red Sox. Said Manfred in announcing his findings from the Red Sox investigation: “Communication of these violations was episodic and isolated to Watkins and a limited number of Red Sox players only.”

It was and still is rather baffling that Cora, who was at or near the center of both scandals, was banned from the game for a lesser period of time than either Hinch or former Astros GM Jeff Luhnow (who was also suspended by Manfred through January and fired by Crane). His role in the Houston scheme was clearly more hands on, but even if he wasn’t involved in the Red Sox’ violations, he’d seemingly be guilty of negligence.

What’s done is done regarding the suspension, and the shorter punishment would ostensibly allow Cora to be formally hired at any point after the World Series. It’s less clear how things would work with Hinch, who isn’t formally eligible for reinstatement until Jan. 13, 2021. Perhaps the Tigers could interview him but not officially hire him until his date of eligibility. It seems doubtful that they’d put their entire search on hold until he’s eligible to be reinstated, as doing so could cost them the opportunity to talk to other candidates of interest. Getting the manager on boarded early in the offseason is always preferable, though, and it doesn’t seem possible to do that with Hinch

It’s easy to focus on Hinch and Cora, of course, given their recent ties to high-profile cheating scandals that shook the sport to its core. But they’ll be just two of many candidates to whom the Tigers speak, and there’s nothing to indicate that either is somehow a preferred option.

Shedding a bit of light into the Tigers’ process for identifying candidates, Avila indicated that he’d consider both veteran managers and rookie skippers — but only those who have coached elsewhere in the Majors or managed in the minors (Twitter link via Jason Beck of MLB.com). Former players who lack coaching/managerial experience will not be considered.

The Tigers went that route in 2015 when they hired Brad Ausmus, just as the Cardinals had done a couple years prior with Mike Matheny. Since that time, Craig Counsell (Brewers), Aaron Boone (Yankees), David Ross (Cubs) and Carlos Beltran (Mets) have each hired former players who lack coaching experience. (Beltran, of course, was dismissed before managing a game as yet another ripple effect from the Astros’ 2017 scandal). Early interviews will be conducted primarily via Zoom, but the Tigers will eventually interview their finalists in person.

Quick Hits: Tigers, Cubs, Red Sox, Phillies, Brewers

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The Tigers suddenly have a managerial opening now that Ron Gardenhire decided to retire Saturday after almost three full seasons on the job. Gardenhire oversaw teams that were in full rebuilding mode, evidenced in part by the 132-241 record the Tigers compiled under him, but they’re seemingly moving back toward respectability now and may want to push for contention sometime soon. As such, the Tigers are looking for an experienced skipper to replace Gardenhire, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic hears (subscription link). Former Astros manager A.J. Hinch and ex-Braves/Marlins manager Fredi Gonzalez could be among the candidates. Hinch has been out of baseball since the league suspended him last January as a result of the Astros’ sign-stealing violations, though he’ll be eligible to return in 2021. Gonzalez was a candidate for the Tigers’ managerial job before it went to Gardenhire in 2017.

More from around the league…

  • The Cubs will activate left-hander Jose Quintana to start against the Pirates on Tuesday, Jordan Bastian of MLB.com tweets. The team has been without Quintana since he went on the IL on Sept. 2 with left lat inflammation. It’s the second IL stint of the year for Quintana, who began the season on the shelf with a left thumb issue. He debuted Aug. 25 and has since made two appearances, during which he combined for six innings of four-run ball.
  • Right-hander Nick Pivetta will make his Red Sox debut Tuesday with a start against the Orioles, Jim Salisbury of NBC Sports Philadelphia relays. Pivetta, whom the Red Sox acquired from the Phillies last month in the teams’ trade centering on relievers Brandon Workman and Heath Hembree, pitched to a 5.50 ERA/4.64 FIP in 396 1/3 innings from 2017-20.
  • Meanwhile, the Phillies announced that Hembree’s heading to the 10-day injured list with a right elbow strain, which could put his season in jeopardy. Hembree has struggled mightily as a member of the Phillies, with whom he has yielded 13 earned runs on 17 hits in 9 1/3 innings.
  • Brewers catcher Manny Pina will start baseball activities next week, Adam McCalvy of MLB.com tweets. That may not help the Brewers this year, as they’re no lock for the playoffs at 26-26. They lost Pina for the regular season to a right knee injury Aug. 28, at which point he was hitting .231/.333/.410 in 45 plate appearances. The Brewers have since turned to Jacob Nottingham as their top complement to Omar Narvaez behind the plate.

AL Notes: Tigers, White Sox, Anderson, Angels, Barreto, A’s, Pinder

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After Ron Gardenhire’s sudden retirement this weekend, the Tigers have a managerial opening that could be one of the more appealing around baseball. Lloyd McClendon has taken over managerial duties for the rest of this season, and he’ll get a look for the full-time job over the winter. A.J. Hinch, Will Venable, George Lombard, Vance Wilson, Don Kelly, Pedro Grifol, and Mike Redmond are also expected to enter the conversation, per MLB Insider Jon Morosi (via Twitter). Of course, it’s still too early to call this a comprehensive list.

Though they haven’t had a winning season since 2016 and haven’t made the playoffs since 2014, Detroit has had plenty of time to build a deep arsenal of interesting young arms that are nearing ML-readiness. Casey Mize, the first overall pick of the 2018 draft made his Major League debut this season, as did fellow prospects Tarik Skubal and centerfielder Daz Cameron. Matt Manning and Alex Faedo aren’t far behind, while the selection of power bat Spencer Torkelson at 1-1 replenishes the system with a top shelf offensive prospect to dream on. But there’s still some season to be played this year, so let’s check in on some injury news from around the game…

  • Tim Anderson is suffering from cramps in his right hamstring that may keep him out of a game or two, per James Fegan of The Athletic (via Twitter). His official status is day-to-day, but the White Sox won’t want to be long without their chirpy leadoff hitter. Anderson could be closing in on his second consecutive American League batting title. The 27-year-old shortstop has unexpectedly morphed into an all-around terror at the plate with a triple slash of .366/.401/.611 and a league-leading 43 runs scored. Even limited to a 41-game sample and coming off a batting title, it’s still fairly shocking to see Anderson put up a season that will merit serious MVP consideration. While Southsiders would no doubt love to see Anderson return to bolster his case, the organization’s priority will be to ensure his health for the postseason.
  • Los Angeles Angels infielder Franklin Barreto will undergo shoulder surgery on Tuesday, though it’s unclear as of right now what kind of recovery timeline Barreto will face, per Jeff Fletcher of the Southern California News Group (via Twitter). Barreto appeared in six games for the Halos after being acquired from the A’s for Tommy La Stella. It was a rough year on the whole for Barreto, who slashed .074/.107/.074, though he only had opportunity for 27 plate appearances between both clubs.
  • Athletics utility player Chad Pinder took some hacks in the batting cage while returning to baseball activities today, per Matt Kawahara of the San Francisco Chronicle (via Twitter). It remains entirely unclear if he’ll return before the postseason. The 28-year-old Pinder may not look like much from his .226/.281/.396 slash line, but he could play an important role for the A’s in the playoffs. With Matt Chapman out for the year, Pinder has a good chance to get the start at third base against southpaws while Jake Lamb and Vimael Machín fill out the hot corner rotation. Pinder boasts a 108 career wRC+ against lefties versus 89 wRC+ against same-handed hurlers.

 

Astros’ Jim Crane On Luhnow, Hinch, Sign-Stealing Scandal, Taubman

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Even though GM Jeff Luhnow and manager A.J. Hinch were incredibly successful atop the Astros, the club let them go last offseason in the wake of a sign-stealing scandal. Major League Baseball also came down hard on Luhnow and Hinch in suspending them for a year apiece, and it fined the Astros $5MM and took away their first- and second-round picks this summer and next.

Astros owner Jim Crane spoke about Luhnow, Hinch and stealing signs, among other topics, in a wide-ranging interview with Bob Nightengale of USA Today.

In regards to Luhnow and Hinch, Crane said, “You hate to see what happened to those guys because they didn’t instigate this thing.” Nevertheless, Crane believed the Astros had no choice but to part with Luhnow and Hinch, who he hopes “get back in the business.”

The Astros negotiated a settlement on the remainder of Hinch’s contract, which ran through 2022, per Nightengale. They haven’t done so with Luhnow, whose deal went through 2023 and whom they fired for “just cause.” It’s possible the two sides will end up in court to settle the matter, according to Nightengale.

With the Luhnow/Hinch era in the rearview mirror, the club’s “sorry” about its misdeeds, said Crane, who guarantees “it will never happen again.” He also observed: “I think (MLB) had a bigger problem than everybody realized. Two other teams (the Yankees and Red Sox) were doing things and got caught, but we’re the ones who took the bullet. That’s the way it works. I’m not trying to blame anyone else. It was our problem. We dealt with it.”

The Yankees were fined for improper use of a dugout phone in 2017, but there’s no evidence that they ever engaged in stealing signs to the extent the Astros did. Meanwhile, the Red Sox lost a second-round pick this year and let go of manager and former Astros bench coach Alex Cora, whom the league suspended for a year, on account of their own sign-stealing violations from their World Series-winning 2018 campaign.

Before the Astros’ sign-stealing crimes became public information, they came under fire during the postseason last year when then-assistant GM Brandon Taubman taunted a group of women reporters, yelling, “Thank God we got Osuna! I’m so f—— glad we got Osuna!” He was, of course, referring to closer Roberto Osuna, whom the Astros traded for in 2018 despite the fact that he was amid a 75-game domestic violence suspension at the time. The Astros then made the tone-deaf move of questioning the credibility of Sports Ilustrated’s Stephanie Apstein, who reported Taubman’s comments, only to fire Taubman shortly after that and apologize to Apstein.

Several months later, Crane is still not condemning Taubman. In his talk with Nightengale, Crane stated that “Brandon Taubman didn’t commit domestic violence. He just made a comment. It’s nothing you can defend. He had a few cocktails. He was happy. There were people constantly coming at him over (Osuna), and he overreacted. Did he do the right thing? No. Everybody makes mistakes. But is he a good, genuine decent person and smart kid? Absolutely.”

Between the sign stealing and Taubman’s behavior, it would have been fair to question the Astros’ culture under their previous regime. Indeed, when commissioner Rob Manfred leveled punishment against the franchise, he concluded that the Astros had an “insular culture’’ issue. But Crane told Nightengale, “We didn’t have a culture problem. They’re isolated incidents that are unrelated.”

Season Cancellation Would Not Delay Luhnow, Hinch Reinstatement

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Former Astros GM Jeff Luhnow and manager A.J. Hinch will not serve any suspension time beyond 2020, regardless of whether a season is played, according to ESPN.com’s Buster Olney. Both were fired by the Houston organization after MLB issued year-long bans arising out of the sign-stealing scandal of the 2017 Astros.

Per the report, this determination was made “because the suspensions are tied to the end of the 2020 postseason rather than a specific number of games.” That’s not necessarily a compelling technical reading — if that’s even the right way to address the matter. Regardless, it does seem consistent in substance with the reported handling of player suspensions.

If indeed this is how commissioner Rob Manfred handles things, then the path will be clear for both Luhnow and Hinch to return later this year — as had been the case before the surprise coronavirus shutdown.Presumably, the same determination will hold for former Astros bench coach and Red Sox manager Alex Cora, if he ends up being suspended.

Whether or not that comes to pass will obviously depend upon whether some team takes a chance. When we polled MLBTR readers in early February, most anticipated that Luhnow would never return to a GM seat but that Hinch would again be tasked with leading a dugout. Hinch was certainly a more broadly popular figure and has struck a much more conciliatory tone since the sign-stealing scandal broke. On the other hand, he was also in the dugout while the illicit activity occurred and did not avail himself of the many avenues to halt it. It is less clear to what extent Luhnow was fully aware of the cheating scheme.

MLBTR Poll: The Futures Of Jeff Luhnow, A.J. Hinch

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Former Astros GM Jeff Luhnow and manager A.J. Hinch were among the most successful in baseball in their positions, but their legacies have been tarnished over the past few weeks. Almost a month ago, Major League Baseball suspended the pair for a year apiece for their roles in a 2017 sign-stealing scandal that has dominated headlines in recent weeks. In an effort to distance themselves from Luhnow and Hinch, the Astros fired both of them shortly after MLB banned the two for the 2020 campaign. The question now is whether either will return to their previous jobs with other teams when their suspensions end.

The Astros hired Luhnow, a former Cardinals executive, as their GM heading into the 2012 season. The club endured a couple incredibly lean years thereafter, winning 50-some games in Luhnow’s first two seasons, before beginning an upward climb that culminated in three straight 100-win campaigns from 2017-19. The Astros won their first-ever championship and a couple AL pennants in that three-year span, but now the legitimacy of that run is in question. Luhnow, per a report from the Wall Street Journal on Friday, may have been complicit in a sign-stealing scheme called “Codebreaker.”

While Luhnow denied having a role in “Codebreaker”, commissioner Rob Manfred disagreed, saying that “there is more than sufficient evidence to support a conclusion that you knew—and overwhelming evidence that you should have known—that the Astros maintained a sign-stealing program that violated MLB’s rules.”

Hinch, meanwhile, has come off as more contrite than Luhnow. He has owned up to the fact that the Astros committed wrongdoing on his watch. That should help Hinch’s cause if he attempts to become a manager again. It’ll have to be with another team, though. The Rubicon has been crossed in Houston, where he won’t get his old job back. The same applies to Luhnow. But do you expect another team to hire either of them sometime after their suspensions expire?

(Luhnow poll for app users)

(Hinch poll for app users)

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