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Dusty Baker Has Indicated Plan To Step Away From Managing

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The Astros’ season came to an end in disappointing fashion, as Houston dropped an 11-4 contest to the Rangers in Game 7 of the ALCS. That may also be Dusty Baker’s final game as a major league manager.

Britt Ghiroli and Chandler Rome of the Athletic report that Baker has recently told people within and outside the Houston organization that this would be his final season. The 74-year-old has not publicly announced his retirement. Asked about his plans postgame, Baker said he “doesn’t know” and “(hasn’t) had time to think about (his) future” (relayed by Mark Berman of Fox 26).

Baker has been at the helm in Houston for four seasons. The Astros hired him going into 2020 in the wake of the sign-stealing scandal which led to A.J. Hinch’s dismissal. His stint in Houston has consisted of a series of one-year contracts. Baker first signed a one-year deal with a team option, which the club exercised. He subsequently inked one-year deals in the immediate aftermath of each of the past two seasons. Baker will be out of contract again this winter.

That run hasn’t been without controversy, particularly in 2022. Baker reportedly clashed with former general manager James Click, part of some organizational discord that led owner Jim Crane to move on from Click despite incredible on-field results. Reports indicated that Baker and Crane weren’t without their own disagreements, although the owner stuck with the longtime manager.

While one can quibble with any manager’s lineup or bullpen decisions, Houston’s results under Baker have been excellent. The team has advanced at least as far as the ALCS in all four seasons. While they were below .500 in the shortened 2020 regular season, they topped 90 wins while winning the AL West in all three full campaigns. The highlight, of course, was a 106-win showing in 2022 that culminated in the franchise’s second World Series title.

The Astros have gone 320-226 (58.6% win percentage) since the start of 2020. Baker’s clubs have won 54% of their regular season contests over his 26-year career. He has also been at the helm of the Giants, Cubs, Reds and Nationals since landing his first managerial job at age 44 in 1993. His 2,183 victories rank seventh in major league history, tops among active managers. Aside from Baker, Bruce Bochy and Terry Francona — all of whom have remained active through this year — everyone in the top 14 on the wins leaderboard has been enshrined in the Hall of Fame. It seems only a matter of time before Baker joins that class, particularly since last year’s title (and third career pennant) checked the final box on his résumé.

Ghiroli and Rome suggest that Baker could look to stay involved in MLB while taking on a less demanding position, potentially in an advisory or special assistant capacity. If he steps away from managing, the Astros will become the fifth team with a vacancy.

Houston bench coach Joe Espada has gotten plenty of attention in managerial searches around the league over the past few years and has yet to land his first opportunity. While it’s far too early in the process for the Astros to have identified any kind of frontrunner, it stands to reason the club would consider Espada if they need to embark on a hiring process of their own.

Tom Walker Passes Away

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Former major league reliever Tom Walker passed away today, per an announcement from the Pirates. He was 74.

“The Pirates are deeply saddened by the passing of Tom Walker,” the organization said in a statement. “Tom was a part of the Pirates local alumni group and was always looking to make an impact on others in the Pittsburgh community. Our thoughts and prayers are with the entire Walker family, including his wife Carolyn, daughter Carrie, and sons Matt, Sean and Neil, in addition to his son-in-law Don Kelly and the Kelly family.”

Walker, a Tampa native, never played in a regular season game for the Pirates. He was selected by the Orioles with the ninth overall pick in the 1968 draft. He topped out at Double-A in the Baltimore system before being selected by the Expos in the 1972 Rule 5 draft. Walker pitched three years in Montreal, keeping a sub-4.00 ERA in each season. He threw 74 2/3 innings as a rookie and topped 90 frames in each of the following two years.

After the 1974 campaign, the Expos traded him alongside catcher Terry Humphrey to the Tigers for starter Woodie Fryman. Walker logged a career-high 115 1/3 innings over 36 appearances (including nine starts) in Detroit. One year later, the Tigers sold his contract to the Cardinals. Walker pitched a season in St. Louis, then returned to Montreal as a free agent. He made 11 appearances as an Expo and closed his MLB career with one game for the Angels in 1977 after California claimed him on waivers. Walker signed with the Pirates for 1978 but didn’t make the MLB roster. He retired after eight games for Pittsburgh’s Triple-A affiliate.

While Walker didn’t take the mound in Pittsburgh, he was a longtime resident of the city and had strong family connections to the organization. Walker’s son Neil Walker played with the Bucs from 2009-15, spending the bulk of that time as Pittsburgh’s starting second baseman. Kelly has spent the past four seasons as Derek Shelton’s bench coach.

Cubs, Kyle Hendricks Have Reportedly Discussed Extension

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One of the Cubs’ first decisions of the upcoming offseason is whether to exercise an option on the team’s longest-tenured player. Chicago holds a $16MM option on Kyle Hendricks that comes with a $1.5MM buyout.

At the very least, the team is likely to retain the right-hander on that net $14.5MM decision. Bruce Levine of 670 The Score reports that the front office and Hendricks’ representatives at Wasserman are discussing a potential multi-year pact to keep him in Chicago beyond next season. It isn’t clear how likely they are to come to an agreement.

That the Cubs are open to retaining Hendricks into 2025 isn’t especially surprising. He put together a strong ’23 campaign, turning in a 3.74 ERA through 137 innings. It was a nice return to form after he’d allowed nearly five earned runs per nine in both 2021 and ’22. The sinkerballer kept the ball on the ground at a 46.3% clip that was his highest rate since 2020. Hendricks also cut his walk rate a couple percentage points relative to the previous two seasons while inducing more soft contact.

It’s not a return to peak, when he was routinely logging 30+ starts with an ERA hovering around 3.00. He halted what looked like a possible decline, though, perhaps in part due to improved health. Hendricks had pitched through shoulder discomfort for part of the 2022 season. He was eventually diagnosed with a capsular tear and shut down that August. Hendricks never required surgery but was forced out of game action until late May.

Upon his return, he stayed healthy and took the ball every fifth day. The steady mid-rotation production was welcome for a team that lost Marcus Stroman to the injured list around the trade deadline and received middling seasons from Jameson Taillon and Drew Smyly. Aside from Cy Young candidate Justin Steele, Hendricks was arguably the team’s best starter.

The Dartmouth product turns 34 in December. An extension going into effect beyond next season would therefore begin with his age-35 campaign. That’s the age at which the Cardinals’ spring extension for Miles Mikolas takes effect. St. Louis guaranteed Mikolas $40MM over two seasons one year in advance.

Hendricks and Mikolas are broadly similar pitchers. They’re innings-eating righties whose profiles are built on elite control. As with Hendricks, Mikolas had dealt with a serious injury before posting a rebound year — in his case, soreness in a surgically repaired flexor tendon in his forearm. While Mikolas throws quite a bit harder, that has never translated to an even average whiff rate. The Cardinals hurler’s $20MM average annual value might be a touch high. Mikolas was coming off a 3.29 ERA through 202 1/3 innings in 2022, a half-run lower than Hendricks’ 2023 figure. It’s nevertheless a potential target for Hendricks’ camp.

José Quintana — a former teammate of both Hendricks and Mikolas — signed a two-year, $26MM free agent deal covering his age 34-35 seasons. Quintana had turned in a 2.93 ERA over 165 2/3 innings in his platform season after a dismal 6.43 ERA showing in 2021. Even without the benefit of open market bidding, Hendricks figures to top that sum based on Quintana’s erratic performances from 2019-21.

The Cubs have just over $100MM on the books for the 2025 season. That’s mostly tied up in position players, with only Taillon on a guaranteed deal beyond next year. Steele remains eligible for arbitration through 2027, while Jordan Wicks and Javier Assad are in their pre-arbitration seasons. Stroman has a $21MM player option for next year that looks like a borderline call; he’d be a free agent after 2024 if he opts in. Smyly is virtually certain to exercise an $8.5MM player option for next season that’d also guarantee a $2.5MM buyout on a 2025 mutual provision.

Latest On Padres’ Managerial Situation

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The possibility of a managerial change in San Diego rose back to the forefront yesterday, as the Padres granted permission for the Giants to speak with Bob Melvin. The three-time Manager of the Year, who’s familiar with both the Bay Area and San Francisco president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi from his long stint with the A’s, now seems a strong candidate to leave San Diego for a division rival.

Melvin is under contract with the Padres for next season. As a result, the Friars could require compensation to approve him taking the job elsewhere. Dennis Lin of the Athletic writes that the Padres may not demand more than a marginal return to allow the veteran skipper to depart, however.

That’s a reflection of the apparently strained relationship between Melvin and baseball operations leader A.J. Preller. Multiple late-season reports indicated there was a strong divide between the two. San Diego ownership clearly doesn’t believe the situation had become untenable. After a meeting between Preller, Melvin and chairman Peter Seidler, the organization announced a few weeks ago that Melvin would return. However, the Giants’ interest could afford San Diego a fresh start while clearing Melvin’s $4MM salary. Had he been fired, the Padres would’ve remained on the hook for the money.

If Melvin heads to San Francisco, the Padres have a few internal candidates to take his place. Bench coach Ryan Flaherty and senior advisor Mike Shildt seem the likeliest options. In a piece at The Athletic, Britt Ghiroli and Lin write that the 37-year-old Flaherty is highly regarded within the organization and seemingly has a strong relationship with Preller. As a result, they suggest the former Orioles infielder appears the top internal option.

By contrast, Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune casts Shildt as the in-house potential favorite. The 55-year-old has prior MLB managerial experience, having led the Cardinals from midway through 2018 until he was dismissed after the ’21 season due to what St. Louis called “philosophical differences” with the front office. (Flaherty’s only managerial experience consisted of a two-week interim stint in 2022 while Melvin was recovering from surgery.) Shildt has spent the last two years working with Preller’s front office and has been open about his hope for another managerial position.

Both The Athletic and the Union-Tribune suggest San Diego could also consider external opportunities. It’s too soon to say with certainty that Melvin is even departing, much less the position will come down to Flaherty or Shildt. Given the Giants’ stated goal of finalizing their hire before the start of free agency, there figures to be a resolution within the relatively near future.

Brewers Select Chris Roller

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The Brewers selected outfielder Chris Roller onto the 40-man roster, tweets Curt Hogg of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel.  That’ll keep him from hitting free agency shortly after the World Series.

Roller, 27, cracks a 40-man roster for the first time in his career. A 5’11” outfielder, he entered the professional ranks as a 30th-round pick of the Dodgers out of a Waco junior college in 2017. Roller spent four years in the L.A. system before being selected by Cleveland during the minor league phase of the 2020 Rule 5 draft.

The right-handed hitter remained in the Cleveland organization for the next two and a half seasons. He spent most of 2021-22 in Double-A and was bumped to Triple-A Columbus for this year. Roller hit .222/.373/.412 in 92 games there. Milwaukee acquired him in a cash transaction on August 31. He finished the season on a tear with Triple-A Nashville, raking at a .364/.493/.618 clip in 16 contests.

Between the two organizations, Roller hit .247/.394/.449 in 396 trips to the plate. He struck out at an alarming 27.5% rate but walked in a massive 17.2% of his plate appearances. Roller plays all three outfield positions and has spent the bulk of his time in center field.

That production intrigued the Milwaukee front office enough to give him a roster spot heading into the winter. As a player who has spent parts of seven minor league seasons, he’d have qualified for minor league free agency to begin the offseason if he wasn’t on a 40-man roster. If he holds the spot all offseason, he’ll join Blake Perkins as depth outfielders behind Christian Yelich, Garrett Mitchell, Sal Frelick, Joey Wiemer and Tyrone Taylor. Milwaukee also has an $11.5MM option on Mark Canha that comes with a $2MM buyout. Roller would still likely begin next season in Triple-A, as he has a full slate of three minor league option seasons.

Bryan Abreu To Serve Two-Game Suspension In 2024

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Major League Baseball announced the ruling of the appellate hearing for Astros reliever Bryan Abreu. While the two-game suspension for hitting Adolis García with a pitch has been upheld, the right-hander is allowed to postpone the ban until the start of the 2024 regular season.

Former big leaguer Adam Jones first reported that Abreu’s suspension would be delayed on Foul Territory this afternoon. Ari Alexander of KPRC 2 reports that the right-hander’s fine was also reduced (X link).

Abreu hit García with a 99 MPH fastball in the bottom of the eighth inning of Game 5. García had hit a go-ahead, three-run homer in his previous at-bat. After being plunked, the Rangers slugger confronted Houston catcher Martín Maldonado, leading both dugouts to empty. Abreu was ejected for what the umpiring crew (and subsequently MLB) determined was an intentional hit-by-pitch. García was thrown out of the game for arguing with Maldonado, while Houston skipper Dusty Baker was also tossed after he vehemently argued Abreu’s ejection. Houston came back to win the game on Jose Altuve’s homer in the ninth.

The pitcher was the only player suspended for the incident. Abreu’s appeal allowed him to pitch last night. Baker called upon him for one inning in an eventual 9-2 loss. Since he only tossed 20 pitches, he’ll be available for tonight’s Game 7. Abreu pitched to a 1.75 ERA in 72 regular season innings. He has tossed 7 1/3 frames of two-run ball this October.

Ty Blach, Matt Koch Elect Free Agency

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TODAY: Koch and Blach have elected to become free agents, according to the MILB.com transactions tracker.

OCTOBER 18: The Rockies have outrighted three players off the 40-man roster, per their transactions tracker at MLB.com. Right-handers Karl Kauffmann and Matt Koch and southpaw Ty Blach all went unclaimed. The latter two will have the opportunity to test free agency. Kauffmann will remain in the organization without holding a 40-man spot.

Blach is the most well-known of the three. The former Giants starter has pitched parts of two seasons with his hometown club in Colorado. He threw 44 1/3 innings of 5.89 ERA ball a year ago and logged 78 innings across 20 appearances (including 13 starts) while allowing 5.54 earned runs per nine this year. The strike-throwing southpaw kept his walks to a modest 6.8% clip but struck out a below-average 14.2% of opponents.

With between three and four years of service, Blach would have been eligible for arbitration this winter. A projected $1.8MM salary always made a non-tender seem likely. The outright serves as an early equivalent. It’s possible the Rox could try to re-sign him on a minor league pact.

Koch inked a non-roster deal over the winter. Colorado selected him onto the major league team in June. The 32-year-old (33 next month) wound up logging 38 2/3 innings over 39 appearances down the stretch. He pitched to a 5.12 ERA with a modest 16.6% strikeout rate but an excellent 5.5% walk percentage. The former third-round pick has pitched in parts of six major league campaigns. This was his longest stint since he started 14 games for the 2018 Diamondbacks.

The Rockies selected Kauffmann with the 77th pick in the 2019 draft. The Michigan product made his debut this year, pitching 35 innings over 11 appearances. His initial look at big league hitters didn’t go well, as he allowed an 8.23 ERA with matching 10.1% strikeout and walk rates. Kauffmann spent the majority of the season at Triple-A Albuquerque. He started 19 games in that extremely hitter-friendly setting, posting a 6.43 ERA over 92 1/3 innings.

Colorado has taken six players off the roster since the regular season concluded. Barring additional changes in the next few weeks, their 40-man count will sit at 36 at the start of the offseason.

Will Venable Declined Managerial Interview With Mets

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Rangers associate manager Will Venable declined an opportunity to interview for the Mets’ managerial vacancy, he told Joel Sherman of the New York Post. The former MLB outfielder had also drawn interest from the Guardians.

MLB.com’s Jon Morosi reported last week that Venable intended to remain in Arlington, however. Venable went on record to confirm that, telling Sherman he’s “not pursuing any other jobs.” He expressed his comfort working with Texas general manager Chris Young and skipper Bruce Bochy.

Venable has long been regarded as a future manager. The Princeton graduate played nine years in the big leagues. He has since spent six seasons on an MLB coaching staff, working with the Cubs and Red Sox before joining Texas last winter. Venable has interviewed for manager jobs in prior offseasons but clearly doesn’t intend to take on such a position in 2024.

There hasn’t been a ton of detail on the Mets’ search since the team moved on from Buck Showalter three weeks ago. First-year baseball operations leader David Stearns has said only that the club planned to cast a wide net. The Athletic’s Will Sammon reported this week that New York would go outside the organization for its new hire. There’s been plenty of speculation about Craig Counsell leaving Milwaukee to rejoin Stearns in Queens, but the Mets won’t be able to speak with Counsell until the start of next month under the terms of his contract with the Brewers.

Luis Avilan Retires

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Reliever Luis Avilán has retired, reports Jon Heyman of the New York Post (X link). The Venezuela native pitched in parts of 10 big league seasons with seven teams.

Avilán began his career as an amateur signee with the Braves. He debuted with Atlanta in 2012 and pitched his first three-plus seasons there. Avilán allowed 2.00 earned runs per nine in 36 innings as a rookie and turned in his career season in the second year. He posted a 1.52 ERA through a personal-high 65 frames in 2013 and tacked on 2 2/3 scoreless in the postseason.

After another year and a half in the Atlanta bullpen, Avilán was moved to the Dodgers in a massive 13-player, three-team 2015 deadline deal that also sent Alex Wood to Los Angeles. Avilán spent two and a half years in Southern California. He saw postseason action in both 2015 and ’16 before pitching to a 2.93 ERA over 46 regular season innings in 2017.

Going into the following season, Avilán was involved in another three-team deal. This one — orchestrated between the White Sox, Dodgers and Royals — landed him in Chicago. He’d pitch for five teams over the next four seasons, suiting up with the White Sox, Phillies, both New York franchises and Nationals. His 2021 campaign with Washington was cut short after four outings by an elbow injury that required Tommy John surgery.

That ultimately brought his major league career to an end. Avilán re-signed with the Nats on a minor league deal last year, spending the bulk of the season in Triple-A. He was out of professional baseball entirely this past season and, at age 34, has decided to step away.

Avilán concludes with a 3.43 ERA in 354 major league innings. He recorded 319 strikeouts and kept the ball on the ground for just under half the batted balls he allowed. A situational lefty, he collected 85 holds while limiting same-handed batters to a .204/.279/.281 slash line through nearly 700 plate appearances. MLBTR congratulates Avilán on a decade-long run in the majors and sends our best wishes in his post-playing days.

Guardians Interview Clayton McCullough In Managerial Search

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The Guardians have interviewed Dodgers first base coach Clayton McCullough as they search for a new manager, reports Paul Hoynes of Cleveland.com. He joins Giants bullpen/catching coach Craig Albernaz and Yankees bench coach Carlos Mendoza as known candidates to meet with Cleveland brass.

McCullough, 44 in December, has never managed at the major league level. He has seven years of managerial experience in the minors, however, working at the lower levels of the Blue Jays’ system between 2007-13. He signed with Los Angeles as a minor league field coordinator in 2015. The Dodgers added him to Dave Roberts’ staff at the start of the 2021 season.

Before his coaching days, McCullough spent some time in the Cleveland organization. An East Carolina product, he was selected by the Indians in the 22nd round of the 2002 draft as a catcher. He played 104 games over parts of four minor league seasons.

This isn’t the first time McCullough has drawn attention in a major league managerial search. He interviewed with the Mets during the 2021-22 offseason for the position that eventually went to Buck Showalter. McCullough was reportedly a finalist in the Royals’ hiring process last winter. Kansas City ultimately tabbed Matt Quatraro off the Rays’ coaching staff.

Cleveland is embarking on a managerial search for the first time in over a decade after Terry Francona stepped aside. While the three known interviewees are all from outside the organization, Hoynes lists a few internal candidates under consideration. The front office has considered minor league field coordinator John McDonald, hitting coach Chris Valaika, and player development director Rob Cerfolio as potential candidates, although it’s unclear which of that group will receive a formal interview. First base coach Sandy Alomar Jr. has already taken himself out of the running; according to Hoynes, third base coach Mike Sarbaugh has not been asked to interview.

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