Odds & Ends: Blue Jays, Wedge, Sweeney
Some more links for the morning…
- Multiple major league sources tell Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports that many Blue Jays are fed up with manager Cito Gaston and don't want him to return. One source says it's "nearly a mutiny" in the clubhouse.
- Eric Wedge wants to manage again at some point, according to MLB.com's Anthony Castrovince.
- Marlins prospect Mike Stanton still projects as a middle-of-the-order 40 homer threat, according to Ben Badler of Baseball America.
- Phillies GM Ruben Amaro Jr. gets high marks from his predecessors, according to MLB.com's Todd Zolecki. Former Phillies GMs Ed Wade and Pat Gillick praised Amaro's moves.
- Mike Sweeney is having the most fun he's ever had in the big leagues, according to Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times. He wants to return and play one more year for the Mariners or the Angels.
- As Jon Heyman of SI.com notes, players chose Michael Weiner as the next executive director of the MLBPA.
- Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune doesn't expect Jermaine Dye, Josh Fields or Octavio Dotel to return to the White Sox next year.
Cubs Rumors: Johnson, DeRosa, Zambrano
Some rumors on the Cubs as their season comes to an end…
- Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times says Cubs GM Jim Hendry had one of his worst offseasons last winter.
- Aramis Ramirez tells Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune it's not Hendry's fault that the Milton Bradley signing didn't work out.
- In the same article we hear that Ted Lilly wants the Cubs to hold onto Reed Johnson and bring back Mark DeRosa.
- And Carlos Zambrano has a prediction: "Like Arnold Schwarzenegger said, 'I'll be back'." Dunno if Schwarzenegger had a no-trade clause, but Zambrano does, so he has a say in the matter.
Blalock Knows He Won’t Return To Rangers
Hank Blalock knows he won't return to the Rangers in 2010, according to MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan. GM Jon Daniels hinted that the club could have interest in free agents-to-be Marlon Byrd and Ivan Rodriguez, but hasn't made any such overtures to Blalock.
"Nothing has been said to me, but I know I won't be playing here next year," he said. "It is what it is. I'll just move on."
Because Michael Young, Chris Davis and Justin Smoak have the corner infield positions covered and Josh Hamilton, Nelson Cruz, David Murphy and Julio Borbon give the Rangers four players to DH and patrol the outfield, there's little room for Blalock in the team's plans. Manager Ron Washington says it's best for Blalock to move on if he wants playing time next season.
Though Blalock's production has fallen off in the second half, many teams could still have interest in the corner infielder.
Atkins Doesn’t Expect To Return To Rockies
Garrett Atkins tells Jim Armstrong of the Denver Post that he's enjoying his time in Colorado immensely – he just doesn't expect it to last beyond this year. Atkins knows that his offensive struggles likely mean his tenure with the Rockies will come to an end soon.
"Obviously, I don't think I've got too many more games in a Rockies uniform," Atkins said. "I'm just trying to enjoy it with these guys."
Ian Stewart has emerged as a cheaper alternative at third base, and there's no room for Atkins at first because of Todd Helton. Atkins hit .226/.304/.341 this year with nine homers, while Stewart hit 25 homers and posted a .790 OPS.
Atkins made $7.05MM this year and the Rockies couldn't offer him less than $5.6MM in arbitration, so they'll presumably non-tender or trade him.
Odds & Ends: Sandberg, Yanks, Padres, Upton
Some links to read before the final weekend of the regular season…
- Ryne Sandberg tells Chris De Luca of the Chicago Sun-Times that his "ideal job" would be managing the Cubs.
- Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News says C.C. Sabathia and Mike Mussina are the only two Yankee pitchers of the decade to deliver big seasons right after signing big free agent contracts.
- Bill Center of the San Diego Union-Tribune says there's still a lot of uncertainty surrounding Padres GM Kevin Towers.
- USA Today's Bob Nightengale says (via Twitter) that the Giants expect Randy Johnson to retire after the season.
- Nightengale says teams expect the Rays to deal B.J. Upton this winter.
- Ray Ratto of the San Francisco Chronicle says the Giants need Bengie Molina and Buster Posey next year.
- Justin Masterson tells John Tomase of the Boston Herald that his former pitching coach, John Farrell, would make a good manager.
Brian Giles Wants To Keep Playing
Chris Jenkins of the San Diego Union-Tribune points out that this could be the final weekend of Brian Giles' professional career. Giles says his body still feels good enough to play, but he realizes he'll have a limited role if he stays with the Padres, so he's open to other clubs.
"I still think I could be a good, productive major league player," Giles said. "If it's not in San Diego, then I have a feeling it's going to be somewhere else. I've got to believe there are teams willing to take a chance as long as you're healthy."
The 38-year-old raves about his time in San Diego, his hometown, but understands the Padres may move on. Giles posted a .191/.277/.271 line in 254 plate appearances this year and played suspect right field defense, posting a -14.5 UZR/150 in 500 innings. If Giles wants to play again he'll probably have to sign a minor league deal.
Rangers Aren’t Interested In Bradley
The Rangers aren't interested in bringing Milton Bradley back to Texas, according to MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan. Sources make it clear to Sullivan that the club won't look to re-acquire the now-available outfielder. A week ago, Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported that the Rangers feel Bradley became selfish at the end of last season.
Bradley, who led the American League with a .999 OPS last year, hit .257/.378/.397 in the first year of his multi-year deal with the Cubs. There are two years and $21MM remaining on the 31-year-old's contract.
The Royals aren't interested in Bradley; the Padres are open-minded about him and other teams could get involved, too.
Odds & Ends: Padres, Molina, Cubs, Unit
Another round of links for the afternoon…
- ESPN.com's Rob Neyer would like to see big market teams share more revenue with their small market rivals. Still, he says MLB has been competitive compared to football, basketball and hockey.
- Padres CEO Jeff Moorad was non-committal about GM Kevin Towers' future on XX 1090 in San Diego, according to MLB.com's Corey Brock (via Twitter). Moorad said Towers is the GM now, and added that the Padres are evaluating all levels of the organization.
- Towers said in no uncertain terms that he wants to be in San Diego.
- Bengie Molina's agent tells the AP that his client wants to return to San Francisco (via ESPN). We heard in late August that Molina wants to sign a two-year deal. ESPN.com's Keith Law says the Giants should pass.
- Maury Brown of the Biz of Baseball notes that the Cubs have drawn three million fans for the sixth straight season. Along with the Cubs, only the Angels, Dodgers, Yankees and Cardinals have accomplished the feat.
- Randy Johnson tells the AP (via the East Valley Tribune) that he's in no rush to decide on his future.
- Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports hands out his postseason awards and issues a number of apologies to people around the game.
Gammons On Wedge, Halladay, Giants
ESPN.com's Peter Gammons describes how hard it is to win when there's no room for error. It's tough for small-market teams like the Indians and Blue Jays to win when every mistake and injury costs them. Here are Gammons' latest rumors:
- Indians GM Mark Shapiro never felt that the club's disappointing season was manager Eric Wedge's fault, but someone had to go. Shapiro still fired Wedge, but could any manager have done much better with a team that traded its veterans (most notably Victor Martinez and Cliff Lee) and endured an injury-plagued season from its best player (Grady Sizemore)?
- If the Blue Jays can't sign Roy Halladay long-term, they can expect to get 60% of what J.P. Ricciardi could have obtained if he had dealt the Jays' ace within the AL East back in July.
- Gammons finds it hard to believe that there are questions remaining about Giants GM Brian Sabean, whose future in San Francisco remains uncertain. In spite of some over-zealous spending (Aaron Rowand and Barry Zito come to mind), there's a lot to like about the Giants.
- Mets ownership doesn't like the team to spend above-slot on its draft picks, which weakens the team's minor league system. Gammons says their system has become deeper, however.
The Market For Hank Blalock
Hank Blalock will become a free agent after the season, and there's no guarantee that the Rangers will want him back. They paid Blalock $6.2MM this year, but they have uncertain payroll flexibility going forward and an abundance of talented position players.
Michael Young should combine with Chris Davis and Justin Smoak to man the corner infield positions. Josh Hamilton, Julio Borbon, Nelson Cruz and David Murphy give manager Ron Washington four outfielders for three positions. Marlon Byrd wants to stay in Texas and Andruw Jones could conceivably return, too.
If Blalock hits the market, as expected, he won't be a ranked free agent, so teams won't have to hand over a draft pick to sign him. He can play either corner infield position; the 28-year-old was sharp in about 550 innings at first this year, according to UZR, but played just one game at the hot corner.
But Blalock has made his name at the plate ever since he broke in with a 29 homer season as a 22-year-old. He hit 19 homers in the first half this year, putting up an .854 OPS. Since the break, he's managed just six long balls and his second-half OPS is only .590.
The late summer slump will hurt Blalock this offseason, but some teams should still have interest. The Angels, Mariners, Twins, Orioles and Cardinals could all have openings at third this offseason; the Mets and Braves will need to sign first basemen and the Jays and White Sox are among the teams that could be looking for a DH.