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Bo Porter Among Additional Possible Rockies Managerial Candidates

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Former Astros skipper and current Braves special assistant Bo Porter is receiving at least some consideration for the Rockies’ open managerial position, according to MLB.com’s Thomas Harding. The report identifies a number of other possibilities on a growing list of names who appear to be on Colorado’s radar.

Another former Astros’ manager, current Indians bench coach Brad Mills, has also come up. His Cleveland staff mate, first base coach Sandy Alomar Jr., is another name to watch. Obviously, neither of those possible candidates can be pursued in earnest at present, with the Indians just opening play in the ALCS.

Two other bench coaches who could draw interest from the Rockies are Dave Martinez of the Cubs, who also is busy with his current position, and Ron Wotus of the Giants. We heard earlier today that Wotus had received contact from a team with a managerial opening. Given that the Diamondbacks — the other team with an opening — haven’t yet resolved their front office situation, it seems reasonable to suspect that it was the Rockies who came calling.

Today’s report significantly expands the group of names tied in some way to the Rockies’ top dugout post. Last we checked in, the scuttlebutt was that former Brewers skipper Ron Roenicke (most recently of the Angels), former Padres manager Bud Black (ditto), Red Sox bench coach Torey Lovullo, Braves first base coach Eddie Perez, and Rockies Triple-A skipper Glenallen Hill had some form of connection to the gig — though in some cases, the reporting involved interest on their behalf rather than the team’s.

All told, that slate largely represents a “who’s who” of skippers-to-be around the game. Those that haven’t yet taken managerial jobs at the major league level have at least interviewed for jobs with other organizations.

Still, the Rockies aren’t just looking to plug in an experienced hand. According to Harding, Colorado hopes to find someone “who will apply statistics and other research into managing and coaching, and who are adept at various methods for creating team chemistry.” In that regard, certainly, the organization seems to be participating in a near-universal trend leaguewide.

Danny Salazar Won't Throw In ALCS

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Brewers first-rounder Corey Ray recently required surgery to fix a torn meniscus, Todd Rosiak of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel reports on Twitter. It seems he suffered the injury while participating in fall instructional activities. The 22-year-old was taken fifth overall out of the University of Louisville in this year’s draft. He spent most of his first professional season at the High-A level, where he struggled to a .247/.307/.385 batting line. Though he’ll lose some opportunities in instructs, it seems fair to think that the meniscus issue won’t pose a major road block in Ray’s hopeful path to the majors.

Here are a few more notes from the central divisions:

  • Though indications had been that the Indians may be able to receive a contribution from righty Danny Salazar in the ALCS, it turns out he won’t quite be ready, as Paul Hoynes of the Plain Dealer reports. “He’s doing pretty well, but he’s not back to throwing all his pitches or letting it go at 100 percent,” said manager Terry Francona. With the team’s “first priority being about getting him back healthy,” said the skipper, Salazar won’t be pushed.
  • The Cardinals will have some sorting to do in their rotation this winter, and Ben Frederickson of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (slideshow link) handicaps the odds of the various internal options heading into the offseason. With Lance Lynn hopefully returning from Tommy John surgery and Alex Reyes all but nailing down a spot, that could leave several rather heralded arms on the outside looking in. Among them are Luke Weaver, Jaime Garcia, and even Michael Wacha. Weaver excelled in the upper minors and showed plenty of promise (but also some areas for improvement) in his MLB debut; he’ll likely return to Triple-A. Garcia remains a major question mark with the team undecided on his option. “There were nights where he looked like he was a No. 1 or No. 2 starter, and then there were nights where I’m sure the manager wanted to punch me,” GM John Mozeliak said of the enigmatic southpaw. And in the biggest head-turner of them all, Wacha is likely out “on paper,” as things stand, in Frederickson’s analysis. That’s still likely open for debate, and certainly is subject to health considerations.

Danny Salazar Working Toward ALCS Return

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The Indians continue to see progress from right Danny Salazar, as ESPN.com’s Jerry Crasnick reports. He is readying for a sim game today or tomorrow as he works to return from a forearm strain, after which Cleveland will determine whether he’s ready to work from the bullpen in the upcoming ALCS. That would provide the Indians with a notable boost to a bullpen that figures to be a key to the team’s chances.

Here are a few more injury notes from around the game:

  • As they hope for their own trip to the league championship round, the Nationals don’t appear to have quite as much cause for optimism for their own injured starter, Stephen Strasburg, as MLB.com’s Jamal Collier reports. Manager Dusty Baker said that Strasburg, who’s dealing with forearm problems, was throwing well in a pen session but elected to cut it short after experiencing discomfort. Baker did suggest it wasn’t a true setback, and Chelsea Janes of the Washington Post notes on Twitter that Strasburg was tossing from flat ground yesterday. That seems to suggest there’s at least a glimmer of hope that he’d be available if the team reaches the NLCS, though perhaps a hypothetical World Series return would be more plausible.
  • The Blue Jays appear set to utilize lefty Francisco Liriano in the ALCS after he reported positive developments after being struck by a liner in the divisional series, Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet.ca reports on Twitter. Liriano says he’s symptom-free and ready to go this weekend. The 32-year-old pitched well down the stretch while working mostly as a starter, but has been used from the pen thus far in the postseason. He’ll likely factor as an important swingman as the Jays seek to move on to the playoffs’ final round.
  • Giants outfielder Angel Pagan was hopeful he’d be able to go for last night’s thrilling NLDS Game 4, Andrew Baggarly of the Mercury News reported. His back spasms had him at day-to-day status, the veteran said. Ultimately, though, Pagan did not appear in the contest, in which San Francisco suffered another stunning bullpen meltdown to end its season. The 35-year-old’s five-year run with the Giants may be over, with the seemingly minor back issue not doing much to damper a nice bounceback campaign. Over 543 plate appearances on the year, he posted a sturdy .277/.331/.418 batting line with 15 steals and a dozen home runs. The switch-hitting Pagan was particularly good against right-handed pitching, and seems likely to draw a fair bit of interest as a center field-capable fourth outfielder on the open market.
  • Royals righty Chris Young underwent surgery to what the team described as his “bilateral core and right-sided adductor,” per a club announcement (via MLB.com’s Jeffrey Flanagan; Twitter links). He’s only expected to need eight weeks to recover, meaning that the procedure shouldn’t have much of an impact on his ramp-up next spring.

Danny Salazar Progressing Toward Return

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Durability is the main reason the Mets should re-sign impending free agent Bartolo Colon, opines Joel Sherman of the New York Post. The right-hander will be 44 next season, but he still led the Mets in starts (33) and innings pitched (191 2/3) this year. Colon hasn’t thrown fewer than 190 1/3 frames in a season since 2012, and he’s one of just 14 pitchers to make 30-plus starts in each of the past four campaigns, notes Sherman. It also helps that Colon remains highly effective, having logged a 3.43 ERA to go with 6.01 K/9 against 1.5 BB/9 this year. If they let Colon go, the Mets will have plenty of other rotation options on hand in Noah Syndergaard, Jacob deGrom, Matt Harvey, Steven Matz, Zack Wheeler, Seth Lugo and Robert Gsellman, though injuries or inexperience are concerns with certain members of the group. Whether it’s with the Mets or someone else, Colon should be in line for a raise over the $7.25MM he made this year.

Here’s more from around the majors:

  • An important reinforcement could be on the way for the Indians, who will have a chance to sweep the Red Sox on Sunday to advance to the ALCS. Injured right-hander Danny Salazar threw a 35-pitch bullpen session in Arizona on Friday and is hoping to come back from a month-long absence if the Indians advance, writes Jordan Bastian of MLB.com. Salazar started in all 25 of his regular-season appearances before succumbing to a forearm strain in early September, but he’ll work out of the bullpen in the event of a return. As of now, Salazar is only throwing fastballs and changeups because his curveball was his main source of discomfort, per Bastian.
  • With Walt Weiss gone and the Rockies in search of a new manager, the team parted with multiple members of his coaching staff Saturday, according to Bob Nightengale of USA Today (Twitter link). Colorado let go of bench coach Tom Runnells, hitting coach Blake Doyle, first base coach Eric Young, and catching coach/defensive coordinator Rene Lachemann. Pitching coach Steve Foster, bullpen coach Darren Holmes and third base coach Stu Cole are still with the team, but it’s unknown if they’ll keep their jobs.
  • Nationals outfielder Chris Heisey didn’t enjoy his one-year stint with the Dodgers, he told Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times. Heisey joined the club prior to the 2015 season and then spent the year shuffling between Triple-A Oklahoma City and LA. The Dodgers optioned Heisey five times, recalled him five times, and also released and re-signed him. “On the personal side, they may not realize the toll it may take on a player’s confidence when he’s going up and down, taken off the roster, put back on the roster, in my case released and signed back,” said Heisey. “It was a crazy year. I made some good friends there, so it wasn’t all bad. But it was tough.” Heisey collected 72 plate appearances as a Dodger and another 262 in OKC. The 31-year-old then signed a minor league with the Nationals during the offseason, but all 155 of his PAs since have come with Washington. “I think this year has been a lot better in that regard — being comfortable, being with the same guys all year, competing at the highest level and not having to go back and forth and say goodbye to my family so many different times. That was one of the harder parts,” added Heisey, whose Nats dropped the first game of the NLDS to the Dodgers on Friday.

Indians Will Exercise Carlos Santana's Option

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Jon Heyman of Fan Rag gives his odds on the postseason and provides a host of interesting information in his latest notes column. Here are a few highlights:

  • While there’s been some turnover in the White Sox’ dugout, as bench coach Rick Renteria has moved up to manager as a replacement for the departing Robin Ventura, changes to the field staff don’t figure to impact pitching coach Don Cooper, per Heyman. In fact, the South Siders have actually made an extension offer to their well-respected pitching coach, who is on the brink of entering his 16th season at that post.
  • While it’s hardly a surprise, Heyman notes that the Indians will exercise their $12MM option on Carlos Santana. For a player with a .259/.366/.498 with a career-high 34 homers, that decision was a no-brainer, even for a typically cost-conscious club like Cleveland.
  • The Rockies quietly made a run at Cincinnati’s Zack Cozart prior to the non-waiver trade deadline, knowing that Trevor Story, whose last game came on July 30, was ailing and could miss the remainder of the season. Talks continued into August, per Heyman, but Cozart’s own injury issues arose and made a deal more difficult. It’d have been interesting to see the Rox land Cozart, as he’d have once again become a trade chip for them in the offseason with Story expected to be ready to go for the 2017 season. While talks don’t seem likely to be revisited this winter, the note is another reminder that Cozart is a desirable trade chip for the Reds, who also had a near-swap that would’ve sent Cozart to the Mariners on Aug. 1. Heyman also reminds that longtime GM/president Walt Jocketty will step into an adviser role this winter, leaving GM Dick Williams as the top decision-maker in Cincinnati’s baseball ops department.
  • Sticking with the Rockies, Heyman chronicles the rift that grew and eventually became irreconcilable between now-former manager Walt Weiss and GM Jeff Bridich. Per the report, there was a near-total breakdown of communications between the two. Weiss expressed concern with owner Dick Monfort — who was seemingly preparing to give Weiss a two-year extension and tried to convince him to stay. But the skipper didn’t believe that the two leaders could co-exist, and Monfort ultimately stuck with his GM.
  • Tigers owner Mike Ilitch was serious about pursuing slugger Chris Davis in free agency last winter — so much so that he was willing to guarantee something approaching $200MM, says Heyman. Newly-installed GM Al Avila, however, recommended that the team take another course. Though Davis has been reasonably productive, he hasn’t produced at the levels that earned him his ultimate contract — a $161MM deal with the Orioles.
  • As the Brewers’ brass has suggested, Heyman says that the team is not inclined to utilize Jonathan Villar at third base. With Orlando Arcia seemingly set for his first full season at short, that may well mean that Villar is destined to shift over to second base. If that’s the case, it’s not clear just what role Scooter Gennett will have. The 26-year-old is entering his first season of arbitration eligibility after a posting a below-average .263/.317/.412 batting line in his 542 plate appearances in 2016.
  • Meanwhile, the Brewers may not be sold on the idea of tendering Chris Carter a contract. While the team has suggested he’s expected back, Carter’s 41 homers also make him a good bet to earn a rather significant arbitration raise.
  • The Mariners appear to be “leaning toward” picking up a $7MM option over outfielder Seth Smith. Smith, 34, isn’t quite an everyday player, but has received over 400 plate appearances in each of his two campaigns in Seattle. This year, he hit .249/.342/.415 with 16 home runs, just under his overall career marks. At $7MM, the M’s would be getting Smith for something like the going annual rate for a fourth outfielder, while limiting its commitment to a single season.

Twins Hire Derek Falvey To Oversee Baseball Operations

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The Twins have officially announced that they’ve hired Indians assistant GM Derek Falvey as their executive vice president and chief baseball officer. Falvey will join the Twins once the Indians’ season is over. Rob Antony will continue as interim GM until then. Twins Daily’s Jeremy Nygaard and ESPN’s Keith Law were among the first to tweet that the Twins would hire Falvey, with Yahoo! Sports’ Jeff Passan tweeting that Falvey had emerged as a favorite.

“I believe the addition of Derek Falvey to the Minnesota Twins will markedly enhance our organizational excellence and bring championship baseball back to Minnesota,” says Twins Owner Jim Pohlad.

“It’s a tremendous honor to have the opportunity to lead the Twins baseball operation.  This is a proud, resilient franchise, and I’m eager to return championship-caliber baseball to the Twin Cities,” says Falvey. “We will work diligently and collectively to select and develop top-performers, advance our processes, and nurture a progressive culture that will make fans across Twins Territory proud.”

The Twins had been linked to a number of young executives as they look for a replacement for recently dismissed GM Terry Ryan. Among the other names known to have been in the mix were Rays vice president of baseball operations Chaim Bloom, Royals assistant GM J.J. Picollo and Cubs senior vice president of player development Jason McLeod.

The 33-year-old Falvey will become one of baseball’s youngest executives and represents a significant departure from the status quo for Minnesota. His rise to the position of president is a surprise, to say the least, as he’s spent less than one full season as an assistant GM. Falvey was promoted to that post last October in conjunction with the promotions of Chris Antonetti to president of baseball operations and Mike Chernoff to general manager. Prior to that, he spent four seasons as Cleveland’s director of baseball operations. The Boston native holds a degree in economics from Trinity College, where he also played baseball, and has contributed to the Cleveland front office in many capacities. In addition to his longstanding role in the team’s player development process, Falvey has overseen the advanced scouting department and worked with Antonetti and Chernoff on “financial, statistical and contractual dealings,” per the Indians’ media guide.

Falvey figures to be the first of multiple new hires for the Twins, who reportedly will allow their new president to hire a general manager to work underneath him as well. Beyond that, changes atop a baseball operations hierarchy often lead to personnel shuffling further down the pecking order, and it shouldn’t come as a surprise if further new faces join the Minnesota front office. One name that won’t be changing, however, is manager Paul Molitor, whom owner Jim Pohlad has already stated will remain his manager in 2017.

Indians Set ALDS Rotation

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Indians manager Terry Francona announced Saturday that Trevor Bauer, not Cy Young hopeful Corey Kluber, will start Game 1 of the American League Division Series on Thursday (via Jordan Bastian of MLB.com). Kluber will then take the ball in Game 2 against the Boston. Those two would also start the fourth and fifth games of the series, if necessary, with Josh Tomlin handling Game 3. Kluber has been dealing with a mild quad strain, which the Indians think makes Bauer a better fit for both the first and fourth games – the latter of which would come on three days’ rest. Bauer wrapped up his regular season Saturday with a quality start in a win over the Royals, giving him a 4.26 ERA, 7.96 K/9, 3.32 BB/9 and 48.7 percent ground-ball rate in a career-high 190 innings.

More from around the majors:

  • In order to bounce back from a disappointing 2016 and return to the playoffs next year, the Pirates will need to focus on pitching and defense during the winter, opines Travis Sawchik of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. Trading five-time All-Star center fielder Andrew McCutchen could improve the team in those areas, argues Sawchik, who observes that the soon-to-be 30-year-old has declined significantly as a defender, baserunner and hitter this season (though, as Sawchik notes, his bat has come alive over the past two months). With right-hander Ivan Nova likely to depart as a free agent, the Bucs will have another need to fill in an already questionable-looking rotation, and Sawchik posits that dealing McCutchen could land them a replacement. McCutchen has two years and a reasonable $28.5MM remaining on his contract, and the Pirates have a possible in-house successor in top prospect Austin Meadows. If McCutchen is still in Pittsburgh in 2017, general manager Neal Huntington expects a much better season from the 2013 National League MVP. “With the foundation we are working from, we believe Andrew is going to be one of those guys that has a quality bounce-back year,” Huntingon told Sawchik.
  • The Athletics are reportedly unlikely to bring back Danny Valencia in 2017, but the third baseman/right fielder hopes to stay in Oakland. Valencia told John Hickey of the Mercury News he’d “like to think I’ve cemented my position here for next year.” The 32-year-old has been an easily above-average offensive producer dating back to last season, his first with the A’s, but there have been rumors of clubhouse issues with Valencia and he did get into an altercation with then-teammate Billy Butler in August. Valencia, who’s on a $3.15MM salary, has hit a solid .289/.349/.450 with 17 home runs in 513 plate appearances this year and is scheduled to go through arbitration for the third and final time during the offseason.
  • With the possible exception of a Ryan Braun trade, the Brewers’ upcoming offseason should be much quieter than last winter, writes Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. In GM David Stearns’ first offseason at the helm, the rebuilding Brewers turned over half the 40-man roster – something Stearns is pleased with a year later. Milwaukee has “increased the amount of young talent on our team and throughout the organization,” Stearns told Haudricourt. “The more young talent you have, the fewer spots you have to fill. So, I think it’s fair to say it would be unlikely for us to have the same amount of roster turnover.”

Indians Activate Yan Gomes

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Angels first baseman Albert Pujols won’t suit up again this year after undergoing “shockwave therapy” to treat plantar fasciitis in his right foot, as Pedro Moura of the Los Angeles Times was among those to tweet. Pujols previously dealt with that malady in his opposing foot back in 2013. Certainly, he’ll have plenty of time to rest and recover, though it’s yet another nick for a player who’ll soon turn 37. The legendary slugger continues a slow decline at the plate, though he’s still a useful hitter who has scarcely missed any time in his 16-year career. Over 650 plate appearances in 2016, Pujols posted a .268/.323/.457 slash with 31 home runs. The Halos will hope that he can at least maintain that level of productivity, as he’s slated to earn another $140MM over the next five seasons.

Here are a few more health-related notes from around the game:

  • The Rockies are shutting down outfielder Gerardo Parra after he received a platelet-rich plasma injection in his left ankle, MLB.com’s Thomas Harding tweets. Parra has not found success in the first of his three years under contract in Colorado, putting up a .253/.271/.399 slash (despite playing half his games at Coors Field) in 381 plate appearances. With poorly-rated defense and baserunning mixed in, Parra has been worth a remarkable -1.8 fWAR and -2.9 rWAR despite playing only a little more than half the year due to ankle problems.
  • The Rangers have officially activated outfielder Shin-Soo Choo from the 15-day DL, meaning that he’s ready for game action after missing extensive time with a forearm fracture. Choo, 34, will look to lock in and show he’s healthy for the postseason, where he could provide a nice boost for Texas. Though he has been limited to 198 plate appearances thus far, Choo owns a useful .247/.369/.416 batting line.
  • Indians catcher Yan Gomes, too, is back earlier than expected, as Paul Hoynes of the Plain Dealer reports (Twitter links). Expectations are that he’ll only be available for the time being to play behind the plate, as he’s still regaining strength in his wrist after suffering a fracture. Manager Terry Francona says that Gomes is able to hit, but won’t do so in game action just yet. It’s unclear whether he’ll be under consideration for a spot in the ALDS roster, but given the limitations perhaps a return for the ALCS would be more plausible — if Cleveland can advance and decides to roll the dice on a player who has missed much of the year and has failed to produce at the plate when healthy.
  • There’s some promising news for Pirates righty A.J. Schugel, who won’t require surgery on his rotator cuff, as Bill Brink of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports on Twitter. Instead, he’ll rest up and rehab his inflamed shoulder over the offseason. The 27-year-old had a solid campaign before the injury arose, contributing 52 innings in 36 appearances from the Pittsburgh pen while posting 8.0 K/9 against 2.3 BB/9.

Indians Hope To Bring Back Mike Napoli For 2017

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The Indians hope to re-sign first baseman Mike Napoli this winter, according to a report from Jon Heyman of Fan Rag. It’s not known whether the club will issue the veteran slugger a qualifying offer, he adds.

There certainly seems to be mutual interest, and Cleveland still could use a first baseman/DH to pair with Carlos Santana — whose option seems all but certain to be exercised. Napoli has performed well, swatting 34 home runs in 631 plate appearances and compiling a .242/.338/.473 slash. And he seems to have taken up an important place in the clubhouse.

Still, there are limits to the veteran’s value. He certainly isn’t young, and his total output adjusts to a 116 wRC+ and 106 OPS+, which isn’t exactly world-beating for a player with his defensive limitations. When it comes to the glove, Napoli received negative ratings from both UZR and DRS after previously rating as a quality defender at first.

All said, it’s easy to see both the cause for the continued interest but also for the questions over how much to spend. At $16.7MM, the qualifying offer seems rather steep — particularly with numerous other slugging types set to reach the open market — and it’s not impossible to imagine him accepting.

The best case for Napoli, of course, would be to hit free agency without the necessity of draft compensation hanging over him, as that could significantly tamp down market interest. He will be seeking multiple years this winter, Heyman notes, after settling for a one-year, $7MM contract with the Indians — as well as up to $2MM in plate appearance bonuses that he may max out — following a disappointing 2015 campaign.

While there’s no indication that team and player have discussed a new contract at this point, it’s possible to imagine discussions taking place before the qualifying offer deadline (or while Napoli is mulling it, if issued). Ultimately, it may be that some kind of two-year accommodation to keep Napoli in Cleveland could make sense for all involved.

Latest On Michael Brantley’s Shoulder Injury

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There were some conflicting indications today about what the Indians can expect from outfielder Michael Brantley in 2017. Jon Heyman of Fan Rag cited sources who suggested that Brantley was at risk of “miss[ing] significant time next year” after undergoing shoulder surgery, but that’s not quite how the team sees it.

Both Brantley and Cleveland president of baseball operations Chris Antonetti contested the idea that such a scenario was likely, as Paul Hoynes of the Plain Dealer reports. “I’m out again?” Brantley queried. “Maybe he knows something I don’t.”

Antonetti reiterated, as he had to Heyman, that the team has not learned anything that would change the initial timeline. Doctors have indicated that the star outfielder would need four to five months to recover from his mid-August surgery date, which would leave him ready to go for Spring Training.

Of course, there still seems to be a fair bit of uncertainty in Brantley’s situation. After all, it had been expected that he’d return to full health for the majority of the 2016 campaign, but the 29-year-old appeared in only 11 games. While it seems there’s hope that the full scope of his shoulder troubles have been identified and addressed, he isn’t exactly dealing with a straightforward issue.

Cleveland has rather remarkably succeeded without Brantley, arguably the team’s best position player, but that doesn’t make him any less important moving forward. He is guaranteed just one more season under his previous extension, with the Indians also possessing a $11MM option (with a $1MM buyout) over his 2018 campaign.

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