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Tigers Outright Three Players To Triple-A

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The Tigers have outrighted outfielder Jorge Bonifacio and right-handers Dario Agrazal and Dereck Rodriguez to Triple-A after the trio cleared waivers, the team announced (Twitter link).  Left-hander Nick Ramirez also cleared waivers and elected to become a free agent.

Bonifacio saw the most MLB action in 2020, making 94 plate appearances over 30 games with Detroit and hitting .221/.277/.326.  Signed to a minor league deal last winter, Bonifacio has played 217 games with the Tigers and Royals since the start of the 2017 season.  Once a noted prospect who received some top-100 attention prior to the 2014 season, Bonifacio has been trying to get on track since an 80-game PED suspension in 2018.

Ramirez has spent the last two years in the Detroit organization, making his big league debut in 2019 and immediately delivering some solid numbers (4.07 ERA, 2.11 K/BB rate, 8.4 K/9) in his first 79 2/3 innings as a big leaguer.  The southpaw didn’t see much action in 2020, however, tossing only 10 2/3 frames and posting a 5.91 ERA.  The 31-year-old Ramirez will now head into free agency offering both some durability as a multi-inning reliever and some quality career splits (.227/.306/.355) against left-handed batters.

Rodriguez appeared in two games with the Giants this season before being claimed off waivers by the Tigers at the end of August.  The righty emerged as a rotation candidate in San Francisco during his 2018 rookie season but he has a 5.94 ERA over his last 103 Major League innings, in large part due to a whopping 23 homers allowed in that small sample size.

This is the third consecutive offseason that Agrazal has found himself outrighted off a 40-man roster, having been cut by the Tigers last winter and the Pirates in the 2018-19 offseason.  The 25-year-old made Detroit’s Opening Day roster but didn’t pitch at all this season due to a forearm strain.  Agrazal has a 3.62 ERA, 4.48 K/BB rate, and 5.8 K/9 over 608 2/3 minor league innings (all in Pittsburgh’s farm system), starting 111 of his 114 career games.  His big league resume consists of 73 1/3 innings of 4.91 ERA ball with the Pirates in 2019, before the Tigers acquired him last November.

Tigers Interview Phil Nevin

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The Tigers have interviewed Yankees third base coach Phil Nevin for their managerial vacancy, Jason Beck of MLB.com reports (via Twitter). He’s the third member of the Yankees’ staff to be interviewed by the Tigers, joining bench coach Carlos Mendoza and hitting coach Marcus Thames.

Nevin, 49, is no stranger to the Tigers organization. The former big league first baseman spent three of his dozen MLB seasons in a Detroit uniform and, since retiring, has served as the manager of the Tigers’ Double-A and Triple-A affiliates. He’s gone on to manage the Diamondbacks’ Triple-A affiliate and serve as a third base coach with the D-backs and Yankees organizations. New York hired him to his current post in the 2017-18 offseason.

Tigers GM Al Avila made some headlines when he said that he wouldn’t rule out either A.J. Hinch or Alex Cora in his search for recently retired Ron Gardenhire’s replacement, but to this point the Tigers have interviewed a fairly broad array of candidates. Beyond this trio of Yankees staffers, Avila & Co. have spoken with Royals bench coach Pedro Grifol, Pirates bench coach Don Kelly (another former Tiger), Dodgers first base coach George Lombard and Cubs third base coach Will Venable. Among in-house candidates, Detroit has spoken to current interim manager and hitting coach Lloyd McClendon.

All of that can be seen in MLBTR’s 2021 Managerial Tracker, which has updates on both the Red Sox and White Sox vacancies as well.

 

2021 Managerial Search Tracker

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Three teams are currently on the hunt for new managers, and this post will keep track of the many names reported and rumored to be part of these searches.  The latest…

Red Sox

Hired

  • Alex Cora: former Red Sox manager (currently suspended until conclusion of the World Series)

Interviewed

  • Mike Bell: Twins bench coach
  • Sam Fuld: Phillies director of integrative baseball performance
  • Don Kelly: Pirates bench coach
  • Carlos Mendoza: Yankees bench coach
  • James Rowson: Marlins bench coach
  • Skip Schumaker: Padres associate manager
  • Luis Urueta: Diamondbacks bench coach
  • Will Venable: Cubs third base coach

Reportedly Under Consideration

  • George Lombard: Dodgers first base coach

*****

Tigers

Hired

  • A.J. Hinch: former Diamondbacks/Astros manager

Interviewed

  • Dave Clark: Tigers first base coach
  • Sal Fasano: Braves catching instructor
  • Pedro Grifol: Royals bench coach
  • Don Kelly: Pirates bench coach
  • Mark Kotsay: Athletics quality control coach
  • George Lombard: Dodgers first base coach
  • Lloyd McClendon: current Tigers interim manager, former Pirates/Mariners manager
  • Carlos Mendoza: Yankees bench coach
  • Phil Nevin: Yankees third base coach
  • Matt Quatraro: Rays bench coach
  • Marcus Thames: Yankees hitting coach
  • Will Venable: Cubs third base coach

Reportedly Under Consideration

  • Alex Cora: former Red Sox manager (currently suspended until conclusion of the World Series)
  • Fredi Gonzalez: Orioles bench coach, former Braves/Marlins manager
  • Mike Redmond: Rockies bench coach
  • Vance Wilson: Royals third base coach

*****

White Sox

Hired

  • Tony La Russa: Hall-of-Famer, former Cardinals/Athletics/White Sox manager

Interviewed

  • Willie Harris: Reds baserunning and outfield coordinator

Reportedly Drew Consideration

  • A.J. Hinch: former Astros/Diamondbacks manager (currently suspended until conclusion of the World Series)

Red Sox, Tigers Interview Carlos Mendoza For Managerial Vacancies

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Yankees bench coach Carlos Mendoza has emerged as a candidate for two different managerial openings, George A. King III of the New York Post reports.  Both the Red Sox and Tigers have spoken with the 40-year-old Mendoza, who just completed his third season on New York’s big league coaching staff.

Mendoza is a long-time member of the Yankees’ organization, dating back to his time as a minor league player in the team’s farm system from 2006-09.  That 2009 season saw Mendoza transition into a number of different coaching and managerial roles, including stints as manager of the Yankees’ rookie league team and their A-ball affiliate in Charleston.  Mendoza was named to the Major League coaching staff as a quality control coach and infield instructor prior to the 2018 season, and was then promoted to bench coach last offseason.

As King notes, there is some speculation that Alex Cora and A.J. Hinch could be unofficial favorites to respectively manage the Red Sox and Tigers, though the clubs are prohibited from interviewing either manager until their one-year suspensions (for their roles in the Astros’ sign-stealing scandal) are over.  Both Cora and Hinch are under suspension until the conclusion of the World Series.

In the interim, both Boston and Detroit have been linked to several other candidates, whether out of due diligence or perhaps as a sign that Cora and Hinch aren’t necessarily the top choices.  Mendoza joins Cubs third base coach Will Venable and Pirates bench coach Don Kelly as the only candidates known to have interviewed with both the Tigers and Red Sox.

Tigers Interview Will Venable For Managerial Vacancy

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  • Cubs third base coach Will Venable spoke with the Tigers about their managerial vacancy, NBC Sports Chicago’s Gordon Wittenmyer reports.  Venable was first cited as a potential candidate for the Tigers job back in September, and Venable has also recently interviewed with the Red Sox about their managerial job.  Beyond the Red Sox and Tigers, “other clubs also have sought the Cubs’ permission to talk with Venable about other, non-managerial openings in their organizations,” Wittenmyer writes.  A veteran of nine MLB seasons, Venable has spent the last three years in Wrigleyville as a special assistant to Theo Epstein, as well as a first base and third base coach.  This is the second straight winter that Venable has been a popular candidate, as the Cubs considered him for their own manager’s job last offseason, and the Astros and Giants also interviewed him for their managerial openings.

Tigers Interview Don Kelly For Managerial Postion

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The Tigers have interviewed Pirates bench coach Don Kelly for their managerial vacancy, reports Rob Biertempfel of the Athletic (Twitter link). However, Biertempfel cautions that Kelly isn’t considered a “top candidate” at the moment due to his relative lack of coaching experience. He’s more likely to return to Pittsburgh in his current position, it seems.

Kelly is a familiar name for Tiger fans. He spent the majority of his nine-year stint as a player in Detroit as a utilityman. Only four years removed from retirement as a player, Kelly has flown through the off-field ranks.  The 40-year-old kicked off his post-playing career in a scouting and player development role in the Tigers organization. He jumped to a big league staff with the 2019 Astros, signing on as first base coach. Pirates first-year manager Derek Shelton then tabbed Kelly as his bench coach this season.

Tigers GM Al Avila has professed a desire for a candidate with coaching or managerial experience. Kelly fits the bill, although he’s a neophyte compared with some of Detroit’s other candidates. Dodgers first base coach George Lombard, Yankees hitting coach Marcus Thames and Royals bench coach Pedro Grifol are also known to have interviewed; all three have vastly more coaching experience. Even if Kelly doesn’t wind up in the managerial chair in Detroit, he’ll certainly find himself in the mix in future searches.

Tigers Interview Pedro Grifol For Managerial Vacancy

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The Tigers interviewed Royals bench coach Pedro Grifol for their managerial opening, reports Jon Morosi of MLB Network. The 50-year-old made a strong impression on Detroit higher-ups and has put himself in “the top tier of candidates,” Morosi adds.

Grifol has come up as a possibility in various managerial searches in recent seasons, including last year, when he was a finalist for the Giants’ job that eventually went to Gabe Kapler. He was also reportedly in consideration to replace Ned Yost as the Royals’ manager. The Royals eventually turned to Mike Matheny but promoted Grifol from catching/quality control coach to bench coach.

Tigers GM Al Avila has known Grifol since the late 1980’s and considered him during Detroit’s previous managerial search that eventually resulted in the hiring of Ron Gardenhire, Morosi notes. Avila is on the record as preferring a candidate with coaching or managerial experience, and Grifol fits that bill. The longtime coach has four seasons of minor-league managerial experience under his belt and has been on the Royals’ big league staff since 2013.

Grifol joins Dodgers first base coach George Lombard and Yankees hitting coach Marcus Thames as candidates known to have interviewed for the Detroit vacancy.

Tigers Have Interviewed Marcus Thames For Managerial Job

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The Tigers interviewed Yankees hitting coach Marcus Thames for their vacant managerial position last week, Jason Beck of MLB.com tweets (and as Tony Paul of the Detroit News previously reported). Thames joins Dodgers first base coach George Lombard as known candidates to succeed Ron Gardenhire, who retired as the Tigers’ skipper in the second half of September.

Like Lombard, Thames was a member of the Tigers during his playing career. In fact, Thames spent the majority of his career in Detroit, where he suited up from 2004-09. His time as a major leaguer, which he also spent with the Yankees, Rangers and Dodgers, ended in 2011.

Dating back to 2014, Thames has worked for the Yankees in both the minors and the bigs. He joined their major league coaching staff as the hitting coach prior to 2018, and though it’s difficult to quantify the impact he has made, the Yankees’ offense has been rather successful on Thames’ watch. In three years under his tutelage, the club ranks first in the league in runs and wRC+.

Tigers Interview George Lombard For Manager’s Job

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The Tigers’ search to replace Ron Gardenhire has started with a familiar name to Detroit fans, as MLB.com’s Jason Beck reports (via Twitter) that the team interviewed Dodgers first base coach George Lombard.

The bulk of Lombard’s 144 career Major League games were played in a Detroit uniform, as Lombard appeared in 72 contests for the 2002 Tigers.  Lombard played in parts of six MLB seasons from 1998-2006, and after his career wound up in 2009, he moved on to minor league coaching and coordinator positions in the Red Sox and Braves farm systems.  The 45-year-old Lombard is currently in his fifth season as the Dodgers’ first base coach, and he was also interviewed for the Pirates’ managerial vacancy last year.

Lombard’s resume includes some managerial experience, as he ran the dugout for the Gulf Coast Red Sox (Boston’s rookie league affiliate) in 2011 and 2012.  Tigers GM Al Avila is reportedly only looking at candidates who have some managerial or coaching experience at the Major or minor league levels, so Lombard qualifies on this front, though he does lack the track record of some of the bigger names thought to be under consideration — such as recent World Series-winning skippers Alex Cora or A.J. Hinch, among other candidates.

Latest On Tigers’ Catching Plans

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The Tigers had one of the least productive catcher situations in the majors in 2020, ranking second to last in fWAR (minus-0.9) and third worst in wRC+ (44). None of Austin Romine, a former Yankee whom the Tigers signed for $4.1MM last offseason, Grayson Greiner or Eric Haase proved to be the solution. The Tigers want more production behind the plate as a result, but they could try to find it from within. General manager Al Avila suggested the Tigers want Jake Rogers to step up going forward, per Evan Woodbery of MLive.com.

“With those three guys, you might be able to get through the season,” Avila said. “We’re happy with the defense, but we’d like to have an upgrade on the offensive side. We’re hopeful that Jake is that guy.”

It’s highly questionable whether Rogers, whom the Tigers acquired from the Astros in the teams’ 2017 Justin Verlander trade, is actually capable of filling the void for Detroit. Granted, he’s still just 25, and while he has been a promising prospect since he debuted in the pros in 2016, Rogers recorded terrible production with the Tigers last year. Rogers ended up with an abysmal .125/.222/.259 line and 51 strikeouts in 128 plate appearances, and he saw no MLB action this season.

If the Tigers aren’t totally sold on Rogers, they will have the option of re-signing Romine, but it doesn’t appear that will happen, nor does it look as if they’ll add any other free agents behind the plate, according to Woodbery. That should rule out Alex Avila, the GM’s son and a former Tiger who’s due to become a free agent soon, as well as the other catchers in the upcoming class.

“If you really want an upgrade (at catcher), you have to develop your own,” the elder Avila noted.

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