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Fredi Gonzalez

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.

Quick Hits: Yankees, Urshela, Orioles, Gonzalez, Sherman

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It’s an NFL day, but there’s time enough for some quick hits in MLB…

  • Gio Urshela projects as the Opening Day third baseman after a breakout year in the Bronx.  He put up 3.4 rWAR while Miguel Andujar missed the year with injuries, and since Andujar has minor league options remaining, Urshela’s case looks even stronger. Urshela could even expand his portfolio to include backup shortstop duties in 2020, per MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch, though Thairo Estrada and Tyler Wade are the more likely options to take that on should Gleyber Torres need a day off.
  • Second-year Orioles’ manager Brandon Hyde will have a veteran voice in his ear this season now that Fredi Gonzalez has joined his staff. Gonzalez is listed as a general Major League Coach, but the veteran manager looks forward to being freed up to contribute in a lot of different areas, per MASN’s Roch Kubatko. Gonzalez will team with Major League Field Coordinator Tim Cossins to fill the duties traditionally assigned to a bench coach – but the important thing for the Orioles is that Hyde has another influence that he trusts as he looks to build on the development of a very young Orioles’ squad. Gonzalez certainly knows the terrain, having spent the last few seasons as the third base coach for the Miami Marlins. When the 2019 season came to a close, Gonzalez didn’t know exactly what would await him, but he decided it was time to move on from Miami and make himself a free agent. Hyde, meanwhile, managed the High-A and Double-A affiliates in Florida during Gonzalez’ managerial tenure from 2007 to 2010, and he didn’t wait long to add Gonzalez to his staff.
  • As they say, the ball don’t lie, and that’s good enough for Joel Sherman of the New York Post, who marks the Nationals as the winners of last year’s offseason thanks to their championship in October. Of course, a year makes all the difference, as Sherman names the Red Sox the top loser of last year’s offseason for their ill-fated attempt to keep the good vibes going after their 2018 World Series title. Sherman makes this particularly interesting note about the fates of those giving multi-year offers to relief pitchers: “There were 11 relievers who signed for multiple years last season. Six had zero or negative WAR (Baseball Reference version). Just two improved on their WAR from 2018 to 2019, and just three ([Zack] Britton, [Adam] Ottavino and Justin Wilson) improved their ERA.” For what it’s worth, the Nationals can be counted among the group of team’s handing out multi-year deals to a reliever this offseason.

Orioles Notes: Gonzalez, Adeiny, Infielders

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The latest from Baltimore….

  • Fredi Gonzalez has been hired to join the Orioles’ coaching staff, the Baltimore Sun’s Jon Meoli reports.  Gonzalez will work in the general role of Major League coach; as Meoli puts it, “González will influence several areas of the Orioles while sharing some responsibilities with major league field coordinator/catching instructor Tim Cossins, who did those jobs last year while serving as [Brandon] Hyde’s de-facto bench coach.”  Best known for his time as the manager of the Marlins (2007-10) and Braves (2011-16), Gonzalez spent the last three seasons back in Miami as the Marlins’ third base coach.
  • The Orioles have “definite interest” in Adeiny Hechavarria, MASNsports.com’s Roch Kubatko reports.  The veteran hit .241/.299/.443 over 221 combined plate appearances between the Mets and Braves in 2019, with the bulk of that offense (1.039 OPS over 70 PA) coming after Atlanta signed Hechavarria as extra depth during the late-season stretch run.  Of course, Hechavarria is far better known for his glovework than his bat, with +20 Defensive Runs Saved and a + 2.5 UZR/150 over 6761 career innings at shortstop.  The 30-year-old was available on a minor league contract for the Mets last winter, and could likely be signed for a similar non-guaranteed deal this offseason.
  • Hechavarria would help address Baltimore’s middle infield situation, which GM Mike Elias described (along with back-of-the-rotation pitching) as offseason “priorities” when talking to reporters earlier this week.  Since the rebuilding O’s aren’t going to break the bank for veteran help, Kubatko lists a few lower-cost veterans that might potentially fit what the team is looking for, though he notes that even moderately-priced options like free agent Brock Holt or the recently non-tendered Yolmer Sanchez could be too pricey for the Orioles.  Jose Iglesias doesn’t appear to be on the Orioles’ radar, as Kubatko writes that “a poor off-the-field reputation…persuaded the Orioles and some other teams to stay away” from the former Reds and Tigers shortstop in the past.  The O’s did make an infield signing earlier today by adding Dilson Herrera on a minors contract.

Latest On Mets’ Coaching Staff

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The Mets are making progress in their efforts to put together a staff under new skipper Carlos Beltran. In particular, the club has agreements in place with Chili Davis and Tom Slater to remain with the organization, per Andy Martino of SNY.tv (via Twitter).

Both Davis and Slater receive multi-year deals, per the report. They’ll continue to serve as hitting coach and assistant hitting coach, respectively, giving the New York org some continuity in that arena as Beltran takes over the dugout.

Beltran is still in need of a bench coach and that now seems to be the top priority. Longtime Giants coach Ron Wotus is under consideration for the gig, per Andrew Baggarly of The Athletic (Twitter link). Wotus’s status in San Francisco is in flux now that Gabe Kapler has signed on there.

Jerry Narron and Fredi Gonzalez remain under consideration by the Mets as well, Jon Heyman of MLB Network notes on Twitter. It isn’t known whether that constitutes a final trio of candidates. Terry Collins has been mentioned previously as a speculative possibility, but he’s reportedly out of the mix.

Latest On Mets’ Bench Coach Position

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11:21pm: Giants third base coach Ron Wotus has also interviewed for the Mets’ bench coach position, Andrew Baggarly of The Athletic tweets. Wotus remains in the running for the job, per Baggarly. San Francisco has been the lone stop for the 58-year-old Wotus since his MLB coaching career began in 1998, and the Giants did consider him for their managerial vacancy this fall. However, now that the Giants have hired Gabe Kapler as their manager, it’s unclear if Wotus will remain part of their staff.

7:30pm: The Mets have their new manager in former major league slugger Carlos Beltran, a first-time skipper who brings zero coaching experience to the table. The fact that Beltran’s a neophyte makes it all the more important for the Mets to find an experienced bench coach capable of helping him learn the ropes. They’ve got at least two names on their radar in Fredi Gonzalez and Jerry Narron, Mike Puma of the New York Post reports.

The Mets have already spoken with Gonzalez, who’s likely to have a formal interview with the club after the GM meetings, according to Puma. The 55-year-old Gonzalez is a former major league manager who oversaw the Marlins from 2007-10 and the Braves from 2011-16. More recently, Gonzalez was the Marlins’ bench coach over the previous three seasons, but he stepped down from that post a month ago.

Narron, 63, left the Diamondbacks in late October after they chose to replace him as their bench coach. He served in that role for two-plus years before the D-backs decided to give the job to Luis Urueta, though their hope was that Narron would remain a part of their coaching staff. He’s now a free agent, however, and is well-known for managing the Rangers from 2001-02 and the Reds from 2005-07.

Marlins Retain Stottlemyre, Hillman; Gonzalez To Explore Other Opportunities

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11:10am: While Gonzalez is set to explore other opportunities, the Marlins have agreed to 2020 contracts with pitching coach Mel Stottlemyre Jr. and first base/infield coach Trey Hillman, per SiriusXM’s Craig Mish (Twitter links).

11:05am: Third base coach Fredi Gonzalez has informed the Marlins that he has decided to “explore other options,” MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro reports (via Twitter). The former Marlins/Braves skipper doesn’t have anything lined up at the moment, Frisaro adds, but rather appears ready for a change of scenery after three seasons in his current role. Gonzalez’s departure creates yet another vacancy on the Marlins’ staff; bench coach Tim Wallach also departed of his own volition, and it was reported earlier this month that neither catching coach Brian Schneider nor bullpen coach Dean Treanor will be back next season.

The 55-year-old Gonzalez should have no shortage of opportunities given his experience. In addition to four years managing the Marlins (2007-10) and six years managing the Braves (2011-16), Gonzalez has served as a minor league manager and spent a decade as a Major League third base coach between the Braves and multiple stints in Miami. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see Gonzalez, a Cuban-born and bilingual dugout veteran, emerge as a candidate in other managerial or coaching searches at a time of near-record turnover around the league. And with nearly 40 years of experience in pro ball dating back to his days as a minor league catcher in the 1980s, he could land in a variety of roles if he’s up for a new challenge.

In 10 seasons as a Major League manager, Gonzalez compiled a 710-692 record. He was at the helm of a 2012 Braves club that won 94 games and secured a Wild Card berth as well as a 2013 Braves team that won 96 games and captured the NL East title, although neither club advanced beyond its first round of play.

The Tigers’ Managerial Search

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The Tigers were the first team to cut ties with their manager at season’s end, announcing with less than a week of the regular season to play that Brad Ausmus would not return as the team’s skipper. Ausmus was allowed to finish out the season at the helm — though Ian Kinsler was allowed to manage the team on the final day — but since the announcement, there have been plenty of names flying around in connection with the new job opening.

In an effort to consolidate the myriad reports on Detroit’s managerial vacancy into one place, we’ll track preliminary candidates, those that have interviewed and those that are no longer in the running all in this post and update accordingly as the search progresses.

Will Interview/Have Interviewed

  • Cubs bench coach Dave Martinez has also interviewed for the Tigers’ opening, reports FanRag’s Jon Heyman, who also notes that Detroit’s search is down from an initial list of 50 to 10 candidates. Heyman initially identified Rockies bench coach Mike Redmond as a candidate (as noted below), and he now confirms that Redmond has indeed interviewed for the post.
  • Ron Gardenhire is on the list of the Tigers’ upcoming interviews and is a “strong candidate,” according to Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free Press. Fenech notes that the Tigers will face some competition, namely from the Red Sox, however. There are those who feel that Avila will ultimately hire a younger manager to handle a younger team, per Fenech, though Fenech also adds that he polled a number of industry contacts that feel Gardenhire is capable of connecting with a young group regardless of age.
  • ESPN’s Marly Rivera reports that the Tigers will interview Astros bench coach Alex Cora as part of their first wave of external interviews (Twitter link). Cora is an in-demand managerial candidate, as he’s already been linked to the Mets and Red Sox. An interview doesn’t seem likely to take place while Cora’s Astros are still playing in the postseason, one wouldn’t think.
  • MLB.com’s Jason Beck has previously reported that the Tigers will interview Marlins bench coach Fredi Gonzalez and White Sox third base coach Joe McEwing. Gonzalez, of course, has recently served as the Marlins’ manager as well as the manager of the Braves. McEwing doesn’t have big league managerial experience, but he’s come up as a candidate in years past and has been connected to the Mets already as well.
  • Fenech reported early this month that the Tigers have already conducted interviews with a trio of in-house candidates: hitting coach Lloyd McClendon, first base coach Omar Vizquel and third base coach Dave Clark. McClendon has had multiple big league stints as a manager, with the Pirates (2001-05) and the Mariners (2014-15).

Preliminary Candidates (Interview Status Still Unknown)

  • The Tigers are interested in Red Sox first base coach Ruben Amaro Jr., according to FanRag’s Jon Heyman. Amaro is obviously best known as the former GM of the Phillies, but he’s interested in managing and now has two years of experience on a big league staff to go along with an understanding of the day-to-day operations of a front office. As Heyman notes, he’s an outside-the-box candidate, but the Tigers are known to be casting a wide net.
  • Heyman has also previously reported that the Tigers have interest in Rockies bench coach Mike Redmond. The longtime backup catcher for the Marlins and Twins, Redmond is also a former Marlins manager but has yet to get a second opportunity to manage at the big league level.
  • Jon Morosi of MLB.com has previously listed Angels bench coach Dino Ebel and Royals catching instructor Pedro Grifol as managerial possibilities in Detroit. Heyman, meanwhile has previously linked them to Rays third base coach Charlie Montoyo.

Central Notes: Brewers, Tigers, McCutchen, Kluber

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Second base is “a position we’re going to have to take a long look at,” Brewers GM David Stearns said during the team’s end-of-season meeting with reporters (including Todd Rosiak of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel).  Jonathan Villar’s struggles required the Brew Crew to trade for Neil Walker in August, and now with Walker headed for free agency and Eric Sogard (another free agent) perhaps best suited for utility duty, a decision will need to be made about giving Villar another chance or perhaps looking for another addition.  Starting pitching is another need given the uncertainty surrounding Jimmy Nelson’s return from a labrum procedure, though manager Craig Counsell said it was too early to consider whether Josh Hader could be moved into a rotation role.

Here’s more from both the NL and AL Central…

  • The Tigers will interview Marlins third base coach Fredi Gonzalez and White Sox bench coach Joe McEwing this week about the managerial vacancy, MLB.com’s Jason Beck reports.  Angels bench coach Dino Ebel is also on Detroit’s list of candidates, MLB Network’s Jon Morosi tweets.  Several other internal (coaches Lloyd McClendon, Omar Vizquel, Dave Clark) and external (Phil Nevin and Charlie Montoyo) have already been linked to the Tigers’ search, which reportedly began with around 50 names in consideration.
  • Andrew McCutchen is the key figure of this Pirates offseason, Bill Brink of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette writes, as the team faces a big decision about trading the long-time star outfielder.  Dealing McCutchen would essentially mark the end of an era for the franchise, though it would free up $14.5MM in payroll for 2018 (Brink rightly figures McCutchen’s club option is sure to be exercised by the Pirates) that could then be used to fill other roster holes.  McCutchen turns 31 next week and is coming off a solid 2017 season that revived his value following a very disappointing 2016 campaign.
  • Corey Kluber was a promising but unheralded young arm in the Padres farm system when he was acquired by the Indians in July 2010, as Cleveland.com’s Bud Shaw revisits the trade that gave the Tribe its ace.  Kluber was acquired as part of a three-team deal that saw the Cardinals send Ryan Ludwick to the Padres, while St. Louis picked up Jake Westbrook from Cleveland and Nick Greenwood from San Diego.  Indians president of baseball operations Chris Antonetti, then the team’s GM, said they received good scouting reports and “great analytical information” on Kluber that caught their interest, but “at the same time, no one sat there and said we were trading for a future Cy Young winner. We had no idea.”

NL Notes: Cubs, Cards, Fowler, Braves, Marlins

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The reigning World Series champion Cubs stumbled through the early months of the season, which led president Theo Epstein to inform teams in early July that he’d consider selling impending free agents such as Jake Arrieta and Wade Davis, Patrick Mooney of NBC Sports Chicago reports. The Cubs were at their lowest point of the season on July 9, when they dropped to 43-45 with a 14-3 loss to the Pirates in the last game before the All-Star break. Regarding his thought process at the time, Epstein told Mooney: “Not blowing it up. But when you’re five-and-a-half out, if you have a bad road trip and a bad homestand and then you’re 10-and-a-half out, absolutely, we would have sold.”  Instead, Epstein swung a blockbuster trade with the White Sox for left-hander Jose Quintana on July 13, the final day of the break. The Cubs proceeded to go 49-25 in the second half of the season to finish 92-70 and run away with the National League Central.

More from the NL:

  • The Cardinals may deal from their surplus of outfielders this offseason, but the highest-paid member of the bunch, Dexter Fowler, seems unlikely to go anywhere. When the Cardinals signed Fowler to a five-year, $82.5MM contract last winter, they included a no-trade clause in the deal. Now, Fowler tells Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch that he and his family love their new city. He also enjoys being part of the Cardinals organization. “I see myself being here for a long time. It’s what I signed up for,” the center fielder said. “That’s what my contract says. I’m looking to build a legacy with my teammates.” Fowler had a terrific offensive season to kick off his Redbirds tenure, hitting .264/.363/.488 with 18 home runs in 491 plate appearances, but injuries limited him to 118 games and advanced metrics indicate he had a rough time in the field (minus-18 Defensive Runs Saved, minus-5.9 Ultimate Zone Rating).
  • The hammer dropped Monday on Braves general manager John Coppolella and special assistant Gordon Blakely, both of whom resigned over alleged rule violations. Their departures might not be the end, either, as David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution tweets that it wouldn’t be a surprise to see more members of the Braves’ scouting department forced to resign.
  • Given that he’s close with Gary Denbo, Blakeley would have been a possibility to join the Marlins’ front office, but that’s now in question after Monday’s events, Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald writes. Denbo is currently with the Yankees, but the expectation is that he’ll join friend and new owner Derek Jeter in the Marlins’ decision-making hierarchy, Jackson notes. Meanwhile, there’s a sense that the Marlins will retain manager Don Mattingly and president of baseball operations Michael Hill, per Joe Frisaro of MLB.com. Hill isn’t a lock to remain in the same role, suggests Frisaro, who adds that third base coach Fredi Gonzalez could depart. The Tigers have asked to speak with Gonzalez about becoming their next manager, according to Frisaro.

Rosenthal’s Latest: Ausmus, Gonzalez, Hendricks

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Here’s the latest from Ken Rosenthal, via a video for FOX Sports:

  • Departing Tigers manager Brad Ausmus says he would be open to managing a new team immediately, although he tells Rosenthal that there don’t seem likely to be many possibilities. Rosenthal, though, points out several, including the Phillies job as well as the Mets job, which is expected to open. The Braves could also be a possibility, and Rosenthal notes that if the Red Sox have a quick playoff exit and opt to part with John Farrell, Sox president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski hired Ausmus while he was an executive in Detroit.
  • Fredi Gonzalez looks to have many qualifications that could be attractive to the Tigers, including past managerial experience with a rebuilding club (the Marlins) and connections to Tigers GM Al Avila (with whom he worked while both were in the Marlins organization). The Tigers will, however, consider any number of other candidates. One they might not consider too carefully is Giants third base coach Phil Nevin, who the Tigers fired as their Triple-A manager near the end of the 2013 season.
  • Astros utilityman Marwin Gonzalez could be a free agent to watch in the 2018-19 offseason, Rosenthal argues. Like Ben Zobrist, who received a $56MM deal two years ago, Gonzalez switch-hits and can play several positions in the infield and outfield. Gonzalez is also reaching the end of an outstanding .303/.375/.530 season. I might point out that Gonzalez doesn’t have Zobrist’s overall track record, but Rosenthal notes that Gonzalez will have only recently turned 30 at the start of the 2019 season, and that unlike Zobrist, he can play shortstop.
  • Cubs starter Kyle Hendricks’ first-year arbitration case this offseason will be an interesting one, says Rosenthal. Hendricks has a 2.94 ERA over 100 career games, a number that compares favorably to that of Clayton Kershaw in his first few seasons. that isn’t to say Hendricks and Kershaw are similar players, as Rosenthal points out, only that Hendricks’ first arbitration payday could be a hefty one.
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