Headlines

Go To Pro Hockey Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Dodgers Rumors

Managers And GMs Entering Their Contract Year

By | at

As Jim Riggleman would tell you, everyone in baseball wants more job security.  Here is a list of managers and general managers whose contracts expire after 2012, featuring both extension candidates and those on the hot seat this winter.  (Thanks to the always-invaluable Cot's Baseball Contracts for many of the details.)

White Sox: Kenny Williams has a rolling contract that automatically extends itself every year.  Should Williams be fired, the Sox will owe him one year's worth of severance pay.  With Ozzie Guillen now managing the Marlins, the spotlight will be directly on Williams to get the White Sox back on track following their rough 2011 season.  Williams has already made one roll of the dice by hiring first-time manager Robin Ventura.  White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf and Williams have a strong relationship, but if the team struggles again in 2012, the Sox could blow things up and rebuild under a new general manager.

Tigers: Jim Leyland entered this season as a lame duck and signed just a one-year contract extension from Detroit in August.  This relative lack of security is how Leyland prefers it, however, since he isn't sure how much longer he'll continue to manage.  Given the Tigers' success, one would think they'll let Leyland go year-to-year for as long as he feels up to the job.

Royals: Ned Yost is entering the last year of his contract and I would guess that he'll receive another.  While the Royals don't expect any on-field success right now, the onus is on Yost to ensure that Kansas City's wealth of young prospects continue to develop.  Yost will return as K.C.'s manager in 2013 unless the Royals heavily regress from their 71-91 record of last year, or (even worse) the likes of Mike Moustakas, Eric Hosmer and Danny Duffy hit a snag in their Major League seasoning.

Rockies: Colorado's disappointing 2011 campaign puts the pressure on manager Jim Tracy, who is entering the final year of his original three-year pact with the team.  GM Dan O'Dowd recently told Troy Renck of the Denver Post that he doesn't foresee any problems with Tracy working as a lame duck.  "Jim is signed through next year and we'd love to have him be manager here for much longer than that," O'Dowd said.

Reds: Dusty Baker signed a two-year extension with the Reds last October.  If Cincinnati takes the unlikely step of trading Joey Votto and starting a mini-rebuilding phase, Baker may not want to stick around while the club builds itself back into a contender.  A Votto deal is a long shot (at least in the short term), however, so barring a poor season for the Reds in 2012, the team will probably pursue another extension with Baker next winter.

Rays: Because Andrew Friedman works without an official contract, his name was already linked to the GM's openings with the Cubs and Astros earlier this year.  Friedman has said he enjoys the challenge of working in Tampa Bay and it would be odd for him to walk away given that the Rays are contenders now and for the foreseeable future given their deep minor league system.  Manager Joe Maddon is similarly very likely to stay, even though his three-year contract runs out after next season.  Tampa Bay's shaky financial situation makes Maddon's status a very minor question mark, but one would think the Rays will do everything in their power to keep Maddon, especially since owner Stu Sternberg said he expects Maddon to manage the team beyond 2012.

Rangers: Ron Washington signed a two-year extension through 2012 in the wake of the Rangers' AL pennant last season.  With Texas on the verge of another World Series appearance, Washington looks to be in line for another new deal.

Indians: GM Chris Antonetti's original five-year contract is up after 2012 and the Indians' progress would indicate that the club will pursue an extension.  The Tribe picked up Manny Acta's 2013 option last month.

Giants: Brian Sabean and Bruce Bochy both had their options for 2012 picked up last February, an expected move given San Francisco's 2010 World Series title.  That championship also probably ensures both men will receive extensions at some point over the next year since incoming team CEO Laurence Baer has stated that he wants Sabean and Bochy to stay.  Unless the Giants have a disastrous 2012 campaign, expect Sabean and Bochy to be in San Francisco for years to come.

Dodgers: Ned Colletti can either activate an out clause in his contract after 2012, or 2012 is actually the last year on his deal.  Either way, the general manager will likely be pursued by the club to sign an extension given how competitive the Dodgers were this season in the wake of the ongoing ownership mess.  Of course, Colletti could choose to leave given the uncertainty with the McCourts.  Chicago native Colletti drew some attention from the Cubs last summer, before the Theo Epstein hiring.

Diamondbacks: 2012 is the last guaranteed year for both Kevin Towers and Kirk Gibson, though Towers had club options for 2013-14 and 2015-16, and Gibson has a club option for 2013.  Neither man is going anywhere in the wake of Arizona's surprise run to the NL West crown.

Cubs: Mike Quade is signed through 2012 with a club option for 2013.  Rumors are already swirling that Ryne Sandberg could be hired as the Cubs' new manager once Theo Epstein takes over, so Quade could be out of a job once the Epstein era officially begins in Chicago.  

Cardinals: Tony La Russa and the Cards have a mutual option for 2012 and the latest indication is that La Russa wishes to return for another season.  The manager could have a change of heart should Albert Pujols leave for free agency, though La Russa's return could provide some incentive for Pujols to also stay in St. Louis.  It's also worth noting that La Russa is just 35 wins behind John McGraw for second place on the list of all-time regular season managerial wins.

Brewers: Doug Melvin's contract expires after 2012 and given Milwaukee's success this season, he seems like a sure bet to receive an extension.  It will be interesting to see how long a Melvin extension would run; ownership may not want to commit to Melvin for more than three years just to see how he operates in a post-Prince Fielder environment in Milwaukee.  Ron Roenicke is also technically out of contract after next year, but the Brewers hold a club option on the manager for 2013 that is very likely to be exercised.  A new multiyear deal for Roenicke is also not out of the question.

Astros: General manager Ed Wade's deal is up after 2012 but his tenure in Houston could finish early once the sale of the team to Jim Crane is finalized.  A new GM could also spell the end of Brad Mills as the manager, who is contracted through 2012 with a club option for 2013.  While Mills did lead the Astros to the worst record (56-106) in franchise history last season, he didn't have much talent to work with on the Houston roster.

West Notes: Dipoto, Cruz, Kemp

By | at

On this date in 1988, Dodgers outfielder Kirk Gibson slugged his historic walk-off homer off Oakland's Dennis Eckersley in Game 1 of the World Series. Here are some notes on clubs that reside in MLB's West divisions, including one on another Los Angeles outfielder:

  • The Angels have received permission from the Diamondbacks to interview Jerry Dipoto, Arizona's senior vice president of scouting and player development, a major league source tells Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times. The Angels will also interview Yankees executives Damon Oppenheimer and Billy Eppler, and Dipoto is expected to interview for the Orioles' GM job.
  • Dipoto is considered the favorite to become Baltimore's next GM, tweets Buster Olney of ESPN.com.
  • Rangers slugger Nelson Cruz recently rehashed his near move to Japan a few years ago with Enrique Rojas of ESPNDeportes.com. Nick Collias of MLBTR and Rumores de Beisbol was kind enough to translate: "My agent told me they were really interested and they'd pay me a relatively large amount of money for the last two months of the season," Cruz said. "I was in the minor leagues, I didn't have a future with the Rangers, and I wanted to begin to explore other options." The interested team was the Yomiuri Giants, and the salary would have been $800K, but Texas GM Jon Daniels declined. Good thing for the Rangers that he did.
  • Dodgers outfielder Matt Kemp was named Major League Player of the Year by Baseball America. Kemp tied for the highest adjusted OPS (BA's version) among center fielders in the past 30 seasons, matching Ken Griffey Jr.'s 171 in 1997, writes Joe Haakenson.

Quick Hits: McCourt, Maholm, Mariners, Axford

By | at

Another night, another pair of exciting LCS games.  The Tigers succeeded in stretching the ALCS to a sixth game while the Brewers evened the NLCS at 2-2 with the Cardinals. 

Here's the latest from around the majors….

Orioles GM Links: Dipoto, Reagins, Levine, Ricciardi

By | at

Here's the latest from Baltimore as the O's look to replace Andy MacPhail…

  • The Diamondbacks have given permission for the Orioles to interview Jerry Dipoto, reports Scott Miller of CBSSports.com.  Dipoto is Arizona's senior VP of scouting and player development and served as the club's interim GM after Josh Byrnes was fired midway through the 2010 season.
  • Dipoto's interview should come this weekend, reports Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com.  The Orioles also hope to speak to Al Avila (Tigers), Dan Jennings (Marlins), Tony LaCava (Blue Jays), De Jon Watson and Logan White (both Dodgers), all of whom have been mentioned in connection to the Baltimore job.  Avila could be passed over since "the Orioles want to wrap up this process as soon as possible" and can't wait until the Tigers finish their playoff run.
  • Two names that will apparently not be part of the process, according to Kubatko, are former Angels GM Tony Reagins and Rangers assistant GM Thad Levine.  Both men could still resurface as candidates, Kubatko notes.  Given that Texas is still alive in the postseason, Levine could be facing the same issue as Avila.
  • J.P. Ricciardi is on the "short list of decision-makers" that the Orioles are considering, tweets ESPN's Buster Olney.  Since the O's are just starting their search, Olney says it's too early to say if Ricciardi or any others on the short list are favorites for the job.  Andy Martino of the New York Daily News reports (via Twitter) that the Mets haven't received requests from any team to interview Ricciardi or Paul DePodesta about a general managing job.
  • No surprise here, but Olney says "it's pretty clear that Buck Showalter will have extensive influence in the selection of the Orioles' GM."

Arbitration Eligibles: Los Angeles Dodgers

By | at

The Dodgers are next in our arbitration eligibles series.

Should Kershaw win the Cy Young award, our model projects a record-shattering first-time pitcher salary of $8.4MM.  Tim Lincecum had two Cy Youngs under his belt when he submitted for $13MM against the Giants' $8MM figure in February of 2010.  We know Lincecum would have gotten one of those two figures had he not signed an extension.  Kershaw's agents, the Hendricks brothers, could position their client as Lincecum Lite.  Kershaw won't have the two Cys but he will have almost 120 more innings, seven more wins, and pretty much the same ERA Lincecum did.

Kemp could bring an MVP award or at least a lot of votes to the arbitration table.  Matt Swartz's work for MLBTR has shown that MVP and Cy Young awards boost salary more for first-time arbitration eligibles, so Kemp's huge payday may come mostly from his stellar stats.  The model projects a $16.3MM salary for Kemp, though admittedly a $9.35MM raise might be a tough sell for his agent Dave Stewart.  Matt explained to me, "There's just no one in recent history who has the kind of AVG/SB combined with the HR/RBI like Kemp, so he’s basically getting a Prince Fielder/Ryan Howard raise and a B.J. Upton/Corey Patterson raise at the same time."  Matt notes that the Kemp and Kershaw projections have the widest error bars, because there is so little precedent for them.

Ethier will be well-paid as well; he projects at $10.7MM.  That represents a pretty small raise from the last year of his two-year deal, as Ethier was lacking in counting stats this year.  A few days ago, Dodgers GM Ned Colletti told ESPN's Jim Bowden he's not inclined to trade Ethier.  Colletti said in September he'd love to have Loney back; we think the first baseman could get $6.5MM in arbitration.  Kuo, a non-tender candidate, projects at a salary reduction to about $2.5MM.  Gwynn is on the bubble as well; he could make $1.1MM in arbitration.

If all six arbitration eligible Dodgers are retained, the total could reach a staggering $45MM.  But if Loney, Kuo, and Gwynn are deemed too expensive at arbitration prices, that'd trim about $10MM.  Cot's Baseball Contracts shows contractual commitments totaling $46.2MM for 2012, including $11.5MM for Manny Ramirez and Andruw Jones.  Even the high-end arbitration estimate puts the Dodgers around $90MM before accounting for minimum salary players, and that's $30MM below the 2011 Opening Day payroll.  Further savings could be found through trades or non-tenders, or reduced salaries in long-term deals for Kershaw and/or Kemp.  The team's ownership turmoil figures to result in a reduced payroll, but Colletti seems to think he can afford some significant free agents.

Matt Swartz contributed to this post.

Quick Hits: Votto, Anderson, Red Sox, Dodgers

By | at

Links for Sunday evening as the Brewers have jumped out to a 1-0 lead over the Cardinals in the NLCS..

  • The Reds need to ask themselves if they believe that they can pay Joey Votto a market-value contract after 2013, writes Buster Olney of ESPN.com.  If the Reds don't believe that they can pay him, Olney writes that history says that they should move him between now and July 31, 2012.
  • The Red Sox could use Lars Anderson as a trade chip this offseason, writes Brian MacPherson of The Providence Journal.  The 24-year-old first baseman is stuck behind Adrian Gonzalez and MacPherson identifies several teams who would be interested in the youngster.  Anderson was nearly shipped to the Athletics in a deal for Rich Harden in July.
  • Steve Dilbeck of the Los Angeles Times doesn't expect to see the Dodgers make many changes this winter.  If Ned Colletti & Co. don't sign a bopper in free agency, that leaves trading for a big bat and the club doesn't have much to offer in return.
  • Tigers closer Jose Valverde represents yet another ex-Astros player achieving success elsewhere, writes Stephen Goff of Examiner.com. 
  • Brewers right-hander Shaun Marcum sees a bright future for his former teammate, Cardinals lefty reliever Marc Rzepczynski.  Marcum, who will start Game 2 of the NLCS on Monday, played with Rzepczynski in Toronto.

Dodgers Notes: Colletti, Kuroda, Barajas, Legal Ruling

By | at

On this day in 1978, the Dodgers clinched the NLCS on Bill Russell's walkoff single in the 10th inning of Game Four.  It was the 19th National League pennant for the Dodgers' franchise, though the club would lose the World Series to the Yankees.

Some news from the modern-day Dodgers…

  • GM Ned Colletti broke down the Dodgers' roster and offseason plans in an interview with ESPN's Jim Bowden.  Colletti reiterated that signing Matt Kemp to a multiyear extension was "a priority" and extending Clayton Kershaw would also be explored through without as much urgency since Kershaw is under control through 2014.  Colletti said he "would entertain" locking up Andre Ethier as well, and though he noted that Ethier is "coming off an injury and a subpar season," the GM also said that Ethier isn't a candidate to be dealt.
  • Hiroki Kuroda "is an extremely loyal person to both the Dodgers and the city of Los Angeles and really doesn't want to play anywhere else," Colletti said.  He noted that Kuroda's daughters go to school in L.A. and the right-hander has bought a house in town.
  • Colletti also noted that the Dodgers would "probably let Tim Federowicz and A.J. Ellis handle the [catching] duties" next season.  As Steve Dilbeck of the L.A. Times notes, this would mean the team won't bring back Rod Barajas, who last month said he hoped to finish his career in Dodger blue.
  • Barring a surprise signing of Albert Pujols or Prince Fielder, Mike Petriello of the Mike Scioscia's Tragic Illness blog wonders where the Dodgers will find their desired middle-of-the-order bat this winter.
  • A bankruptcy judge has ruled that the Dodgers will not be able to obtain information from MLB's 29 other teams, reports Bill Shaikin of the L.A. Times.  Frank McCourt and his attorneys have stated that the Dodgers were being treated differently by Major League Baseball than other teams and were looking for documentation to prove this alleged double standard.

GM Candidate: Logan White

By | at

MLBTR’s list of general manager candidates introduced 20 people who were identified by their peers as potential Major League GMs. We’ve been bringing you closer to the candidates with a series of pieces. Today the series continues with Logan White, the Dodgers’ assistant GM of scouting. 

Logan White oversaw the selection of high-profile pitchers such as Clayton Kershaw, Chad Billingsley and Kenley Jansen, so he knows a good arm when he sees one. And in retrospect, White acknowledges that his own big league prospects were slim when Mariners scout Jeff Malinoff recommended him in the 1984 draft.

“No disrespect to Jeff, I wouldn’t draft me,” White said.

Seattle selected White, then a right-handed pitcher out of Western New Mexico University, in the 23rd round. Three minor league seasons and one shoulder operation later, the former Academic All-American was teaching English and communications at the junior high level. But White returned to baseball as an associate scout with the Mariners before moving on to Baltimore and San Diego. He joined the Dodgers a decade ago and oversaw the selection of current players such as Matt Kemp, Russell Martin and James Loney. 

White seeks out analysis beyond the traditional scouting report. He has researched pitching deliveries and the amateur draft to help the Dodgers obtain healthier, more productive players. Today, he oversees amateur and international scouting for the Dodgers as an assistant to GM Ned Colletti. 

I spoke to him late in the regular season. Here are some highlights from our conversation:

On his start in scouting:

I don’t want to compare horses to people, but I grew up on a ranch in New Mexico. I grew up around agriculture and when I was in school we did horse judging – we would judge horses and we had to rank them. It sounds funny, but in the end I learned a lot about the gait of a horse and how the horse looked and worked and how the body worked. So there was always an interest for me to try to understand those kinds of things.

On what kind of scout he is:

I think that I’m a person who can understand the delivery, the arm action, the mechanics, how a body works, but also someone who can understand the mental side for the player. I think I was ahead of the curve in understanding that the player’s performance has to follow and I was always looking for backgrounds of success. I’m also a person that likes tools. I know in the game today, particularly in a large-market city like L.A., you have to draft impact players. 

I like to think I’m a pretty open-minded evaluator. I’m hopefully not going to miss on David Eckstein and I certainly respect the importance of the kind player he is, but I also know that I can’t make a career out of looking for David Eckstein, because he’s pretty rare. I’m better off looking for Derek Jeter and Alex Rodriguez and not missing a David Eckstein.

On advanced analysis and traditional scouting:

If you play, you can get labeled as a ‘baseball guy’ who’s not a critical thinker. That’s not necessarily the case for me. I respect that side of what people try to do [advanced analytics]. I’m always open to ways to get better and I’m always a person that’s researching.

On development of his own analytical side:

I think most people, we go back to our life experiences, our educational backgrounds. I’ve always been one who wants to test and see if it works and I think it goes back to my background. When you’re raising cattle and horses and crops, making a living that way, certain things work and certain things don’t. 

Some of what I do I call deductive reasoning and you have to have it. And you certainly have to have data and research [as well]. If you have deductive reasoning without research and data, it’s irrelevant.

NL West Notes: Kemp, Kuroda, Goldschmidt, Rox

By | at

The Diamondbacks, winners of the NL West in 2011, have pushed the Brewers to a decisive fifth game in the NLDS, and they may not have gotten there without the help of rookie slugger Paul Goldschmidt. Here's more on him and a few other items of note regarding NL West clubs …

  • Dodgers GM Ned Colletti said that extending Matt Kemp is an offseason priority but he won't set a firm deadline to get a deal done, according to Ramona Shelburne of ESPNLosAngeles.com. Last week, Kemp's agent, Dave Stewart, set an extension deadline of Opening Day 2012, and Colletti told Shelburne he too prefers to work out deals in the offseason, but he doesn't have any hard and fast rules: "I've done a handful of deals during a season, but the total number is very small compared to those that have been done in the offseason," Colletti said. "You take every situation case by case, you never say no to anything."
  • That Dodgers right-hander Hiroki Kuroda vetoed pre-deadline trades to the Tigers and Red Sox bodes well for Los Angeles' chances of re-signing the free agent, opines Jim Bowden of ESPN (via Twitter). We heard late last month that Kuroda is on the fence about re-signing with the Dodgers or returning to Japan.
  • The Diamondbacks were awarded an August waiver claim on White Sox first baseman Paul Konerko, two sources tell Bob Nightengale of USA Today, but trade discussions didn't progress, as the South Siders were targeting Goldschmidt, whom the Snakes weren't interested in trading. Konerko, who would have had to approve the trade because of his 10-and-5 rights, said a deal was never brought to him — and he's not sure whether he would have accepted.
  • The Rockies haven't ruled out bringing back third baseman Kevin Kouzmanoff, tweets Troy Renck of the Denver Post. MLBTR's Tim Dierkes first reported that Kouzmanoff had elected free agency today after being outrighted on Tuesday.
  • The Rox also are interested in retaining minor leaguers Jose Morales and Matt Daley, who were also outrighted, according to Renck (via Twitter).

Dodgers Decline Options On Garland, Blake

By | at

The Dodgers announced on Twitter today that they've declined club options on starter Jon Garland and third baseman Casey Blake, and also outrighted Eugenio Velez to Triple-A.  Typically option decisions are announced after the World Series, but Garland and Blake were obvious choices.

For Garland, the Dodgers chose a $500K buyout over an $8MM club option.  Garland had signed for a below-market guarantee of $5MM in November, but a vesting option in the contract became moot when the righty when down for an oblique injury in March and shoulder surgery in July.  Garland, now 32, had previously been a lock for around 200 innings per season.  If Garland is healthy, his agents at LSW Baseball should have no problem finding a one-year deal worth a few million plus incentives, along with a back-end rotation job.

The Dodgers chose a $1.25MM buyout over a $6MM club option on Blake, finishing a contract signed in December of '08.  The 38-year-old Jim McDowell client hit .252/.342/.371 in 239 plate appearances.  Blake's season was shortened by a ribcage, elbow, and neck injuries, culminating in September neck surgery.  McDowell told MLBTR recently that his client should be "100% for 2012."  Blake is also looking at a one-year deal, probably of the part-time variety.  You can check out MLBTR's list of all the 2012 free agents here.

Velez, now the record-holder for a non-pitcher going hitless in a season with an 0-for-37 showing, was removed from the 40-man roster.  Once free agents Aaron Miles, Jamey Carroll, Hiroki Kuroda, Rod Barajas, Juan Rivera, Vicente Padilla, Jonathan Broxton, and Mike MacDougal are subtracted, the Dodgers' tally will be down to 30.

Show all

MLB Trade Rumors is not affiliated with Major League Baseball, MLB or MLB.com

Do not Sell or Share My Personal Information

hide arrows scroll to top