Odds & Ends: Sano, Towers, D’Backs, Fehr
Links for Wednesday…
- Kevin Towers has a standing offer from the Red Sox, according to Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe. For now, Towers plans on taking a few months off. In contrast, a week ago ESPN's Buster Olney wrote that "there would appear to be excellent odds that Towers will land with the Yankees as a special assistant sometime in the months ahead."
- The Cubs' contract with hitting coach Rudy Jaramillo is official.
- Miguel Angel Sano received his U.S. work visa, according to SI's Melissa Segura.
- The new Rays hitting coach is Derek Shelton, according to Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times.
- Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic crafts an offseason plan for the Diamondbacks, who have a decent amount of money to work with. We did our Offseason Outlook for the team back in September.
- J.C. Bradbury of Sabernomics says tendering a contract to arbitration-eligible right fielder Jeff Francoeur is probably worthwhile for the Mets. I don't sense that non-tendering him is a serious consideration.
- Donald Fehr will receive an $11MM parting gift when he steps down from his MLBPA position, says ESPN's Amy K. Nelson. The players were mostly in favor of the decision, according to Curtis Granderson.
- The Rangers met with Jim Crane's group Tuesday, according to MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan. Two more potential investing groups are scheduled.
- Backup catcher Mike Redmond told MLB.com's Kelly Thesier he plans on playing next year, whether or not it's with the Twins.
- 41-year-old righty Keiichi Yabu also hopes to play in 2010, says NPB Tracker's Ryo Shinkawa.
- Reliever George Sherrill has no hard feelings about the Orioles trading him to the Dodgers, says Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun.
- MLB.com's Dick Kaegel talked to Zack Greinke, who was characteristically blunt.
- In a Saturday post, Jon Weisman of Dodger Thoughts said he'd like to see how GM Ned Colletti handles the decreased payroll flexibility once his young players reach arbitration. Weisman is even-handed in his assessment of Colletti, but here's a funny quote: "I don't laud him for retaining the young core of the team: Kershaw, Kemp, Billingsley, Broxton, Martin, et al. Knowing not to dump those guys is like knowing not to show up to work in your underwear."
Dodgers, Ned Colletti Agree To Long-Term Deal
The Dodgers agreed to a long-term deal with GM Ned Colletti, according to Bill Shaikin of the L.A. Times. The move has been confirmed by a team press release.
In September, SI's Jon Heyman suggested this would be a three-year contract. We discussed Colletti's work here.
Odds & Ends: Johjima, Rockies, Kikuchi
Links for Tuesday…
- Chat today, 2pm CST.
- The Hanshin Tigers are interested in Kenji Johjima, according to Kyodo News.
- The Rockies are expected to re-sign GM Dan O'Dowd and manager Jim Tracy this week, according to Patrick Saunders and Troy E. Renck of the Denver Post.
- Dylan Hernandez of the L.A. Times says the Dodgers "are mindful that [signing Yusei Kikuchi] could harm the club's long-standing ties in Japan." Kikuchi told Kyodo News that interviewing with 12 NPB and eight MLB clubs made his decision even more difficult. NPB Tracker has more.
- Richard Justice of the Houston Chronicle says Brad Lidge for Michael Bourn has been "the perfect trade." In that November 2007 deal, the Phillies also received infielder Eric Bruntlett and the Astros also acquired Geoff Geary and Mike Costanzo (Geary is now a free agent). I'd say the Astros may ultimately win the deal if Bourn's breakout season holds up, since they gave up one year of Lidge for five of Bourn. But, as Justice noted, the Phillies have a ring.
- Always fun…Dave Cameron's 2010 offseason plan for the Mariners at U.S.S. Mariner. My one beef is the John Danks acquisition…I don't think it fits from Chicago's point of view.
- Viva El Birdos takes a look at the Cardinals' 2010 commitments.
- MLB.com's Mychael Urban discusses Justin Duchscherer's future.
NL West Roundup: Giants, Padres, Dodgers
The Internet is filled with insight into the teams of the Pacific Coast…
- MLB.com Giants beat reporter Chris Haft answered a number of reader questions, shooting down both the idea that the Giants can stand pat offensively and trade suggestions from a reader for Prince Fielder and Carl Crawford. Haft offers plenty to chew on in this comprehensive piece.
- Haft's San Diego counterpart Corey Brock answers plenty of Padre questions as well. Brock believes Ken Griffey Jr. is not a good target for the Padres and Kevin Correia absolutely will return. Brock touches on the long-term plan for the Padres and other topics as well.
- CBSSports.com's Danny Knobler discusses a trade not made by the Dodgers: Los Angeles' failure to acquire Cliff Lee, who shut them down in Sunday night's game.
Odds & Ends: Eyre, Rockies, Red Sox
Links for Monday…
- Slate's Craig Fehrman writes about "the sports media's unique mindset toward [online] aggregators" and how MLBTR fits in.
- On his MLB.com blog, Phillies reliever Scott Eyre suggests he and catcher Paul Bako are reconsidering retirement because they're having so much fun.
- Dodgers GM Ned Colletti told CBSSports.com's Danny Knobler that he offered four players to the Indians for Cliff Lee back in July. Lee instead landed with the Phillies and shut down the Dodgers last night.
- Sam Mellinger of the Kansas City Star believes it's very difficult for fans and reporters to create realistic trade scenarios. Do you agree?
- The Rockies are "ready to finalize deals with general manager Dan O'Dowd and manager Jim Tracy," according to Tracy Ringolsby of Inside The Rockies.
- The Yusei Kikuchi talks are moving along, says NPB Tracker's Patrick Newman. U.S.S. Mariner's Jay Yencich gives his scouting report on Kikuchi. In another post, Newman runs down the interested MLB teams. He notes that the Rangers sent pitcher Derek Holland along with Jim Colburn.
- WEEI's Alex Speier passes along a Dale & Holley appearance by ESPN's Buster Olney. Olney guesses the Red Sox might stop at four years for Jason Bay, and their primary competition will come from the Mariners and Giants.
- ESPN's Peter Gammons discusses Jed Lowrie as Boston's short-term answer at shortstop, with Jose Iglesias as the long-term answer.
- Pete Grathoff of the KC Star writes about the 35-year anniversary of Tommy John surgery.
Odds & Ends: Mattingly, La Russa, Kikuchi
Let's take a look around the web as we get ready for Dodgers-Phillies:
- Dodgers' hitting coach Don Mattingly tells Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe that he is ready to be a manager. Donnie Baseball expects to be interviewed for openings and would strongly consider accepting one if he is given such an offer.
- Although it has been suggested that Cards' skipper Tony La Russa could take a year off and return to manage in 2011, the 65-year-old won't consider that as an option, writes John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle.
- The Mariners are in pursuit of Japanese pitcher Yusei Kikuchi, according to Larry Stone of The Seattle Times. This is not the first time we've heard Seattle linked to the 18-year-old lefty as they are said to be one of at least seven MLB teams interested in his services.
Odds & Ends: Ng, Thome, Blue Jays
Despite the threat of rain pretty much all day, the Yanks and Angels are playing in the Bronx. Here's a few links to check out between pitches…
- SI.com's Jon Heyman tweets that Dodgers' assistant GM Kim Ng interviewed for the Padres GM job today. She's vying to become the first female GM in history.
- The NLCS is bringing Jim Thome back to Philadelphia for just the second time since the trade that sent him to the White Sox prior to the 2006 season, and as MLB.com's Ken Gurnick explains, the Phillies were "somewhat divided internally" about whether to deal Thome, or the up-and-coming Ryan Howard back when the deal was made.
- We still don't know if Cito Gaston will be back to manage the Blue Jays next year, but The Toronto Star's Richard Griffin provides some circumstantial evidence that Buck Showalter could end up replacing Gaston if he and the team part ways.
- MLBTR is on Facebook and Twitter, so make sure you hit us up that way if you haven't already.
Dodgers Decline Option On Will Ohman
The offseason hasn't even started yet for the Dodgers, but they've already made their first personnel move. According to MLB.com's Ken Gurnick, the team has declined a $2.2MM option for lefty reliever Will Ohman, instead paying him a $200K buyout. Ohman was one of the last free agents to sign last offseason, landing with LA at the end of Spring Training.
Ohman posted a 5.84 ERA in 12.1 IP for the Dodgers, and lefties tattooed him for a .296/.406/.889 batting line. His season ended in late May when he was placed on the disabled list with soreness in the acromioclavicular joint in his shoulder, and he later strained the flexor tendon in his elbow while rehabbing. Ohman had surgery on the shoulder joint in late September and is expected to be ready for Spring Training.
Odds & Ends: McCourts, Strasburg, Cotts
Some tidbits from around baseball as we enjoy Game One of the ALCS…
- Bill Shaikin and Harriet Ryan of the L.A. Times have some ominous news for Dodgers fans surrounding the separation of Frank and Jamie McCourt: his attorneys claim he is the sole owner of the Dodgers, while her lawyers say the team's ownership is split 50-50 between the soon-to-be ex-couple.
- On the night of Stephen Strasburg's professional debut in the Arizona Fall League, Jack Magruder of the Washington Times notes that Strasburg won't pitch much in the AFL.
- Reliever Neal Cotts doesn't know if the Cubs will non-tender him, but he is just focused on pitching somewhere in 2010 after undergoing Tommy John surgery in July, reports MLB.com's Carrie Muskat.
- Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel relates a nice anecdote about Craig Counsell to illustrate why he thinks the Brewers should bring back the veteran infielder in 2010.
- MLB.com's Mychael Urban praised the young, talented and affordable Oakland bullpen in his ongoing team report card series.
- Manny Acta and Bob Melvin "have to be 1-2" for the Houston manager's job thus far, says MLB.com's Brian McTaggart (via Twitter)
Odds & Ends: Padilla, Acta, Gillick, Bradley
More links from around the majors as we await the continuation of the NLCS…
- Vicente Padilla, who starts for the Dodgers this afternoon, tells Ben Bolch of the LA Times that he's not thinking about his next contract. Padilla will be a Type B free agent after the season.
- Manny Acta is interviewing for the Astros managerial opening today, as MLB.com's Alyson Footer notes. Acta has already interviewed for the Cleveland job.
- MLB.com's Brian McTaggart would like to see Bob Melvin manage the Astros.
- Longtime MLB GM Pat Gillick tells Yahoo's Tim Brown that he has no interest in becoming the Padres' GM.
- Brewers GM Doug Melvin tells Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that the team isn't likely to announce its next pitching coach today.
- Bruce Miles of the Daily Herald says the Cubs are still discussing a possible Milton Bradley trade with a number of teams, though no move appears imminent.
- Miles expects the Cubs to lure hitting coach Rudy Jaramillo away from the Rangers.