Mets Rumors

Pirates, Mets, Blue Jays Managerial Rumors

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | October 22, 2010 at 4:52pm CDT

The Blue Jays, Marlins, Pirates, Brewers and Mets are still looking for managers. Here's the latest, with more updates to come throughout the evening:

Pirates

Former Brewers skipper Ken Macha told Nick Cafardo of The Boston Globe (via Twitter) that he is no longer in the running for the Pirates job.

Mets

Josh Byrnes and Sandy Alderson, the two finalists for the Mets GM job, both submitted lists of four or five managerial candidates in their initial interviews, reports Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. Both lists included Mets Class A manager Wally Backman, according to sources.

Blue Jays

Update: DeMarlo Hale has been told he is no longer in the running for the job, according to Sean McAdam of CSNNE.com (on Twitter). That means it's down to John Farrell and Brian Butterfield.

Peter Gammons said on WEEI that the Blue Jays may decide on their next manager by tonight. Alex Anthopoulos leans toward DeMarlo Hale and assistant GM Tony LaCava and others lean toward John Farrell, according to Gammons.

Farrell, the Red Sox pitching coach, is the favorite to manage, but Hale, the Boston bench coach is still in the running. One person not being considered: Sandy Alomar Jr. The former catcher was one of four finalists for the job, but he won't be getting it, according to Sean McAdam of CSNNE.com (on Twitter). That leaves Farrell, Hale and Blue Jays third base coach Brian Butterfield.

Byrnes, Alderson Finalists For Mets Job

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | October 22, 2010 at 2:01pm CDT

The Mets announced that they're bringing GM candidates Josh Byrnes and Sandy Alderson back for a final round of interviews, according to Adam Rubin of ESPNNewYork.com (on Twitter). Byrnes, the D'Backs GM from 2005 to 2010, and Alderson, the A's GM from 1983 to 1997, both have experience running big league teams.

Rick Hahn of the White Sox, Allard Baird of the Red Sox, Logan White of the Dodgers and Dana Brown of the Blue Jays also interviewed for the position. However, earlier in the week, it became apparent that Alderson is the favorite. Click here to read more about the man who drafted Mark McGwire, Jason Giambi and others.

Byrnes will meet with the Mets Monday, followed by Alderson on Tuesday, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com. This means we can probably expect a decision by next week. As Heyman points out, the Mets must be confident Byrnes or Alderson will accept (Twitter links).

The Mets were seeking experienced GM candidates, writes Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. Three other executives the Mets interviewed, Logan White, Rick Hahn, and Dana Brown, lack previous GM experience.

Odds & Ends: Mets, Inge, Reynolds, Angels

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | October 22, 2010 at 11:59am CDT

On this date in 1974, the Yankees and Giants swapped Bobby Bonds and Bobby Murcer in one of the many deals that had Bonds packing his bags. Now, the Yankees and Giants are preoccupied with something else entirely: trying to reach the World Series. Here are today's links…

Dodgers assistant GM Logan White isn’t going anywhere. He was a candidate to become the Mets’ next GM, but he’ll be staying with the Dodgers, according to MLB.com’s Ken Gurnick (on Twitter).
Brandon Inge, who just signed an extension that will keep him in Detroit through 2012, says he hopes to stay there until the Tigers kick him out, according to Michael Rosenberg of the Detroit Free Press.
Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com wonders if the Orioles should make a play for Mark Reynolds. The D'Backs third baseman would instantly become Baltimore's most powerful hitter.
MLB.com’s Lyle Spencer suggests the Angels rank the best free agent hitters in this order: Carl Crawford, Adrian Beltre, Jayson Werth and Adam Dunn.
Joel Sherman of the New York Post wonders if the Cubs and Angels will pursue Cliff Lee this winter and suggests the lefty has set himself up for a six-year $150MM deal.

Heyman On Girardi, Nunez, Alderson, Beltre

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | October 22, 2010 at 9:17am CDT

Cliff Lee and Cody Ross lead Jon Heyman’s list of players who have stepped up this postseason. Lee’s performance will only help his free agent stock and Heyman guesses the bidding for the left-hander will start at $120MM and go up from there. Here are the rest of Heyman’s rumors, which you can find in full at SI.com:

The Yankees plan to bring Joe Girardi back and give him a raise. Team executives like Girardi, whose contract expires after the season.
The Braves have expressed interest in Eduardo Nunez, a shortstop prospect in the Yankees system.
Sandy Alderson, a candidate for the Mets GM job, is team owner Fred Wilpon's first choice. Heyman and Joel Sherman reported earlier in the week that Alderson is the favorite for the position.
The Rangers like Adrian Beltre, but don’t have room for him since they have Michael Young at third base.

Odds & Ends: Beimel, Angels, Mets, Peralta, Dunn

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | October 21, 2010 at 10:43pm CDT

On this date 27 years ago, the Padres signed Sandy Alomar Jr. as an amateur free agent. Now, the former catcher is one of four finalists for the Blue Jays managerial opening. Here are today's links, as the Phillies send the NLCS back to Philadelphia…

Joe Beimel tells Troy Renck of the Denver Post that he'd like to return to Colorado next year: "The Rockies are my first choice. I definitely want to be back. But after the last two offseasons, it's hard to know what to expect."
The Angels promoted Ric Wilson, making him their new scouting director, reports Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times.
Mets chief operating officer Jeff Wilpon says the team completed its initial round of interviews and will narrow the group of candidates "by early next week," according to Adam Rubin of ESPNNewYork.com.
Tigers GM Dave Dombrowski says he's "optimistic" about reaching a deal with Jhonny Peralta, according to MLB.com's Jason Beck. The Tigers have a $7MM option for the infielder's services in 2011.
Now that Detroit is presumably out of the running for Adrian Beltre, Jon Heyman of SI.com says the Tigers look like real players for Adam Dunn (Twitter link).
Remember Larry Bigbie, the former first rounder who played parts of six seasons in the major leagues? He's making a comeback and was recently named to Baseball America's 2010 All-Independent Leagues Team.
The Marlins outrighted Jay Buente, according to Juan C. Rodriguez of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel (on Twitter). That means the 27-year-old righty is no longer on the 40-man roster.

Alderson Favorite For Mets GM Job

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | October 20, 2010 at 4:13pm CDT

Sandy Alderson is “more than just a frontrunner” to become the next Mets GM, according to Joel Sherman of the New York Post. The former A’s GM impressed the Mets and will likely win the job if the next phase of the interview process goes well.

Jon Heyman of SI.com confirms that Alderson is the favorite and reports that the Mets seem unlikely to hire him in tandem with another executive. Logan White of the Dodgers, Josh Byrnes, Allard Baird of the Red Sox, Rick Hahn of the White Sox and Dana Brown of the Blue Jays are also candidates for the job.

Alderson was the A's GM for more than a decade and has since worked for the Padres and in the commissioner's office. He will meet at Citi Field with the Mets tomorrow. For more on the longtime executive, click here.

Yankees Rumors: Lee, Burnett, Pettitte, Girardi

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | October 19, 2010 at 2:50pm CDT

Between Cliff Lee's dominance and A.J. Burnett's struggles, the Yankees have lots to worry about when it comes to the pitching matchups in the ALCS. But the Yanks have lots of off-field questions about the two Darek Braunecker clients as well. Here are the details on Lee and Burnett:

Rangers owner Nolan Ryan told reporters, including Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram that he expects the Yankees to bid on Lee this winter. When asked how much Lee will command on the open market, Ryan pointed to the Yankees. "I need to go next door and ask them," he said. "I think he's got their attention."
Joel Sherman of the New York Post calls Burnett "the poison pill that is going to keep on giving for a while." The unpredictable right-hander has three years and nearly $50MM remaining on his contract.
Yankees officials tell Sherman that Andy Pettitte has not told the organization he's retiring, but Sherman wonders if the left-hander intends to call it quits after the season.
Joe Girardi won't be managing the Cubs and Jon Heyman of SI.com can't see him managing the Mets either (Twitter link). People in the Mets organization "love" Girardi, but Heyman finds it hard to imagine the skipper leaving the Yankees for the Mets.

Mets, K-Rod Resolve Grievance

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | October 19, 2010 at 1:37pm CDT

The Mets and Francisco Rodriguez resolved the closer's grievance with the team, according to statements from the Mets and the Players Association. Rodriguez decided not to challenge the Mets’ decision to withhold his 2010 salary after he injured himself in a non-baseball-related incident this August. He says he looks forward to remaining with the Mets and apologized to the team’s owners, players and fans.

The Mets agreed not to attempt to convert Rodriguez’s contract to a non-guaranteed deal and will remove him from the disqualified list. The team lost its closer to a season-ending thumb ligament operation, but ultimately saved $3.1MM.

Odds & Ends: Greinke, Marlins, McGwire, Daniels

By Mark Polishuk | October 18, 2010 at 10:08pm CDT

As Cliff Lee continues his domination of the Yankees, here's some news from around baseball…

Zack Greinke has until after the World Series to notify the Royals about the 8-10 teams on his no-trade list, reports Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star.
Bo Porter is not "the front runner" to be the next Marlins manager, reports Juan C. Rodriguez of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel. Rodriguez also notes that Florida would've kept Cody Ross had the team not fallen out of the pennant race. Since the Marlins faded, Ross was expendable given the club's desire for Cameron Maybin to get playing time.
Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch hears from Tony La Russa that Mark McGwire is "really torn" about returning as the Cardinals' hitting coach (Twitter link).
In the wake of Jeff Wilpon's statement that the Mets might not hire their new GM for a few weeks, Matthew Cerrone of Metsblog.com wonders if the Mets are waiting for the postseason to be over so they can speak to Rangers GM Jon Daniels.
Speaking of Daniels, he tells Scott Lauber of the Boston Herald that he saw the Jarrod Saltalamacchia trade "as an opportunity to give [the catcher] a fresh start."
MLB.com's Bill Ladson looks at a few hot stove items from Washington in his latest mailbag. He has some strong words about Jason Bergmann, who was released by the Nationals last week, and doesn't think there's any chance of Adam Dunn getting an early extension completed with Washington a la Ted Lilly's deal with the Dodgers.
Carrie Muskat has her own MLB.com mailbag concerning the Cubs. Neither Derrek Lee nor Lance Berkman, she opines, are good fits for Chicago at first base next season.
We heard earlier that Joey Cora will interview for the Brewers' managerial job on Tuesday, and Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports that Pat Listach will also interview on the same day. Listach, Washington's third base coach, won the AL Rookie Of The Year Award as a Brewer in 1992 and played for Milwaukee from 1992 to 1996.
CSNNE.com's Sean McAdam predicts that Paul Konerko is "likely staying put" with the White Sox. (Twitter link)

Odds & Ends: Mets, Reds, Nationals, Cardinals

By Tim Dierkes | October 18, 2010 at 3:52pm CDT

Links for Monday, as impending free agent lefties Cliff Lee and Andy Pettitte prepare to duel in New York…

Jon Heyman of SI (via Twitter) doesn't think that Dana Brown, an "[Omar] Minaya disciple", has a good chance of landing the Mets GM job. Brown will reportedly meet with the club on Wednesday.
RotoAuthority attempts to find the next Carlos Gonzalez for fantasy players.
Cody Ross is expected to be tendered a contract this winter by the Giants, and he told John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle, "I'd like to stay for my career." Ross also revealed that he's been pushing former teammate Dan Uggla to sign with the Giants after next season.
Forget about the Reds signing Carl Crawford, suggests MLB.com's Mark Sheldon. Sheldon sees the Reds attempting to find a more affordable leadoff hitter.
Patrick Newman of FanGraphs looks at the repertoire of starter Hisashi Iwakuma, who will be posted by the Rakuten Golden Eagles. The righty, 30 in April, excels at limiting home runs. Newman estimates a posting fee in the $10MM range plus a contract of four years and $20MM.
Mark Zuckerman of Nats Insider examines Washington's 2011 payroll commitments and finds that they will have less than $50MM committed. He doesn't know if they'll bump payroll to the $80MM range, but if so they could be big offseason spenders. For MLBTR's look at the Nationals' twelve arbitration eligible players, click here.
MLB.com's Matthew Leach spoke to Jake Westbrook about the future, shortly before the season ended.
Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch outlines the battle for Cardinals 40-man roster spots.
The Yankees' Jesus Montero is the best hitting prospect left in the minors, writes Baseball America's Jim Callis.

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