Odds & Ends: Lackey, Rangers, Mets
With about an hour to go before the start of Game Two, here are some items from around the majors….
- During an appearance on The Dan Patrick Show today, Dodgers GM Ned Colletti said his club will be focused on finding second base help and starting pitching in the offseason, though Colletti played dumb when asked about the possibility of the Dodgers making a play for free agent starter John Lackey.
- With the number of open managerial jobs quickly dwindling, some of the rumored candidates for the filled positions are looking at other options. Former Rockies manager Clint Hurdle (who was up for the Cleveland manager's job that went to Manny Acta) is one of four finalists to be the Rangers' next hitting coach, reports Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News.
- Along those same lines, Bob Melvin may go from being a candidate to be the next Astros manager to being considered for the Mets bench coaching job, says Adam Rubin of the New York Daily News. Rubin also reports that the Mets will name Chip Hale as their new third base coach after the World Series is over.
- According to a team press release, the Pirates have claimed pitcher Justin Thomas off waivers from Seattle.
- In a chat with MASN's Byron Kerr, Adam Dunn said he feels Washington is an attractive destination for free agents in part because Nationals Park is "a really fair ballpark."
Odds & Ends: Kikuchi, Astros, Smoltz, Hermida
Some links to read for Thursday morning…
- The AP reports (via the Miami Herald) that the Seibu Lions won the rights to negotiate with top Japanese amateur Yusei Kikuchi.
- Another top young pitcher, Stephen Strasburg, hit 100 mph repeatedly in his third AFL start, according to ESPN.com's Jason Grey.
- Richard Justice of the Houston Chronicle says fans and media members need to hold Astros owner Drayton McLane accountable, and says it wasn't GM Ed Wade's fault that managerial candidate Manny Acta signed with the Indians.
- Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch hears that the Cardinals still have interest in bringing John Smoltz back next year, perhaps as the team's fourth starter. The club seems likely to find a fifth starter within the organization.
- The Pirates and Reds will swap A ball affiliates next year, according to the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review.
- Padres GM Jed Hoyer offered contracts to all of the organization's scouts and player development personnel, according to Bill Center of the San Diego Union-Tribune.
- R.J. Anderson of FanGraphs expects Tim Hudson to be worth the extension he's expected to sign.
- MLB.com's Joe Frisaro lists the Blue Jays, Mariners, Rays and Mets as possible destinations for Jeremy Hermida. The Marlins may trade the outfielder, who should hit free agency after 2011.
Tyler Yates Elects Free Agency
TUESDAY: Pirates GM Neal Huntington told Chuck Finder of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that the team is in dialogue with Yates in hopes of retaining him.
MONDAY: Tyler Yates elected free agency after being outrighted by the Pirates, according to a team press release. Yates had Tommy John surgery in July, and outrighting him now takes him off the 40-man roster earlier than non-tendering him in December. Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette wrote in July that "the Pirates' tentative plan for Yates is to offer him a minor league contract for 2010." The press release notes that the Pirates' 40-man roster is at 38, with Evan Meek and Jose Ascanio still on the 60-day DL.
Yates, 32, tossed 73.3 innings last year with a 4.66 ERA. At 5.0 per nine innings, walks were a problem. The Bucs acquired Yates from the Braves in March of '08 for Todd Redmond.
Odds & Ends: Pirates, Mets, Johnson
A fresh batch of links for Saturday afternoon…
- According to John Perrotto of Baseball Prospectus, Pirates right-hander Ross Ohlendorf missed arbitration eligibility by just two days.
- On the other hand, as Perrotto notes, right-hander Jeff Karstens is eligible for arbitration.
- MLB.com's Marty Noble fielded a ton of hot stove-related questions from Mets fans for his latest "Inbox" article.
- David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal Constitution suspects the Braves will stick with Martin Prado at second base next season. That, of course, leaves Kelly Johnson's future in limbo. He's eligible for arbitration and is expected to command close to $3.3MM, which would be a hefty sum for a backup infielder.
- Patrick Newman of the incomparable NPB Tracker has updates on Japanese free agents RHP Ryota Igarashi and OF Saburo Ohmura.
Odds & Ends: Torre, Braves, Blue Jays
In the midst of a tight Dodgers-Phillies game, here are some news tidbits from around the baseball world….
- Before Game Five, Joe Torre said he wants to (and believes he will) be the Dodgers' manager next season, reports Mike Jensen of the Philadelphia Inquirer.
- Jeff Schultz of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution writes that Frank Wren is in a bit of a Catch-22 when it comes to re-signing Tim Hudson and Adam LaRoche, and/or trading Kenshin Kawakami or Derek Lowe for hitting help.
- MLB.com's Jordan Bastian reports that new Blue Jays general manager Alex Anthopoulos has spent his first few weeks on the job talking to the team's coaches and players. After talking to pending free agents Marco Scutaro, Rod Barajas and John McDonald, Anthopoulos said he wants to speak to their respective agents in the coming weeks.
- As reported by Kevin Gorman of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, Mark Cuban told a group of Pitt students that he won't be buying the Pirates.
- Speaking of Pittsburgh natives looking to be involved in MLB ownership, MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan said that Pittsburgh lawyer Check Greenberg's investment team made with members of the Hicks Sports Group on Wednesday to discuss buying the Rangers.
- Tommy Rancel of the DRaysBay blog outlines why he thinks the Rays should look into signing Kelvim Escobar this off-season.
Chris Bootcheck Elects Free Agency
Reliever and Scott Boras client Chris Bootcheck has elected free agency, according to a press release from the Pirates. Righties Denny Bautista and Craig Hansen were also outrighted, but apparently remain in the organization for now.
Bootcheck, 30, signed a minor league deal with the Pirates in December. The signing seemed to signify the Pirates could work with Boras after the Pedro Alvarez drama. Bootcheck picked up 20 saves in Triple A, posting very strong peripherals (11.6 K/9, 1.5 BB/9, one home run allowed in 42.6 innings). He did not fare well in his 14.6 big league innings, but did average 93.6 mph on his heater.
Odds & Ends: Pirates, Rockies, Brewers
What, two playoff games isn't enough baseball for you? Us either…
- Jenifer Langosch of MLB.com discusses the many problems with the Pirates. She doesn't think any of the traded Pirates are coming back, and addresses the improvement Pittsburgh needs to make in the starting rotation and up the middle.
- MLB.com's Thomas Harding dissects the state of the Rockies, position-by-position.
- Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel says there will be no pitching coach hiring announced today for the Brewers, in case you were staying up late waiting for that announcement.
- Boston Red Sox coaches Brad Mills and Tim Bogar interviewed for the Houston managerial vacancy.
Odds & Ends: Bucs, Duchscherer, Astros
A fresh batch of links for Saturday afternoon…
- Perry Hill left his post as Pirates first base coach Saturday and, according to the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, expressed unhappiness with the team's aggressive trading on his way out. The Pirates got rid of three-fourths of their infield (Jack Wilson, Freddy Sanchez and Adam LaRoche) during the year.
- According to Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle, the A's have not touched base with soon-to-be free agent Justin Duchscherer since the end of the season. GM Billy Beane plans to engage in some kind of discussions with the right-hander and his agent "soon." We profiled "The Duke of Hurl" about a month ago.
- Former Astros manager Phil Garner interviewed for the club's managing vacancy on Saturday afternoon, according to the Associated Press (via ESPN.com). He was the seventh of 10 candidates to interview for the gig.
- Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star reports that the Royals have retained minor league right-hander Jairo Cuevas. The 25-year-old was eligible for free agency.
Odds & Ends: Braves, Orioles, Pirates
A few notes from around the majors…
- Veteran Greg Norton tied a major league record in what may be his final season, says MLB.com's Mark Bowman
- In another blog entry, Bowman said that though Martin Prado spent some time in the outfield while playing in his native Venezuela, Prado is not a candidate for Atlanta's right field job.
- MASN's Steve Melewski reports that the Orioles have signed their first Guatemalan player, 17-year-old Manuel Hernandez
- In a chat on MLB.com, Pirates president Frank Coonelly said that Andy LaRoche was "open" to the possibility of playing second base next season given some of Pittsburgh's minor-league options at third base (including top prospect Pedro Alvarez).
- Dick Kaegel of MLB.com reports on two changes to Kansas City's coaching staff in 2010.
Odds & Ends: Pirates, Mets, White Sox
Lots of teams are packing their bags today. But every trip has a destination…
- Dejan Kovacevic of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette chats with readers. Among other moves, he expects the Pirates to shop Matt Capps.
- The incomparable Marty Noble quotes a Mets official as saying, "There's more of an understanding now that we need to fix things on more than the Major League level."
- Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune thinks Carlos Quentin could help himself from "a slight weight loss."
- Nick Piecoro believes the Diamondbacks have no choice but to pick up Brandon Webb's $6.5MM option for 2010, which is actually an $8.5MM option minus a $2.0MM buyout Arizona can exercise.