Headlines

Go To Pro Hockey Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Gabe Kapler

Giants Place Jake McGee On 10-Day Injured List

By | at

The Giants have placed reliever Jake McGee on the 10-day injured list with a right oblique strain, per Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle. Because the injury placement is backdated to Tuesday when McGee first felt the muscle acting up, he will be available to return to the active roster by September 24 at the earliest.

Not long ago, it would have been scoff-worthy to suggest that McGee would find a role as the nominal closer for the team with the best record in the Majors – but here we are. McGee was one of the Rockies’ ill-fated bullpen signings back in 2017, and by the time that $27MM contract had run its course, McGee had fallen so far out of favor that Colorado released him before the third season was up. The southpaw posted an unfortunate 5.54 ERA over those two seasons in Colorado with unusually high walk and home run rates.

He’s rejuvenated now, however, having performed well for the Dodgers last season before catching on in San Francisco this year. He owns a 2.72 ERA/3.35 FIP across 62 games totaling 59 2/3 innings with an impressive 31 saves. Since leaving Colorado, his walk and home run rates have returned to normal levels – a 4.2 percent walk rate coming in well below the average mark and a 2.9 percent home run rate being exactly league average. McGee is also striking out a solid 24.3 percent of opponents.

Without McGee, the Giants will turn to Tyler Rogers, Tony Watson, and Dominic Leone to close games, writes Slusser. Rogers has played the part already this season, notching 12 saves while appearing in a league-leading 71 games for Gabe Kapler’s club. Leone has been used more as an opener of late, but he’ll be an option from the right side as well. Watson, a trade deadline acquisition this season, can close from the left side, should the match-ups lean that way.

McGee’s roster spot went to Jay Jackson, who was recalled today from Triple-A. Jackson has spent a decent chunk of time on the active roster and begun to earn Kapler’s trust at times. The 33-year-old has pitched in 22 games for a 3.95 ERA across 20 2/3 innings. Given that Jackson had totaled just 34 2/3 innings in the Majors prior to this season, he’s been a pleasant surprise in limited action for the Giants.

Giants Notes: Ruf, Pence, Dubon

By | at

Darin Ruf’s loud bat is making a play for a roster spot in San Francisco, per John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle. Ruff, 33, made major-league appearances for five consecutive seasons for the Philadelphia Phillies from 2012 to 2016, totaling 833 plate appearances. He was mostly used as a pinch-hitting option off the bench while seeing time at first base and in both outfield corners. The Giants are pretty settled at first base with veteran Brandon Belt, but there’s room for Ruf to make a play for an outfield spot where Michael Yastrzemski, Alex Dickerson, Austin Slater, Joey Rickard, Joe McCarthy, and Hunter Pence are his top competition.

  • Pence, of course, will line up as the regular designated hitter, assuming he can stay healthy. After missing some workouts due to pain in his right foot, Pence underwent an MRI but results returned nothing more serious than inflammation, per Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle. He’s not expected to miss a significant amount of time. The fan favorite returned to the Giants this year just in time to resume his role as a designated hitter, a role in which he thrived last season for the Texas Rangers. Pence enjoyed a real resurgence in 2019, making the All-Star team and hitting .297/.358/.552. the 36-year-old outfielder was limited to 83 games, however, and it’s safe to assume he’ll be a part-time player moving forward. That should leave plenty of at-bats for a crowded veteran infield or any of the names above to snag some extra ABs from the DH slot.
  • In preparation for a hectic season, Giants manager Gabe Kapler is encouraging players to cultivate as much flexibility as possible, per Kerry Crowley of the Mercury News. Joe McCarthy is spending more time at first, Yastrzemski, Austin Slater and others are seeing time in centerfield, and former Brewer Mauricio Dubon has moved all over the diamond, from second to center to right to first. When Dubon was acquired from the Brewers, there was some question as to exactly where he’d fit in, given the veterans stocked in the Giants’ infield. Well, the answer is anywhere and everywhere.

Details On Madison Bumgarner’s Agreement With The Diamondbacks

By | at

Madison Bumgarner became the latest free agent pitcher to leave the open market, agreeing to a five-year, $85MM deal with the Diamondbacks on Sunday.  While reports from earlier this week suggested that Arizona was in the mix, it still raised a lot of eyebrows to see the D’Backs (who weren’t considered likely to either make a big free agent signing or pursue a big-ticket pitcher) wind up as Bumgarner’s new destination.  Here’s more on the signing…

  • The Diamondbacks were Bumgarner’s top choice in free agency “provided they could pay him at an appropriate level,” The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal (subscription required) hears from a source close to the left-hander.  The $85MM guarantee was enough to get it done, though $15MM of the money is deferred.  While it wasn’t quite the five-year/$100MM commitment Bumgarner and his camp were reportedly hoping to land, it could be that the D’Backs came close enough, or — as Rosenthal speculates — perhaps no team was willing to go to nine figures for Bumgarner’s services.
  • Rosenthal and his fellow scribes at The Athletic discussed the Bumgarner signing in a roundtable, with Andrew Baggarly noting that new Giants manager Gabe Kapler hadn’t yet spoken with the southpaw as of the Winter Meetings.  In Baggarly’s view, that was the sign that Bumgarner wasn’t returning to San Francisco.  “If the Giants had legitimate interest, and believed they had a legitimate chance, you can bet that calls and meetings would’ve been set up. Kapler would have begun the back-channeling before he even got the job,” Baggarly writes.
  • A counter-argument of sorts is provided by Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle (Twitter links), who reports that the Giants offered Bumgarner a four-year contract in the range of $17MM per year in average annual value.  “One of [Bumgarner’s] confidants” believes the lefty would have re-signed with the Giants had they offered him the same deal as Arizona, Schulman writes, except the fifth year might have been enough to pull the D’Backs of San Francisco and perhaps other suitors.  Indeed, Darren Wolfson of 5 Eyewitness News (Twitter link) reports that the Twins were also unwilling to give Bumgarner a fifth year.
  • The fact that Bumgarner went to something of a mystery team creates even more of a crunch for teams who were known to be more fervently pursuing rotation help.  Ironically, the team that could benefit from this crunch could be the D’Backs themselves.  As The Athletic’s Zach Buchanan puts it, “the Diamondbacks may have just created the starting pitching scarcity they need to trade Robbie Ray for his best value.”  There has been wide speculation that Ray could be dealt this offseason, as Ray is entering the final year of his contract and is projected to earn $10.8MM in his last year of arbitration eligibility.  With Bumgarner now in the fold, the D’Backs could feel enough comfort in their rotation to move Ray and both address other needs while getting his salary off the books at the same time.
  • As a final coda on Bumgarner’s tenure with the Giants, Kerry Crowley of the Bay Area News Group notes that Bumgarner might not have reached free agency if it weren’t for a pair of injuries — Bumgarner’s infamous dirt biking accident in April 2017, and then the fractured hand suffered on his last Spring Training outing in 2018.  In both instances, the Giants were on the verge of broaching extension talks with their longtime ace.

Quick Hits: Souza Jr., Ha-seong, Giants Coaching Staff

By | at

After missing much of 2018 and all of 2019, outfielder Steven Souza Jr. will be looking for a place to reboot his career in 2020. Souza was recently non-tendered by the Diamondbacks, but he insists he is finally healthy and cleared for game action. One club he wouldn’t mind spending the 2020 season with is the Tampa Bay Rays, per Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. The best seasons of Souza’s career were with Tampa in 2016 and 2017, but outside of a particularly strong 2017 in which he posted a 121 wRC+, Souza has largely performed within arm’s reach of league average – from both above and below. The spotty record combined with the injuries of the past two seasons means Souza will likely have to settle for a prove-yourself type of deal, which could put the Rays among interested teams. That’s all speculation for now, however, as the market for Souza isn’t likely to take shape with any immediacy. While we wait, let’s check out a couple other quick bits of news from around the baseball world…

  • Kiwoom Heroes shortstop Kim Ha-seong of the KBO intends to be posted after the 2020 season, per Jeeho Yoo of the Yonhap News Agency. Ha-seong is a career .292/371/.487 hitter in the KBO, pairing stolen base ability with strong power numbers. If posted after 2020, he would be ready for a stateside appearance in his age-25 season. The total package is certainly enough to make Ha-seong an intriguing name to keep in mind for this time next year. If nothing else, his bat flip skills are certainly ML-ready.
  • The San Francisco Giants are getting younger – in the dugout if not on the field. New manager Gabe Kapler is set to add another young coach to his staff. Justin Viele, 29, would join 33-year-old Donnie Ecker to form the team of hitting coaches, per Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports. Viele has been a hitting coach in the Dodgers’ minor league system, so President of Baseball Ops Farhan Zaidi is no doubt familiar with his work. Viele did play 126 games of minor league ball, including a stint as a teammate of current Giant Mike Yastrzemski.

Quick Hits: Giants, Belt, Kapler, MLBPA, Licensing

By | at

Earlier this offseason, the Giants were said to be underway on a few structural changes to Oracle Park, including a plan to shift team and visiting bullpens from along the baselines to beyond the outfield fence in center field. Today’s report from Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports brings a few more details on that planned renovation, complete with photos snagged during a recent offseason event at Oracle (link).

It may be interesting to consider how these changes may affect the performance of the club’s on-field personnel. Oracle has long been known to be one of the most pitcher-friendly ballparks in the bigs, owing to both the dense air surrounding San Francisco Bay and the park’s infamous “Triples Alley” chasm in right-center field. According to Pavlovic’s report, the deepest part of this “Triples Alley” area will be moved from 421 feet to approximately 410 feet as a result of the current offseason’s changes. This adjustment could be a huge aid to first baseman Brandon Belt, who has logged 32 triples since entering the league in 2011–far and away tops among major league first baggers (presumably, Belt wouldn’t have minded a few of those triples clearing his home park’s fence). Whether club pitchers will be as happy with the reconstruction is an altogether different question.

More notes from around the game on a quiet Saturday eve…

  • New Giants manager Gabe Kapler was often the subject of intense personal scrutiny during his time as manager of the Phillies, and, as Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle tells it, Kapler is still an individual who cuts a unique profile within league circles (link). In a wide-ranging personal interest piece, Slusser references one MLB coach’s description of Kapler as “condescending” and one staff member’s description of Kapler as a “bully”; meanwhile, other league figures are quoted in praise of Kapler’s intellect, perseverance, and humility. Regardless of his enigmatic profile, Kapler may face an uphill climb in winning over some Giants fans, as indicated by a separate Saturday column from the Chronicle’s Ann Killion, which amplifies the quotes of several San Francisco followers upset over the implications of Kapler’s hire (link).
  • The player’s unions for the NFL and MLB have entered into a new partnership.  Specifically, the NFLPA and MLBPA have come to an agreement with RedBird Capital Partners to form a company called OneTeam Partners LLC. This joint operation will manage the portrayals of respective league athletes, according to Miriam Gottfried, Andrew Beaton, and Jared Diamond of The Wall Street Journal (link). Each player union has typically negotiated the sale of player likeness and image to gaming, trading card, and other companies independently, but OneTeam Partners is presumably designed to leverage the combined forces of both unions. Individual players will still receive their standard annual payouts from such deals, but RedBird Capital will use union licensing funds to invest in additional, outside opportunities.

Giants Hire Gabe Kapler As Manager

By | at

The Giants have hired Gabe Kapler as their new manager, Kerry Crowley of the Bay Area News Group was among those to report. Kapler will take over for longtime Giants skipper Bruce Bochy, who exited after a resoundingly successful 13-year run in which he helped the club to three World Series titles. He’ll receive a three-year contract, per Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports California.

President of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi issued a glowing assessment of Kapler, saying:  “Our top priority in the next manager was to find someone who can build strong relationships with our players, coaches, front office and fans, and someone who has the drive and desire to win.”

Zaidi continued: “After an exhaustive and comprehensive search, we are delighted to welcome Gabe Kapler as the next manager of the San Francisco Giants. In my personal experience in working with Gabe, there is no one who works harder and is more committed to getting the best out of the people around him.  This was also echoed in the feedback we received around the baseball community.  I look forward to working with Gabe to help return the Giants to its winning tradition.”

The 44-year-old Kapler was among several candidates the Zaidi-led Giants spoke to in regards to their managerial position in recent weeks. Over the past several days, though, the search narrowed to Kapler, Astros bench coach Joe Espada and Rays bench coach Matt Quatraro. Espada looked like the favorite to assume the role just this past weekend, but he’ll instead lose out to Kapler, who already comes with managerial experience at the major league level.

Kapler’s on the heels of a two-year reign atop Philadelphia’s dugout, though the former outfielder’s initial run as a big league skipper didn’t go all that well. The Phillies finished 80-82 in Kapler’s first year and then went a similar 81-81 this season, despite numerous winter splashes designed to get the club back to the playoffs. In both seasons, the Phillies started well before fizzling over the summer.

While Kapler didn’t succeed in Philly, he’ll now enter into a San Francisco role where he already has a relationship with its chief baseball decision-maker. Kapler went into the interview process knowing Zaidi from the pair’s days with the Dodgers. Kapler was the Dodgers’ director of player development from 2015-17, during which Zaidi was their general manager. Over his time in Los Angeles, Kapler developed a reputation as someone open to analytics, which helped him land the job with the Phillies and likely factored into the Giants’ call to name him as Bochy’s successor.

While Kapler’s coming off a year at the helm of a team that had playoff aspirations, he’s now stepping into a job where patience is likely in order. The Giants are a few weeks removed from wrapping up their third straight sub-.500 season, so their roster is undoubtedly rife with flaws. Aging veterans such as catcher Buster Posey, first baseman Brandon Belt, shortstop Brandon Crawford, third baseman Evan Longoria (Kapler’s teammate in Tampa Bay), and right-handers Jeff Samardzija and Johnny Cueto continue to eat up a significant amount of the Giants’ payroll. Furthermore, the club’s lacking premium young talent at the major league level, and high-end starter Madison Bumgarner and outstanding closer Will Smith could depart in free agency.

Kapler’s now part of a brain trust that includes Zaidi and Scott Harris, whom the Giants just hired as their GM. The group could make announcements in regards to Kapler’s coaching staff as early as Wednesday, according to Zaidi (via Pavlovic). San Francisco has already lost a couple of Bochy’s former assistants, Hensley Meulens and Matt Herges, to other teams.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Latest On Giants’ Managerial Search

By | at

The Giants may be nearing the final stages of their search for Bruce Bochy’s replacement, as Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area reports that either former Phillies manager Gabe Kapler, Astros bench coach Joe Espada, or Royals quality control coach Pedro Grifol will be the next Giants manager.  Kapler, Espada, and Grifol are the only candidates known to be asked back for a second interview, thus seemingly confirming them as the top choices.

Among other known candidates, it’s worth noting that the Athletics announced their 2020 coaching staff today, with quality control coach Mark Kotsay listed as returning.  Giants bench coach Hensley Meulens has been busy managing the Netherlands’ team in the Premier 12 tournament (which doubles as a qualifying tournament for the 2020 Olympics), which perhaps served as an early hint that he wouldn’t be promoted to the top job in San Francisco’s dugout.

“Kapler has at points been the favorite in the process,” a source tells Pavlovic, due to the longstanding relationship between Kapler and Giants president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi due to their time together in the Dodgers’ front office.  However, “it’s unclear where the search stands currently,” as both Grifol and Espada have been asked back for secondary interviews.  It could be that the Giants are simply doing their due diligence in an important decision, or perhaps one of the other two candidates has started to garner more of the team’s attention.

Gabe Kapler Receives Second Interview With Giants

By | at

Former Phillies manager Gabe Kapler will receive a second interview with the Giants, per SiriusXM’s Craig Mish (Twitter link). He’s one of two candidates now reported to have received a second-round interview in San Francisco’s managerial search, joining Houston bench coach Joe Espada in that regard. Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area tweets that the second round of interviews will likely be narrowed to a total of three or four candidates, thus putting Kapler and Espada on a short list.

Kapler, 44, was let go by the Phillies two-thirds of the way through his three-year contract. He’s surely quite familiar with Giants president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi, given that Zaidi’s time as general manager of the Dodgers overlapped with Kapler’s time as the director of player development with the Dodgers. Kapler has also managed in the Red Sox’ minor league ranks and spent parts of a dozen seasons as an outfielder in the Major Leagues.

The Giants have reportedly interviewed a pair of internal candidates — bench coach Hensley Meulens and third base coach Ron Wotus — in addition to Royals quality control coach Pedro Grifol, Athletics quality control coach Mark Kotsay, Rays bench coach Matt Quatraro and Cubs first base coach Will Venable. Whether the ultimate choice is Kapler, Espada or one of the other known candidates, the 2020 Giants skipper will have some enormous shoes to fill. Franchise icon Bruce Bochy walked away this winter after 13 seasons, 1052 wins and three World Series titles as the manager of the Giants, though Bochy recently suggested that he could be amenable to one more run as a manager after taking a year off next season.

Updates on the Giants’ search and the other ongoing (and recently completed) managerial searches throughout the league can be followed here.

Cubs To Interview Joe Espada, Gabe Kapler

By | at

The Cubs are interviewing Astros bench coach Joe Espada for their managerial opening today, tweets Mark Feinsand of MLB.com. Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune tweets that they’ll also interview recently dismissed Phillies skipper Gabe Kapler this week. Espada’s Astros, of course, are still very much alive in their chase for a second World Series crown in three years, but today is a travel day for both remaining American League clubs.

Espada had a 10-year minor league career as an infielder but never cracked the big leagues. The Puerto Rican-born 44-year-old began coaching not long after retiring as a player, working with the Marlins organization as a minor league hitting coach and field coordinator. He eventually moved up to become the team’s third base coach for four seasons and served another three years in that same capacity with the Yankees.

Espada has also spent time as a special assistant to Yankees GM Brian Cashman and has currently been in his position with the Astros for two seasons. He received quite a bit of managerial interest last offseason and seems increasingly likely to ultimately lead his own club, given recent interest and the general manner in which coaches from successful, analytically inclined coaches are coveted by other teams. He’s already been tied to the Angels’ vacancy and was involved in the respective managerial searches conducted by the Orioles, Rangers and Blue Jays last offseason.

Like Espada, Kapler is 44 years of age. He played parts of a dozen seasons at the MLB level before becoming a minor league manager with the Red Sox and, eventually, the director of player development for the Dodgers. Kapler was recently cut loose two seasons into a three-year deal to manage the Phillies, though owner John Middleton seemingly went through a painstaking deliberation before making what he characterized as a difficult decision. Middleton said that he and the club are “indebted to Gabe for the steadfast effort, energy and enthusiasm” at the time of Kapler’s dismissal. Kapler is also set to interview with the Giants.

The Cubs are also known to be interested in Joe Girardi, David Ross and internal candidates Mark Loretta and Will Venable as possible successors to Joe Maddon, who was not brought back for a sixth season after his initial five-year deal to manage the Cubs expired. Notably, ESPN’s Jesse Rogers suggests that Kapler and Espada “should be” the final two candidates to receive interviews (Twitter link), so it seems that the next Cubs skipper will come from this batch of names. Chicago had interest in Carlos Beltran, as well, but Beltran declined the opportunity to interview with the team.

Giants To Interview Gabe Kapler

By | at

The Giants are set to interview ex-Phillies manager Gabe Kapler for their vacant managerial position, according to MLB Network’s Jon Heyman. Add Kapler’s name to a growing list of known candidates for the San Francisco job, which includes internal options Ron Wotus and Hensley Meulens, as well as Royals quality control/catching coach Pedro Grifol and Athletics quality control coach Mark Kotsay.

Among that group, it’s notable that Kapler is the only candidate with big-league managerial experience. Even so, Kapler has managed just two years at the MLB level and just got out of his first managing gig. That’s not to say that he’s unfit to return to an MLB dugout; it’s not uncommon for first-time managers to experience growing pains before finding success in their second crack at the job.

Of course, Giants president of baseball ops Farhan Zaidi is familiar with Kapler from their time together in the Dodgers organization, where Kapler served as the director of player development, with Heyman going as far as to say that Zaidi “loves” Kapler.

The 44-year-old Kapler has certainly come under his fair share of scrutiny after two disappointing seasons in Philadelphia. A pair of September collapses have seen his teams come up short of the postseason, which, coupled with rising expectations for the team, ultimately spelled his demise. However, Kapler’s intent on managing again, and there’s reason to believe that he could draw significant interest. He reportedly received a glowing recommendation from Zaidi himself while interviewing for the Phillies job, while Phillies GM Matt Klentak expressed confidence in Kapler before ownership overruled him.

While Kapler could be viewed as a favorite for the position, there’s still plenty of ground to cover before a match is made. Reports indicate that Zaidi intends to interview more than a half-dozen candidates before arriving at a decision. Still, Kapler is certainly a name to watch in the Giants’ developing search for Bruce Bochy’s successor.

Show all

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

hide arrows scroll to top