Odds & Ends: Astros, Giants, Nationals
Let's take a look at some early evening links:
- After striking out on Manny Acta, the Astros must continue their search for a skipper. MLB.com's Brian McTaggart reports that the search is now focused on three candidates: former Astros manager Phil Garner, BoSox bench coach Brad Mills and interim manager Dave Clark. One source told Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports that Mills would get the nod and that it would be a "surprise" if Garner were brought back. Another source said that Clark remains a possibility. Houston would like to reach a decision before the start of the World Series (Wednesday), but may even expand their search beyond these three choices.
- Matt Holliday and Jason Bay are both too pricey for the Giants, writes Bruce Jenkins of the San Francisco Chronicle. Holliday is represented by Scott Boras, who compared him to Mark Teixeira in hopes of fetching a deal similar to the eight-year, $180MM contract the first baseman received from the Yankees.
- Johnny Holliday of MASN Sports writes that the Nationals will announce the identity of their manager for 2010 "any day now." Interim skipper Jim Riggleman remains a candidate.
- Cardinals pitching coach Dave Duncan is likely to return in 2010, reports Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. Duncan has said that his decision will be dependent on the return of Tony La Russa, who has reportedly agreed to an extension.
Odds & Ends: Chapman, Indians, Mulder, Royals
More links for Friday…
- Adam Rubin of the New York Daily News says the Mets are meeting with Aroldis Chapman today in New York. Rubin also passes along the bio Chapman's representatives have prepared.
- The Angels have given the Indians permission to interview bench coach Ron Roenicke for the club's managerial opening, according to Mike DiGiovanna of the LA Times.
- ESPN.com's Buster Olney says Don Mattingly is a frontrunner for the Indians job and, as Brian Costello of the New York Post reports, the Nationals have interest in Mattingly, too.
- Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel agrees with Buster Olney. Mark Mulder makes sense for the Brewers, who had interest in the lefty earlier this year.
- Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star assumes the Royals won't bring Tony Pena Jr. back. The shortstop-turned pitcher chose to become a free agent earlier in the week.
- Tony Massarotti of the Boston Globe says the Red Sox have enough organizational pitching depth to focus on adding a big bat this offseason. Massarotti expects the Red Sox to target Jason Bay and, possibly, Matt Holliday. It wouldn't be a surprise to see the team sign either player. Check the article out to see a breakdown of the club's financial commitments for the next couple years.
Heyman On Jaramillo, Holliday, Mets, Nationals
11:24pm: Bruce Levine of ESPNChicago.com says the Cubs will announce the signing of Jaramillo tomorrow. The Cubs paid up for the hitting coach's services – three years, $2.42MM.
6:01pm: SI.com's Jon Heyman discusses a variety of hot stove topics in his latest column and in an appearance on WFAN, which Matthew Cerrone of MetsBlog summarizes. Here are a few of Heyman's main points….
- The Mets will be the main player for Matt Holliday, with the Giants and Braves in the mix as well. In addition to the Cardinals, the Red Sox and Yankees are also contenders for the star outfielder.
- Rather than make a run at Roy Halladay, the Mets may be more inclined to sign free agents and keep their top prospects.
- Intermin manager Jim Riggleman is the favorite to manage the Washington Nationals in 2010.
- The Mariners' management is glad that Kenji Johjima opted out of his deal, since they "never thought much of him as a player." That's Heyman's quote, not anything from the team.
- Rudy Jaramillo, who seems likely to become the Cubs' hitting coach, has had success working with Alfonso Soriano in the past. Heyman hears that Jaramillo will sign a multi-year deal with Chicago that will make him the highest-paid hitting coach in the league.
Boras Compares Holliday To Teixeira
Scott Boras believes Mark Teixeira and Matt Holliday are both "blue-collar superstars," learned Bill Shaikin of the L.A. Times. Boras considers both to be "complete players," and finds Holliday unique in the upcoming free agent class. Boras' comments imply that Holliday's advantage over Jason Bay is his defense.
No matter how well Boras pitches Holliday, it seems highly unlikely the outfielder will sniff the eight-year, $180MM deal Tex received. Speculation so far has focused on the typical big-market clubs, but here in October it's too early to say which teams will make legitimate, $100MM+ bids.
It's always fun to read Boras' hyperbolic statements about his clients. His other free agents include Ivan Rodriguez, Jason Varitek, Felipe Lopez, Adrian Beltre, Joe Crede, Garret Anderson, Johnny Damon, Manny Ramirez, Rick Ankiel, Andruw Jones, Xavier Nady, and Jarrod Washburn (Varitek and Manny have 2010 options).
Holliday Prefers New York?
Ken Davidoff of Newsday has a source who has told him that Matt Holliday's top two choices in free agency are the Yankees and the Mets, in that order.
Davidoff doesn't see the Yankees wanting to make another commitment of that level after signing Mark Teixeira, C.C. Sabathia, and A.J. Burnett last winter. He also feels that winning the World Series would remove some of the pressure to sign the superstar left fielder.
Davidoff lists hitting at Citi Field as Holliday's main reservation about signing on with the Mets, but says that based on recent comments by Jeff Wilpon, the Mets could be willing to try anything and everything this offseason. "Anything and everything" will be expensive in Holliday's case, however. Remember that back in September, an agent told Jon Heyman that he estimated seven years and $147MM for Holliday, while Heyman himself ventured a guess of seven years, $120MM.
Holliday struggled (by his standards) in his brief American League tenure, posting a line of .286/.378/.454 with Oakland through 93 games this season. Since being traded to the Cardinals, however, Holliday exploded to post an incredible .353/.419/.604 line through 63 games.
It seems a bit early to begin making predictions, but since that's one of the fun parts about the offseason anyway, let's hear 'em. Does Holliday land with a New York club? Will he re-up in St. Louis? Or will we be surprised at what jersey he's wearing again, as we were when the A's acquired him last winter?
Red Sox Notes: Bay, Ortiz, Saito
Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald covers a handful of Red Sox topics in his latest column. Here are some of the highlights:
- Silverman expects Jason Bay and the Sox to haggle more about the length of a new contract than the dollar amount. Bay will want to guarantee himself a minimum of four or five years, while the Red Sox would rather stick to three years, plus an option.
- Matt Holliday is an alternative to Bay, but he'll likely be looking for six years and more money per season than Bay. Plus there's no guarantee Holliday can thrive in Boston, while Bay has proven he can.
- Even if they were to sign Bay or Holliday, the Red Sox would just be maintaining their offense, not upgrading it. Silverman thinks they need to add a big left-handed bat too, though he implies that may have to wait until David Ortiz's contract is up, a year from now.
- One lefty hitter that Silverman notes is currently on the trading block: Brad Hawpe.
- Ortiz is committed to improving his conditioning and fitness this winter, hoping to avoid another slow start in 2010.
- While the Sox likely won't pick up Takashi Saito's $6MM option, there's "mutual interest" for the reliever to re-sign.
Cardinals Notes: Holliday, Pujols, La Russa
Some Cardinals-related Sunday morning links….
- Newsday's Ken Davidoff hears from a source "in the loop" that when Matt Holliday hits free agency, the outfielder's top choices are the Yankees and the Mets.
- Phil Rogers of the Chicago Tribune provides a Windy City perspective on Albert Pujols' future in St. Louis. Unsurprisingly, it's bleak, even going so far as to wonder if Pujols could someday be a Cub. I think Rogers might be jumping to conclusions a little too early.
- Rogers also thinks Tony La Russa ought to just sign a one-year contract with St. Louis, or even take a year off, considering all the big-market managerial openings that next winter could bring.
- The Cardinals have finally found their answer at second base, in Skip Schumaker, according to Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. The 29-year-old infielder is arbitration-eligible for the first time this offseason.
Discussion: Mike Lowell
Daniel Barbarisi of the Providence Journal broke down the options for the Red Sox in regards to veteran Mike Lowell headed into the 2010 season. Lowell posted a .290/.337/.474 line in 484 plate appearances with Boston last season and stayed off of the disabled list following hip surgery last fall.
Lowell has one year left on his Boston deal that will pay him $12MM in 2010, a price tag high enough to scare off any potential trade suitors unless the Sox were willing to cover some of the cost. There's also the added complication of Lowell's no-trade clause in his contract. Barbarisi suggests that Lowell might agree to be dealt to a National League team where he could play every day, but given Lowell's health history, it might be hard to find a club willing to take a 36-year-old with a lengthy injury history as an everyday third baseman without the safety net of the DH position. Lowell himself admitted to Barbarisi that he tired from playing almost every day in the first half of the season, but then also said that he wished he could have played more in August and September when Kevin Youkilis took a big chunk of the playing time at third base.
One intriguing possible trade partner could be St. Louis. Midseason pickup Mark DeRosa is a free agent and will soon be undergoing wrist surgery, according to MLB.com's Matthew Leach. This leaves the Cardinals with a hole at third base should top prospect David Freese (a .931 OPS in Triple-A, Double-A and Rookie League ball last season and an .837 OPS in 34 plate appearances with St. Louis) not be ready to take over the everyday role next season. Lowell could keep the seat warm for Freese if Boston pays part of Lowell's contract, a condition that the Cards would likely insist upon given that they will explore re-signing Matt Holliday and signing Albert Pujols to an extension this off-season.
What do you think? Should the Red Sox think about moving the 2007 World Series MVP, or should they keep Lowell around to provide depth to the Victor Martinez–Casey Kotchman-Youkilis triad that mans the catcher, first base and third base spots?
Odds & Ends: Pujols, Holliday, Mauer, Reyes
Links for Tuesday…
- Chat today, 2pm CST.
- Cardinals chairman Bill DeWitt believes it's possible to negotiate huge deals simultaneously with Albert Pujols and Matt Holliday, according to Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Still, Strauss says the Cards' Monday meeting "touched on contingencies if Holliday defects."
- Joe Mauer "thinks things will work themselves out" regarding his next contract, according to La Velle E. Neal III of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune.
- In a Sunday article, David Waldstein and Michael S. Schmidt of the New York Times dug into the rift between the Mets and Dodgers regarding Jose Reyes' injury.
Odds & Ends: Pujols, Holliday, Mauer, Reyes
Links for Tuesday…
- Chat today, 2pm CST.
- Cardinals chairman Bill DeWitt believes it's possible to negotiate huge deals simultaneously with Albert Pujols and Matt Holliday, according to Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Still, Strauss says the Cards' Monday meeting "touched on contingencies if Holliday defects."
- Joe Mauer "thinks things will work themselves out" regarding his next contract, according to La Velle E. Neal III of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune.
- In a Sunday article, David Waldstein and Michael S. Schmidt of the New York Times dug into the rift between the Mets and Dodgers regarding Jose Reyes' injury.