Padres Rumors

Hoyer “Closer” To Becoming Padres GM

By Howard Megdal | October 22, 2009 at 9:11am CDT

THURSDAY, 9:09am: Chris Jenkins of the San Diego Union-Tribune describes the Hoyer hiring as "imminent," but says no announcement is scheduled for today.

WEDNESDAY, 2:25pm: Both MLB.com's Corey Brock and ESPN's Buster Olney are reporting that San Diego is moving closer to naming Boston Assistant General Manager Jed Hoyer as their next General Manager.

Hoyer and Los Angeles Assistant GM Kim Ng have both been interviewed. It is unclear if anyone else has been interviewed, with San Diego staying quiet about the search.

Padres' CEO Jeff Moorad has said he'd like to name a GM prior to the World Series, so it is reasonable to expect an announcement sooner than later.

As for Kevin Towers, whom Hoyer would be succeeding, his destination remains unclear. Olney wrote last week that "it figures that Towers will take a job with the Yankees as a special assistant in the months ahead."

But Brock reports that Towers could "conceivably take a spot in the Red Sox front office — possibly as a special assistant or in the scouting department — if Hoyer is indeed hired by the Padres."

NL West Roundup: Giants, Padres, Dodgers

By Howard Megdal | October 19, 2009 at 7:11pm CDT

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.

Cafardo On Drew, Reynolds, Gonzalez

By Zachary Links | October 18, 2009 at 10:00pm CDT

In his piece on Don Mattingly's interest in a managerial position, the Boston Globe's Nick Cafardo brings us some nuggets of information from around the majors:

Stephen Drew is expected to be shopped by the Diamondbacks this offseason and "there should be" discussions with the Red Sox. Cafardo wonders if hitting in a more patient lineup could boost his OPS (.748 in 2009).
More on the D-Backs as Mark Reynolds fell three days shy of being classified as a Super Two. Reynolds will earn $425,000 in 2010 instead of something in the neighborhood of $5MM.
Cafardo suspects that Boston will go after Padres first baseman Adrian Gonzalez but asks, "do the Sox have enough players to give San Diego?"
Twins pitcher Ron Mahay wants to stay in Minnesota but won't rule out a return to Boston.
Speaking of returns, Mike Hargrove is campaigning for another opportunity in Cleveland but might be "too old school". According to a report from Terry Pluto earlier today, Hargrove has not been interviewed for the job.
Cafardo says to look for former Padres general manager Kevin Towers to become an assistant or special adviser with another club. Towers said earlier this month that he doesn't want to be in an office if he isn't the GM.

Odds & Ends: Indians, Padres, Marlins

By Zachary Links | October 18, 2009 at 9:45pm CDT

Some more links on this Sunday evening:

Terry Pluto of the Cleveland Plain Dealer reports that the Indians "are expected to cut their managerial search to five or fewer candidates this week." Pluto advises us not to be surprised if former Nationals skipper Manny Acta is among the finalists. Acta is also in contention for the Astros' job.
Pluto goes on to write that Cleveland has interviewed ten candidates so far. The aforementioned Acta, Bobby Valentine, Travis Fryman (manager of Indians' single-A affiliate) and Torey Lovullo (Indians' triple-A manager) are among those under consideration. Pluto is in the dark regarding the remaining six, but Mike Hargrove, Tony Pena, Buck Showalter and Phil Garner are not in the mix.
Padres CEO Jeff Moorad has not gone through his complete list of candidates for the vacant GM job, writes Chris Jenkins of The San Diego Union-Tribune. Of the names that have been floated about, Jenkins characterizes Kim Ng as the "most interesting."
Now that Bryan Price has agreed to become the Reds' pitching coach, the Marlins could turn their attention to Randy St. Claire, according to Juan C. Rodriguez of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel. St. Claire was in his seventh season with the Expos/Nationals franchise before getting the axe earlier this year.
Yusei Kikuchi will meet with his eight MLB suitors over the course of two days this week, writes Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer.

Odds & Ends: Ng, Thome, Blue Jays

By Mike Axisa | October 17, 2009 at 8:23pm CDT

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.

Odds & Ends: Pujols, Cubs, Strasburg, Wagner

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | October 16, 2009 at 3:01pm CDT

Another round of links for the afternoon…

The Cards were surprised to hear that Albert Pujols isn't thinking about a contract extension, according to Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
The Cubs have now asked the Rangers for permission to speak with hitting coach Rudy Jaramillo, according to MLB.com's Carrie Muskat.
First overall pick Stephen Strasburg makes his AFL debut tonight, according to the AP (via ESPN).
Earlier in the week, the New York Post reported that Billy Wagner was leaning towards retirement. Wagner's agent, Bean Stringfellow, told Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports this week that Wagner plans on playing next year.
ESPN.com's Rob Neyer says there's no question: the Red Sox will enter Spring Training with at least five starters. Even if they pick up Tim Wakefield's option, as expected, they will likely add another arm.
The Brewers sent cash to the Reds to complete the David Weathers trade, according to MLB.com's Adam McCalvy.
Bobby Valentine side-stepped questions about the Marlins on 790 The Ticket this morning, according to Juan C. Rodriguez of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel.
USA Today's Bob Nightengale says (via Twitter) that it wouldn't be a surprise to see the Padres hire Jed Hoyer or Jerry DiPoto to be the team's next GM.

Odds & Ends: Padilla, Acta, Gillick, Bradley

By Ben Nicholson-Smith | October 16, 2009 at 2:13pm CDT

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.

Odds & Ends: Red Sox, Bell, Acta, Rays

By | October 14, 2009 at 6:48pm CDT

Another October day without baseball? Drown your sorrows in some links…

Peter Abraham, in his new gig with the Boston Globe, thinks the Red Sox will tread cautiously with Japanese players like Yusei Kikuchi because of the "tug-of-war" they've gone through with Daisuke Matsuzaka concerning his conditioning methods. The Sox are among several teams scheduled to meet with Kikuchi in Japan later this week.
MLB.com's Corey Brock fields a question about arbitration-eligible closer Heath Bell in his latest inbox. Bell is set for a substantial pay raise after tallying 42 saves in 2009. Should the Padres try to deal him this winter?
Former Nationals skipper Manny Acta had a phone interview with Indians GM Mark Shapiro last week to discuss the Tribe's managing vacancy, according to Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer. Acta will also interview Friday for the Astros' opening.
According to Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times, the Rays have hired former Astros pitching coach Dewey Robinson to their minor league staff.

Odds & Ends: Jaramillo, Varitek, D’Backs

By Tim Dierkes | October 14, 2009 at 12:49pm CDT

Links for Wednesday…

Longtime Rangers hitting coach Rudy Jaramillo turned down a one-year offer from the team and will explore free agency, according to Evan Grant. Phil Rogers of the Chicago Tribune thinks Jaramillo would be a perfect addition to the Cubs.
According to Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star, the Royals re-signed three players eligible for minor league free agency: Scott Thorman, Kelvin Villa, and Carlos Rivas.
Dave Cameron of FanGraphs says this year's free agent class is pretty darn interesting, even if it lacks top-level talent.
Sean McAdam of the Boston Herald considers free agent alternatives should the Red Sox fail to sign Jason Bay.
McAdam's colleague Michael Silverman talked to agent Scott Boras, who had this to say about Jason Varitek's future: "Theo and I will be talking about Tek whenever he deems the time appropriate."
The Giants don't have much money to spend this winter unless they raise payroll, says Ray Ratto of the San Francisco Chronicle.
Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic says the Diamondbacks aren't likely to change their core, but the clubhouse could use a dose of veteran leadership.
The Rays ought to target free agent reliever Kiko Calero, in the opinion of Tommy Rancel of DRays Bay.
Padres third baseman Kevin Kouzmanoff has no control over his future, but wants to stay in San Diego according to Bill Center of the San Diego Union-Tribune.
Dodgers manager Joe Torre doesn't anticipate working past his current contract, which runs through 2010 (according to the AP).
Jose Cruz was shocked to be dismissed from his coaching job with the Astros, according to Jose de Jesus Ortiz of the Houston Chronicle.

Luis Rodriguez, Eliezer Alfonzo Elect Free Agency

By Tim Dierkes | October 13, 2009 at 1:45pm CDT

The Padres outrighted the contracts of Josh Geer, Drew Macias, Luis Rodriguez, and Eliezer Alfonzo to Triple A today, according to the AP. Rodriguez and Alfonzo elected free agency.

Rodriguez, 29, hit .202/.319/.260 in 251 plate appearances this year while playing shortstop and second base. His defense graded poorly, based on UZR. Alfonzo, 31 in February, hit .175/.197/.254 in 117 plate appearances. He logged 255.3 innings behind the plate.

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