Odds & Ends: Wilson, Twins, Greinke, Dodgers
As the Giants take a 2-1 lead in the NLCS, let's look at some news from around the baseball world…
- Though C.J. Wilson will get a big arbitration raise, ESPN's Jason A. Churchill thinks the Rangers are more likely to keep the southpaw rather than put him on the trade market.
- The Twins need another top-flight starter, and Jim Souhan of the Minneapolis Star Tribune thinks the team should try to acquire Zack Greinke. His proposed offer of Delmon Young, Kevin Slowey and a prospect won't be enough to get it done, especially since Kansas City would be sending Greinke to a division rival.
- Dodgers GM Ned Colletti says the club's payroll will increase in 2011, according to Dylan Hernandez of the L.A. Times. (Twitter link)
- Detroit "will make [a] strong push" to sign Victor Martinez this winter, tweets The Denver Post's Troy Renck. The Rockies, meanwhile, are a "longshot" to sign the free agent catcher.
- Also from Renck (via Twitter), Troy Tulowitzki isn't likely to give the Rockies a discount on his next contract since the six-year, $31MM deal he signed before the 2008 season has already proven to be very team-friendly. Tulowitzki is locked up through 2013 and the Rockies have a team option (for $15MM) on him for 2014, so it'll be at least a couple of years before Colorado thinks about extending the star shortstop.
- PGP of the DRaysBay.com blog looks at why Tampa Bay might think about trading Matt Garza and what he could fetch in a deal.
- If Cliff Lee signs a six-year contract with the Yankees this winter, he could earn close to $200MM in salary and endorsement deals, estimates Forbes Magazine's Patrick Rishe.
- Magic Johnson owning the Dodgers? ESPN.com's J.A. Adande wants to see it happen.
- Padres assistant GM Fred Uhlman Jr. will remain with the club, tweets MLB.com's Corey Brock. There were rumors that Uhlman could head to Arizona to work with former Padres general manager Kevin Towers.
- The Cardinals need to patch up the "rift" that has developed in the front office in recent years, writes Jeff Gordon of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Gordon also looks at the Cardinals' minor league system and the team's last several drafts.
- Fangraphs' Pat Andriola looks at which teams did and didn't benefit from "the old guy discount" last winter.
La Russa On Duncan, McGwire, His Future
In the wake of his newly-signed contract to return as the Cardinals' manager, Tony La Russa met with the media to discuss his new contract and a few other outstanding coaching issues facing the Redbirds. Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch has some of the pertinent info…
- La Russa said that pitching coach Dave Duncan wants a multi-year contract from the club. A Cardinals official tells Goold that "the organization is not closed off to the possibility," which is an understatement given Duncan's wizardry at rebuilding pitchers. Duncan leaving would be a big blow to St. Louis and would hurt their efforts to sign free agent starters, such as Jake Westbrook.
- Mark McGwire will "definitely be offered a chance to come back" as the team's batting coach, La Russa said. McGwire's hesitation over returning stems from not wanting to spend so much time away from his family.
- Since La Russa's contract was a one-year deal with a mutual option for 2012, the manager was asked if there could be another "Tony Watch" next season. La Russa sounded as if he's taking his baseball future on an annual basis and wouldn't be comfortable in agreeing to a long-term contract in case his desire wanes. "You take every year like it's last year. That how you should manage," La Russa said. "Day in, day out, working with the players, they either believe you or they don't. … If you give a manager a multi-year all you're doing is guaranteeing him some money. It doesn't have anything to do with how effective you are at doing your job."
Odds & Ends: Greinke, Marlins, McGwire, Daniels
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
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.
Cardinals Re-Sign Tony La Russa
The Cardinals announced that manager Tony La Russa signed a one-year deal with a mutual option for 2012, writes Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. The 66-year-old has been managing the Cards since 1996 and has led the club to a .543 winning percentage, eight playoff appearances, two pennants, and one World Series ring. La Russa also has another World Series ring earned in 1989 while managing Oakland, and is a four-time winner of the Manager Of The Year award (twice with the A's, and once each with the Cardinals and White Sox).
La Russa is the third-winningest manager in baseball history, with 2638 victories (and 2293 losses) to his name. Should he manage through 2012, he is a virtual lock to pass John McGraw (2763 wins) for second on the all-time wins list.
Cardinals, Westbrook Discussing Extension
We've heard for a while now that the Cardinals would love to retain Jake Westbrook, whom they acquired at the trade deadline in a three-team deal. Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports tweets that there's more to the situation than just interest now; the Cards are "making a push" to sign Westbrook and discussions are already taking place.
Westbrook, 33, totaled 75 innings over 12 starts with the Redbirds and posted a tidy 3.48 ERA in that span. His strikeouts trended upward and his control improved, while his sinker induced even more groundballs (62% vs. 53.3% with Cleveland) under Dave Duncan. While he would hit free agency for the first time this season, Westbrook has mutual interest in working out a deal with St. Louis and forgoing the process entirely.
Jason Marquis and Joel Pineiro figure to be solid comparisons for Westbrook, meaning he could be in line for a two-year deal in the $16MM range. Locking up Westbrook early would allow the Cardinals to focus on offense this offseason. It would also likely set their 2011 rotation (barring injuries) to feature Chris Carpenter, Adam Wainwright, Jaime Garcia, Westbrook, and Kyle Lohse, giving them potential for one of the better rotations in all of baseball, especially if Lohse can rediscover his 2008 form.
La Russa “Almost Certain” To Return To Cardinals
SUNDAY, 9:13am: La Russa's return to St. Louis is "almost certain" at this point, according to Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. As Saturday's AP story suggested, it's still unclear whether or not La Russa's entire coaching staff will be retained, but a source tells Strauss that he'd be "very surprised" if the long-time Cardinals skipper didn't return for 2011.
SATURDAY, 11:43am: Free agency will forever be dominated by the players, but managers are going to get a big piece of the action this winter. Arguably the biggest free agent manager is Tony La Russa of the Cardinals, but the AP (via The Boston Herald) reports that the two sides are talking daily, and that a deal could be reached soon. One of the sticking points involves the security of La Russa's coaching staff, who he presumably wants to return intact.
La Russa has been managing the Cardinals since 1996, leading them to seven division titles, eight playoff berths, and two National League pennants, including a 2006 World Series victory. Overall, St. Louis is 1,318-1,110 under his watch. It's worth noting that La Russa has had his fair share of run-ins with players throughout the years, with Colby Rasmus joining the likes of Jim Edmonds and Scott Rolen this year.
At over $4MM annually, La Russa's previous contract made him one of the highest paid managers in baseball. There's no reason to expect that to change if and when a new deal is a reached.
Odds & Ends: Listach, Diamondbacks, Dodgers, Hill
Saturday evening linkage as the Phillies and Giants kick off the NLCS…
- Nationals third base coach Pat Listach confirmed to Tom Haudricourt of The Journal Sentinel that he will interview for the Brewers' managerial opening on Tuesday.
- Nick Piecoro lists some candidates for the Diamondbacks' scouting director job (Twitter links): Tim Huff (Rays), J.J. Lally (White Sox), Chuck Ricci (Indians), and Jeff Schugel (Angels). ESPN's Keith Law tweets that Huff would be an excellent hire, and says he's surprised that Ray Montgomery (Brewers) and Rick Wilson (Angels) aren't on the list (Twitter link).
- MLB.com's Sarah D. Morris doesn't think the Dodgers need an overhaul.
- Lefty Rich Hill has already had discussions with the Red Sox about returning in 2011, tweets Sean McAdam of CSNNE.com.
- McAdam (via Twitter) also expects to see Darnell McDonald back in Boston next season.
- If Tony La Russa comes back to the Cardinals, he should sign a multi-year deal, says Bernie Miklasz of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
- Phillies GM Ruben Amaro Jr. learned how to build a successful team by working under Ed Wade and Pat Gillick, writes Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle.
- The San Francisco Chronicle's Gwen Knapp praises the Giants' homegrown talent.
Manager Roundup: Mariners, Cardinals
Here's the latest on a pair of big-name managers, with more details to come throughout the day:
Mariners
The Mariners told Bobby Valentine that he is no longer a candidate for their managerial opening, according to Larry Stone of the Seattle Times. The Mariners may be nearing a decision, writes Stone. Eric Wedge, Lloyd McClendon, Cecil Cooper, Clint Hurdle and Daren Brown are possible candidates. John Gibbons also heard that he isn't getting the job, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (on Twitter).
Eric Wedge did "very, very" well in his interview with the Mariners, according to ESPN.com's Buster Olney (Twitter link).
Cardinals
The Cardinals are in daily contact with Tony La Russa, but it's not clear which way he's leaning, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports (on Twitter). However, the AP reports (via ESPN) that talks are going well between the two sides. Pitching coach Dave Duncan knows that he'd like to return to St. Louis for at least three more seasons, according to Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Dodgers, Nationals, Rasmus
On this date back in 1988, a hobbling Kirk Gibson pinch hit for reliever Alejandro Pena with two outs in the bottom of the ninth and the Dodgers down by one to the Athletics in Game One of the World Series. Dennis Eckersley, who finished second in the Cy Young voting that year, recorded two quick outs before walking the light hitting Mike Davis (.196/.260/.270 that year) in front of Gibson. You all know what happened next. Gibson battled Eck for six pitches before the Oakland reliever finally hung a slider, a pitch that resulted in one of the most famous home runs in World Series history.
Injuries limited Gibson to just that one plate appearance in the Fall Classic, which the Dodgers went on to win four games to one. Joe Posnanski ranked Jack Buck's and Vin Scully's call of the play the fifth greatest in sports history. These links might not be all-time greats, but they're still the best from the past week of the internet…
- DRays Bay interviewed a young third baseman by the name of Evan Longoria.
- SPANdemonium interviewed Shawon Dunston … Jr.
- Sabernomics said goodbye and thank you to Bobby Cox.
- Meanwhile, Capitol Avenue Club thinks the Fredi Gonzalez hire is a huge mistake.
- Mike Scioscia's Tragic Illness offers up their offseason plan for the Dodgers (part one, part two).
- Fan Speak does the same, except for the Nationals (part one, part two).
- Lookout Landing summarizes the candidates for the Mariners managerial job.
- The Process Report takes on Joe Maddon's gut check.
- Pine Tar And Pocket Protectors examines Colby Rasmus' trade value.
- Red Sox Beacon re-lives a decade of awful Boston shortstops.
- Baseball Analysts found that Long Beach State produced the most big leaguers in 2010, led by Longoria and Troy Tulowitzki.
- The 5th Starter digs deep in the Blue Jays' finances.
- Bleacher GM took a look at umpire bias.
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