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Cafardo On Rangers, Jackson, Brewers, Yankees

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The Red Sox didn’t go by MLB’s minority hiring rules when they interviewed only Dave Dombrowski for the president of baseball ops role but they have been instructed to do so for the GM job, Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe writes.  If the Red Sox take the step of hiring a minority GM candidate, Cafardo suggests that Ken Williams would be a strong choice if he chooses to leave Chicago.  Here’s more from today’s column..

  • The Rangers were very interested in acquiring Austin Jackson “a few days ago,” but nothing came of those talks, Cafardo writes.  Jackson, 28, cleared waivers last week and was said to be generating interest, though it appears that no one wanted to take the remaining ~$1.7MM salary off the Mariners’ hands.
  • Former Red Sox GM Ben Cherington is in play for the Brewers job, a major league source tells Cafardo.  “Despite his last-place finishes he’s seen as a team builder, especially when it comes to farm systems,” said the source.   The Angels, Mariners, and Phillies are also thought to be possibilities for Cherington.
  • The Yankees have been blocked in every attempt to add to their pitching, both out of the bullpen and in the starting rotation. Baseball sources tell Cafardo that GM Brian Cashman doesn’t seem optimistic about his odds of pulling anything off.  The Mets have been blocked from adding a reliever as well.
  • The Royals want a backup catcher for the playoffs just in case something happens to Salvador Perez.  KC turned down the opportunity to land A.J. Pierzynski from the Braves, Cafardo writes, but they’re still looking for an affordable left-handed hitting backstop. Some KC scouts like the Red Sox’s Ryan Hanigan, but he hits right-handed and has a $3.7MM salary next year with an option for 2017.
  • Unsurprisingly, Cafardo hears that the Rangers are looking for offense, the Twins are looking for relief help, and the Blue Jays want to add to their bullpen.  However, a deal for Toronto doesn’t seem likely at this time.
  • Cafardo writes that the Nationals, Padres, Red Sox, Mariners, Reds, Orioles, Indians, and Tigers are expected to be quite active this winter.

AL Notes: Blue Jays, Mariners, Gordon

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The Blue Jays’ offseason trade for Josh Donaldson could turn out to be an historic one if Donaldson wins the AL MVP award, Jon Morosi of FOX Sports writes. The last time a team traded a player in the offseason who turned out to be the following season’s MVP was 1984, when the Phillies traded reliever Willie Hernandez to the Tigers during Spring Training. Here’s more on the American League.

  • Mariners president Kevin Mather says he waited too long to fire GM Jack Zduriencik, Art Thiel of Sportspress Northwest writes. “I’m not a baseball guy,” says Mather. “I kept waiting for them to rattle off eight out of 10, 12 out of 15, to get on a roll. I maybe dragged my feet . . . I waited too long to start asking myself tough questions about why we’re not having more success.” A year ago, Mather rewarded Zduriencik’s for the Mariners’ 71-59 record by signing him to a two-year extension. Now, Mather seems to have changed his mind entirely.
  • Mariners manager Lloyd McClendon is saddened by Zduriencik’s departure, Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times writes. “Jack was very dedicated to this organization, and it’s always tough when you lose a family member. I consider Jack a family member,” McClendon says. “It’s just been one of those years where a lot of things just have not turned out the way we thought it would.” Mather has said that he plans to recommend to Zduriencik’s successor that McClendon and his staff remain in their current jobs, although those decisions will ultimately be up to the new GM.
  • Manager Ned Yost says Royals outfielder Alex Gordon appears likely to return to the team this week, Andy McCullough of the Kansas City Star tweets. McCullough suggests Gordon could return on Tuesday. The star left fielder has been out since early July with a groin strain. The Royals have been just fine without him, and they’re currently 30 games above .500 and 13 games up on the second-place Twins in the AL Central, but Gordon’s return should provide them with a further boost.

Blue Jays Designate Ty Kelly For Assignment

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The Blue Jays have designated infielder/outfielder Ty Kelly for assignment, as Megan Robinson of Global News Toronto tweets. The move clears space on the Jays’ roster for the newly claimed Danny Dorn.

Kelly’s stay on the Jays’ 40-man was brief — they claimed him just last month after the Cardinals designated him. He’s spent the season at the two teams’ Triple-A affiliates, batting .222/.318/.294. The 27-year-old hit significantly better in two seasons with the Mariners’ Triple-A Tacoma affiliate before that, however, and he’s versatile in the field, with the ability to play second and third, plus any of the three outfield positions.

Front Office Notes: Zduriencik, Dipoto, Anthopoulos

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Jack Zduriencik’s tenure with the Mariners was characterized by long streams of firings, resignations and strife, Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times writes. Those began early in Zduriencik’s time in Seattle, with Zduriencik apparently frequently blaming others for the team’s problems under his leadership. Baker prints excerpts of a rather amazing email from Zduriencik to then-manager Don Wakamatsu about the struggling 2010 team in which Zduriencik seemed to blame his staff for the failures of the players he had acquired the previous offseason. “When putting this club together throughout the winter, everyone was involved,” Zduriencik wrote. “I asked many questions about the acquired players this offseason and in all cases moved forward to acquire or refrain from acquiring a player based on received recommendations.” He also suggested that the struggles of that 101-loss 2010 team might be due to a “lack of urgency and preparation,” implying that the coaching staff was to blame. The Mariners finally fired Zduriencik this week. Here’s more on front offices.

  • Former Angels GM Jerry Dipoto looks likely to be a talked-about name as the many teams with vacant GM positions search for candidates, FOX Sports’ Jon Morosi writes. Dipoto appears likely to be a candidate for both the Brewers and Mariners jobs. The Mariners have said they will prioritize experience (which, obviously, Dipoto has), and Morosi notes that Dipoto was a finalist for the Mariners GM job years ago, when the team ultimately hired Zduriencik.
  • The Blue Jays are still seeking a team president, but when they hire one, that person will endure criticism if he or she fires GM Alex Anthopoulos, Morosi says. Anthopoulos’ acquisitions of veterans like Josh Donaldson, Russell Martin, Troy Tulowitzki and David Price have helped propel the Blue Jays to first place in the AL East. The team’s decision to keep Anthopoulos shouldn’t be a difficult one, Morosi says.

AL East Notes: Buchholz, Red Sox Front Office, Hanley, Shapiro, Tolleson

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Red Sox president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski says that righty Clay Buchholz is done for the year, as Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald tweets. The new top Boston baseball decisionmaker added that he sees it as an easy call to exercise a $12MM option to keep Buchholz — if he is healthy. That’s an important proviso, of course, though the Sox should have time to assess his recovery before making a final decision.

  • Dombrowski spoke with the press today as he accompanied the Red Sox on the road for the first time, as Tim Britton of the Providence Journal reports. While the offseason is still a ways away, he’s still short on time. “There’s going to be some shortcomings that are just going to fall through the cracks,” he explained. “I can’t see the minor-league clubs; I just don’t have enough time to be able to do that.” Before deciding on any additions or subtractions to his front office group, Dombrowski says, he’s working to get to know his current staff. “You just have to really do your homework to get to know people and to get to know whose opinions you can feel you really trust,” said the incoming executive. “… The people here will know the players better than I will.”
  • While the Red Sox front office composition remains to be seen, one prominent member is already on his way out. Pro scouting director Jared Porter is heading to the Cubs, Peter Gammons of GammonsDaily.com tweets. It’s important to note that, as Britton explains, Dombrowski indicated that at least one front office member was departing (quite possibly Porter) in a move that had already been in the works before his arrival.
  • Dombrowski also touched upon the Red Sox’ pending move of Hanley Ramirez to first base, as Britton further reports. “It just seemed to make sense” to try the veteran out at the position, he explained. “Not that you have to rush it, but it gives us some time to get him out there. I wouldn’t want to say, ’Let’s wait until spring training and let’s see if he can do it.’ What happens if he can’t do it? You really need to know that more so now.”
  • If the Blue Jays are going to land Indians president Mark Shapiro to fill that role in Toronto, they may well do so in the coming days, according to Joe Vardon of the Plain Dealer. A source says that “closure” on Shapiro’s status is expected in short order. We learned earlier today that Cleveland has authorized him to meet with the Jays.
  • There’s something of an unusual situation brewing between the Blue Jays and infielder Steve Tolleson, who is on the temporarily inactive list at Triple-A, as John Lott of the National Post writes. Toronto GM Alex Anthopoulos said that Tolleson “just decided he didn’t want to play anymore,” while Tolleson says he’s injured. The question is whether Tolleson was injured when he was designated for assignment by the club, the argument being that he should (if that was the case) be earning a major league salary from the MLB disabled list.

Blue Jays Claim Danny Dorn

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The Blue Jays have claimed first baseman/outfielder Danny Dorn off waivers from the Diamondbacks, Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca reports on Twitter. He’ll be optioned to Triple-A, per the report.

Dorn is in a somewhat unusual situation for a claimed player. After spending parts of seven seasons at the Triple-A level, the 31-year-old only saw his first chance at the big leagues this year. But his short stint with Arizona was short and unproductive.

That being said, Dorn has produced strong power and on-base numbers over his minor league career. And he is destroying the Triple-A level this year, with 305 plate appearances of .386/.444/.618 hitting.

Heyman’s Latest: Castro, Shapiro, Davis, Anderson, Brewers, Phils

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Within his latest Inside Baseball column, Jon Heyman of CBS Sports reports that displaced Cubs shortstop Starlin Castro has joined Pablo Sandoval and Hanley Ramirez as struggling former stars that have cleared waivers. (The Boston Globe’s Nick Cafardo first reported that Ramirez and Sandoval cleared waivers.) The Cubs had a few trade discussions pertaining to Castro prior to the July 31 non-waiver deadline, per Heyman, and they’ll likely revisit trade talks this winter. As for Sandoval, Heyman hears that there are not active discussions at the moment, although one can easily imagine new president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski exploring ways to shed that sizable commitment this offseason.

Some more highlights from Heyman’s latest column…

  • Indians president Mark Shapiro has been given permission to meet with the Blue Jays about their opening, per the report. The veteran Cleveland executive is “believed” to sit atop Toronto’s wish list, and Heyman says there’s an increasing expectation that he’ll end up moving over to the Jays.
  • Chris Davis is in line for a significant payday this offseason, but the Orioles aren’t likely to be the ones writing the check. Heyman hears that two years ago, following Davis’ brilliant 53-homer campaign, agent Scott Boras was eyeing Joey Votto’s 10-year, $225MM contract as a comp. Granted, Davis’ reduced production since that time has almost certainly lowered the asking price, but I personally agree with the assessment of MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes in his latest Free Agent Power Rankings: Davis is in line for a nine-figure contract, which seems beyond Baltimore’s traditional comfort levels.
  • Though some were surprised to see Brett Anderson land a $10MM guarantee from the Dodgers due to his injury history, Heyman hears that the Dodgers may be considering an even more surprising move: extending a qualifying offer to the injury-prone hurler. Anderson, in my eyes, would be a risky candidate for such an offer, but there’s reason enough that the Dodgers could make that call. For one, the team can afford a $16MM investment in an injury-prone pitcher, and Anderson’s worth close to that kind of cash when healthy. Secondly, Anderson’s coming off one of the lone healthy seasons of his career and may see this as his best chance to cash in on a multi-year deal. He could see the only downside as another one-year deal worth $10MM+, meaning he’d be risking around $6MM for a chance at quite a bit more.
  • The Brewers are expected to take “well into next month” in their search for a new general manager and are interested in pursuing non-traditional candidates. We’ve heard several possibilities batted around, and Heyman says he’s heard at least some chatter about Athletics assistant GM Dan Kantrovitz and Red Sox special assistant Jerry Dipoto.
  • While the Phillies could have their own front office changes to make, Heyman says it’s still possible that Ruben Amaro Jr. could not only stay in the organization in some capacity, but keep the GM chair.
  • In a separate piece, Heyman also takes an interesting look at the thirty best deals made over the last year. There’s certainly a good case to be made for his top choice: the Blue Jays’ acquisition of Josh Donaldson.

Anthopoulos: Additional Trades “Unlikely” For Blue Jays

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Teams have about five days remaining to make trades before acquired players are ineligible for postseason rosters, but the Blue Jays, who hold a two-game lead in the AL East, appear to be finished making moves. As MLB.com’s Gregor Chisholm writes, general manager Alex Anthopoulos doesn’t envision another trade in Toronto’s future.

“I’d say unlikely at this point,” Anthopoulos said when asked about the odds of completing another deal. “We have five days left, anything can happen, but right now I wouldn’t expect us to do anything.”

The Blue Jays, of course, have been the most active team in baseball, at least in terms of completing trades. Since July 28, Toronto has acquired Troy Tulowitzki, LaTroy Hawkins, David Price, Mark Lowe, Ben Revere and Cliff Pennington in trades. Chisholm notes in his column that the Pennington trade — the lone August deal swung by Anthopoulos to this point — was made due to doubts about whether or not Devon Travis will return in 2015. Those doubts still exist, he continues, but the Blue Jays feel that even if Travis doesn’t return, a platoon of Ryan Goins and Pennington is acceptable. The rest of the lineup is so potent, Chisholm explains, that the Jays are content to deploy a pair of premium defenders at the position.

The Blue Jays are 18-4 since the non-waiver trade deadline and don’t necessarily have a glaring need on the roster, though one could make the case that left-handed relief help and a reliable fifth starter are at least potential areas of upgrade. Drew Hutchison will return in September, though the talented righty has been wildly inconsistent in 2015. Likewise, Marcus Stroman could return to the team after a quicker-than-expected recovery from a torn ACL.

Suffice it to say, however, the Blue Jays lack a particularly glaring need. Anthopoulos didn’t rule out making any sort of move, so he could of course be characteristically active on the waiver wire in the coming days if he feels there’s one last upgrade for his club out there.

Toronto, like other clubs, will be getting some additional depth in five days when rosters expand, though Anthopoulos also told reporters that the Jays aren’t looking at a particularly large group of September call-ups, per Sportsnet’s Shi Davidi (Twitter link). Anthopoulos said the plan was to go with “as small a group as we can,” and Davidi notes that will be about six to eight players.

Blue Jays Claim Donn Roach From Reds

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The Blue Jays announced today that they have claimed right-hander Donn Roach off waivers from the Reds. Michael Saunders has been transferred to the 60-day DL to create room on the 40-man roster for Roach, who was designated for assignment by Cincinnati over the weekend. Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet tweets that Roach will head to Triple-A for the time being, though he could obviously be a candidate for a call-up when rosters expand on Sept. 1.

Roach, 25, has appeared in the Majors with the Padres and Cubs over the past two seasons, totaling 33 2/3 innings of 5.35 ERA ball with 18 strikeouts against 16 walks. Those numbers aren’t particularly impressive, of course, but Roach’s extreme ground-ball nature — he has a 65 percent ground-ball rate in those 33 2/3 innings — probably appealed to the Blue Jays, who play in a very homer-friendly park. Roach has allowed just two homers in the Majors, and in 580 minor league frames, he’s averaged 0.4 homers per nine innings.

Rosenthal’s Latest: Utley, Angels, Zobrist, Zimmermann, Giants, Execs

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In his latest notes column for FOX Sports, Ken Rosenthal looks at the failed attempt to acquire Chase Utley made by both the Angels and Cubs. Anaheim “blew it” by not adding Utley, opines Rosenthal, as the Halos had more playing time to offer than the Dodgers but didn’t pull the trigger on a deal despite only having acquired “complementary hitters” in July. (That seems harsh, as there’s no guarantee that the current iteration of Utley is anything more than a complementary piece himself.) As for the Cubs, they initially showed interest while Utley was still hurt, but Utley wasn’t comfortable being traded while on a rehab assignment, says Rosenthal, so the Phils waited to put him through waivers. By the time he returned, Howie Kendrick had been hurt in L.A., creating a match with the Dodgers.

Some more highlights from the column…

  • As others have noted, the Angels’ GM opening is a tough sell to prospective candidates because Arte Moreno is more involved than the average owner, and Mike Scioscia has more power than the average manager. One rival general manager described the Angels’ GM role to Rosenthal as such: “You take all of the beatings (from Moreno) and you’ve got no power (due to Scioscia).” Jerry Dipoto resigned from his post this summer due to reported clashes with Scioscia.
  • The Blue Jays tried to trade for Ben Zobrist, but the Athletics’ asking price was Matt Boyd plus other pieces, Rosenthal hears, which was too steep for GM Alex Anthopoulos. Boyd was ultimately one of three pieces used to acquire David Price from the Tigers.
  • Rosenthal reports that the Giants are likely to pursue right-hander Jordan Zimmermann as they look to bulk up their rotation this offseason. However, he notes that the Wisconsin native may prefer to return to the Midwest. Zimmermann ranked eighth on the most recent edition of MLBTR’s Free Agent Power Rankings, though he’s had a couple of rough starts since then.
  • The Giants may also consider attempting to unload the final year of Angel Pagan’s contract this winter. Pagan is slated to earn $10MM next season in the final season of a four-year, $40MM contract after playing in just 167 games from 2013-14 and struggling at the plate in 102 games to this point in 2015. San Francisco could use Gregor Blanco in center field in the event that they’re able to move Pagan.
  • The recent trend of teams promoting an assistant GM to GM and a current GM to president (as the White Sox and Giants have done) could continue this offseason as teams try to prevent their top AGMs from departing for GM vacancies elsewhere, Rosenthal writes. The Rangers could promote Thad Levine to GM (and presumably elevate Jon Daniels), for instance, and the Cardinals could promote Mike Girsch (presumably promoting GM John Mozeliak as well). And, should Mark Shapiro end up with the Blue Jays, the Indians could bump Mike Chernoff to GM and make Chris Antonetti president (Cleveland previously did his by moving Shapiro from GM to president and Antonetti from AGM to GM). Levine, Girsch and Chernoff could all attract interest from other teams this winter.
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