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Brandon Guyer To Undergo Surgery

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Indians outfielder Brandon Guyer is set to undergo surgery on his left wrist, Ryan Lewis of the Akron Beacon Journal reports on Twitter. The club provided a bit more detail in an announcement, noting that the procedure will involve a repair of the extensor tendon.

At this point, it’s not clear how long Guyer will miss; more will be known after he emerges from surgery. Regardless of the prognosis, he’s under contract for next season under the two-year, $5MM deal he signed in January. Cleveland also possesses a $3MM option (with a $250K buyout) for 2019.

Obviously, the injury news means that Guyer won’t be a part of the Indians’ postseason run, though that had largely become clear already. The 31-year-old endured an injury-limited and disappointing 2017 campaign. Through 192 plate appearances, he slashed just .236/.326/.327 with a pair of long balls.

Prior to the current season, Guyer has been a source of solidly above-average hitting line he carried to that point. While he has never done much damage against same-handed pitching, Guyer has been a weapon against lefties, posting a lifetime .281/.379/.448 batting line.

Right-hander Adam Plutko has undergone his own surgery, the team further noted. In his case, a procedure to repair his right hip labrum is likely to sideline him for four to six months. Plutko briefly cracked the majors last year but struggled to a 5.90 ERA in 135 2/3 Triple-A frames in 2017.

East Notes: Girardi, Braves, Marlins, Mets/Nats Affiliate

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Currently in the last year of his contract, Yankees manager Joe Girardi has been noncommittal about his future in recent weeks. On the heels of a rough few days for Girardi, ESPN’s Buster Olney says he expects Girardi’s time as the Yankees’ skipper to conclude at season’s end (podcast link). Of course, things are beginning to look quite a bit different than they did after a baffling Girardi decision that likely cost them Game 2. Now, the ALDS is tied and the Yankees could well find themselves among the last four teams standing, depending upon the outcome of the decisive game in Cleveland. Regardless of how things play out from this point forward, the long-experienced skipper will surely land on his feet, though Joel Sherman of the New York Post writes that some believe Girardi may be interested in some time away from the grind. Interestingly, the Mets have actually talked about Girardi as a possible successor to the ousted Terry Collins, but they “fully expect” him to stay in the Bronx, Mike Puma of the New York Post tweets.

More from the eastern divisions:

  • Braves director of baseball operations Billy Ryan is a candidate to take over as their general manager, along with the previously reported trio of Royals GM Dayton Moore and Nationals assistants Doug Harris and Dan Jennings, per Bob Nightengale of USA Today. However, according to the Nationals, the Braves haven’t yet requested permission to interview anyone from their organization (Twitter links). Of course, no matter how the Atlanta organization proceeds, it has more questions to answer than who’ll take over for resigned GM John Coppolella. As David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution writes, some in the game anticipate the league will uncover broad malfeasance by the organization. There are quite a few remaining questions, writes O’Brien, for a club that now has to operate with care to get back on the right track.
  • While the Marlins are now formally transitioning to a new ownership group, there’s still some potential work to be done before Miami-Dade County and outgoing owner Jeffrey Loria go their separate ways. As Douglas Hanks of the Miami Herald reports, there could be a battle brewing relating to the publicly-financed ballpark deal that brought Marlins Park into existence. The local authorities have already lined up an auditor to review Loria’s group’s assessment of money owed to the government under the financing deal, which seemingly has some room for interpretation as to how much of the sale proceeds must be shared by the ownership group.
  • The Mets and Nationals will both undergo some changes at the highest level of their farm systems, as Mark Weiner of Syracuse.com writes. The New York organization has agreed to buy the Triple-A Syracuse Chiefs, which previously had an affiliate agreement with the Nats. It’s not clear at this point where the Washington organization will end up parking its Triple-A club in the future, though the change evidently will not take place until after the 2018 season.

Guillermo Heredia Undergoes Shoulder Surgery

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Mariners outfielder Guillermo Heredia has undergone surgery on his right shoulder, per a club announcement. With a full offseason to recover, the 26-year-old is expected to be ready for Spring Training.

While the overall prognosis seems promising, it appears to be a fairly significant surgery. Heredia is said to have required repair of a Bankart lesion — one of the varieties of labrum tears that can occur.

Fortunately, though, the injury did not occur to his throwing side. More importantly, he’s not a pitcher. And given the timing, there’s plenty of time for rehab work.

Heredia played a significant role for the M’s this year and is expected to continue to do so into the future. While he’s generally regarded as a talented defender, though, he managed only a .249/.315/.337 slash with six home runs over 426 plate appearances in 2017. Clearly, that output will need to increase if he’s going to keep receiving so much playing time.

Seattle is already going to be looking to add an outfielder with Jarrod Dyson heading to free agency. Heredia’s status injects a bit of added uncertainty to the situation, though given the outlook it doesn’t seem as if Seattle’s plans will change significantly due to the surgery.

Angels Acquire Felix Pena, Designate Jason Gurka

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The Angels have announced the acquisition of righty Felix Pena from the Cubs. Los Angeles designated southpaw Jason Gurka for assignment to open a 40-man roster spot.

Pena, a 27-year-old from the Dominican Republic, had made 36 MLB appearances over the past two seasons. He carries a 4.98 ERA in the majors, with 10.4 K/9 against 4.4 BB/9. Nine opposing long balls have accounted for quite a bit of the damage against him.

For Los Angeles, this is an opportunity to take a shot on a hurler that has at times shown signs of more. He had generally produced quality results in the minors as a starter before moving to the pen and of late has boosted his strikeout numbers. Pena carries a promising 12.7% swinging-strike in the majors.

As for Gurka, he’ll have an opportunity to test the open market if he’s not claimed. He made it up to the majors briefly late this year, but spent the bulk of the season at Triple-A. Gurka was rather impressive overall, spinning 50 2/3 innings of 3.20 ERA ball with 9.9 K/9 against 2.3 BB/9 at the highest level of the minors, but he has failed to receive extended MLB looks in the past despite quality minor-league numbers.

Offseason Outlook: Baltimore Orioles

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MLBTR is publishing Offseason Outlooks for all 30 teams.  Click here for the other entries in this series.

With several key figures entering their final year under contract, 2018 could mark the end of this era of Orioles baseball.  In order to go out in a blaze of glory, the O’s will need to address their rotation first and foremost, though other holes exist around the roster.

Guaranteed Contracts

Arbitration Eligible Players (service time in parentheses; projections via MLB Trade Rumors)

Contract Options

Free Agents

[Baltimore Orioles Depth Chart; Orioles Payroll Overview]

While the rotation has gotten much of the blame for the Orioles’ disappointing 75-87 record, it was far from the team’s only problem.  The lineup hit a lot of home runs, but no club walked less or stole fewer bases than the Orioles.  They also played below-average defense: Baltimore posted minus-17 Defensive Runs Saved and only the A’s had a lower UZR/150 than the Orioles’ minus-4.7 number.  Even the O’s vaunted bullpen, such a strength in recent years, delivered just middle-of-the-pack results in most categories. Zach Britton’s injury problems were the culprit here, as Britton not only missed time but didn’t dominate nearly to the extent he did from 2014-16.

It all added up to a last-place finish in the AL East and a looming sense that it could be now-or-never for the Orioles in 2018.  This could be the final season in Baltimore for Manny Machado, Adam Jones, Brad Brach and Britton. It’s worth noting, too, that both executive VP of baseball operations Dan Duquette and manager Buck Showalter are entering the last years of their contracts.  By this time next October, the Orioles franchise could be moving in a completely new direction.

Until then, however, the O’s are intent on returning to contention next year.  One plus for Duquette is that he’ll have extra money to work with thanks to a number of big contracts coming off the books.  Between guaranteed deals ($66.95MM) and projected arbitration figures ($55.1MM), the O’s have roughly $122MM committed to 11 players in 2018, and they still have six more expected contributors (Dylan Bundy, Trey Mancini, Mychal Givens, Miguel Castro, Richard Bleier and Donnie Hart) on pre-arb deals.  That works out to 17 players for approximately $125MM, so if the Orioles look to match their $164.3MM payroll from Opening Day 2017, Duquette has around $39MM in spending capacity.

Let’s start with the rotation, as the Orioles are looking to add two new starters to slot alongside Bundy and Kevin Gausman.  Youngsters Castro and Gabriel Ynoa have been cited as rotation candidates, so let’s pencil in one of that duo (or maybe Alec Asher, Chris Lee, or Tanner Scott) for one of the three open spots.  You could also see a veteran in the mix as a low-cost depth signing, potentially even a familiar face.  While it wouldn’t be a surprise to see Baltimore move on entirely from the veteran quartet of Tillman, Ubaldo Jimenez, Wade Miley and Jeremy Hellickson (combined fWAR in 2017: -0.3), I could see the O’s bringing back Tillman as a nod to his long-time status as a reliable innings-eater prior to his disastrous 2017 season.

Jimenez’s four-year, $50MM contract was the largest deal the O’s have ever handed out to a pitcher, and since Jimenez failed to produce in three of those four years in Baltimore, it’s fair to wonder if owner Peter Angelos will ever again be convinced to make such an investment in a free agent arm.  Given Duquette’s recent comparison of this winter’s pitching search to the 2011-12 offseason (when the club signed Wei-Yin Chen and Miguel Gonzalez), one would suspect that the O’s will indeed eschew big spending on pitching and rather seek out more modestly-priced options.

Duquette mentioned that left-handed starters were a priority, so names like Jason Vargas, Jaime Garcia, C.C. Sabathia or Miley stand out as potential targets.  Other mid-tier pitchers like Tyler Chatwood, Andrew Cashner, Jhoulys Chacin, Trevor Cahill, or old friend Gonzalez are also available.  A Jimenez-sized commitment wouldn’t be necessary to sign any of these arms.  That said, several have significant injury histories, which will surely be of concern to a franchise that puts particular emphasis on pitcher health. Baltimore could also look to the major foreign professional leagues for a veteran, as it has quite a few times in the recent past (see, e.g., Chen, Tsuyoshi Wada, Suk-min Yoon, Hyun Soo Kim, and Logan Ondrusek).  Japanese superstar Shohei Otani is the primary potential target, though he’d fit quite well on just about every team in baseball and we haven’t heard of the O’s being connected to him in particular. More likely, perhaps, the club could look at some of the other players that are under consideration for a move stateside after quality performances abroad, such as former big leaguer Miles Mikolas.

Duquette has frequently waited until later in the offseason to make notable moves during his Orioles tenure, so he could again be patient to see if any of these pitchers’ markets fails to develop, in order to swoop in for a bargain signing in February. It’s still possible, of course, that the organization could be more aggressive than usual — especially if Duquette feels his job is on the line and/or Angelos authorizes a different approach to take advantage of the remaining window of the club’s current core.  The new rules regarding free agents who have rejected qualifying offers could also provide a wrinkle, as teams no longer have to surrender first-round draft picks for such signings.  Losing international bonus money is hardly a deterrent to a team like Baltimore that doesn’t seem to care about the int’l market, so the Orioles could potentially be more willing than usual to spend on free agents.

Adding some big names and showing a long-term desire to contend could also help entice Machado into a long-term extension.  Machado’s future is one of the major subplots of this Orioles offseason, as the star third baseman is on pace to land a $300MM+ contract in the ensuing winter (even in the wake of a somewhat disappointing 2017 season).  As we’ve seen with Jones, Chris Davis, Mark Trumbo and Darren O’Day in recent years, the Orioles have been willing to spend big to re-sign their own talent, though a Machado contract would be in another stratosphere of financial commitment.

The $161MM Davis contract is already looking questionable just two seasons into a seven-year deal, so it remains to be seen if the O’s are even willing to take another dive into the spending deep end.  Jones is also the only one of the aforementioned re-signed quartet that was extended prior to actually reaching free agency, and the wait-and-see tactic probably won’t work with Machado given the large amount of interest he is expected to generate from some of the game’s biggest spenders.  Of course, Machado himself may want to wait and see what happens with the Orioles’ front office and manager situations before locking himself into the team for a decade or more.

One option that isn’t on the table is a trade of either Machado or Britton.  An injury-plagued season and a projected $12.2MM price tag would’ve limited Britton’s trade value anyway.  Brach will again be a popular figure in trade talks, and it could make some sense for the Orioles to move one of their increasingly-expensive bullpen arms to free up a bit more payroll space.  Britton’s health may make Brach too valuable for the O’s to move, though the team has shown a willingness to trade from its bullpen depth in the past (i.e. the Jim Johnson trade in 2013), plus some of the young pitchers that fall out of the rotation mix could be used as relievers.

Baltimore is definitely in need of some left-handed bats to balance out a heavily righty-swinging lineup, though they’re is pretty set at most positions around the diamond.  Right field and catcher are the only true question marks since Seth Smith is unlikely to return and Welington Castillo is likely to decline his player option in search of a multi-year deal elsewhere.  The O’s could decide that top prospect Chance Sisco is ready for regular big league action and platoon him with Caleb Joseph behind the plate, though a veteran could also be signed on a one-year stopgap deal if Sisco needs more time in the minors.

Right field could also theoretically be addressed internally, if Jones was to be moved over from center.  Over the last two seasons, Jones ranks within the bottom six of all qualified players in baseball in terms of UZR/150 (-12.1) and DRS (-22).  If Jones is open to a position shift, Baltimore could then sign a left-handed hitting center fielder — Jon Jay or Jarrod Dyson seem like good fits — to a short-term deal until top prospect Austin Hays is ready for regular action.  Hays has already made his MLB debut and could be argued as a candidate for the 2018 lineup already, though since he has yet to play at the Triple-A level, it would be an aggressive move for a would-be contender to rely on such an unseasoned player out of the gates.

If Jones stays in center, then free agents Jay Bruce and Curtis Granderson stand out as left-handed bats that could represent options.  Granderson would require a shorter deal than Bruce, who is six years younger and will probably be looking for at least a four-year contract.

Beyond free agents, the Orioles could also fill their holes through trades, though dealing prospects seems unlikely given Baltimore’s less-than-overwhelming farm system and upcoming need for new core talent in the majors.  A more inventive solution could be found in using some of that extra payroll space to take on a larger starting pitching or outfield contract from a rebuilding team.

While the Orioles might like to deal away some of their own larger contractual commitments, that’s likely easier said than done. Davis’s contract is one of the most problematic in all of baseball. Trumbo, meanwhile, is coming off a sub-replacement year and is owed $25MM through 2019, so the O’s could have to eat some money to deal him, or take on another highly-paid player coming off a poor season.  Moving Trumbo would greatly increase roster flexibility, freeing up the DH position and opening a 25-man roster spot for a player with more defensive value, but at this point the Orioles will likely need to hang on to him and hope for the best.

The Orioles are a fascinating team to watch this offseason, as they possess a fair amount of payroll and roster flexibility for a team that is ostensibly in its last ride with this core group of talent.  The emergence of Jonathan Schoop and Mancini as big lineup threats certainly provided a needed boost that offset down years from Davis and Trumbo, and provided hope that the O’s may not be as far away from contention as their last-place finish would indicate.  Still, without some creativity in fixing the pitching staff, Baltimore’s longstanding rotation problems threaten to spoil another season.

Rookie Davis Undergoes Hip Surgery

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Reds right-hander Rookie Davis has undergone surgery on his right hip, per a club announcement (h/t MLB.com’s Mark Sheldon, on Twitter). Specifically, repair work was done to the labrum and a bone spur was removed.

The procedure is a rather significant one, it seems. Davis will have an entire winter to rest and rehab, but the team says he is not expected to be ready to begin spring camp with the rest of the roster in mid-February.

With the news, it seems the Reds will have one less early-season rotation option on hand. Presumably, though, Davis will work back up to strength at some point during the 2018 campaign. Regardless, adding some pitching depth likely remains the Reds’ top priority this winter.

Though the 24-year-old Davis was perhaps not a leading candidate to claim one of the five rotation spots, he surely would have had an opportunity to compete for a job during camp. And given the organization’s views on pitching usage — including a focus on multi-inning relievers — it certainly stands to reason that Davis would have had a chance of earning a significant role of some kind out of the gates.

Instead, the youngster will have a chance to iron out some pitching kinks even as he rebuilds strength in his hip. He struggled to an 8.63 ERA over his first 24 major-league frames in 2017. But Davis did show better at Triple-A, where he worked to a 4.43 ERA with 8.1 K/9 and 2.3 BB/9.

Notably, Davis will accrue MLB service while he’s on the 60-day DL since he ended the season on the big-league roster. Cincinnati will still control him for the foreseeable future, leaving plenty of time for the club to recoup some value from one of the four players received in the 2015 Aroldis Chapman trade. (Among the others, only Eric Jagielo remains with the organization; he has struggled in the upper minors and has yet to reach the bigs.)

Twins Sign Paul Molitor To Three-Year Extension

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The Twins announced Monday that they have signed manager Paul Molitor to a three-year contract extension that will keep him with the team through the 2020 season. Molitor’s new deal is worth approximately $4MM, Bob Nightengale of USA Today reports (on Twitter). He and the Twins are still discussing whether there will be changes to his coaching staff, according to Jon Heyman of FanRag (Twitter link).

Paul Molitor | Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports

While a new deal for Molitor was expected by many, it wasn’t quite a given. Molitor was initially hired as the successor to longtime manager Ron Gardenhire, but that hire was made by former general manager Terry Ryan, who was fired from his post last year. Some speculated that Falvey and general manager Thad Levine may want to bring in their own candidate to take over the dugout, but Molitor will stay in the fold.

While the 2016 season was an unmitigated disaster, the Twins have surprised in two of Molitor’s three seasons at the helm. The 2015 club won 83 games — a 13-game improvement over the preceding season — and was in contention for an AL Wild Card spot until the very last weekend of the regular season. Last year’s 103-loss campaign now looks to be largely an aberration, as Molitor’s Twins posted 85 wins and secured the second AL Wild Card spot this year before falling 8-4 against the Yankees. That surprising performance has positioned Molitor as one of the speculative front-runners for American League Manager of the Year honors.

Molitor, of course, enjoyed a 21-year playing career and is among the most decorated offensive players in Major League history. The seven-time All-Star and four-time Silver Slugger winner finished his career with a .306/.369/.448 batting line, and his 3,319 career hits rank 10th all-time in MLB history. Molitor is widely praised by his former teammates and current players for his baseball intelligence, and while he may not be as sabermetrically inclined as some other skippers around the game, his arrival in Minnesota did prompt a much more aggressive implementation of defensive shifting.

Overall, he’s managed the Twins to a 227-259 record in his three-year tenure, though the future looks considerably brighter in Minnesota following explosive second halves from young talents such as Byron Buxton, Jorge Polanco and Eddie Rosario. Those three will join a hopefully healthier Miguel Sano, outfielder Max Kepler and right-hander Jose Berrios in forming a long-term core that the Twins hope can lead to additional postseason appearances in the very near future.

Charley Walters of the St. Paul Pioneer Press first reported (via Twitter) that Molitor would return to manage the Twins under a new contract. Mike Berardino of the Pioneer Press reported Sunday (Twitter link) that the two sides were closing in on a deal. La Velle E. Neal III of the Star Tribune confirmed the agreement Monday. Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Minor MLB Transactions: 10/9/17

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Monday’s minor moves from around baseball:

  • The Rays have outrighted right-hander Kevin Gadea to Triple-A Durham, according to Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. Gadea joined the Rays last December as a Rule 5 pick from the Mariners, but elbow problems prevented him from throwing a pitch with his new organization in 2017. Tampa Bay offered Gadea back to Seattle after removing the 22-year-old from the 60-day disabled list and before outrighting him, but the Mariners declined, Topkin reports. Therefore, unless someone takes Gadea in this year’s Rule 5 draft, he’ll stay with the Rays.
  • The Marlins have re-signed infielder Peter Mooney to a minor league deal with an invitation to spring training, according to agent Marc Kligman (h/t: Tim Healey of the South Florida Sun Sentinel, on Twitter). In 2017, his second season with the Marlins organization, the 27-year-old Mooney hit .213/.290/.308 across 455 plate appearances with Triple-A New Orleans.

Poll: The Future Of Miami’s Outfield

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Those who have visited this website with any regularity over the past few months know that Marlins outfielders Giancarlo Stanton, Christian Yelich and Marcell Ozuna have frequently come up as potential trade chips. With the MLB offseason set to begin in earnest in a few weeks, questions regarding the trio will continue to abound, especially with a fresh ownership group at the helm. While the Marlins’ new face of baseball operations, part-owner Derek Jeter, essentially did nothing but win during his acclaimed career as the Yankees’ shortstop from 1995-2014, he’s likely in for some tough times in Miami.

The Marlins’ most recent playoff trip came in 2003 – a season in which they knocked off Jeter & Co. in the World Series – and given their limited talent in the majors, a weak farm system that Baseball America ranks last in the sport and a dire financial situation, the future Hall of Famer’s newest chapter in the game will begin with at least a few lean years. Jeter realizes that, judging by some of the comments he made during the introductory press conference he and principal owner Bruce Sherman held in Miami last week. Although Jeter was reluctant to say that losing will continue for the Marlins in the near term, he did admit that there’s a need to “rebuild the organization,” adding that “there’s going to be at times unpopular decisions that we make on behalf of the organization.”

To a Marlins fan base that loathed the franchise’s prior owner, Jeffrey Loria, in part because of his penny-pinching ways, there probably wouldn’t be a less popular move than trading Stanton – especially after he enjoyed an MVP-caliber 2017 in which he smashed a league-high 59 home runs. But getting out from under at least some of the $295MM he could rake in through 2028 would improve the franchise’s bottom line, so it seems likely Miami will consider offers for the 27-year-old. In theory, Stanton’s full no-trade rights – not to mention an opt-out clause after 2020 – could scuttle a potential deal, but it doesn’t seem he’d stand in the way of a swap if an acquiring team would give him a chance to play meaningful baseball into the fall.

Marlins outfielders

“I don’t want to rebuild. I’ve lost for seven years,” the right fielder said last month.

Despite their best efforts, Yelich and Ozuna have joined Stanton in doing plenty of losing as Marlins. Considering their affordability, moving either would be far less complicated for Miami than trading Stanton, and it would beef up the team’s farm system.

Yelich, the 25-year-old center fielder, has been worth 4.5 fWAR in three of four seasons since becoming a full-time major leaguer (including in 2017) and is signed to a palatable deal. He’s due a guaranteed $43.5MM through 2021 and will collect either a $15MM salary or a $1.25MM buyout in 2022. Yelich is all the more appealing when considering the best outfielders who could hit free agency next month (J.D. Martinez, Justin Upton and Lorenzo Cain) are already over 30 and will rake in far richer contracts than his.

Ozuna doesn’t come with Yelich-esque team control, but the left fielder still has two arbitration-eligible years remaining after making $3.5MM in 2017, a career season. Across 159 games and 679 trips to the plate, the 26-year-old slashed .312/.376/.548 with 37 homers – much better production than he put up over the previous four years, though he was still a fairly respectable contributor from 2013-16. With an appreciable raise on the way this offseason and a trip to free agency only a couple years off, now may be the time for Miami to wave goodbye to the Scott Boras client.

There are other players the Marlins figure to market in the next few months, but their highest-profile chips are their starting outfielders, a trio that hit a combined .288/.368/.519 this year and topped the NL in fWAR (16.1). Marlins fans may not like it, but with the franchise going in a new direction, it stands to reason Stanton, Yelich and Ozuna have lined up in the same outfield together for the last time. Which player(s) do you think the Fish will part with in the offseason?

(Poll link for app users)

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Front Office/Managerial Notes: Marlins, Brewers, Tigers

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The latest front office and managerial updates from around the majors:

  • Yankees vice president of player development Gary Denbo is leaving the Bombers to become the Marlins’ director of player development and amateur scouting, George A. King III of the New York Post reports (on Twitter). Denbo will work under Michael Hill, who will stay on as the Marlins’ president of baseball operations, Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald tweets. Since a group including former Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter agreed to purchase the Marlins in August, there had been plenty of speculation about Denbo heading to Miami. Denbo served in various capacities during multiple stretches with the Yankees dating back to the 1990s and even managed Jeter in the Gulf Coast League in 1992. The two still have a close relationship, paving the way for Denbo to reunite with Jeter in Miami. The Marlins haven’t requested permission to speak with anyone else from the Yankees’ front office, per Mark Feinsand of MLB.com (Twitter links).
  • The Brewers’ David Stearns-led front office has promoted Karl Mueller to vice president of player personnel, Matt Kleine to director of baseball operations and Scott Campbell to special assignment scout, according to a team announcement. Mueller, a 14-year veteran of Milwaukee’s baseball department, spent the past two seasons in Kleine’s new position. Kleine, who’s entering his 12th year with the Brewers, most recently served as their manager of baseball operations. Campbell, yet another longtime member of the organization (he’s entering his 13th year), was the Brewers’ assistant director of video scouting from 2015-17.
  • Royals catching instructor Pedro Grifol is an early candidate to become the Tigers’ next manager, Jon Morosi of MLB Network tweets. Grifol has served in that position since 2014. He also has experience as a major league hitting coach (Royals, 2013-14) and a minor league manager (with low-level Mariners affiliates from 2003-05 and in 2012)

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