Red Sox Notes: Betts, JDM, Wright, Kimbrel
The latest on the American League champions:
- When the Red Sox go on the road to face the Dodgers in the World Series, they could feature an interesting defensive alignment. Speaking with reporters (including Jason Mastrodonato of the Boston Herald) on Saturday, Cora revealed that the Red Sox are considering deploying right fielder Mookie Betts at second base in Los Angeles, where they won’t have the luxury of using a designated hitter. In doing so, the Red Sox would keep DH/outfielder J.D. Martinez‘s elite bat in the lineup. No matter what, Martinez is going to play, though the team’s not giving any thought to putting him at first base, Mastrodonato reports. Martinez has next to no experience at first, whereas Betts played plenty of second base as a prospect and most recently lined up at the keystone 14 times as a major league rookie in 2014.
- Left knee issues have shelved Red Sox right-hander Steven Wright since Sept. 29, but the knuckleballer hasn’t ruled out a World Series return, per Mastrodonato. Although the Red Sox had to remove him from their ALDS roster when the playoffs began two weeks ago, Wright has been throwing since then, and he issued a fairly encouraging update Saturday. “My arm and body feels really good, just a matter of can my knee withstand the pressure of throwing off a mound consistently?” Wright said. He’ll “go through a few tests” before the Red Sox decide whether to include him on their World Series roster, according to Cora. Wright threw a short simulated game Sunday to help determine the status of his knee, Pete Abraham of the Boston Globe tweets. The 34-year-old was an asset out of the Red Sox’s bullpen during the regular season, when he notched a 1.52 ERA and held opposing hitters to a .191/.303/.314 line.
- It hasn’t been a banner postseason for all-world Red Sox closer Craig Kimbrel, who has allowed at least one earned run in four of five appearances. However, Kimbrel may have begun a turnaround in his most recent outing Thursday, when he threw a scoreless, hitless frame with two strikeouts and a walk to close out the Astros in the ALCS. Kimbrel revealed afterward that he had been tipping his pitches – something former closer Eric Gagne first noticed while watching from home, Ben Harris of The Athletic writes (subscription required). “There’s quite a few people, but actually Eric Gagne texted me last night,” Kimbrel said. “He’s good friends with AC (Alex Cora), and he texted me and gave me some advice.” As part of an interesting piece that’s worth checking out, Harris goes on to break down what Kimbrel was doing wrong and how he fixed it.
Joe Girardi Out Of Running For Rangers’ Managerial Job
12:49pm: The Rangers actually informed Girardi that “they were going in another direction,” Heyman tweets.
9:54am: Joe Girardi has withdrawn from the Rangers’ managerial search, as Jon Heyman of Fancred reports and as Jeff Wilson of the Star-Telgram first suggested. As of now, it appears Girardi will work as a television analyst for the second straight season in 2019.
Girardi previously exited the derby to become the Reds’ next manager, which helped lead to David Bell’s hiring on Sunday. Bell was also a candidate with the Rangers, who are likely now down to six choices for their managerial job, per TR Sullivan of MLB.com. Aside from Girardi and Bell, the Rangers have reportedly discussed the position with Rocco Baldelli, Don Wakamatsu, Jayce Tingler, Brandon Hyde, Dusty Wathan and Joe Espada.
On paper, Girardi would have been an odd fit for either Cincinnati or Texas, given that neither team looks like a short-term contender. The 54-year-old most recently managed the Yankees from 2008-17, a decade-long span in which they went 910-710 in the regular season, earned eight playoff berths and won a World Series title (2009).
Angels Hire Brad Ausmus As Manager
12:29pm: Ausmus received a three-year contract, according to Maria Guardado of MLB.com.
12:02pm: The Angels announced that they’ve named Brad Ausmus their new manager. Ausmus spent the 2018 season working as a special assistant to Angels general manager Billy Eppler.
“Over the past few weeks, our baseball operations personnel sat down with numerous highly-qualified and impressive candidates for our managerial role. We are thankful to all of them for their time and effort throughout the process,” Eppler stated. “Ultimately, Brad’s balance of connectivity, communication and leadership skills as well as his understanding of evolving strategies and probabilistic approach to decision making led us to him. We believe his knowledge, drive and growth-mindset will allow him to integrate seamlessly with our players and staff and will be pivotal in advancing our culture and moving us toward our goals as an organization.”
The 49-year-old Ausmus – a former major league catcher – is taking over for another ex-MLB backstop, Mike Scioscia. Now an Angels icon, Scioscia took the helm in 2000 and finally ended his reign when he stepped down less than a month ago.
In the wake of Scioscia’s exit, the Angels reportedly interviewed 10 managerial candidates; at one point in the process, it appeared the job would go to their Triple-A skipper, Eric Chavez. In the end, though, the Angels opted for someone with major league managerial experience in Ausmus, who oversaw Detroit’s dugout from 2014-17. The Tigers went 314-332 with one playoff berth and two seasons of at least 86 wins during that period.
In shifting from the Angels’ front office to their dugout, Ausmus will hope to turn around a disappointing situation in Anaheim. Even though the Angels have the game’s best player, center fielder Mike Trout, they’ve finished under .500 three years in a row and haven’t gone to the playoffs since 2014. The club hasn’t even won a postseason game since Trout’s remarkable career began in 2011. A rash of injuries helped undermine the Angels’ efforts in 2018, of course, though it still would’ve been a tall task for a healthy LA team to make the postseason in the AL West – a division which included two playoff teams (the Astros and the Athletics) and the 89-win Mariners.
At 80-82, the Angels ultimately finished 23 games behind the Astros and 17 back of the A’s, giving them plenty of ground to make up during the offseason. With Trout, Andrelton Simmons, Shohei Ohtani and Justin Upton leading their offense, it seems the Angels will mostly focus on improving their pitching staff over the winter. The starting staff is in desperate need of help, especially considering Ohtani underwent Tommy John surgery on Oct. 1 and probably won’t pitch next season.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Reds Hire David Bell As Manager
The Reds have hired Giants vice president of player development David Bell as their manager, per a team announcement. Cincinnati awarded Bell a three-year contract with a club option for 2022.
The move represents a homecoming for the 46-year-old Bell, a Cincinnati native with deep ties to the organization. Bell’s grandfather (Gus Bell), father (Buddy Bell) and brother (Mike Bell) all played for the Reds, and Buddy is a former Reds coach who now works in their front office. David Bell didn’t play for the club during his long career as a major league infielder, but he did manage in its minor league system from 2008-12, running its Double-A team for three years and its Triple-A squad for one.
Bell hasn’t garnered any managerial experience at the big league level, though he did work in multiple capacities with a few organizations in between his Reds stints. He was a third base coach with the Cubs in 2012 before serving on then-manager Mike Matheny’s staff in St. Louis from 2013-17. Bell first worked as the Cardinals’ assistant hitting coach before becoming Matheny’s bench coach. He left last fall to join the Giants, whose farm system he wanted to modernize.
“There’s incredible information, and it has to factor into everything we do,” Bell explained to Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle last March. “It’s there. If we don’t access, utilize and implement that information, we’re going to fall behind.”
While it’s unclear how beneficial Bell was to the Giants’ farm system during his brief time with them, his modern outlook helped him land on other teams’ radars this month before the Reds hired him. Bell interviewed for both the Blue Jays’ and Rangers’ vacant managerial posts prior to joining the Reds, who counted him among roughly a dozen candidates for their job. Bell quickly emerged as the favorite for the position, beating out other serious candidates in Brad Ausmus and Rocco Baldelli. It helped Bell’s cause that Joe Girardi withdrew from contention Friday in a move that “surprised” Cincinnati, Jon Heyman of Fancred tweets.
As he begins the next phase of his life in baseball, Bell will be tasked with helping to turn around a Reds team that hasn’t earned a playoff berth or even finished .500 since 2013. While the Reds showed flashes in 2018 under interim manager Jim Riggleman, who took over for the fired Bryan Price, they still ended up with fewer than 70 victories (67) for the fifth consecutive season. There is some enviable position player talent on hand, though, especially in the infield – where the Reds boast first baseman/franchise cornerstone Joey Votto, second baseman Scooter Gennett, shortstop Jose Peraza and third baseman Eugenio Suarez. The club’s pitching staff is a problem, on the other hand, but there are at least a few potential building blocks in the fold in starters Luis Castillo and Anthony DeSclafani and closer Raisel Iglesias.
It’s likely the Reds, who plan to increase payroll in 2019, will spend the offseason trying to improve their pitching staff. Regardless, the Bell-led Reds will be in for another tough test next year in the NL Central, which featured four plus-.500 clubs and two playoff teams in 2018.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Poll: Who Will Win The World Series?
As sports fans know, Los Angeles and Boston have battled for NBA supremacy on several occasions. The two cities will square off again beginning Tuesday, but instead of the Lakers and Celtics fighting for a championship, it’ll be the Dodgers and Red Sox vying for a World Series title. At the outset of the 2018 MLB season, it wouldn’t have been a surprise to see either of these teams in this position. Nearly seven months later, however, it’s fair to say the clubs took wildly different paths to arrive at this point.
The Red Sox were dominant from the jump, winning 17 of their first 19 games, and they didn’t let up much en route to a league-best 108-54 record. The club finished with the sport’s second-best run differential in the process (plus-229), thanks largely to a Mookie Betts– and J.D. Martinez-led attack which crossed home plate more than any other offense. Despite being an AL MVP front-runner, Betts’ production has fallen flat this postseason (.578 OPS in 44 plate appearances), making it all the more impressive that the Red Sox went 7-2 against the majors’ only other 100-win teams – the Yankees and Astros – in the first two rounds of the playoffs.
Earning a playoff berth was never in doubt for the Red Sox, but the Dodgers were in peril at multiple points during the regular season. The team was supposed to roll after winning an NL pennant last year and losing a seven-game classic to the Astros in the World Series. Instead, the Dodgers began the season in catastrophic fashion, winning just 16 of their first 42 games – a stretch in which they saw star shortstop Corey Seager undergo season-ending Tommy John surgery. Things were so dire for the club in mid-May that I polled MLBTR readers on whether the Dodgers would even make the playoffs. Nearly 65 percent of voters said they wouldn’t. But manager Dave Roberts never wavered during the Dodgers’ horrific start, declaring: “When it’s all said and done, the Dodgers will be at the top of the division.”
The Dodgers ultimately did rally to win the NL West for a sixth straight year, but they were in third place in the division as late as September. They also needed to win a Game 163 versus the Rockies to settle it, and after cruising past the Braves in a four-game NLDS, they went the distance against the Brewers in a seven-game NLCS. To this point, the Dodgers own a 99-75 record (92-71 during the regular season), which pales in comparison to the Red Sox’s mark. But they did run away with the NL’s regular-season run differential title (plus-194), giving them a 102-61 Pythagorean record which is right in line with Boston’s (103-59). They also led the majors in position player fWAR and wRC+, and topped the NL in pitcher fWAR and runs scored. All of those numbers help illustrate that the Dodgers are where they belong, despite their trying regular season.
Looking beyond the stats, this series has no shortage of interesting storylines. It begins in the dugout, with Roberts (an ex-Boston player) versus rookie manager Alex Cora, a third-round draft pick of the Dodgers in 1996 who was a member of the team from ’98-2004. Both managers had signature moments in those teams’ uniforms – Roberts served as a playoff hero for the curse-breaking Red Sox in 2004, the same year Cora capped off an 18-pitch at-bat with a home run.
On the field, a pair of the most dominant lefties ever – Boston’s Chris Sale and LA’s Clayton Kershaw – could match up on multiple occasions, and they’re supported by bullpens that feature all-time great closers (the Red Sox’s Craig Kimbrel and the Dodgers’ Kenley Jansen). Those pitchers will contend with offenses which possess transcendent hitters, including Betts and Martinez on the Boston side and LA’s Justin Turner and Manny Machado – a longtime Oriole who has spent almost all of his career in the Red Sox’s division. Machado, whom the Dodgers acquired over the summer in response to Seager’s injury, hasn’t hidden his disdain for the Red Sox in the past.
With Machado on the verge of becoming one of the most sought-after free agents ever, this series may be his last in a Dodgers uniform. As his Dodgers tenure potentially winds down, perhaps Machado will help deliver the franchise’s first World Series title since 1988. On the other side, the Red Sox will attempt to take home their fourth championship since Roberts contributed to their cause a decade and a half ago. Which team do you expect to end up as the last one standing in 2018?
(poll link for app users)
Who will win the World Series?
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Red Sox 67% (9,445)
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Dodgers 33% (4,609)
Total votes: 14,054
AL East Notes: Yanks, Happ, Sabathia, O’s, Gaston, Rays, Baldelli
A few notes from the AL East:
- With the offseason now underway for the Yankees, general manager Brian Cashman discussed several topics of interest in an interview with Mike Francesa of WFAN earlier this week. As free agency and trade season approach, the Yankees are expected to be among the majors’ most active teams in the starting pitching market – especially considering left-handers J.A. Happ and CC Sabathia are without contracts. Indeed, Cashman revealed: “We’re excited about adding to our rotation. It’s going to be a focus point for us, and there’s going to be a lot of competition, regardless of the available players out there. We need to continue to reinforce that rotation.” As for Happ and Sabathia, Cashman declared that “they’re going to get a lot of consideration, not just from us but from a lot of people.” The 36-year-old Happ, whom New York acquired from Toronto in July, fit in well with the Yankees during the regular season and is now fresh off his fourth straight strong campaign. He seems like a shoo-in to land a multiyear deal, whereas Sabathia, 38, may have to settle for his second consecutive one-year pact. A Yankee since 2009, Sabathia re-signed with the team for $10MM last offseason and then continued his late-career renaissance during the 2018 campaign.
- Although the Orioles lost out on the Mesa brothers, two highly touted outfield prospects who chose the Marlins over the O’s on Saturday, Baltimore’s still “hopeful” about signing young right-hander Sandy Gaston, Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com writes. Even after their Saturday signings, the Marlins may still try for Gaston – who, like the Mesas, hails from Cuba – but the Orioles could easily outbid them (or anyone else) at this point.
- Even though he has never managed at any level, Rays coach Rocco Baldelli has interviewed with five skipper-needy teams in recent weeks. Despite his inexperience, it’s no surprise the 37-year-old has drawn serious interest from teams seeking a manager, argues the Tampa Bay Times’ Marc Topkin, who notes Baldelli packages youth, intelligence, communication skills and a knowledge of analytics. That’s a coveted blend in the modern game, and as Topkin points out, it doesn’t hurt that a.) Baldelli comes with front office/scouting experience and b.) is part of a club that just wrapped up a successful season under his boss, manager Kevin Cash. The Cash-led Rays plan to return the same coaching staff in 2019, Topkin reports, though they may have to replace Baldelli.
The Angels’ Managerial Search
We’re tracking all of the managerial hiring situations around the league with team-specific posts, and it’s time to introduce one for the Angels. Mike Scioscia just wrapped up a 19-year tenure with the organization that included a whopping ten-year, $50MM contract — a managerial pact that’s still without compare.
As of late last week, the Halos were wrapping up their first round of chats with potential candidates, as Jeff Fletcher of the Southern California News Group reported. At least ten candidates were slated for an early look, with the remainder of the process — and the identities of most names under consideration — largely unknown.
There still aren’t a ton of names available, but we learned more about the club’s approach from MLB.com’s Jon Morosi (Twitter link). Beyond reviewing resumes and speaking with candidates, the Angels front office is said to be “administering [a] 2-hour written test to managerial candidates” that poses “questions spanning analytical, interpersonal and game-management aspects of the job.” Needless to say, that’s an interesting process.
Here’s the latest on individual candidates:
Latest Update – 10/20
- The Angels have interviewed Rays major league field coordinator Rocco Baldelli, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports and Fletcher confirms. Baldelli’s among 10 candidates who interviewed during the first round of the process, per Fletcher, though he reports there are only six confirmed names (Baldelli, Vizquel, Chavez, Ausmus, Espada and Hyde). While it’s unknown which candidates have stood out to the Angels thus far, Fletcher writes that they could name their next manager by Monday.
Earlier Update — 10/18
- Longtime big league infielder Omar Vizquel interviewed for the position but is no longer in consideration to be hired, per Venezuelan journalist Efrain Zavece on his podcast (Twitter link; hat tip to MLB.com’s Maria Guardado). The 51-year-old Vizquel previously served as the Tigers’ first base coach (under fellow Halos managerial candidate Brad Ausmus) and has spent the past two seasons managing in the White Sox’ minor league ranks.
Previous updates below…
Cafardo’s Latest: Corbin, Eovaldi, Pomeranz, O’s, Nats
The Yankees (previously reported), Dodgers, Giants and Braves are among the teams that are expected to “show a lot of interest” in left-hander Patrick Corbin once free agency starts, Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe writes. The 29-year-old Corbin is coming off a career season at the perfect time, having logged a 3.15 ERA/2.47 FIP with 11.07 K/9 and 2.16 BB/9 over 200 innings in 2018. As a result of that top-notch production, it’s likely Corbin will price himself out of Arizona and perhaps ink a nine-figure contract with someone.
More from Cafardo:
- Like Corbin, Red Sox right-hander Nathan Eovaldi is slated to be one of the most sought-after starters available in free agency. While Eovaldi, 28, likely won’t do as well as Corbin on his next contract, many executives see fellow righty Alex Cobb as a comparable, per Cafardo. Cobb signed a four-year, $57MM contract with Baltimore in free agency last offseason, though Cafardo argues Eovaldi’s in position to rake in an even richer deal. Regarding Eovaldi, one exec tells Cafardo: “He’s shown, first of all, that he’s healthy. He’s shown he can pitch on a big stage. He’s shown that he’s grown as a pitcher where he not only relies on that 97-100-miles-per-hour fastball, but now he has a cutter that’s proven so effective for him and allowed him to pitch deep into games. And, he’s had two Tommy John surgeries, survived them and is flourishing.” Eovaldi underwent the second of those surgeries in 2016 and has indeed held his own this year upon returning. Between Tampa Bay and Boston, he pitched to a 3.81 ERA/3.60 FIP with 8.19 K/9 an 1.62 BB/9 in 111 regular-season innings. Eovaldi has continued his effectiveness in the postseason for the AL-winning Red Sox, with a 1.88 ERA and 10 strikeouts against two walks in 14 1/3 frames.
- Meanwhile, Red Sox pending free-agent southpaw Drew Pomeranz is due to hit the market on the heels of a disastrous season. After he posted a 6.08 ERA/5.43 FIP with 8.03 K/9 and 5.35 BB/9 in 74 regular-season innings, including 22 2/3 in relief, Boston has left Pomeranz off its playoff roster. Nevertheless, the Red Sox “could foresee a rebound season” in 2019, meaning it’s possible they’ll re-sign Pomeranz, per Cafardo. Pomeranz, who will turn 30 next month, isn’t far removed from an impressive 2017.
- Former Dodgers GM Ned Colletti and Orioles ownership have had “consistent contact,” a major league source tells Cafardo. Colletti reportedly met with Orioles president John Angelos during the summer, when Dan Duquette was at the helm of the team’s front office. The Orioles have since parted with Duquette, putting them in the market for a new head of baseball operations. It’s unclear whether the Orioles are considering Colletti for that role, though.
- Nationals special assistant Dan Jennings has drawn interest from two teams, Cafardo reports, but it’s not clear which position he’d fill with either club or whether he’s even interested in leaving Washington. While Jennings is fresh off his third season in the Nats’ front office, he’s best known for serving in a pair of prominent roles with the Marlins. Not only was Jennings the Marlins’ GM from 2013-15, but he also worked as their interim manager for a 124-game stretch during his last season with the team.
Baseball Blogs Weigh In: Machado, Best/Worst, Bucs, D-backs, Yanks
This week in baseball blogs…
- Know Hitter makes cases for 20 teams to pursue Manny Machado in free agency.
- Chin Music Baseball (links: 1, 2) highlights the 10 best and worst players of 2018.
- The Point of Pittsburgh tries to find a match between the Pirates and Diamondbacks on a Robbie Ray/Nick Ahmed trade.
- Bronx To Bushville looks ahead to the Yankees’ offseason.
- Jays From the Couch shares an offseason plan for Toronto.
- SportsRadio 94 WIP analyzes 13 left-handed pitching options the Phillies could pursue this offseason.
- Motor City Bengals looks at outside first basemen the Tigers could go after in the coming weeks.
- RSNStats stacks the Red Sox up against their potential World Series opponents.
- Rox Pile names three key questions that will shape 2019 for the Rockies.
- Friars On Base examines the Padres’ upcoming Rule 5 decisions, while Pinstriped Prospects does the same for the Yankees.
- Rising Apple takes a look at best- and worst-case scenarios in 2019 for Steven Matz.
- Call to the Pen explores some of the offseason obstacles Phillies GM Matt Klentak will face.
- Bluebird Banter names the best moments of the Blue Jays’ season.
- Foul Territory opines that, despite their ALCS loss, the Astros have the makings of a dynasty; meanwhile, The Runner Sports argues this year’s elimination only makes last season’s championship more special.
- Mets Critic notes that the average MLB player is getting younger.
- Baseball Rabbi discusses the Yankees’ dilemma with Miguel Andujar, among other topics.
- Everything Bluebirds wonders how much more the Blue Jays can improve their farm system.
- The K Zone interviews White Sox minor league catcher Casey Schroeder.
- MLB & Fantasy Baseball Analyzed observes that Yankees-Red Sox has historically been a “one-sided rivalry.”
Central Notes: Schoop, Davidson, Cardinals
Second baseman Jonathan Schoop has endured a dreadful couple months since the Brewers acquired him from the Orioles at the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline. Nevertheless, considering what the the Brewers gave up for Schoop, they’re “unlikely” to non-tender him in the offseason, Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel tweets. Schoop’s projected to earn $10.1MM in his final trip through arbitration, and that salary figures to help weigh down the 27-year-old’s trade value if Milwaukee tries to move him. Schoop was one of the game’s best second basemen in 2017, but his numbers dipped in the first half of this season with the Orioles and have gone in the tank in Milwaukee, with which he batted .202/.246/.331 in 134 regular-season plate appearances. And while the Brewers will advance to the World Series if they win Game 7 of the NLCS on Saturday, Schoop hasn’t been a factor in their playoff run, having gone hitless in seven at-bats. Unsurprisingly, Schoop’s not in the starting lineup for the Brewers’ series-deciding game against the Dodgers.
A bit more from the majors’ Central divisions…
- Fresh off his second straight 20-home run season, one which featured unspectacular overall production (104 wRC+) across 496 plate appearances, White Sox DH/corner infielder Matt Davidson would like to do more pitching in 2019. Davidson, who chipped in three scoreless innings of one-hit ball as a reliever in 2018, will spend the offseason working to become a legitimate two-way player, Bruce Levine of 670 The Score reports. The White Sox have okayed Davidson’s plan and will be able to monitor his progress in the offseason, given that he lives close to their Arizona-based complex, according to Levine. Davidson was a high school pitcher, notes Levine, who writes that Chicago’s coaching staff sees “decent movement” in his 92 mph fastball. Should Davidson achieve his goal, the soon-to-be 28-year-old would work out of the bullpen – albeit not in high-leverage situations – as a way to help keep the team’s conventional relievers fresh, per Levine.
- Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported earlier this month that the Cardinals would seek left-handed relief help in the offseason. President of baseball operations John Mozeliak confirmed as much this week, saying (via Jenifer Langosch of MLB.com): “When you’re looking at last year versus this year, I do feel like we’re looking at more depth than we had a year ago at this time. I also recognize that I think the biggest Achilles’ [heel] right now in our bullpen is the left side.” The Cardinals shuffled through numerous southpaw relief options during the season, but none inspired much confidence, as Langosch details; moreover, they don’t seem to have a dominant lefty under control going into 2019, Langosch points out. Notably, MLBTR’s Jeff Todd took a look at the lefty relief market for the upcoming offseason earlier this week. That piece should be of particular interest to Cardinals fans in light of Mozeliak’s comments.