The Dr. Morbius Memorial 2020-2021 MLB Hot Stove Thread

As one legend leave us, another returns:

https://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/3503548467/23d93ae8ec7b802718a234c75b19ea21_400x400.jpeg

BREAKING: Tony La Russa named #WhiteSox manager. @MLBNetwork @MLB

— Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) October 29, 2020

honestly wtf

fuck

Another sign of this offseason being a brutal market for free agents and arbitration-eligible players: Cleveland isn't picking up a $10 million option on Brad Hand, a three-time All-Star closer coming off a great season for a playoff team.https://t.co/KV4Q6Kn1qH

— Aaron Gleeman (@AaronGleeman) October 29, 2020

Oh god.

xpost

Tony La Russa is 76 years old. He should be running for President, not managing a baseball team.

— Write Sox (@WriteSox) October 29, 2020

how long before tim anderson gets suspended for calling la russa a "weak ass n*gga"?

— sugar shake (@curlyfro) October 29, 2020

i am anti-la russa in general but he seems like a particularly bad choice for this set of players

yeah the only thing i can take from this is that they want someone who will bench anderson et al for flipping bats and/or kneeling

@whitesox email announcement appears to have AJ Hinch Signature. Looks like it was corrected on Twitter. @SoxOn35th @SouthSideSox @SoxMach_pnoles pic.twitter.com/m64LcrshZG

— Gabe (@GabeNotDave) October 29, 2020

White Sox could have been cool.

In my five decades as a baseball fan, there have been very few players or managers I have actually disliked. Two come from the late-'80s A's teams that used to beat up on the Jays: La Russa and Eckersley. Roberto Alomar helped fix that, a little.

Huh.

Tony La Russa was in the White Sox dugout as manager when Jack Morris threw his no-hitter for the Tigers on April 7, 1984. Now, La Russa is back.

AJ Hinch was in the Tigers' dugout at Comerica Park as a backup catcher when Detroit avoided a historic 120-loss season by beating Ron Gardenhire’s Twins on the final day of the 2003 season. Is Hinch about to return in a different post?

https://www.mlb.com/tigers/news/aj-hinch-tigers-manager-search

what was wrong with renteria again?? and don cooper for that matter?

love the thread title.

renteria has now gotten dicked over twice by chicago baseball teams in favor of bigger names

After firing Rick Renteria as manager after the Sox bowed out of the expanded postseason, Hahn said he wanted to do a deep dive into the pool of available coaches and managers, interview people from forward-thinking organizations and find the right fit for a young, up-and-coming team. When he described the manager he was looking for, it sure sounded like former Houston Astros manager A.J. Hinch, who was fired for his role in the sign-stealing fiasco that rocked baseball, pre-pandemic.

But Hinch was never formally interviewed and instead, they wound up with the boss’ friend. It helps that said friend is a Hall of Famer, but this search put a monkey wrench in the White Sox organization’s image renovation.

sounds like jerry reinsdorf just . . . hired his buddy

#Rays Neander said they will not pick up either Mike Zunino or Charlie Morton's options. They will be free agents.

— Juan Toribio (@juanctoribio) October 30, 2020

Mark it down -- Oct. 30, 2020, one of the most significant days in franchise history. The Wilpon era is over. The Mets have a new owner, Steve Cohen.

— Marc Carig (@MarcCarig) October 30, 2020

Invite user @david_j_roth to thred

aj hinch is the new tigers manager

BREAKING: Brodie Van Wagenen, Omar Minaya, Allard Baird, Adam Guttridge and Jared Banner are all leaving the Mets.

— Anthony DiComo (@AnthonyDiComo) November 6, 2020

Sick

Alex Cora new manager of the Red Sox.

Every big/risky trade Brodie made flopped big time. Even if no one could have predicted Diaz would have such a bad year, and that Stroman would opt out for the entire 2nd year, he probably should have held back a bit. Things will be worse if any of the traded prospects become stars.

(That said, JD Davis was a great pickup and now one of my faves.)

i appreciate that brodie didn't fuck around with alonso's service time and let him start on opening day last year. and that he got degrom re-signed despite the wilpons' cheapness. but yeah

jeff luhnow has sued the astros for breach of contract

Chicago White Sox manager Tony La Russa was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence in February and charged with DUI a day before the team hired him, according to court records obtained by ESPN.

News with @pinepaula and @MoynihanCharles: https://t.co/C1lHlik4Zl

— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) November 10, 2020

Just mind boggling.

How many DUIs does he have (or do we know about?)

Only two I think

Here is the full Stroman thread... pic.twitter.com/8nxWzLYRsl

— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) November 10, 2020

ESPN obtained the full arrest report for Chicago White Sox manager Tony La Russa's DUI charge.

"Do you see my ring?" La Russa said to the arresting officer. "I'm a Hall of Famer baseball person. I'm legit. I'm a Hall of Famer, brother."

News at ESPN: https://t.co/C1lHlik4Zl pic.twitter.com/GnqS5k7V9e

— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) November 10, 2020

nice of him to use the non-gendered "person" rather than "man"

looooool

Marcus Stroman tweets that he has accepted the Mets' $18.9 million qualifying offer. He'll be back in the rotation in 2021.

— Anthony DiComo (@AnthonyDiComo) November 11, 2020

!

Making history by bringing a lifetime of excellence, Kim Ng steps to the helm as GM. #JuntosMiami pic.twitter.com/UrYESbjTHe

— Miami Marlins (@Marlins) November 13, 2020

Tight

Pretty sure either I or Morbs linked to this 2003 interview somewhere on this board, worth a rescreen imho:

https://www.baseballprospectus.com/news/article/2460/prospectus-qa-kim-ng/

She was mentioned as a candidate for several GM jobs this off-season.

Only took 18 seasons...

Miami #Marlins GM Kim Ng also believed to be the first GM of any North American men’s sports league in history.

— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) November 13, 2020

(tbf there are more than a few female minor league GMs, but the job is very different)

How overdue is the hiring of Kim Ng? I blogged about her as my candidate of choice for the Dodgers' GM opening that went to... Ned Colletti, in November 2005. 15 years ago today https://t.co/oDlobxGVEs

— Jay Jaffe (@jay_jaffe) November 13, 2020

Theo Epstein has resigned as president of baseball operations for the Chicago Cubs. Jed Hoyer is the new president of baseball operations.

— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) November 17, 2020

whoa

Ground Chuck back to ATL, 1/15.

excited to see half the league get non-tendered this evening

Rosario going on waivers (and clearing them) surprised me. I hadn’t realized how overall mediocre he’d been.

i can understand why the twins are dumping him -- alex kirilloff can fill that role for a lot less money -- but in a regular 2020 season rosario would have been worth like 2.5 WAR, which should honestly be plenty sufficient for someone to pay him the $9 or $10 million he'd have made in his final year of arbitration. i mean he finished 17th in the AL MVP voting!

cubs non-tendered schwarber and almora

love how the teams always say they're keeping the door open to bring people back (for less money) -- can anyone think of examples of that actually happening?

Charlie Culberson?

Has that ever been a thing before with ball players?

probably a union thing, so probably not

Bauer is such a galaxy brain he probably doesnt care about the union even as his contract status is pro(ish)-labor

bauer is such a galaxy brain that he demanded all the opt-outs lest his 'friend' shoot him in the nads with a paintball

doesn't seem to have depressed his market tho

Lol

I would have made him getting shot in the nuts part of the contract.

Elvis Andrus for Khris Davis

Kind of a weird one.

Last year sure messed with the career boxes of some guys: Davis hit .200 (not even close to .247...), Andrus .194.

no surprise after wainwright signed, but molina is back for another year with the cardinals ($9M)

also, not sure if this is the most appropriate thread, but:

The league has formally announced this year’s health-and-safety agreement. The on-field alterations include the return of seven-inning doubleheaders and runners on second base to begin extra innings. Any player is permitted to work as a pitcher in a given game — a departure from the rules the league had previously planned to put into place that prohibited position players pitching until a certain inning or six-run deficit was in place.

There will also be “strict” enforcement of of unsportsmanlike conduct violations that break physical distancing guidelines (i.e. players and coaches going out of their way to argue in an umpire’s face, bench-clearing brawls, etc.).

From a roster construction standpoint, the standard roster size will revert to 26 players until a September expansion to 28. In the event of a Covid-19 outbreak within a club, those teams will be permitted to add players to the MLB roster and return them to the minors, without burning minor league options or placing them on waivers, once their infected players are cleared to return from Covid protocols. Teams will again travel with five-man taxi squads.

MLB is also enforcing facemasks “other than for players on the field during a game or during pre-game warmups,” enhancing its contact-tracing capabilities and adding mental health resources for each club. Players who come in contact with a confirmed positive case of Covid-19 will now be subject to a week-long quarantine and must test negative on the fifth day of said quarantine.

The full scope of the changes and a detailed, point-by-point description can be seen in MLB’s official press release.

also, the 10-team playoff format is back, and no universal DH

well that's good to hear

Lol at “strict” in quotes up there.

out of an abundance of caution

love how both the players and owners want a universal DH, but won't implement it because they each think the other side should give up something else to get it

yep. the owners wanted the expanded playoffs in "exchange" for the DH (which they want)

the players wanted....? i can't remember.

hookers and blow, i believe.

In the event of a Covid-19 outbreak within a club, those teams will be permitted to add players to the MLB roster and return them to the minors, without burning minor league options or placing them on waivers, once their infected players are cleared to return from Covid protocols

lol

Presented without comment. https://t.co/wkhvFIH8bI

— Anthony DiComo (@AnthonyDiComo) February 10, 2021

Still amazing he got a $20 million contract and had a total of 9 plate appearances (0 hits) during those two years.

suddenly the red sox have no outfielders at all

https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/30876960/sources-boston-red-sox-sending-andrew-benintendi-kansas-city-royals-3-team-deal

“Franchy” is an 80-grade first name tho.
Surprised to see the royals trading away Lee.

i feel pretty much less than nothing for the sox these days but it still stings a little to see the last 'killer b' go two years removed from winning it all

Now the first and true Killer B's--Bell, Barfield, and Moseby--can be restored to their place of privilege.

uh, I believe you mean Biggio, Bo and Bvlad!

Turner back to the Dodgers, who might be in the upper bracket of the luxury tax at this point!
is this gonna be like a yankees situation, where it takes years of trimming to get back down under?

your framing of the situation pains me

dominating the league do have its downside.

Mets stocking up on people whose last name ends in -illar

Fifth team for Pillar in two years, wow. If he continues to hit like he's been hitting recently, he's a good guy to have around.

Star shortstop Fernando Tatis Jr. and the San Diego Padres are in agreement on a 14-year, $340 million contract extension, a source familiar with the deal tells ESPN.

— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) February 18, 2021

one owner didn't get the memo

jesus

(also that's awesome)

It has to be a record.

OMG

if you're going to give out a 14-year contract, it might as well be to a player who's 22 years old

dude doesn't even have a full season under his belt

neat

The Giants have made a unique addition to their coaching staff: former Rays outfielder Fernando Perez joins them as a video analyst. Perez is a Columbia alum, a documentary filmmaker and a published poet. He's also a Spanish speaker who can help Latino players w/video analysis. pic.twitter.com/4eH0c9hhxo

— Andrew Baggarly (@extrabaggs) February 18, 2021

Cute optics but big picture though:

https://www.mercurynews.com/2021/01/14/crowley-charles-johnsons-ownership-is-a-shame-for-the-san-francisco-giants/

clown

The speech, which was downloaded to YouTube and went Twitter viral on Sunday morning, offered information that the Mariners' front office would likely never share publicly to the media or the fan base. https://t.co/g4rRecXKxX

— Seattle Times Sports (@SeaTimesSports) February 21, 2021

Mariners have released a statement: Kevin Mather has resigned.

— Corey Brock (@CoreyBrockMLB) February 22, 2021

forced to resign for saying out loud what every front office truly believes

remarkable idiocy though. rotarians!

Seattle should put up a statue of Mather for getting Kelenic in the Diaz/Cano trade.

Manfred must be so so pissed.

is it bad that, as a lifelong fan, i want the CBA negotiations 10 months from now to utterly destroy baseball

not at all

I don’t know if the players deserve that.

group economics