NEWSLETTER
Before we get started today, I want to make sure we all saw the White Sox big LOL-moment this week. No, no … not hiring Tony La Russa (though that did make me laugh). But rather fumbling his big announcement with the signature of A.J. Hinch:
White Sox Email Announcing New Manager Appears to Include AJ Hinch’s Signature – https://t.co/4cmcfiOkTM pic.twitter.com/JwnyxF2GJr
— Bleacher Nation (@BleacherNation) October 29, 2020
That’s just perfect. And it’s with those two gents we’ll begin today.
It’s Tony Time
You already heard the news, but now it’s time for the reactions and the background – starting with Jon Greenberg at The Athletic, who discovered that this didn’t quite go according to plan. Well, at least not GM Rick Hahn’s plan.
After the White Sox fired Rick Renteria, Hahn was reportedly planning to “do a deep dive into the pool of available coaches and managers,” to find people from forward-thinking organizations who could be the right fit for a young team. You know … the way it should have gone.
Instead, White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf really did reach out to his old friend, La Russa, who was surprisingly interested in returning to the field and Hahn was sort of backed into a corner. I mean, tell me this isn’t a guy who’s just towing the line:
“Initially,” Rick Hahn said, “I think I was a little surprised.”
….
“Quite frankly, as we talked a couple, three weeks ago when we initiated this process, this obviously played out a little differently than I initially described I thought it would for all of you,” Hahn said. “When we discovered Tony was receptive to Jerry’s original overtures about potentially coming back and taking this position, that changed the focus.”
That pretty much confirms that it was 1) Reinsdorf’s idea and 2) not the route Hahn would have gone. Like, ya … no. This isn’t convincing anybody.
Rick Hahn: "It's easy to fall back on some old narratives that this was about friendship or potentially righting old wrongs. In the end, Tony was the choice because it is believed that Tony is the best man to help us win championships over the next several years."
— 670 The Score (@670TheScore) October 29, 2020
That is NOT to say the White Sox can’t win with La Russa. They can. Not only do they have a really talented roster, and not only is La Russa an experienced manager, but we know managers can only have so much of an impact on a team’s season anyway. But that doesn’t absolve them of a muddled process at the worst time.
The White Sox had a mini-2020 Padres vibe brewing this year thanks to a young, diverse, exciting, talented group of players. La Russa might mute a lot of what attracted fans to the White Sox in the first place, and that’s bad for the franchise in all sorts of ways.
In any case, looking forward, James Fegan looks into whether or not La Russa can actually handle the job despite being out of the dugout for so long … and also being 300 years old (I know we like to pretend age doesn’t matter, and to an extent it doesn’t, but this is an exceptionally young team and they are just not going to relate to a 76-year-old). But, hey, who knows? Maybe the White Sox were explicitly looking for less of a squad-sergeant and more of a patriarchal general … but oh wait we literally know they weren’t, because Hahn wanted to find young, forward-thinking candidates before Reinsdorf forced his hand.
Jeff Passan calls it a classic case of cronyism, and I can’t disagree:
Tony La Russa's return to the White Sox is a classic baseball story of cronyism and flawed decisions.
Especially when A.J. Hinch was interested in the job.
As Hinch goes to Detroit, a look at La Russa, the White Sox and the value of sincerity. Column: https://t.co/izB01jfW94 pic.twitter.com/tQGKof3czx
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) October 30, 2020
A.J. Hinch to the Tigers
Former Astros manager A.J. Hinch, who had been suspended for one year following the Astros scandal, has been hired on as the new manager of the Detroit Tigers, a marriage the Tigers, themselves, don’t think they could’ve gotten without Reinsdorf forcing La Russa on Hahn:
A.J. Hinch has interviewed with the Tigers. He's viewed as the clear frontrunner to be the next manager. Final word could come soon.
And then there's this: "The White Sox did us a big favor."https://t.co/blYTh1mACj
— Cody Stavenhagen (@CodyStavenhagen) October 30, 2020
I know Hinch comes with serious (Astros) baggage, but he’s also one of the only people who actually did some time for his crimes. I don’t really hear anybody suggesting not to sign George Springer this offseason – in fact, he’s Keith Law’s number one overall free agent.
Nah. Hinch, 46, is as forward-thinking as managers come AND he comes with plenty of actual experience, too. I think he would have been a perfect addition to this up-and-coming White Sox roster. Instead, he’ll head to Detroit.
Spring Training and Minor League Plans
If there’s not a widely available COVID-19 vaccine by the time players would typically report to Spring Training (mid-February), then teams will reportedly look to stagger camp out. Practically speaking, that means the big leaguers and Triple-A guys will show up on time and everyone else will hang back until they clear out of spring camps and make room for everyone else.
As of now, it sounds like the league intends to move forward with AT LEAST a normal Triple-A season, so that the team can have the necessary reinforcements, but another alternate site is still on the table. It all just depends on the state of the country. So if you want to see baseball back to normal next season, perhaps consider voting this Tuesday for whichever person you suspect will take the pandemic most seriously.
Back to the plan: This means lower-level minor leaguers won’t likely report to camp until the end of March, which could eat into their season. In that event, the season could be shortened or extended depending on what’s realistic. Much more at The Athletic.
Odds and Ends
• Earlier today, MLB owners voted to approve the Mets sale to billionaire Steve Cohen, who has also received approval from the city, which means … it’s done. And as his first act, Cohen is either trying to engender some goodwill or doing what it took to get the approval from the city:
As his first act as Mets owner, Steve Cohen says in a statement that he plans to donate $17.5 million to NYC small businesses, and "dramatically increase the giving of the Mets Foundation in the coming years."
He is also reinstituting all pre-pandemic salaries for Mets workers.
— Anthony DiComo (@AnthonyDiComo) October 30, 2020
• In other words, he could legitimately be trying to make his employees happy and city proud with what probably amounts to pennies to baseball’s new richest owner … or the mayor got him to agree to these provisions in exchange for the approval. You decide how much faith you want to put in humanity today.
• The Cardinals had some layoffs (like the Cubs) and they include some really notable names from another era of Cardinals baseball:
Some of the #STLCards layoffs last month were to the team’s special assistants, former players such as Chris Carpenter, Jason Isringhausen and Jim Edmonds. (Doesn’t affect Edmonds’ deal with Fox Sports Midwest). Spring training will look different in ‘21.
— Mark Saxon (@markasaxon) October 27, 2020
• The Dodgers may have won the World Series, but Randy Arozarena won October, notching 29 hits including 10 home runs on his way to slashing .377/.442/.831 in 86 playoff plate appearances. And I love him even more for it, because he made Cardinals President John Mozeliak sad:
Cardinals president John Mozeliak admits he regrets trading playoff hero Randy Arozarena.
'That's on me' ➡️ https://t.co/HmHktFz9R5 pic.twitter.com/yggeX1DdK3
— Yahoo Sports MLB (@MLByahoosports) October 29, 2020
• With the MLB draft moving back to July, there is “more time for draft-eligible players to play “five to six weeks in a summer college league in the lead-up to the draft,” so MLB is trying to steer them into a newly formed college wood bat league:
MLB wants to kill the New York-Penn League and turn it into yet another college wood bat league: https://t.co/wF1hD1VA9z
— Ben Badler (@BenBadler) October 29, 2020
• According to Badler, “The league,” primarily targeting draft-eligible college seniors, “would likely begin at the very end of May or start of June and would provide around 40 days from the start of the season until the draft.” MLB would then encourage juniors to head to the Cape Cod League with freshman and sophomores heading to the Appalachian League. I don’t think it’s always been quite so distinct, but MLB has increased its efforts to exert influence on amateur baseball for a while now. This is just the latest.
