Chris McCosky asks Dillon Dingler about Ryan Sienko’s influence on his baseball career.
Chris McCosky asks Dillon Dingler about Ryan Sienko’s influence on his baseball career.
New York – Chicago Cubs outfielder Kyle Tucker, Toronto shortstop Bo Bichette and Philadelphia designated hitter Kyle Schwarber were among 13 players who received $22,025,000 qualifying offers from their former teams Thursday as baseball’s free agent market opened for negotiations with all clubs.
San Diego right-handers Dylan Cease and Michael King also received the offers, as did New York Mets closer Edwin Díaz, Arizona right-hander Zac Gallen, New York Yankees outfielder Trent Grisham, Cubs left-hander Shota Imanaga, Philadelphia pitcher Ranger Suárez, Detroit second baseman Gleyber Torres, Houston left-hander Framber Valdez and Milwaukee right-hander Brandon Woodruff.
Players have until Nov. 18 to accept.
Among the free agents who didn’t receive qualifying offers were Boston right-hander Lucas Giolito, Seattle infielder Jorge Polanco and Yankees reliever Devin Williams.
If a team makes a qualifying offer to a player who signs a major league contract with another club before next July’s amateur draft, his former club receives draft pick compensation at the end of the first round or at the end of competitive balance round B. The placement depends on the amount of the new contract and the revenue-sharing and luxury tax status of the team losing the player.
Qualifying offers began after the 2012 season, and only 14 of 144 offers have been accepted.
A free agent can be given a qualifying offer only if he has been with the same team continuously since opening day and has never received a qualifying offer before.
Free agents ineligible for qualifying offers included New York Mets first baseman Pete Alonso, Yankees outfielder Cody Bellinger, Boston third baseman Alex Bregman, Cincinnati pitcher Nick Martinez and Phillies catcher J.T. Realmuto.
A total of 175 players became free agents in the five days following the World Series.
Among decisions Thursday:
▶ Atlanta exercised an $18 million option on left-hander Chris Sale and a $7 million option on second baseman Ozzie Albies while declining options on pitchers Pierce Johnson and Tyler Kinley;
▶ The World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers exercised a $10 million option on third baseman Max Muncy and a $3.55 million option on reliever Alex Vesia;
▶ Polanco declined a $6 million player option;
▶ Infielder Justin Turner became a free agent after the Cubs declined a $10 million mutual option, and Chicago agreed to a $6.5 million, one-year contract to retain right-hander Colin Rea;
▶ Pitchers Paul Sewald and José Urquidy became free agents after the Detroit Tigers declined options;
▶ Shortstop Trevor Story declined to exercise his right to opt out of his contract, keeping $55 million in salary for the final two seasons of his $140 million, six-year deal with Boston;
▶ Left-hander John Means’ $6 million option was declined by Cleveland, allowing the pitcher to become a free agent as he continues to recover from Tommy John surgery;
▶ Tampa Bay declined an $11 million option on Pete Fairbanks, allowing the closer to become a free agent, and exercised an $11.5 million option on infielder Brandon Lowe.
Rockies hire DePodesta from NFL’s Browns
Berea, Ohio – The Colorado Rockies are hiring Paul DePodesta of “Moneyball” fame from the NFL’s Cleveland Browns to run baseball operations, a person with knowledge of the move told The Associated Press.
The person spoke to the Associated Press on condition of anonymity Thursday because the move has not been announced by the team.
DePodesta, who inspired Jonah Hill’s character in the movie “Moneyball,” returns to baseball after nearly 10 years with the Cleveland Browns. He was named Cleveland’s Chief Strategy Officer on Jan. 5, 2016.
During his nearly 20 seasons in Major League Baseball, he was the only executive to win divisional titles with five different organizations – the New York Mets, San Diego Padres, Athletics, Los Angeles Dodgers and Cleveland.
He takes over for Bill Schmidt, who stepped down following a 43-119 season that flirted with the worst all-time mark in Major League Baseball history. The Rockies are in need of a transformation after becoming the first team with three straight 100-loss seasons since Houston in 2011-13.
Stammen named Padres manager
The San Diego Padres have hired former reliever Craig Stammen to be their manager.
Stammen got a three-year contract Thursday to begin his first managerial job at any level of the sport.
The longtime right-handed reliever retired from his playing career with the Padres in August 2023, and he spent the past two seasons as an assistant to the major league coaching staff and the baseball operations department headed by general manager A.J. Preller.
The 41-year-old Stammen replaces Mike Shildt, who retired Oct. 13 after just two seasons in charge following the Padres’ painful playoff elimination in a tight three-game Wild Card Series against the Chicago Cubs. The Padres won at least 90 games and made the playoffs in both seasons under Shildt, who cited burnout and exhaustion in announcing his departure.
The Padres conducted a deliberate search for Shildt’s replacement, interviewing the likes of Albert Pujols, former Padres catcher Nick Hundley and longtime San Diego pitching coach Ruben Niebla. Stammen, who had not been publicly mentioned as a candidate for the job, is the Padres’ fifth full-time manager since the start of the 2016 season.
“Craig has been a strong presence in our organization for nearly a decade,” Preller said in a statement. “He possesses deep organizational knowledge and brings natural leadership qualities to the manager’s chair. As both a player and in his post-playing career, Craig has displayed an ability to elevate those around him. His strength of character, competitive nature and talent for bringing people together make him the ideal choice to lead the Padres.”
Stammen becomes the majors’ only manager who is a former pitcher.
He pitched seven seasons for the Washington Nationals and six more for the Padres during his playing career, serving as a reliever for all but his first two big league seasons. An Ohio native known for his effective sinker, Stammen is fifth in Padres history with 333 appearances for the club.
The Padres are enjoying their longest stretch of success in franchise history, making four playoff appearances and posting five winning records in the past six years behind stars Fernando Tatís Jr. and Manny Machado. They got as far as the NL Championship Series in 2022, losing to Philadelphia in five games after knocking off the Dodgers in the NL Division Series.
Stammen takes over the Padres’ dugout just under two years after the death in November 2023 of beloved Padres owner Peter Seidler, whose aggressive spending and hunger to win galvanized the team’s fan base. Seidler’s brother, John, is now the Padres’ chairman.
Preller, who is headed into the final year of his own contract, must make several major roster decisions in the upcoming weeks with key players due to hit free agency and the likely loss of significant pitching talent from last season’s 90-win club. Starters Dylan Cease and Michael King are free agents, while Yu Darvish will miss the 2026 season after undergoing elbow surgery.
Stammen is the latest surprising managerial hire in an already-eventful MLB offseason.
The nearby Los Angeles Angels gave only a one-year contract to Kurt Suzuki, another managerial neophyte, while the San Francisco Giants unconventionally hired longtime college coach Tony Vitello. The Nationals chose 33-year-old Blake Butera, the youngest manager in the majors since 1972.
The Colorado Rockies are the only remaining team without a permanent manager. Warren Schaeffer finished their 119-loss season as the interim manager, and the team parted ways with general manager Bill Schmidt on Oct. 1.
Mattingly leaves coaching staff of Blue Jays
Toronto – Don Mattingly is leaving his role as bench coach of the Toronto Blue Jays, who exercised manager John Schneider’s contract option for 2026 after coming within one victory of their first World Series title since 1993.
Toronto also made a $22,025,000 qualifying offer for 2026 to free agent infielder Bo Bichette, who is expected to reject it.
“He’s been important,” general manager Ross Atkins said Thursday. “We will be in his market.”
A two-time All-Star shortstop and AL hits leader, Bichette sprained his left knee in a Sept. 6 collision with New York Yankees catcher Austin Wells, forcing him to miss the end of the regular season and the first two rounds of the playoffs. He returned at second base in the World Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers and hit a go-ahead, three-run homer in Game 7, which the Blue Jays lost 5-4 in 11 innings.
Mattingly joined the Blue Jays following the 2022 season as bench coach to Schneider. The former New York Yankees slugger and six-time All-Star became Toronto’s offensive coordinator before the 2024 season but returned to his role as bench coach at the end of that year.
Atkins said Mattingly left his role after reaching his first World Series because of a desire to spend more time with his family.
“He’s had a significant (impact) and I feel like it will be lasting,” Atkins said. “It’s something that we have to deal with in the game. We have to figure out a way to continue to improve even when we have a significant loss.”
Atkins said Schneider had been unbelievable in his third full season as manager, overseeing a 20-win improvement from 2024.
“We have picked up the option, that was picked up previously,” Atkins said. “He and I are talking about the potential of that being longer. Schneids has been unbelievable. He is a clear leader in this organization. Really, really good at his job and very proud to be working with him.”
Schneider was interim manager from July 13, 2022 until the end of that season after being promoted from bench coach to replace Charlie Montoyo.
Atkins said he did not expect additional changes to Toronto’s coaching staff.
“We’ll just try to get better,” Atkins said. “No proactive subtractions or significant changes in roles but we’ll try to get better in any way that we can.”
Toronto has already seen right-hander Shane Bieber exercise his $16 million option for 2026.
“Shane Bieber’s decision helps get us started in an area where we do have several subtractions,” Atkins said.
A 30-year-old right-hander who won the 2020 AL Cy Young Award, Bieber was acquired from Cleveland at the July 31 trade deadline. He returned Aug. 22 from Tommy John surgery in 2024.
Toronto pitchers Chris Bassitt and Max Scherzer are both free agents. Scherzer started Game 7 of the World Series while Bassitt pitched in that game in relief.
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