Fantasy Baseball Hit and Run – November 4

La Russa's exit adds another team to the managerial hunt, but does it affect Albert's big choice at all? Read this week's hit and run to learn more. (Paul Sancya-Pool, Getty Images)

The rumors are flying fast and furious as free agency opens up.  Since this is a fantasy-based article, we’ll mostly focus on actual moves (not rumors) that make a fantasy impact. However, we’ll touch on some management/front office stuff since that’s the main focus of a lot of the attention of the baseball world right now. So here’s the pitch, with the runner going…

Hit: Tony LaRussa retires. Sporting News

Run: Truly one of the great managers of all time, LaRussa goes out on top and leaves a big hole in the St. Louis dugout. Ryne Sandberg is an early candidate to replace him as well as some of the existing coaching staff which may or may not stick around. It may or may not affect the Pujols decision but growing sentiment is that he’ll be back and probably even in on the decision of who the manager will be. The Cards player usage will obviously be affected by the change, especially their bullpen situation. It bears watching this off-season to see who ends up in charge in St. Louis.

Hit: CC stays in NYC. Daily News

Run: Not a big surprise to anyone, but it must make the Yankees much more comfortable heading into open free agency with the big fella all locked up. His salary is even more obscene than it already was, but in fantasy baseball thankfully we don’t have to pay him. He remains an elite #1 starter and probably the most sure thing on the board as with that lineup there’s not much question he’ll be among the league leaders in W’s again. His ERA will suffer slightly (just like it has) from pitching in Yankee Stadium as opposed to a more pitcher friendly park, but that hasn’t stopped him from being an elite option among starters as he will be again next season.

Hit: New manager in Theo’s plans. Sun-Times

Run: Not surprisingly, part of Theo’s house cleaning included Mike Quade the ex-manager of the Cubs. Theo’s manager hunt will bring him into direct competition with his Red Sox successor Ben Cherington and their lists are starting to overlap. It’ll be interesting to see if Theo goes with someone he knows (Francona? Really?) or a fresh face (Mike Maddux?). Either way, the manager does affect greatly playing time and especially the pitching roles. The Cubs situation is completely in flux; expect lots of turnover in the roster as well as this turnover in management and it may take a while to discern the value of players in their new places.

Hit: McCourt agrees to sell Dodgers. NY Times

Run: The Dodgers organization continues to maintain that this will not affect their offseason strategy which is focused on upgrading the offense. They’ll definitely be in on all the big bats and do have something of an opening at first base. Fielder is definitely a possibility and Matt Kemp is actively trying to recruit him there. Kemp’s also working on a long term deal for himself and any offense with those 2 in the middle of it would be a formidable one.

Hit: Indians keep Carmona, decline option on Grady. Yahoo contributor network

Run: Carmona has been up and down, but when he’s on he can be dominant. His main issue (as with many who arrive in the majors early) is consistency. The Tribe seems to think he can step that up and are using their option to give him another run at it. Maybe the presence of Derek Lowe (see below) will help him. Sizemore meanwhile becomes an attractive buy-low free agent. If he’s healthy, he can be dominant but the last 2 years he’s played just over 100 games. He’s only 29 and should get an incentive-laced deal to patrol the outfield somewhere on a contender and may be worth a late-round flier in fantasy-land.

Hit: Tribe goes Lowe. Cleveland.com

Run: The Indians acquire the Braves’ inconsistent starter to match their own (Carmona) and make infield defense about as important as anything their team does. With these two guys, success is getting ground balls, so if the Tribe plans to use both of them they’ll need some Asdrubel-like defense all around their infield. Lowe returns to the AL where his ERA could be a little scary. He’s worth monitoring though as for a few starts he can get that sinker working and be worth spot starts in all leagues when he’s rolling.

Hit: Rays keep Farnsworth, not Shoppach. Rays Digest

Run: Farnsworth will return as the incumbent Tampa closer while Shoppach may be worth a look in a shallow catching pool depending on where he lands and the playing time he projects to get.

Hit: Red Sox want to name manager by Thanksgiving. Hardball talk

Run: They’ve got competition now from the Cubs and Cards, but still have probably the most desirable job available. The high-profile of the job is both its strength and its weakness. The team would seem to lend itself more to a pitching-oriented manager (Maddux?) but Mackanin and Alomar are lifetime baseball guys who would seem to deserve a shot at some point. There doesn’t seem to be any “surprise” candidates yet, but don’t rule out a name emerging later on in the game. As a Sox fan myself, I think my favorite would be Maddux, but whoever it is will be under the microscope as usual in Boston.

Hit: Citi Field redesigned. Mets Blog

Run: The fact that the walls are Shea-ish in their look is pretty cool and will definitely add some character to Citi. The overall result can’t be worse for hitters and may balance out the stadium effect (at least that’s the goal).

Hit: Dodgers keep Juan Rivera. FS West

Run: Rivera could be mixed league material as he is expected to bring stability to the Dodgers left field spot. He fared relatively well after his move to the NL although his power numbers were slightly down. If the Dodgers are successful in their lineup overhaul he may be at the heart of a pretty good offense so look for him towards the end of your drafts if you can afford a little bit of a BA hit.

Hit: Reds exercise Phillips option, but decline Cordero’s. MLB

Run: No surprise on either of these as Cordero joins a host of free agent closers of which one will probably be his replacement in Cincinnati. The Reds did express a desire to keep him at the right price (not his option price) so my guess is that he ends up back in the Queen City, but the closer revolving door may deposit him elsewhere.

Hit: Brewers decline Betancourt and K-Rod’s options. Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Run: Betancourt showed his bat to be worth something fantasy-wise towards the end of the season and if he lands a starting job in the right place could be worth a look even in mixed leagues. K-Rod will look for a chance to close and there should be plenty of options as the closer carousel spins…

Hit: Aramis Ramirez voids option. ESPN Chicago

Run: Ramirez didn’t even give Theo the chance to turn down his option as he voided it and will probably seek a muti-year deal somewhere else. Some see an AL destination in his future like a Baltimore or Anaheim, er I mean LA. Wherever he goes he’ll be a low average-high power 3B option so keep an eye on where he lands.

Hit: Wang back to Washington. Washington Post

Run: Chien-Ming Wang looked ok last year in his 11 starts going 4-3 with a 4.04 ERA. As the season went on he looked better and better and may be a steal if he returns to his pre-torn-shoulder-capsule form.