Associated Press
The baseball notebook …
ST. LOUIS ó Former Boston Red Sox manager Terry Francona has interviewed with the St. Louis Cardinals for their manager opening.
The interview took place in Cincinnati, where Cardinals chairman Bill DeWitt Jr. lives.
Francona managed the Red Sox for eight seasons and left after they wasted a nine-game September lead in the AL wild-card race.
Hall of Famer Ryne Sandberg and longtime Cardinals third base coach Jose Oquendo also interviewed for St. Louis’ managerial opening Wednesday.
Both interviews took place in St. Louis, Sandberg in the morning and Oquendo in the afternoon.
CUBS
CHICAGO ó One of Mike Maddux’s first calls when he learned the Chicago Cubs were interested in talking to him about their managerial opening was to his brother, Greg. Just to get some updated information and a bit of background on the team that might want to hire him.
“It’s kind of cool to be considered,” Maddux said Wednesday after interviewing with president of baseball operations Theo Epstein, general manager Jed Hoyer, scouting/player development head Jason McLeod and assistant GM Randy Bush.
RED SOX
BOSTON ó Ben Cherington was in his first year in a major league front office ó as an advance scout for the Cleveland Indians ó when he came across Sandy Alomar Jr.
“He didn’t know who I was, in ’98 with Cleveland,” said Cherington, who is now the Red Sox general manager and leading the search for a new manager in Boston. “But I saw him in the clubhouse ó I was in the clubhouse all the time ó and I saw the leader he was back then, the respect he had in that clubhouse. I’ve been sort of following him since then.”
It was that respect that led Cherington to add Alomar to the short list of candidates interviewing to replace Terry Francona as the Red Sox manager.
HELPING STOW
SAN FRANCISCO ó Fan Bryan Stow stayed on the minds of the Giants all season as he fought for his life after being brutally beaten outside Dodger Stadium on opening day.
Tim Flannery wants to make sure everybody keeps supporting Stow’s challenging recovery throughout the winter and beyond. San Francisco’s third base coach and offseason musician and songwriter brought his bluegrass band, the Lunatic Fringe, to highly regarded Yoshi’s jazz club in San Francisco for a concert to benefit Stow. Flannery’s group also will release its 10th album in 15 yearsthat night and give all the money from sales to a fund established for Stow.
The 42-year-old Santa Cruz paramedic and father of two is back in the Bay Area after months spent at a Los Angeles hospital in a medically induced coma. Stow suffered serious brain injuries during the attack.
POSADA UPDATE
NEW YORK ó After five World Series rings, seven American League pennants and five All-Star appearances, Jorge Posada says his career with the New York Yankees is over.
“I don’t think there’s not even a percentage of chance that I can come back,” the 40-year-old catcher said Wednesday night before his foundation’s annual dinner. “It’s not going to happen.”
After 17 seasons in pinstripes, Posada faces the same choice Bernie Williams had after the 2006 season: Retire and ensure that his entire big league career was with the Yankees or move on to another team. Posada said his agents had heard from about a half-dozen clubs expressing interest and he probably will wait until January or early February to make up his mind.
“Do I want to to do it all over again without knowing anybody?” he said.
Following the retirements of Williams and Andy Pettitte last winter, Posada’s exit will leave only 37-year-old Derek Jeter and Mariano Rivera, who turns 42 on Nov. 29, from the core group that propelled the Yankees to their recent run of titles.