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Ringolsby: A boatload of first-time skippers in 2007

Published December 22, 2006 at midnight

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Baseball owners are looking for a fresh approach.

Seven teams have changed managers this offseason.

Five of them hired managers with no previous experience in the job.

Lou Piniella, former manager of the Yankees, Mariners and Devil Rays, got the job with the Chicago Cubs, and former San Diego manager Bruce Bochy has moved to San Francisco.

They are the only retreads, though.

The five first-timers are an interesting mix.

Manny Acta, with the Washington Nationals, and Fredi Gonzalez, with the Florida Marlins, never played in the majors but have been major league coaches. Acta was with the Mets. Gonzalez originally coached with the Marlins but was with Atlanta at the time of his hiring.

Bud Black, who replaced Bochy in San Diego, is a former pitcher who had been the pitching coach with the Angels. Ron Washington, who assumed the Texas job, is a former infielder and had been the third-base coach in Oakland. Bob Geren, the new man in charge in Oakland, is a former catcher who was the bench coach with Oakland.

Cubs executives were very high on Gonzalez - word is, he would have been the No. 1 choice - but the Marlins had Gonzalez hired before Joe Girardi was fired, and the Cubs felt they needed a name fans could relate to after firing Dusty Baker.

Best deal available

Too much is being made about Boston forcing agent Scott Boras to back down in negotiations between right-handed pitcher Daisuke Matsuzaka and the Red Sox.

Boston finally signed Matsuzaka for six years and $52 million.

Bottom line is, Boras had no leverage and still got Matsuzaka a hefty package. Matsuzaka had burned bridges in Japan when he began to pursue the chance to pitch in the United States, and his old team, Seibu, let it be known if Matsuzaka did not sign with Boston, he would have to wait at least two years before he could explore the American market again.

And Seibu could have extended that to three seasons if Matsuzaka was sent to the minor leagues or missed time because of an injury, which would deny him the service time required to become an unrestricted Japanese free agent.

Boras knew he had to sign before last week's deadline, but he also knew the longer the Red Sox took to get the deal down, the more likely they were to up the price, so he waited until the negotiation period was about to end before finally accepting the Red Sox's best offer.

Overheard

• Right-hander Jeff Suppan has become the fallback for the Mets if they fail to sign left-hander Barry Zito, whose declining velocity the past two seasons has become a concern. Texas is the most serious bidder for Zito other than the Mets, although Seattle has not entered the picture.

• Right-hander Aaron Sele has interest in San Francisco, where the Giants are looking for a veteran presence to bide time for the development of young arms.

• Left-hander David Wells is looking for a $3 million guarantee and incentives. San Diego is his first choice, but San Francisco also is a consideration.

Readers' turn

Kenneth Geyer wonders if Chin-hui Tsao has seen the end of his Rockies days and who the Rockies are counting on to move into the No. 1 slot in the rotation after the trade of Jason Jennings.

To read Tracy Ringolsby's response and ask questions of your own, check out the Rockies blog at .

Two cents' worth

Bud Selig is making believers, slowly.

Selig, a target of critics for the better part of two decades, has begun to receive recognition from the general sports world, including being selected Executive of the Year by SportsBusiness Journal and SportsBusiness Daily.

"In terms of a combination of putting out fires, defusing crises, building consensus - including a collective-bargaining consensus with ownership - and growing revenues and the stature of the brand, he's not only had a good year, he's had a good decade," NBA commissioner David Stern said in a released statement.

In selecting Selig, the publications cited a record $5.2 billion in revenue, a record 76 million in attendance, a labor deal without a work stoppage, three television and media agreements, stadium deals for the Washington, Minnesota and Oakland franchises, the debut of the World Baseball Classic and the seventh World Series champion in seven years.

MILE-HIGH WATCH

• With the state of Arizona indicating it has the funding to build a two-team spring training complex for the White Sox and Dodgers in Glendale and a single-team facility for Cleveland in Goodyear, there's renewed speculation the Rockies could leave Tucson.

Their lease, signed when the White Sox and Arizona agreed to train at Tucson Electric Park, gives them an out if there aren't three teams based in Tucson. The White Sox, contractually bound to Tucson through 2013, are trying to get around that by substituting a Japanese team, but that isn't likely to be accepted by Pima County officials and won't be endorsed by the Rockies and Diamondbacks.

One possibility would be to move to Tempe, replacing the Angels. Angels owner Arte Moreno has shown interest in moving to Goodyear, where he owns property, in a two-team setup with the Indians.

• Former Rockies manager Don Baylor is looking for a chance to get back into the game. After sitting out last season, he was hoping to land a coaching job, but no opportunities surfaced. There was some speculation Baylor has been slowed by his battle with multiple myeloma, but the cancer is in regression and Baylor has plenty of energy.

• There has been much concern about the Rockies' contract talks with free-agent center fielder Darin Erstad. He is injury-prone, but the Rockies have been discussing a make-good contract, meaning they could get a look at his physical status and offer him a contract only if they decided he was ready to play.

What they see in Erstad, if healthy, is a quality defensive center fielder who contributes offensively and is a major clubhouse factor. The Rockies don't feel they have a lot to lose if Erstad takes their offer.

Word in Southern California, though, is the Angels are confident he will sign a minor-league contract to return to the only franchise he has played for in professional baseball.

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