FanHouse John Farrell

It's now ten days after the end of the 2009 baseball season and the only thing the Cleveland Indians know about their vacant managerial position is that it won't be filled by Red Sox pitching coach John Farrell. That's because Farrell, who was initially seen as a front-runner for the job, told the Cleveland Plain Dealer today that while he is interested in managing some day, he's not interested in the Indians job and he'd rather stay in his position in Boston.

As the former farm director in Cleveland under Mark Shapiro, Farrell seemed like maybe the most logical choice for the job, but this isn't the first time he's turned a managerial job down. He was believed to be the frontrunner in 2007 in Pittsburgh, where former Shapiro assistant Neal Huntington is GM, but he also asked for his name to be removed from consideration then, as well.

While we await the winner of the last Division Series to be settled, a few teams that have already finished their season are in the process of trying to find new managers who can get them to the postseason next year. Two of those teams, the Cleveland Indians and Houston Astros, have interest in a couple of coaches from the recently eliminated Boston Red Sox.

The Indians contacted the Red Sox to see if they could interview pitching coach John Farrell as it seems Farrell is Mark Shapiro's top candidate to replace Eric Wedge. Well, Theo Epstein said that Cleveland can talk all they want with Farrell, but odds are he's going to be staying in Boston.

Red Sox fans can breath a sigh of relief: Josh Beckett, who's battling a strained oblique, threw a 27-minute, 65-pitch side session in Los Angeles on Thursday without any setbacks. From Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald:

"Provided there's no concerns coming out of his exams after the bullpen or the follow-up tomorrow, he should be on line for Sunday," pitching coach John Farrell said. "That hasn't been an official announcement but I will tell you that from the look in his bullpen today, he looks ready to go Sunday."

The workout was especially encouraging considering Beckett didn't hold anything back -- he was able to throw all of his pitches without any discomfort. It remains to be seen whether that translates into actual success come game time, but it's worth pointing out that he posted a 2.16 ERA in his last four starts of the regular season.

Of course, if the Red Sox win tonight (and Boston is currently riding a nine-game winning streak in the playoffs), Beckett's start on Sunday will be an elimination game. Nothing against the Angels, but given all of Beckett's postseason theatrics throughout his career, it's hard to imagine a scenario in which he doesn't come through with his "A" game, injury or not.

Red Sox pitching coach John Farrell has been linked to the vacant Pirates manager's job, but he announced today that he wants no part of it:

Farrell wants to manage in the majors, and he moved from Cleveland's front office to the Red Sox's bench last season partly for that reason. Farrell, however, said in a statement that this is not the right time to leave a World Series-winning club.

Farrell told Red Sox principal owner John Henry, chairman Tom Werner, president Larry Lucchino, general manager Theo Epstein and manager Terry Francona of the decision Friday.

Honestly, I can see where he's coming from. Turning around the Pirates is a monumental task, and whomever takes the job now will likely be simply laying the groundwork for someone else to take over in the future. I mean, even in a best-case scenario, the Pirates will be losers for the next few years as the organization rebuilds from the ground up, and if/when the Pirates are finally ready to compete, the guy with a losing record will likely get the ax for a someone with a clean slate.

It's what happened in Detroit with Alan Trammel and Jim Leyland in 2006 (although, for what it's worth, Leyland is a better manager than Trammell ... I'm just saying Trammell never had a chance). Fortunately, Farrell seems to be in a position where he can afford to be picky, at least when it comes to turning down perhaps the least desirable job in the game.

Previously on FanHouse:
Pirates Are Close to Naming a Manager
Pirates Looking at Boston's Pitching Coach

The Pirates have taken their time in their search for a new manager, and that may be because they guy they really want is still under contract. According to the Providence Journal, the new GM Neal Huntington is believed to be looking at Red Sox pitching coach John Farrell:

Farrell, who replaced pitching coach Dave Wallace last winter and is a longtime friend of manager Terry Francona, may be targeted by the Pittsburgh Pirates as a managerial candidate, industry sources indicate.
[...]
Huntington, 37, spent 10 years with the Indians before being hired last month as Pirates' GM, working in player evaluation and scouting. While there, he developed a close relationship with Farrell, who left Cleveland to come to Boston.

I'm not sure the hiring of Farrell would do much to inspire confidence in the fans -- he has no prior managing experience at any level and doesn't have much national name recognition as a coach. That said, Boston's pitching staff had a 3.87 ERA this year, the best in the American League. It's debatable just how much credit a pitching coach deserves for a staff's success, but it certainly seems like he did the best job imaginable.

In the long run, it may not really matter. Huntington is trying to change 15 years of ineptitude; even if he's successful, there's a good chance that the first manager he hires will simply be a stopgap for (yet another) rebuilding era.

Previously on FanHouse:
Andy Van Slyke Will Never Change