Pinstripes may suit Piniella

Lou Piniella has fielded inquiries from teams about managing next season, and he may soon hear from a fifth after the Yankees, in a monumentally disappointing end to their season, bowed out of the American League Division Series against the Tigers in four games.

You can bet that steam is blowing out of George Steinbrenner's head this morning, and when that happens, nobody is safe. While many think that Don Mattingly is the heir apparent when Joe Torre decides to hang it up, it would surprise no one if Steinbrenner asks Torre to leave now.

Piniella, who is being pursued by the Giants, Cubs, Rangers, and Nationals, would seem to have what Steinbrenner wants in his next manager: fire and guts. Nobody has more of it than Piniella, who sat out this season after being bought out of his Tampa Bay contract.

No doubt Piniella would prefer New York over the other four teams because of his roots there, but he's also a very good friend of Torre's and has refused to even address a possible return. But the handwriting is on the wall.

The Yankees will look for something dramatic to jump-start them, and that could mean anything from Torre departing to a realignment of the front office to Alex Rodriguez being traded to the Angels or White Sox. With his uber-lineup held in check by Tiger pitching, Torre's motivational abilities surely will be questioned again.

Torre and Steinbrenner have locked horns before and probably will one more time. Torre has been able to stay above the fray, and four World Series titles have afforded him great leverage and cachet. But the Yankees have not won a title since 2000, and that's too long to wait in New York.

Piniella has ties with the Giants and Nationals. He helped get Giants general manager Brian Sabean a job with the Yankees 20 years ago, and he worked with Nationals GM Jim Bowden in Cincinnati. However, neither situation is ideal for Piniella.

The Giants have Barry Bonds, and some people close to Piniella indicate that Bonds's presence for one more season -- as he attempts to break Hank Aaron's home run record -- would be a negative, as would the new path outlined by owner Peter Magowan and Sabean last week that the team might go younger.

In Washington, the Nationals are two years away from opening a new ballpark, and until then, they won't be spending a lot of money. They likely will lose superstar Alfonso Soriano to free agency.

A baseball official with direct knowledge of the Cubs and Piniella said Chicago GM Jim Hendry already has contacted Joe Girardi, fired by the Marlins after one year, but new president John McDonough may want to make a bigger splash with Piniella.

In Texas, management has been discussing a low-profile manager, but owner Tom Hicks may not be able to resist the urge to hire another big name.

When Felipe Alou was fired by the Giants last week, Piniella's name immediately popped up. But the entourages in the clubhouse and ``Barry being Barry" undoubtedly would grate on Piniella, even if only for a year. It's not that Piniella is incapable of handling it, but would he want to?

``The best thing that could happen is for Bonds not to return," said a close associate of Piniella last week. ``If he has to put up with it for a year, it probably won't be a deal-breaker, but it wouldn't be the best-case scenario, either."

Commenting on Bonds last week, Magowan said, ``He's one of 11 parts of a puzzle," a reference to the number of free agents on the roster. ``He's not the only piece of the puzzle. He's not even the centerpiece of the puzzle.

``I think we need to go in a new direction. I think we've had for a long time a strategy that has worked well until the last two years, when it hasn't worked well. The strategy has been one of having a great player, perhaps the greatest player in the game, as the centerpiece and filling in with veteran players. It caught up with us in the last couple of years."

Bonds, who had elbow surgery last week, has said he won't take an incentive-filled deal ``ever, ever, ever." He also told MLB.com, ``I saw where Peter Magowan said some nasty things. He wants me to take a pay cut. Well, that's OK. I don't have to play baseball anymore, brother. I'll be glad to stay home. I'm free. I feel very free."

New York wouldn't be a sea of tranquility for Piniella, but he knows what he'd get there.

Tossing a few Moyer's way

A few questions for Phillies pitcher Jamie Moyer:

Q. Any special recollections of the 1996 Red Sox team you played on?

JM: Well, all I know is I think I could have contributed a lot more to that team. I understood what my role was. I had no bitter feelings. But then again, I wasn't the answer. It was a talented team that probably didn't play to their abilities. We really dug a hole for ourselves by the All-Star break. And then things started going better, and by the end of the season, I still say if we had one more month that team would have been very tough to beat in the playoffs.

Q. You spent so many years learning how to pitch, but now you're 43 years old and you have to feel Father Time catching up.

JM: ``I feel like maybe I'm not a full step ahead of my age but at least a half-step ahead of it. There are some days I'm a little stiffer and a little sorer, but that was the case in my 30s, too. But there's a mental side of it, too. It's the preparation and the work you do between starts. The big thing as I've gotten older is I have to listen to my body a little bit more and deal with the little things before they become big things.

Q. Does it come down to how long you want to endure this type of lifestyle?

JM: Some of it is. Having a family [in Seattle], being away from the kids -- I have six of them -- and having a freshman in high school and missing all of their games, missing birthdays . . . it's not only hard on me but it's hard on my wife. I understand that if I want to play, this is the way it has to be.

Q. Why is it that lefties like yourself tend to develop later in their careers?

JM: ``I really don't know. If I had an answer to that, I'd write a book. Maybe it's feeling comfortable. And there's no reason I shouldn't have felt comfortable when I was younger. Experience, then the success, that breeds confidence."

Q. Will you return to Philadelphia or is it your desire to return to Seattle?

JM: ``We have a mutual option, and at this point I don't know what I'm going to do."

Opportunities are out there for Wallace and Nixon

Here are updates on former Red Sox pitching coach Dave Wallace and free agent right fielder Trot Nixon.

Wallace spoke to former Angels manager Terry Collins about becoming his pitching coach with the Orix Buffaloes in Japan, but ultimately was not persuaded.

``As much as I would love to work with Terry, at this stage of my life, I don't think I'm up for it," Wallace said. ``It's a great opportunity in many ways, but I'd like to hook on with another team in some role or capacity."

Wallace, who worked in the front office as an assistant general manager and interim GM with the Dodgers, said he's been contacted by a few teams for various roles. He always wanted an advisory role with the Red Sox, but he reiterated that he was never tapped for player recommendations. Wallace said he still hasn't been given a reason for his dismissal.

As for Nixon, there appears to be an emerging market. One American League executive feels that, because of Nixon's medium price range, there could be a competitive market for his services, with teams like Oakland, Seattle, Detroit, Baltimore, the White Sox, Philadelphia, St. Louis, the Cubs, San Diego, and San Francisco all looking for corner outfielders.

``Trot's got a history of breaking down the last few years, but he's a guy who gets on base, and you get him in the right ballpark in the right situation, he could give you a few more years of high productivity," said an AL scout. ``He's attractive because he's not going to break the bank and he's a great person on a team."

With a decent on-base percentage, Nixon would be Billy Beane's type of player in Oakland. If the Mariners move Ichiro Suzuki to center, they would need a corner outfielder.

Detroit is looking for another hitter, the Orioles have always liked Nixon's swing at Camden Yards, and the White Sox would like an upgrade from Scott Podsednik. Nixon would hit well in Philadelphia, the Cardinals need another hitter, and the Padres could lose both Dave Roberts and Brian Giles. The Giants are in flux and could lose Moises Alou, Steve Finley, and even Barry Bonds.

Etc.

Apropos of nothing: 1. The Devil Rays announced they'll have free parking at Tropicana Field in 2007, for the second straight year. Plenty of spaces should be available; 2. Last week we brought you the possibility of the Phillies trading for Manny Ramírez if the Red Sox take Pat Burrell. As it turns out, Burrell and Ramírez have the same agent, Greg Genske, though both of their deals were originally negotiated by Jeff Moorad, now a general partner of the Diamondbacks; 3. Nomar Garciaparra has been outstanding in Los Angeles, but his injuries will limit the length of contract offers he'll get as a free agent this offseason; 4. Dan Duquette is an investor in a $5 million youth sports complex about to be built at Taylorsville Lake near Louisville, Ky.; 5. St. Joseph's baby aspirin. One a day. Mets veteran lefthander Tom Glavine swears that's why he has been able to get over the clotting issues in his shoulder.

Yankee lefty specialist Mike Myers says he'll try to lure Mike Timlin into pinstripes if the set up man wants to play another year. ``I'm not sure what Mike wants to do or if the Red Sox plan on re-signing him," said Myers, ``but I'll definitely put my 2 cents in on his behalf here if they don't. He'd be a nice addition to our bullpen."

According to his agent, Alan Nero, Red Sox lefty Jon Lester has responded well to his chemotherapy in Seattle. Said Nero, ``He's doing very well and we're all very optimistic that Jon will have a full recovery and be able to start up his baseball career again."

Don Baylor was out of baseball this season but has received a few inquiries about returning as a hitting coach, according to Nero. Baylor would like to manage again (Texas?), but his goal now is just to return to the field.

Moises Alou, 40, would like to sign on as a DH in the American League next season. One possible destination is Detroit, where Dave Dombrowski has hired Alou in the past with Florida and Montreal.

In the end, another second-half collapse doomed Buck Showalter in Texas. For the third time in his last five seasons, his team led the division at the All-Star break. The Rangers went 35-39 after the break and lost 13 games in the standings to Oakland. Rangers attendance dropped by 135,000 despite a few trades by GM Jon Daniels. And two of the team's biggest stars, Michael Young and Mark Teixeira, were at odds with Showalter. Who's next? Daniels will interview bench coach Don Wakamatsu, hitting coach Rudy Jaramillo, and possibly A's third base coach Ron Washington and Baylor. Daniels will wait to see if he gets the go-ahead from owner Tom Hicks to go after a big name like Lou Piniella, Davey Johnson, or Dusty Baker.

As the Indians retool, manager Eric Wedge and general manager Mark Shapiro are challenging shortstop Jhonny Peralta to be their poster boy for the 2007 season. ``Among the position players on our club, the single most important player to our success next year is Jhonny Peralta," said Shapiro. ``I'm counting on him to be a better defender than he was this year. I'm not counting on him being any better than he was the previous year; he was a big part of a 93-win team in 2005. His inconsistent play was a contributor to a 78-win team that was a disappointment this year." Peralta, who often seemed uninterested, was in Wedge's doghouse as he hit .257 with 13 homers and 68 RBIs. That was down from '05, when he hit .292, with 24 homers and 78 RBIs and seemed on his way to being one of the best young shortstops in the game.

Will the Devil Rays trade either Carl Crawford or Rocco Baldelli to make room for B.J. Upton in the outfield, or will they trade Upton, who has shown he can't play shortstop in the big leagues and would be a liability at third base? ``B.J. improved dramatically over the last three weeks," Rays president Andrew Friedman said. ``He definitely experienced some bumps and bruises along the way. He's extremely athletic and he works extremely hard. With the [outfield] depth we have, it's different for us. It's a question we'll have to answer in the offseason and be creative and work extremely hard to sort out the pieces. It's a big decision for us this winter."

Ichiro Suzuki has grown weary of losing in Seattle, and with a year remaining on his contract, he may have second thoughts about a long-term deal with the Mariners. He told manager Mike Hargrove he would switch to center field, but for that sacrifice to his body, he has to be assured the Mariners are committed to winning. To that end, the M's appear to have some money to spend and will likely be in the hunt for Barry Zito, Jason Schmidt, and Seibu Lions phenom Daisuke Matsuzaka. The Mariners may be willing to pay the Lions the posting fee, which could be in the $20 million-$25 million range. The Yankees, Mets, and Red Sox will all be in the hunt when the Lions post him, which is expected to happen in the next month. A contract for Matsuzaka could get into the $75 million range for six years.

Material from personal interviews, wire services, other beat writers, and league and team sources was used in this report.