Ben Cherington left the Boston Red Sox once the team announced Dave Dombrowski would become their new president of baseball operations. Cherington is now one of the most sought-after front office executives and could be signed soon.
The latest rumors indicate a number of MLB clubs are kicking the tires on the former general manager of the Red Sox. Cherington is two years removed from a World Series title in Boston and every team said to be interested in him has had trouble just making the playoffs in recent seasons.
"Cherington, according to a major league source, remains in play in at least Philadelphia and Milwaukee, possibly in Los Angeles (Angels), and now in Seattle," writes Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe. "'Despite his last-place finishes he's seen as a team builder, especially when it comes to farm systems,' said the source."
The only clear initiative lies with the Angels. Recent rumors heard from Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register suggest interim general manager Bill Stoneman will not continue in that role beyond this season and the team is planning on hiring someone possibly before the end of the season.
At this point Los Angeles has only conducted interviews with internal candidates, including assistant GMs Matt Klentak and Scott Servais. The team is expected to speak with candidates who have previously served as general managers in the past, which opens the door for Cherington.
As for the others, the Milwaukee Brewers plan to take their time making their next hire while the Philadelphia Phillies won't make any changes until Andy MacPhail takes over as team president after the season. The Seattle Mariners fired GM Jack Zduriencik last week. Assistant GM Jeff Kingston took over for him and has already made a number of trades before the waiver deadline, but team president Kevin Mather told Greg Johns of MLB.com that he plans to have a new GM in place by early October. He also prefers to hire an experienced general manager, reports Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times.
Former Angels' GM Jerry Dipoto is said to be a candidate for the job in Seattle, writes FOX Sports' Jon Morosi, because he was a finalist back when the team hired Zduriencik.
We previously talked about the odds of Cherington landing in Milwaukee, Philadelphia or Los Angeles. The Angels seemed like a longshot due to the falling out between Dipoto and manager Mike Scioscia, but that may have changed, especially if they're considering Cherington now after saying they'd be looking for a GM "less likely to force feed analytics."
Keep an eye on the Angels and Mariners to land Cherington because those two are more likely to sign a new general manager before the 2015 season ends.
