In Tampa, Marc Topkin wrote the "massive offseason makeover" that Rays President of Baseball Operations Matt Silverman "has orchestrated ... is the product of a process to restock a sagging farm system, reduce what had been a franchise-high payroll (though only by about $10 million, to around $70 million) and increase the flexibility of the roster." The plan "was employed, and perhaps accelerated, after Silverman replaced Andrew Friedman in mid October, then saw manager Joe Maddon leave." The totality of the moves "has not gone over well with Rays fans or many media observers." But Rays brass and manager Kevin Cash insist that they "are still in it to win it, and their big-name players say they are on board" (TAMPA BAY TIMES, 1/18).
PAYING RESPECTS: In St. Louis, Derrick Goold reported the Cardinals "will renovate and upgrade a youth baseball field" in the late Oscar Taveras' hometown of Sosua, Dominican Republic, "as a way to memorialize the young outfielder." Taveras died in a car crash last October at the age of 22. Players' jerseys this season "will have a black circular patch on the sleeve that has the initials 'OT.'" Cardinals Chair & CEO Bill DeWitt Jr. said that there "will be a decal with a similar design 'in an appropriate place'" at Busch Stadium (ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH, 1/18).
PAW IN THE ACT: In Boston, Nick Cafardo reported the ongoing sale of the Triple-A Int’l League Pawtucket Red Sox to their MLB parent club, the Red Sox, "has created much angst in Rhode Island." Talk shows "have been filled with PawSox talk and the fear the team might move out of Pawtucket and the state." The fear "has been based on nothing but speculation, feeling the new owners may try to maximize their investment by building a new stadium, which has been a successful formula in other minor league cities" (BOSTON GLOBE, 1/18).
