MLB roundup: Reds fire Baker
Cincinnati Reds general manager Walt Jocketty announced Friday that Dusty Baker was removed as the team's manager after six seasons.
Jocketty gave Baker a vote of confidence following the Reds' loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates in the National League wild-card game on Tuesday. But club ownership was not pleased with the manner in which the club finished the season, losing six straight games after being favored to win a second straight NL Central title.
Baker went 509-463 in his six seasons as Reds skipper, leading them to three 90-win seasons and two NL Central crowns the past four years. It was Cincinnati's most successful four-year stretch since the Big Red Machine clubs of the 1970s. Baker ranks 16th on baseball's all-time managerial wins list with 1,671.
Changes to the current coaching staff have not been announced. Baker, 64, originally was signed by the Reds to a 3-year contract in Oct. 2007.
Baker said he does not plan to retire and wants to manage somewhere in 2014.
Current Reds pitching coach Bryan Price is considered among the likely candidates to be Baker's replacement.
--- New York Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez is suing Major League Baseball, multiple media outlets reported Friday.
Rodriguez, who is in grievance hearings related to his 211-game suspension, claims that MLB paid Biogenesis founder Anthony Bosch $5 million help force Rodriguez out of the game.
MLB commissioner Bud Selig was named a defendant in the lawsuit.
MLB issued a statement that said, among other things, that "this lawsuit is a clear violation of the confidentiality provisions of our drug program, and it is nothing more than a desperate attempt to circumvent the collective bargaining agreement."
--- New York Mets right-hander Matt Harvey, who was the National League's starting pitcher in this year's All-Star Game, has decided to undergo Tommy John surgery that probably will sideline him for the entire 2014 season.
The Mets made the announcement that Dr. James Andrews will perform the surgery later this month to repair the torn ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow.
Harvey, 24, had said he wanted to avoid surgery by rehabilitating the injury and undergoing a throwing program of 6-8 weeks in hopes of pitching next season.
---Los Angeles Dodgers minority owner Magic Johnson told USA Today that the club will not pursue pending free agent second baseman Robinson Cano.
Cano is reportedly seeking a $300 million contract.
Johnson said the Dodgers' top priority is re-signing left-handed ace Clayton Kershaw.
---Los Angeles Angels first baseman Albert Pujols is suing former St. Louis Cardinals slugger Jack Clark for accusing him of using steroids.
The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported that Pujols filed the lawsuit in St. Louis County seeking unspecified damages and asking Clark to admit that his statements were false.
Clark said during his radio show on WGNU on Aug. 2 that he knew "for a fact" that Pujols used steroids. Clark and co-host Kevin Slaten were fired the next day.
---Reds minor league third baseman Robert Ramirez was suspended for 50 games by Major League Baseball on Friday after he tested positive for metabolites of Nandrolone, a performance-enhancing substance. Ramirez is currently on the roster of the Single-A Dayton Dragons of the Midwest League.
