TBNL: All-Star coaches, Boston's dysfunction, the Rays are for sale

An unheralded perk of leading your team to winning the league championship means that you’re invited to manage the next year’s All-Star Game. That means the Yankees’ Aaron Boone and Dodgers’ Dave Roberts get that honor for this year’s event in Atlanta.

Typically, other managers across the league get the invite to join their ASG staffs, but this year Boone stepped outside the box a bit. Hall of Fame manager Joe Torre will be an honorary coach on Boone’s staff for the American League.

Torre, now 84, is a special assistant to the Commissioner’s Office, but the longtime manager won 2,326 games during his 29-year career. Torre led the Yankees to four World Series titles and six AL pennants during his tenure in New York.

He also managed the Mets, Braves, Cardinals, and Dodgers.

Guardians manager Stephen Vogt will round out the AL coaching staff. Braves manager Brian Snitker and Marlins manager Clayton McCullough will join Roberts in the NL dugout.

“… a state of organizational dysfunction.”

Boston’s front office has received an enormous amount of criticism over the last 72 hours following their trade of Rafael Devers. Much of it has been warranted considering how poorly the team handled the situation with their franchise player, the subpar return they received for him, and how unapologetically the blame was focused on Devers by president of baseball operations, Craig Breslow, during Monday’s press conference.

Things continued to grow worse on Tuesday. Yahoo! Sports’ Joon Lee* reported that the organization is using — and doing so poorly — an AI chatbot to facilitate and conduct interviews with candidates for high-level positions.

In an appearance on NBC Sports Boston’s Arbella Early Edition (the full 12-minute video is worth watching) on Tuesday. Lee didn’t hold back his punches:

Calling the Sox front office a “total mess” might be being a little polite, but it seems clear there’s a growing issue developing. Breslow may end up on the hot seat before long if this all continues, which will just mean more turnover for a franchise that hasn’t seen stability (let alone a clear direction) since Theo Epstein left town.

(Complete side note: I met Joon in the Pawtucket Red Sox press box. He was still finishing high school and writing regularly for SB Nation’s Over the Monster. Joon was there to cover the PawSox playoff run at the end of the 2014 season, when the team’s roster was led by an infielder-converting-to-the-outfield in Mookie Betts and the newly signed-to-an-extraordinarily-stupid-contract Rusney Castillo. It was obvious then that Joon was headed for big things.)

Orioles prospects involved in jet ski accident

Unfortunate news from Sarasota, Florida. Luis Guevara, a 19-year-old infielder with the Orioles’ Rookie League affiliate, has died following a head-on collision on a jet ski on Sunday off Lido Key.

The Orioles postponed their FCL games for Monday and Tuesday.

Originally signed as an international amateur free agent out of Venezuela, Guevara spent two years in the Dominican Summer League before the team brought him stateside this season. He appeared in 30 games between three levels, batting a combined .235/.380/.318 in 110 PA with eight stolen bases.

According to details shared by Andy Kostka at The Baltimore Banner, compiled from the official police report and interviews with witnesses on the beach, Guevara and a second man were “recklessly driving near people and boats in the water.” Guevara then started doing donuts on the jet ski when it stalled. A second jet ski, ridden by two other Orioles prospects, 19-year-old Miguel Rodriguez and 20-year-old Jesús Palacios, failed to see Guevara and crashed into him head-on at “a high rate of speed.”

Elsewhere, around the sport …

• Seibu Lions right-hander Tatsuya Imai struck out 17 hitters on Tuesday against the Yokohama DeNA BayStars, breaking the Lions’ franchise record previously set by Daisuke Matsuzaka (16) in 2004.

• Rich Hill, baseball’s oldest remaining player (and the last active player born before me, meaning I’ll root for him to pitch forever) reportedly has a handshake agreement with the Royals (who he’s currently pitching for at Triple-A). Essentially, Hill has a rolling upward mobility clause — meaning, at any point, if a team wants to add him to their MLB roster, the Royals can do so first. The key is that if an opportunity is there, Hill will get his chance.

• While there are no indications MLB is looking to expand — let alone certainties that Portland will be in contention for a club when the time comes — Oregon lawmakers are preparing for the possibility. Senate Bill 110 was officially passed on Tuesday by an overwhelming 46-6 vote. The idea was initially brought to officials in March, but the bill will authorize $800M in bonds to help fund the potential construction of a ballpark in Portland.

• Sportico is reporting that Rays owner Stu Sternberg is in “advanced talks” to sell the franchise to a group led by Jacksonville real estate developer Patrick Zalupski for $1.7B. While a deal is not final, it appears that a sale would keep the team in the Tampa Bay area.

More words (from me, duh!)

The Rafael Devers trade will impact the potential free agent market for Cubs slugger Kyle Tucker.

Miami is releasing Woo-Suk Go, their highest-paid reliever (who wasn’t even in the majors).

A’s owner, John Fisher, is selling his majority stake in the MLS’s San Jose Earthquakes to finance the Las Vegas stadium construction.