Teams continue to scurry around interviewing managers, but after Saturday organizations are heavily discouraged from announcing any hirings until after the World Series, as it is baseball's policy not to allow anything to upstage that event. The biggest rumors in the last week surround Seattle's willingness to let Lou Piniella out of the last year of his contract in exchange for appropriate compensation from the organization hiring him.

Milwaukee, Tampa Bay, the Cubs, and the Mets remain without a manager. Cleveland continues to interview candidates regardless of the presence of the highly qualified Joel Skinner as their interim manager. If Piniella leaves, the Mariners will need to find a new manager. To further complicate matters, Seattle GM Pat Gillick has hinted that there are teams that might fire their current manager now that Piniella's on the market. Oakland has reportedly informed the Mets that they would release Art Howe from the last year of his deal without asking for compensation. Meanwhile Dusty Baker and the Giants have not reached an agreement, so he could leave for another team, though San Francisco's World Series berth diminishes that possibility.

If Howe leaves, the A's are likely to simply promote bench coach Ken Macha, who we've discussed in the past as the most qualified and pursued of the rookie candidates. The 52-year-old has coached in the majors for 13 seasons: 4 years as the A's bench coach, 9 seasons as a third base coach with the Expos and Angels, and a few months as the Angels' bullpen coach. He took up coaching following a 14-year professional career in which he spent portions of six seasons in the majors, primarily as a third baseman. More importantly he managed in the Boston farm system from 1995-1998. The Oakland organization has pioneered the most intelligent development system in baseball. Macha should have picked up on the A's philosophies over the last four seasons as their bench coach, so he should bring a wealth of knowledge with him to his new posting. Oakland is aware of this fact, which is why they'd be happy to let Howe leave and have Macha succeed him. However, the A's are also reportedly open to allowing Howe to leave even if Macha takes a position elsewhere.

Both the Cubs and Cleveland are interested in Fredi Gonzalez, who has extensive minor league managerial experience. The 38-year-old's most recent position was as manager of Atlanta's AAA franchise at Richmond. However, he managed in the minors for nine seasons before spending three years on Florida's major league coaching staff as their third base coach, during which he compiled a 6-8 record while serving as interim manager in John Boles' absence. When Florida replaced Boles with Tony Perez in May of 2001, Gonzalez shifted to bench coach for the remainder of the season. While he never played in the majors, he caught for six seasons in the Yankees' system. His credentials look excellent, and I'm highly surprised that Tampa hasn't shown greater interest in him given his Cuban background and the extended time he's spent in Florida. He certainly appears to deserve an opportunity to manage in the majors sometime in the next few seasons.

The Cubs and Brewers are both interested in Arizona bench coach Bob Melvin. Prior to joining the Diamondbacks in 2001, Melvin served as bench coach under Phil Garner in Milwaukee in 1999 and Detroit in 2000. The 40-year-old spent 10 years in the majors, primarily as a catcher, but his only managerial experience came with Maryvale of the Arizona Fall League in 1999. I don't like Melvin's limited managerial experience or his mentors during his coaching time. Consequently, I hope he has the opportunity to manage in the minors before receiving a major league opportunity.

Willie Randolph, third base coach of the Yankees, has interviewed with Milwaukee, New York, and Tampa Bay, as well as Detroit before they selected Alan Trammell. However, Randolph turned down an offer to manage the Reds in 2000 over salary issues, so I don't believe he deserves another opportunity any time soon. You shouldn't decline job offers if you truly want to manage. If you have concerns over family or feel you aren't ready yet, don't take an interview. Additionally while the 48-year-old has nine years of experience as a coach with the Yankees, he has no managerial experience. New York hired him the season after he retired from his 18-year career as a major league second baseman; thirteen of those seasons were spent with the Yankees.

Both Tampa and the Brewers also expressed interest in Ned Yost, though Yost has stated he prefers the Milwaukee job. After a 14-year profession career as catcher in which he spent portions of five seasons in the majors, Yost took up managing in the Atlanta system. Following three years as an A-ball manager, Yost joined the major league coaching staff as the bullpen coach. He spent eight seasons in that role before moving over to coach third. While I'm pleased to see some managerial experience on the 47-year-old's record, it was over a decade ago. Additionally, although the Braves are a highly successful organization, their methods are not easily replicated with other clubs. I'm concerned that the Atlanta influence and his catching background may have given Yost a tendency to value defense and pitching disproportionally over offense.

Chicago GM Jim Hendry has a wait-and-see attitude that could leave the Cubs picking up the managerial scraps left after other teams have made their selections. While it makes sense to take some time to arrive at a studied and informed decision, there is some need for speed. Macha appears to be the front-runner in Chicago and Milwaukee, and the Brewers won't hesitate to make an offer. Meanwhile Tampa reportedly plans to interview around 10 candidates. Perhaps they think they need a list that big to insure someone accepts the job. Somewhat surprisingly, Piniella currently appears most likely to go to the Devil Rays. However he lives in Tampa and the Devil Rays seem more inclined to meet the Mariners' compensation demands than the Mets. Consequently, Howe is the frontrunner for the Mets' position.

We'll discuss some of the lower profile candidates if no positions are filled tomorrow.