Lamont said that he had not been offered the job, and Valentine said via text message Sunday night that he hadn’t heard from the team either. Valentine was in Japan at a charity event on Monday, according to The New York Times.
Red Sox general manager Ben Cherington has said he expects to have a new man in place by next Monday, when the winter meetings begin in Dallas.
Both Valentine and Lamont have had two tours of duty managing in the big leagues. Valentine, 61, managed the Texas Rangers and New York Mets for a total of 15 seasons. Lamont, who turns 65 on Christmas, managed the Chicago White Sox and Pittsburgh Pirates for a total of eight seasons, four with each team.
MINOR LEAGUE UMPS GET NEW LABOR DEAL
Five years after striking for the first two months of the season, minor league umpires reached an agreement on a new labor contract in New York, two days before their current deal was to expire.
The agreement calls for salaries to remain the same until 2016 when Triple-A and Double-A umps will receive a minimum $100 per month raise, depending on service time. Per diem will go up immediately.
CARDS, RANGERS GET WORLD SERIES SHARES
A full postseason share for the World Series champion St. Louis Cardinals was worth $323,170, up slightly from last year but still below the record set in 2009.
A full share was worth $317,631 on the 2010 San Francisco Giants and $350,030 on the 2009 New York Yankees.
The commissioner’s office said a full share on the losing Rangers was $251,516, up from $246,280 on Texas last year but down from $265,358 for the 2009 Philadelphia Phillies.
COSTNER, OTHERS FILE MINOR LEAGUE SUIT
A lawsuit filed by owners of a minor league baseball team claims an Illinois city violated its contract and misled the team about the prospect of building a ballpark.
Actor Kevin Costner of “Field of Dreams” is among the owners of the Lake County Fielders. They’ve been battling the City of Zion in northeastern Illinois for months over the team’s collapse this year and are seeking $10.7 million in damages.
SHORT HOPS
Catcher Jose Molina and the Tampa Bay Rays have agreed to a $1.8 million, one-year contract. The 36-year-old hit a career-best .281 this year with three homers and 15 RBI in 55 games. … The Oakland Athletics have begun exclusive negotiations with the city of Mesa, Ariz., to switch their spring training site from Phoenix. … Dodgers closer Jonathan Broxton has ruled out the possibility of re-signing with Los Angeles, according to his agent. … Johnny Narron was hired as hitting coach of the Brewers to replace Dale Sveum, who became manager of the Cubs two weeks ago.
