Morning Marquee: Twins to hire Paul Molitor; Blue Jays start Hot Stove season

The Minnesota Twins conducted a very thorough search for their new manager, but it appears they will land on the man most saw as the right fit all along, Paul Molitor. General Manager Terry Ryan wanted to be exhaustive, leaving no stone unturned in the process. Molitor edged out Boston Red Sox bench coach Tom Lovullo. After the Chicago Cubs fired Rick Renteria, there were rumors that Ryan considered bring him in for an interview, but that never materialized. A formal announcement is expected to come within the next week.

The Toronto Blue Jays kicked off the Hot Stove season by trading Adam Lind to the Milwaukee Brewers for Marco Estrada. The deal comes on the heels of the Jays picking up Lind’s $7.5 million option. Lind spent much of his time as a DH, so he’ll quickly need to solve his defensive issues as those opportunities are few and far between. The Brewers send over Estrada, who gave the Brewers 150 innings, but also allowed a league leading 29 home runs.

The Kansas City Royals declined the $12.5 million option on Billy Butler, making him a free agent for the first time in his career. Both parties are hopeful they will be able to work out a new contract to keep him in Kansas City. Butler was a first-round pick of the Royals in 2004. The decision was widely expected, and is simply a matter of business in baseball.

The Chicago Cubs picked up the option on Jacob Turner’s contract for the 2015 season. After being acquired in a trade with the Miami Marlins in August, Turner was out of options and had to stay on the Cubs Major League roster. Turner is expected to compete for a spot in the rotation next season.

Here are the headlines from yesterday:

 ‘Chicago Cubs pick up Jacob Turner’s 2015 contract option’ – Cubbies Crib

‘Tampa Bay Rays still considering tampering charges’ – Cubbies Crib

‘Minnesota Twins to hire Paul Molitor as manager’ – Puckett’s Pond

‘Blue Jays trade Adam Lind to Brewers for Marco Estrada’ – Jays Journal

‘Billy Butler is a free agent as Royals decline option‘ – Kings of Kauffman