Astros Rumor Roundup: What the Yankees Lose in Spencer Medick, Per a Houston Source
A Yankees site got an Astros source on the record about new director of pitching Spencer Medick, and the rest of the league's beats went quiet on Houston. Plus World Series Game 1 starters, Stephen Vogt staying put and the Marlins' middle infield.
It was a quiet stretch for the Astros in other cities. The beats covering the Brewers, Rays, Cardinals, Angels, White Sox, Royals, Braves and Mariners didn't add anything new on Houston's front office searches between Thursday night, Oct. 22, and Friday morning, Oct. 23. The one fresh item came out of New York, where the Yankees side is still digesting a coach the Astros took from them this week. All times are Central.
New York: What the Yankees lose in Spencer Medick
The Athletic's Chandler Rome first reported Tuesday that the Astros are hiring Spencer Medick as their new director of pitching. Rome wrote that Medick, a former Driveline employee, had worked in the Yankees' system for the past four years and spent last season as their Triple-A pitching coach.
On Friday morning at 6:15, Pat Ragazzo of Yanks Go Yard, FanSided's Yankees site (not a newspaper beat), published a Yankees-side follow-up with comments from one Astros source, who wasn't named.
"(We're) excited to have him," the source told FanSided. "Coming from (a) strong pitching program in New York, (he has a) strong ability to integrate technology into coaching principles. Experienced working with variety of coaching backgrounds. Should be a great add."
The source also described the kind of system Medick comes from: the Yankees "do a good job resourcing their minor league coaches with full encompassing technology feedback loops," including force production, motion capture, video and ball flight, and the coaching skill is "digesting all that info in real time and being able to communicate adjustments to players without them having to understand or pay attention to any of it."
Ragazzo wrote that Medick deserves "some level of credit" for helping develop Cam Schlittler, the AL Cy Young favorite, in the minors, and that Will Warren and Brent Headrick have also become solid arms. Under Medick last season, Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre had the fourth-best ERA and strikeout rate per nine innings in the International League, according to Ragazzo.
The Houston part: Ragazzo wrote that Medick won't be an on-field coach. He'll oversee pitching development across the whole organization, from the major league team through every minor league affiliate. Ragazzo also pointed to the gap Medick is walking into. The Yankees led MLB with a 3.24 staff ERA in 2026, while the Astros ranked 24th at 4.58.
What's next
Houston still has a GM to hire and, after that, a manager. With other teams' beats quiet on the Astros this morning and the World Series starting tonight, the next wave of out-of-town news may come once the Series is over. We'll keep tracking it here every day.
Around the MLB
World Series Game 1 starters are set. The Rays will start Nick Martinez in Game 1 of the World Series against the Brewers on Friday, USA Today's Bob Nightengale reported Thursday afternoon, and The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal confirmed it. Milwaukee had already named Jacob Misiorowski, who led baseball in ERA (1.80) and strikeouts (252) during the regular season. As CBS Sports' Mike Axisa noted, Misiorowski hasn't finished five innings in either of his two postseason starts because of high pitch counts.
Vogt isn't going to Seattle. Guardians manager Stephen Vogt, who lives in Olympia, Wash., said Thursday that he plans to return to Cleveland in 2027 and isn't interested in the Mariners' managerial opening, The Seattle Times' Adam Jude reported. Guardians president Chris Antonetti told The Athletic that the Mariners haven't asked about Vogt, who is under contract through at least 2027. Former Astros manager Joe Espada has been reported as a serious candidate for that job.
Marlins will listen on Lopez and Edwards. The Marlins are willing to hear offers for shortstop Otto Lopez and second baseman Xavier Edwards if teams offer "a lot," Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald reported, per MLB Trade Rumors' Connor Byrne. Both are headed to arbitration for the first time and are controllable through 2029. Lopez hit .305/.349/.437 with 34 steals and 5.9 fWAR this season, and Edwards has hit .282/.351/.361 since 2024.
Sources: Yanks Go Yard (Pat Ragazzo); Chandler Rome, The Athletic, on X; Bob Nightengale, USA Today, on X; Ken Rosenthal, The Athletic, on X; CBS Sports (Mike Axisa); The Seattle Times (Adam Jude); MLB Trade Rumors (Connor Byrne).
