Theo Epstein has punked his former assistant Ben Cherington yet again.

The Cubs are set to announce that Milwaukee Brewers hitting coach Dale Sveum will become the 52nd manager in team history at a press conference tomorrow morning. The two sides agreed to terms on a contract earlier today. Chicago Tribune ace reporter Paul Sullivan is reporting on his Twitter account that Sveum gets a three-year deal with an option in 2015. His candidacy for the Cubs job got a gigantic boost earlier this week when perceived frontrunner Mike Maddux removed himself from consideration due to family reasons.

Sveum had been believed to be at the top of the Red Sox list as well, a move that would have made sense given his ties to the team as their 3rd base coach during their World Series title run in '04. It's a decision that leaves the Red Sox scrambling to find another candidate to replace Terry Francona.

So who is Dale Sveum and why is he a good fit at the Friendly Confines?

In our final contest of the Movember MLB Mustache Madness regional semi-finals, the Wild Card bracket gives a pair of big fake artifical ones... mustaches I mean.  What did you think I was talking about?

Bernie Brewer

Considering the great legacy of Brewer mustaches it is only fair that their mascot boast one of the best in the mascot business, but is it good enough to beat out the fake mustache of a real MLB player?

VS.

Magglio Ordonez

I still can't believe Maggs took out Bobby Valentine, but he did, and handily so.  In fact, I'm a little worried that the combination of this Conquistador-esque look and his winning ways might prompt him to try and re-conquer the Aztec Empire.

Time to vote! (one vote per matchup per day)

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At some point today, the 29 current owners of MLB franchises will vote to approve Jim Crane to become the new owner of the Houston Astros with the caveat that he will pack up the Astros and move him all the way over to the far away land of the American League.

It is a change that almost nobody likes, not even Jim Crane (or so he claims), nobody that is but Bud Selig who is going to see to it that this realignment scheme that he has hatched comes to fruition in spite of all the people shouting it down from every corner of the baseball world.

Why is it exactly that nobody seems to be in favor of Houston switching leagues?  I believe the top list of complaints goes something like this:

1. Ahhh!!! Change, I'm scared.
2. Ewww, it's different.  I feel icky.
3. But, but, but... that isn't how it was when I grew up.
4. I need something to complain about.
5. It means that there will be constant interleague play throughout the regular season which is morally and ethically wrong to the point that it might trigger the apocalypse.

In my estimation, only one of those objections is actually valid.  I'll let you figure out which one.

If there is one good way to shut up a bunch of whiners, the best way to do it is to ask them to actually offer a solution for the problem that is causing them so much angst.  Most of the time no viable alternative exists.  So, I have to ask, is this one of those times?  Is there a better option for baseball than moving the Houston Astros to American League?

Movember MLB Mustache Madness enters the semi-finals of the Wild Card bracket.  This first match-up features a fake manager of a fake team with fake terrible players that were forced upon him having a mustache face off against a real owner of a real team with real terrible players that his team willingly acquired.

The Manager from Major League Lou Brown (aka James Gammon)

Lou Brown motivated his team to victory over his dastardly owner by making a cardboard stand-up of said owner that had removable clothing, revealing a nude picture of the owner.  I REALLY hope he doesn't resort to that same tactic against this owner.

VS.

Arte Moreno

He beat another owner, then a gneral manger and he'll now face off against a manager, granted a pretend manager, but he can run the whole baseball operations gamut if he pulls out a victory here.

Time to vote! (one vote per matchup per day)

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With the Orioles announcing on Tuesday that they'd be returning to their old smiling bird logo (along with the news last week about the Padres going back to the swingin' friar), the staff of the Outside Corner got to brainstorming some older logos we'd like to see make a more full-time comeback in the majors. Some of these logos are seen on alternate caps and jerseys that the team wears maybe a couple of times a year, but we feel that they need to be around for every game. Here are five of our choices.

After surprisingly making the playoffs in 2010, the Reds slipped in 2011, primarily due to a starting staff that declined rapidly, and it didn’t help that top prospect Aroldis Chapman had a really rough start to the season. Other than Chapman, few other Reds prospects spent major time in the majors, though several of them made an appearance in the majors. That’s not too bad though, considering that they’ve promoted several players over the past few years and have several good prospects near the majors.

The top prospect is clearly Devin Mesoraco, but the Reds have several other really good ones as well. Mesoraco is the heir apparent behind the plate, but just behind him, Yasmani Grandal will force a trade of one or the other if Mesoraco proves capable of holding down the starting gig. Yonder Alonso may also force a trade as he needs a spot, but he doesn’t have one due to the presence of Joey Votto. There is certainly no shortage of talent at the upper levels of this system.

After that, the Reds system is full of intriguing tools players that scouts like but have some reservations about. Billy Hamilton sure has the speed, but does he have anything else? Is Robert Stephenson more than just another high school flame-out? Can Yorman Rodriguez put it all together? What about Henry Rodriguez and/or Ronald Torreyes? While the system certainly has some talent at the top, they also have some at the lower levels.

Although the Reds certainly took a step back this season, their situation isn’t too bad. The pitching was bad, but with a few bounce backs that are certainly possible, they’ll be a contender again. The farm system, then, looks to add new reinforcements, especially with Mesoraco adding All-Star potential behind the plate. The only weakness in the system is the pitching, as they’ve added several guys in recent years such as Johnny Cueto, Homer Bailey, and Chapman, but they haven’t added much to the system, with new addition Stephenson the only one on this list.

Elite

Devin Mesoraco     C

Bats/Throws:     R/R

Height/Weight:     6’1/220

Age/Level (as of 4/2012):     23/MLB

Projection:     4+ WAR

Mesoraco’s first three seasons in the minors were pretty bad compared to the expectations given to the 15^th pick of the draft, but after recommitting himself to getting in shape, Mesoraco turned things around in a drastic fashion in 2010. Mesoraco followed with a stellar 2011, and he’s now one of the best, if not the best, catching prospects in baseball. He does this by being such a good offensive asset with above-average hit and power tools as well as an advanced approach. Defensively, he won’t win any Gold Gloves, but he’s a solid backstop with a strong arm and decent receiving skills that improved over the past year. It looks like Mesoraco will be the starting catcher next season, and he’ll have Ryan Hanigan around to make sure he doesn’t get abused too much.

Movember MLB Mustache Madness Managers Semi-Finals moves on to two mustachioed managers who are currently unemployed but for entirely different reasons.

Trey Hillman

Hillman has been winning by big percentages in every matchup thus far.  That's something he might want to try the next time he gets a manager's job.

VS.

Cito Gaston

Gaston creeps closer and closer to a mustache championship, which I am sure he values more than his World Series titles.

Time to vote! (one vote per matchup per day)

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Movember MLB Mustache Madness enters the semi-finals of the Managers bracket.  It may not be the most exciting bracket, but at least the voting has been close.  I'm not doing a very good job of selling this am I?

Eric Wedge

Two wins in a row for Wedge, another win in this round and I think he'll have the longest winning streak of the Mariners' season.  If you won't vote for his mustache, vote for his pity.

VS.

Ron Washington

Washington is two wins away from the Manager championship!  I think that means he will no micro-manage himself out of the tournament.  Vote for him and save him from a repeat of this cruel fate won't you?

Time to vote! (one vote per matchup per day)

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The Miami Miamis Marlins have reportedly offered free agent shortstop Jose Reyes a six-year, $90 million dollar contract. It appears that the Marlins are indeed serious about making a splash as they move into their new ballpark, but the addition of Reyes could lead to troubled waters. 

Nyjer Morgan, aka Tony Plush, is officially on the Milwaukee Brewers.

When it comes to the Twilight series though, the most interesting man in all of professional sports leaves no doubt as to who's team he's on. Spoiler alert: he's not the world's biggest Robert Pattinson fan, at least according to his Twitter account.