Joe Maddon is only under contract with the Rays through 2012. Managers -- especially ones who just won the manager of the year award -- don’t much like that. Just ask Phillip Seymour Hoffman who said as much in “Moneyball!”
Back at the Winter Meetings Joe Maddon told the assembled press that he had made some contact with the Rays about a contract extension. Now Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times says that progress has been made.
It’s certainly in the Rays’ interest to get this thing put to bed. The line of teams who would like to hire Maddon is pretty darn long.