Rangers Fire Longtime GM Melvin

Doug Melvin, the architect of Texas’ only three division championships, was fired as general manager Sunday after the Rangers finished in last place in the American League West even with Alex Rodriguez.

After finishing last in 2000, the Rangers signed Rodriguez to a record $252-million, 10-year contract negotiated by owner Tom Hicks.

Rodriguez did his part, batting over .300 with more than 50 homers, but Melvin was unable to upgrade a weak pitching staff.

Texas started the final day of the regular season at Seattle with a major league-worst 5.73 earned-run average and was 44 games behind the Mariners, Rodriguez’s former team.

Melvin was hired as the Rangers’ sixth general manager Oct. 10, 1994. Texas won the AL West in 1996, 1998 and 1999, but won only one playoff game those three years, each time losing to the eventual World Series champion New York Yankees.

Third-base coach Ron Oester was fired during a Cincinnati Red staff shake-up.

The Reds did not renew the contracts of Oester and first-base coach Bill Doran. The rest of the staff is expected to return.

Manager Bob Boone wanted the freedom to pick his staff. The only coach he was able to hire this season was Tim Foli, who will become one of the base coaches next season.

Oester, 44, was offered the managing job before Boone, but balked at the salary. He insisted that General Manager Jim Bowden told him privately to reject the offer because the club was willing to make a better one.

Instead, the Reds turned to Boone, and Oester publicly called Bowden a liar. Oester, a Cincinnati native who has spent 27 years in the organization, agreed to stay as a coach at the urging of owner Carl Lindner.

He wrestled with Foli following one game in June and wasn’t surprised when Boone told him he was fired.

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The Toronto Blue Jays fired batting coach Cito Gaston and third-base coach Terry Bevington.

Gaston, fired as Toronto’s manager in 1997 after guiding the Blue Jays to World Series titles in 1992 and 1993, rejoined the team last year.

Manager Buck Martinez said his small-ball philosophy conflicted with Gaston’s approach.

Bullpen catcher Andy Stewart also was fired.

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Pitching coach Bill Fischer, in his 54th season of professional baseball, was fired by the Tampa Bay Devil Rays.