Beane, Gillick Still Top List

Former Seattle general manager Pat Gillick and Oakland General Manager Billy Beane remain atop the Dodgers’ list of candidates to replace current GM Dan Evans, despite Gillick’s initial reluctance to pursue the position and the Athletics’ apparent refusal to let Beane interview for the job.

The Dodgers, according to a baseball source, contacted the A’s on Tuesday for permission to speak to Beane, but an A’s source said the team would wait until it received a formal request in writing from the Dodgers before responding.

Oakland owner Steve Schott said last Thursday he would not grant the Dodgers permission to speak to Beane, who is under contract through 2008, and a source close to the A’s owner said Tuesday that he “can’t see Schott changing his mind.... The A’s have given notice they’re not interested in letting Billy go.”

But new Dodger owner Frank McCourt, who is heading up the search, could try to entice Beane with a position combining the duties of president and general manager, giving Beane total authority to run the team. Beane has plenty of autonomy -- within certain financial limitations -- in Oakland, but he reports to A’s President Michael Crowley.

“I’m not unhappy in Oakland, and any decision to leave Oakland would have to be for a position with increased responsibilities from my current position,” Beane said.

Gillick, 66, helped build title winning teams in Toronto, Baltimore and Seattle, and recently opted to step into a consultant’s role with the Mariners, who hired Bill Bavasi as general manager.

He said last week that he’s “perfectly satisfied” in his new job and didn’t think he’d “be interested” in the Dodger job, but a Dodger source said the team fully intends to make a serious run at Gillick, whose Blue Jay teams won World Series titles in 1992 and ’93.

Gillick said the Dodgers haven’t contacted him as of Tuesday afternoon, but numerous industry sources are convinced he’s a front-runner for the Dodger job.

Jim Bowden, who was in his 11th season as the Cincinnati Reds’ general manager when he was fired last year, has also expressed interest in the Dodger job, and he has ties with some in the Dodger front office.

McCourt said Friday that Evans would be a “legitimate candidate” to retain his job, but his chances appear to be slim.

Montreal GM Omar Minaya appeared to be a candidate, but Expo President Tony Tavares said Tuesday he would not grant the Dodgers permission to interview Minaya, who recently signed a two-year extension. Texas owner Tom Hicks said he would not grant the Dodgers permission to speak to highly regarded Ranger assistant GM Grady Fuson.

Another possible candidate is Oakland assistant GM Paul DePodesta, who turned down the Toronto GM job two years ago and would have been the A’s general manager had Beane accepted the Boston job last winter. DePodesta has played an important role in the development of the A’s and is believed to be interested in the Dodger job.