Wednesday Morning Hot Links

*As expected, the Astros declined to pay Chad Qualls $3.5m next year, instead opting to pay his $250,000 buyout for 2016. We'll get into his 2015 season later on in the off-season (if only as a matter of exercise), but Qualls followed the 2015 bullpen mode: lights out...until he wasn't. Strikeouts were up, walks were down, balls were out of the park.

*Doug Brocail - currently the pitching coach at Corpus - has interviewed to be the Rangers' pitching coach, proving once again the Rangers don't have an original idea in their little rat-skulls.

*The Berkshire Eagle talked to Paul Ricciarini about leaving the Astros for the Marlins.

*Watch this softcore video of A.J. Reed taking batting practice.

*Next time you think minor-league players are living the dream:

Pre-tax earnings: Low-A: $1300/mo. High-A: $1500/mo. AA: $1700/mo. AAA: $2150/mo. Players are only paid in-season. April-Early Sept.

— Tepid Participation (@TepidP) November 4, 2015

I would really love to see the Astros innovate here and offer minor-league players more money. But since it's not a way to entice free agents, and the player who just got drafted doesn't exactly have a lot of leverage, it probably won't happen.