Talking Points: One more year for Wulff

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Paul Wulff, by the thinnest of margins, probably deserves another year to turn around the Washington State football program. The improvement in the Cougars in years three and four merit retention. Still, Talking Points thinks athletic director Bill Moos will end up dumping Wulff.

When compared with the slickness of Chip Kelly, Steve Sarkisian, Lane Kiffin, et al., in the Pac-12, Wulff simply comes up a little short, not a good thing when already handicapped in recruiting by the fact the campus is in Pullman.

What is really getting old is Wulff’s extended flogging of his predecessor, Bill Doba. Deep into his fourth season, Wulff, answering a question on progress, said he inherited “the worst BCS program in the country, by a long, long ways.”

Give it a rest.

Sarkisian inherited an 0-12 debacle from Tyrone Willingham yet doesn’t invoke the T-word when the Huskies lose.

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“Moneyball’’ is in the theaters, Billy Beane is still general manager of the Oakland A’s, and the franchise is again expected to be sellers this winter. Oakland will try to get the best possible haul of prospects in exchange for players who are set up to make more than the A’s are willing to pay.

Topping that list is starter Gio Gonzalez, coming off a career year in which he threw more than 200 innings, made more than 30 starts, won 16 games and had a 3.12 ERA.

Rumor has it the Yankees are the team most coveting the 26-year-old lefthander, while the Marlins also are interested in the Miami native.

A’s closer Andrew Bailey did not blow a save after the All-Star break and is only 27. Bailey is arbitration eligible and should fetch about $3.5 million next season, making him attractive to teams not wanting to spend the money it takes for a big-time closer.