HOUSTON -- Third-base coach Doug Mansolino was informed prior to Sunday's game that he was not going to be invited back for the 2008 season, and while he was disappointed, he wasn't terribly surprised.

"I think the manager should have his own guy," he said. "I'm old-fashioned that way. A third-base coach is usually the guy the manager should have in his corner with regard to having a working relationship. I was perfectly OK with it."

Mansolino was brought in by former skipper Phil Garner, and when Garner was dismissed, Mansolino figured his time with the Astros was soon coming to an end as well.

Mansolino was given the option to not participate in Sunday's game, but he had no intentions of missing the season finale.

"I signed up for 162," he said. "It was put to me, 'You've got an option of going out there or not.' I said, 'I'm going out there.' I signed up for this thing, and I'm going to see it through. The beauty of the whole thing is, you're only as good as your last game or your last at-bat. And we won."

Pitching coach Dave Wallace will also not return to the coaching staff in '08, but that decision was his, not the team's. Wallace, only a year and a half removed from a life-threatening hip condition that stemmed from salmonella poisoning, prefers to take on a role that allows for him to be at home more. Wallace has two grandchildren and an adopted daughter who is in the second grade, and he's looking for a job that will give him more flexibility of schedule.

The Astros hope to keep Wallace on staff in another capacity, perhaps in an advisory role.

"They're going to put something together," Wallace said. "They were very complimentary. I've done a lot in the front office. I'll probably put the uniform on and do stuff here and there, but I need to get home for a week or 10 days every month."

Hitting coach Sean Berry will return, as will first-base coach Jose Cruz and bullpen coach Mark Bailey. Triple-A Round Rock manager Jackie Moore has been named bench coach, and director of pitching development Dewey Robinson will serve as the club's pitching coach on Cecil Cooper's staff next year.

Interviews for the third-base coach position will commence this week.

"Most managers like to have their guys," Cooper said. "The pitching coach [and the] first- and third-base coaches should be your guys. There's a relationship there that you have to have, and a trust factor. I think you're more comfortable with your people."

General manager Ed Wade also announced on Sunday that senior director of player personnel and scouting Paul Ricciarini will assume different responsibilities within the organization, as the Astros restructure their scouting operation.

Finding a new scouting director appears to be priority No. 1 heading into the offseason.

"People think of it as a cliche sometimes, but there's no walking past the fact that scouting is the lifeblood of an organization," Wade said. "We have to make sure we're doing everything we possibly can to strengthen our system. The way you start doing that is by effectively scouting and drafting and, from the international side, signing the right players.

"Paul's got great ability to evaluate, but I just thought at this point in time, based on the information provided, looking at it from afar, it's an area of significant concern at this point. We need to try to move it forward."

Bagwell's take: Jeff Bagwell watched Sunday's finale from the general manager's box, as he witnessed the official end to the Bagwell-Biggio era.

Bagwell was matter-of-fact about Craig Biggio's retirement while expressing tremendous pride in his friend for how he handled himself not only during his final game, but throughout the past two decades.

"He's had a special career," Bagwell said. "Twenty years in the same organization -- it's sad, but yet it's a happy occasion. These things have to end eventually. You know he's going to leave the game now, and in five years, he's going to be in Cooperstown. That's a good thing. That's a positive. I'm excited about it for him.

"Players have to come and go. Unfortunately, in this game, unlike golf, we cannot continue to play. But I tell you what, my man played 20 years. That's a long time to wear one uniform."

Lidge surgery: When the Astros announced Brad Lidge would have surgery immediately after the conclusion of the regular season, they weren't exaggerating. The closer's surgery to repair torn cartilage in his right knee is scheduled for 7:30 a.m. on Monday morning.

The procedure will plug a hole surrounding the cartilage, and Lidge is confident the surgery will completely alleviate any pain he experienced this year because of the injury.

Lidge will spend six weeks on crutches, and he should be back to normal six weeks after that.

"I usually start throwing the beginning of January, so I'll be right on schedule," Lidge said.

Lidge will remain in Houston for a few days after the surgery, but he will rehab in his hometown of Englewood, Col.

Proud day: Sixteen years ago, Matt Galante spent countless hours working with Biggio on the backfields of the Astros' Spring Training complex in an effort to convert him into a second baseman.

On Saturday, Galante, now a special assistant to the general manager, watched with pride as Biggio returned to his catching roots for two innings during the Astros' game with the Braves.

"It was like, 'Why are you doing this?'" Galante said with a chuckle. "I was proud of him, the way he handled himself after 16 years. I was surprised, just because he hadn't done it in so long. Then he picked a couple balls out of the dirt, and I said to myself, 'Why should I be surprised?' He's such a good athlete. It was fun watching."

Galante has been with Biggio from Day One, and like the rest of the city of Houston, he's sad to see his former protege's career come to an end.

"When you first start, do you ever think this is going to be the end of it?" Galante said. "No. No one is that smart to think that anybody could be that type of player. He's become an All-Star and a Hall of Famer. Not only that, he's been a good friend to me for 20 years. It's a hard day. And it's going to be very hard for him. I know, after that last at-bat, it's going to be a killer coming off the field."

Restful winter: Humberto Quintero has played winter ball every year for as long as he's been in professional baseball, but this offseason, he plans to take it easy.

Quintero was hampered by a sore back for the better part of the last month, and he plans to lose 20 pounds this winter and be fully rested and ready for Spring Training. He will not do anything physically strenuous in October, and on Nov. 1, he'll start a workout regimen with Astros trainers.