While baseball’s best teams prepare for what they hope will be a long run in October, the rest try to fix what went wrong — and in some cases, that means replacing the manager.
Here’s the latest on baseball’s managerial merry-go-round: who’s out, which vacancies are the most appealing and who might get the call.
Jump to vacancies: Royals | Padres | Giants
Open jobs
Kansas City Royals
Out: Ned Yost
Record: Career — 1,201-1,338 (16 seasons); with Royals — 744-836 (10 seasons); 2019 — 57-100
Why he’s out: Yost, who led the Royals to their only World Series title in 2015, announced on Sept. 23 that he is retiring at the end of the season. He is the longest-tenured and winningest manager in franchise history.
Why K.C. is a good job: New ownership could mean a change in the low-payroll practices that have helped keep the Royals firmly entrenched in the second division for the vast majority of the past 25 years. Of course, it’s still a small market, so that is no guarantee.
Why K.C. is a bad job: Yost’s run of success from 2013 to 2015 is quite the outlier. Other than those years, the Royals have had just one winning season since 1995. Despite all the losing, most of the team’s top prospects are still at least a year or two away. On the plus side, Bobby Witt Jr., the No. 2 overall pick in this year’s draft, is a top-25 prospect.
Latest buzz: The ink wasn’t even dry on Yost’s retirement announcement before chatter stirred about former Cardinals manager Mike Matheny being the front-runner to replace him. Actually, that began in November, when Matheny was hired by the Royals as a special adviser. But that move was under outgoing owner David Glass. The plans of the group headed by John Sherman, which won’t take over until MLB owners approve the sale, remain to be seen.
Possible candidates: Matheny; Royals bench coach Dale Sveum, who replaced Yost as Brewers interim manager in 2008; Royals catching/quality control coach Pedro Grifol; Phillies third-base coach Dusty Wathan, who’s the son of former Royals manager John Wathan.
The retiring Ned Yost’s legacy in Kansas City is not complicated: For all the questionable moves, the what-is-he-doings, he won a World Series. And to do so in a small market like Kansas City, amid all the challenges therein, was truly special. One final time …
Boom, Yosted.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) September 23, 2019
San Diego Padres
Out: Andy Green
Record: Career — 274-366 (four seasons, all with Padres); 2019 — 69-85
Why he’s out: With expectations raised this year after the signing of Manny Machado and the elevation of some touted prospects (including Fernando Tatis Jr. for 84 games before he was hurt), San Diego sagged in the second half, going 24-40 under Green after the All-Star break. With $300 million invested in Machado and one of the most dynamic young players in the game, the Padres rightfully expect more in 2020 and beyond.
Why San Diego is a good job: Tatis heads one of the best groups of young players in the game, with more on the way. The team was .500 in the first half, and momentum seemed to be building at times. Plus, we hear the weather is nice.
Why San Diego is a bad job: There is no tradition of winning — the Padres have gone 13 years without making the playoffs — so that must be established. The Dodgers are in the NL West, and they figure to be a tough hill to climb for at least the next few years. The Padres also need a front-line starting pitcher and rotation depth to be a legitimate contender, but that is at the top of GM A.J. Preller’s to-do list.
Latest buzz: With the vultures circling Wrigley Field over the weekend, expected-to-be-former Cubs manager Joe Maddon shot to the top of the presumed Padres wish list, at least according to the Twitterverse. Contract terms could be an issue — Maddon made $6 million in Chicago — but the similarities between the current Padres and the 2015 Cubs whom Maddon took over (and led to the World Series title the following year) are hard to ignore.
Possible candidates: Maddon; Padres bench coach Rod Barajas; Moises Alou, Padres special assistant to GM A.J. Preller; Cubs bench coach Mark Loretta, a former Padres player and special assistant in baseball ops; Yankees third-base coach Phil Nevin, a former Padres player; Braves third-base coach and former Rangers manager Ron Washington; former Yankees and Marlins manager Joe Girardi; former Angels manager Mike Scioscia.
Andy Green’s firing in San Diego follows four disappointing seasons and opens up a tremendously appealing job. The new manager will inherit Fernando Tatis Jr., Manny Machado, Chris Paddack and arguably the best farm system in baseball. This should be a pick-of-the-litter gig.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) September 21, 2019
San Francisco Giants
Out: Bruce Bochy
Record: Career — 2,001-2,025 (25 seasons); with Giants — 1,050-1,050 (13 seasons); 2019 — 75-81
Why he’s out: Bochy announced in February that he was retiring after the season.
Why San Francisco is a good job: The front office, led by Farhan Zaidi, is well-respected, and the Giants have kept their payroll high enough to be a consistent contender. It’s a cornerstone franchise with a solid, supportive fan base.
Why San Francisco is a bad job: The major league roster is not good, and rotation mainstay Madison Bumgarner will be a free agent and seems likely to sign elsewhere. A pretty significant rebuild is due, and the Giants’ farm system was 26th in Keith Law’s rankings entering the 2019 season.
Latest buzz: There really hasn’t been much, considering this has been a vacancy for six months. But with Bochy’s farewell tour winding down, things should be picking up very soon.
Possible candidates: Giants bench coach Hensley Meulens; Dodgers bench coach and former A’s manager Bob Geren; Dodgers special assistant/baseball ops Raul Ibanez; Angels special assistant to GM Eric Chavez; Yankees bench coach Josh Bard
Wine, Bourbon. Tequila. Signed jerseys. Fishing poles.@PavlovicNBCS recaps all the retirement gifts Giants manager Bruce Bochy received on his farewell tour https://t.co/HnfN6J02hp pic.twitter.com/HzaUO529mk
— SF Giants on NBCS (@NBCSGiants) September 23, 2019