The news release explaining that the Miami Marlins and Don Mattingly have mutually agreed to part ways as his contract expires is as feel-good as the situation can be painted. It really means the Marlins told Mattingly that he is not coming back under any circumstance and the skipper is forced to say, “I agree with that decision, because no matter what, I can’t keep this job.”
Mattingly made serious money to manage a team that has only had one winning season in the seven he has been there. GM Kim Ng now gets a shot at bringing in her own manager. I couldn’t begin to hazard a guess, but I imagine she’ll hire a younger, cheaper manager who she and her baseball analytics folks see as someone who’ll truly embrace their way of doing things.
There’ll be other openings before too long, but I doubt that Mattingly will be seen as a fit anywhere else, at least for now. It’s really a stretch to see him at the helm of another club.
Now let’s look at the other jobs that opened up this summer. There are four conventional openings (Angels, Blue Jays, Phillies and Rangers), and a fifth spot may be in play soon given White Sox manager Tony La Russa’s health scare a few weeks ago. Look, hiring La Russa was always a bad idea, but it was owner Jerry Reinsdorf’s idea.
Because he has a huge ego, I think it is painful for La Russa to admit that he did a pretty inept job at the helm of a team with this much talent. But my bet is he does the baseball people and Reinsdorf a solid and announces he doesn’t think the strain of managing a Major League Baseball team is such a good idea at the age of 78 … and soon, 79.
Wonder if the Chicago special could be in play once again. When Joe Maddon got the Cubs job following the 2014 season, they fired well-respected and well-liked Rick Renteria, who moved across town to manage the rebuilding White Sox, only to be let go to make way for La Russa and his massive reputation once the rebuild was complete. I could see Maddon being an interesting fit in Chicago with the Sox.
The Phillies shocked some with a fairly quick hook on Joe Girardi on June 3. His replacement, Rob Thomson, seems to have done enough to gain a two-year deal to stay at the helm. Club president Dave Dombrowski knows Thomson inherited a flawed team.
Another seat that opened up midseason was yet another surprise due to the timing. Angels GM Perry Minasian pulled the plug on Joe Maddon on June 7 and replaced him with an interim in longtime minor league manager Phil Nevin. I think if Minasian is honest about his team, he could do a lot worse than Nevin, the father of Orioles prospect Tyler Nevin. Angels players respect him, and there has been a better brand of baseball in Anaheim of late. I think the front office’s energy could be better spent on figuring out how to surround Mike Trout and Shohei Ohtani with better players than finding a new skipper.
The Blue Jays had Charlie Montoyo walk the plank just before the All-Star Game and replaced him with John Schneider, one of his coaches. Schneider managed a lot of these players as they came through the minors. Like Thomson, I think he might just keep the job on a short-term deal.
Have to be honest: With as much money as ownership put into building the Jays, club president Mark Shapiro and GM Ross Atkins didn’t think that Buck Showalter or Dusty Baker would have been a more informed choice in October 2018? Montoyo is one of the game’s nicest guys, but he was a really odd choice.
Finally, the Rangers fired Chris Woodward on Aug. 15, replacing him with interim Tony Beasley. The club also fired longtime president Jon Daniels. GM Chris Young is running the show now.
So, who else could be considered on the hot seat?
The most obvious name is Mike Matheny in Kansas City. His boss, longtime club president Dayton Moore, was just let go. If owner John Sherman stopped trusting Moore, it seems certain to me he’ll move on from Matheny, who has not done anything to distinguish himself in KC.
The Minnesota Twins have to be bitterly disappointed in how their team responded down the stretch under the leadership of first-time skipper Rocco Baldelli. The Twins were eight games over .500 at the All-Star break and now sit at 74-79, meaning they have gone just 22-35 in their past 57 games. I sure hope top executives Derek Falvey and Thad Levine make a much better choice here or else they won’t get a third crack at it.
In fairness to Baldelli, did Falvey and Levine really in their heart of hearts think Dylan Bundy was going to help them as a mid-rotation constant?
The Cincinnati Reds and the Pittsburgh Pirates, managed by David Bell and Derek Shelton, respectively, may be in the market for new managers … but one wonders why. Both organizations seem to be years away from contending, and their fan bases have every reason to be upset about where they stand right now.
I think I can figure out the teams most likely to make a change at manager, but I am no longer quite as plugged into the new names that could surface as the next batch of skippers.
As sure as I am sitting here typing this, next year the same carousel will be starting to circle around the game at this time.
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