MLB Manager Rumors 10-31
It started with eight MLB manager openings and now after the Kansas City Royals hired Mike Matheny we are down to three openings. The New York Mets are supposedly down to the final five candidates who are now getting their third interviews. The San Francisco Giants also have been conducting second rounds for their opening. As for the Pittsburgh Pirates, no one seems to know what is going on in the Steel City. Let’s look at the latest MLB manager rumors.
New York Mets
The Mets are down to five candidates. Those five are former Mets players Tim Bogar and Carlos Beltran, former MLB player Eduardo Perez, Milwaukee Brewers bench coach Pat Murphy, and Minnesota Twins bench coach Blake Shelton. The only candidate that has actual managerial experience is Bogar. Bogar was the interim manager of the Texas Rangers for 22 games back in 2014. Bogar also has been a minor league manager for five seasons with a record of 362-266.
Perez who is the son of Hall of Fame player Tony Perez has prior experience as a coach in the major leagues. Shelton and Murphy obviously have experience with both being bench coaches this past season. Only Beltran who is the favorite among the Mets fan base does not have one day of experience as a coach on any level.
There is no time table on when the Mets will name their next manager. But this is the biggest decision that General Manager Brodie Van Wagenen will ever make.
Mets actually have 5 who are still alive for manager: Shelton, Bogar, Perez, Murphy, Beltran. They are finishing up the 3rd round of interviews which includes Fred Wilpon and will have a call before the GM meetings, which begin Nov. 11
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) October 31, 2019
Pittsburgh Pirates
The Pirates are indeed a mess right now. Not only was their second half of the season one of the worst in recent memory they had to endure not one but two embarrassing incidents centered around one of their best players. Felipe Vazquez fought with teammate Kyle Crick which resulted in Crick missing the last two weeks of the season due to injury. On top of that Vazquez got into legal trouble which can possibly end his career.
As a result manager Clint Hurdle was fired and team President Frank Coonelly was also fired. Once the Pirates hired a new team President in Travis Williams he promptly fired the General Manager Neal Huntington. So no one really knows if Williams will hire a new General Manager before he hires a new manager.
The Pirates have spoken to nine candidates for their managerial opening. Four of those candidates are under consideration for other team openings. Derek Shelton, Matt Quatraro, Mark Kotsay, and Joe Espada are all considered finalists with the Giants and Mets. Kotsay is still viewed as a dark horse for the Giants opening.
Athletics bench coach Ryan Christenson, St. Louis Cardinals first base coach Stubby Clapp, Los Angeles Dodgers bench coach George Lombard, Arizona Diamondbacks director of player development Mike Bell and Pirates special assistant Jeff Banister round out the nine candidates.
San Francisco Giants
The Giants are also now in their second round of interviews. The three confirmed names are Joe Espada, former Philadelphia Phillies manager Gabe Kapler, and Royals quality control coach Pedro Grifol. Kapler is a favorite of Giants President Farhan Zaidi. The three candidates are said to be the only three currently on the Giants list.
