Phil Nevin, Buck Showalter Headline Latest Managerial Changes
The game of musical chairs has officially begun as multiple teams across baseball are opting for a new voice at the manager position ahead of the 2024 campaign.
On Monday, Phil Nevin became the latest skipper to join the unemployment line after the Los Angeles Angels declined his 2024 club option. The 52-year-old signed a one-year contract extension that included an option last off-season.
Nevin took over as interim manager following the firing of Joe Maddon in June 2022. The Angels finished 46-60 that year, missing the playoffs for an eighth consecutive season. That streak continued in 2023, with the team placing fourth in the AL West Division at 73-89.
Additional changes may also be coming for the Angels’ coaching staff. But for now, those won’t bleed over into the front office, as general manager Perry Minasian is expected to keep his job.
Los Angeles is now moving on to its fourth skipper since Brad Ausmus was hired prior to the 2019 season. The manager position has mirrored a revolving door in the years following Mike Scioscia’s resignation in 2018, ending his near two-decade stint at the helm.
Nevin joined the Angels organization as a third base coach ahead of the 2022 campaign – a position he held with the New York Yankees (2018-21) and San Francisco Giants (2017). He also served as a Triple-A manager from 2014-16, and shouldn’t have any issues finding work this winter.
The New York Mets will also be in the market for a new skipper after Buck Showalter informed local reporters before Sunday’s season finale he wouldn’t be returning in 2024, allowing newly-minted president of baseball operations David Stearns to handpick his next manager.
The club later released a statement confirming Showalter’s announcement, outlining the need for both sides to shift in new directions as this new chapter begins.
“We are heading in a new direction, with a new president of baseball operations and we let Buck know we’ll be parting ways. We will begin the search for a new manager immediately,” owner Steve Cohen said. “Buck is a generational manager, and we value what he has done for our team… The commitment and heart that Buck brings to the game will be felt by our organization for years to come. We wish Buck all the best in the next chapter of his career.”
Showalter returned to managing in 2022 with the Mets, ending a four-year hiatus following his final season as skipper of the Baltimore Orioles in ‘18. He had previously worked with MLB Network as an analyst and colour commentator during that transitional phase.
The Mets made the playoffs in Showalter’s inaugural season, securing a wild-card berth with a 101-61 record, but lost to the San Diego Padres in the opening round. They missed the postseason this year, stumbling to a 74-87 record at season’s end.
New York and Los Angeles aren’t the only franchises to make recent managerial changes, as San Francisco fired Gabe Kapler last Friday after he spent four seasons with the organization. And it appears there may already be an obvious successor for that position.
Bob Melvin could reunite with president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi if the veteran skipper parts ways with the Padres this off-season. The two spent time working together in Oakland as members of the Athletics from 2011-14.
Melvin, however, might not be the only current skipper to switch teams this winter, as Milwaukee Brewers manager Craig Counsell is without a contract after the 2023 season. But that situation will have to wait until the playoffs end, with his club facing the Arizona Diamondbacks in the wild-card round.
Many experts throughout the sport believe Counsell could join Stearns – Milwaukee’s former president of baseball operations – in New York following Showalter’s departure.
The 53-year-old skipper, viewed as one of baseball’s top impending free agents, may also weigh his alternatives as another intriguing opportunity could open between now and the end of the World Series.
-Thomas Hall
Twitter: @ThomasHall85
Photo: Arturo Pardavila III. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.