What Managers Are On Baseball’s Hot Seat?

With the MLB regular season coming to a close, non-playoff teams will begin to access what went wrong. For some, it was a lack of talent and for others, a lack of leadership. The offseason usually sees a good amount of changes in the club house either way.

Following the announced retirement of Kansas City Royals’ manager Ned Yost and the firing of San Diego Padres’ manager Andy Green, it makes the fans wonder, whose next? With 20 teams missing the postseason, it will be fun to see whose on the coaching carousel. Here’s who may be looking to fill some vacancies this year:

 

1. Joe Maddon, Chicago Cubs

Since coming to the north side of Chicago in 2015, Joe Maddon has cemented himself as a hero in the city by helping lead the Cubs to their first World Series championship since 1908. He’s a good manager who probably will find another job quickly.

The problem is since that 2016 title, the Cubs have been underwhelming. They lost in the National League Championship Series in 2017 and then the Wild Card game in 2018. There’s been much speculation about if the team didn’t have more success this year, that Maddon would be be fired. Given that it didn’t happen, he may be on the move again.

 

2. Scott Servais, Seattle Mariners

Since taking over in 2016, Scott Servais has managed the Seattle Mariners to a 256-233 record, which for the most part isn’t bad. Unfortunately, they haven’t accomplished much. Despite good records, they haven’t made the playoffs, they haven’t gotten to the Wild Card game and this season, they’re one of the worst teams in baseball.

Seattle is almost like a drain: they seem to have some sort of potential, only to see it circle constantly before vanishing away. The team needs some sort of direction, especially with the young talent they have coming up. They need an experienced manager. Unfortunately, there’s not many in stock.

 

3. Mickey Callaway, New York Mets

New York is a hard market to play and coach in. Beloved figures like Willie Randolph and Bobby Valentine have seen their arrival and departure quickly, only to start a new cycle of of mediocrity. Which leads to the latest chapter, Mickey Callaway.

Callaway had a rough season last year, only to sort of rebound this season. This team is too good to finish outside the playoffs this year.

With the window of opportunity just opening, it will be a waste if they can’t capitalize. Most of the losses came down to managerial mistakes and that is what will cost him his job.

 

4. Clint Hurdle, Pittsburgh Pirates

The idea of missing the window of opportunity perfectly sums up what happened to Clint Hurdle in Pittsburgh. From 2013 through 2015, they made the playoffs, including ending a playoff drought. Too bad that’s all they would do.

Add  in several distractions including pitcher Felipe Vazquez’s child pornography arrest and infielder Jung Ho Kang’s multiple legal issues and you have a Molotov Cocktail that could burn a manager’s career down.

 

5. Gabe Kapler, Philadelphia Phillies

Outfielder Bryce Harper: $330,000,000, outfielder Andrew McCutchen: $50,000,000, shortstop Jean Segura: first baseman Carlos Santana and a prospect catcher J.T. Realmuto. All were from Gabe Kapler.

And what did that get them? A fourth place finish. The Phillies will be expected to be just as aggressive this offseason. However, it will probably be without Gabe Kapler at the helm.