There's another way to go in the management sweepstakes and that is to bring in someone with experience on the bench or as an interim manager. Handing that kind of person the reins is quite a bit riskier than someone with lots of lineups and in-game managerial experience on his resume. However, for Mets fans and Mets management it may not be the ideal scenario after the Luis Rojas failure and the Mickey Callaway lack of professionalism.
According to new GM Billy Eppler there are several candidates available who fit into this category of "give 'em a chance" as a new manager. Let's take a look at them and see whether or not they make sense for Queens baseball.
Eric Chavez
Many folks remember Eric Chavez as a highly credible hitter and third baseman for the Oakland A's, New York Yankees and Arizona Diamondbacks. His best years were in three consecutive 100+ RBI seasons for Oakland where he hit 32, 34 and 29 HRs. He was not just a slugger, having won at one point six consecutive Gold Gloves for how he manned the hot corner.
Since leaving baseball in 2014, Chavez checks a lot of boxes. He started off as a color analyst which suggests he's comfortable in front of the microphone. Then he went to work for Brian Cashman and Billy Eppler in the Bronx as a special assistant to both of them. He then moved onto the same role for Eppler exclusively when he migrated to the left coast to work for the Angels. In 2018 Chavez had a year as the manager of the Angels AAA affiliate, the Salt Lake City Bees. He didn't do particularly well there. It would seem familiarity with Eppler is his greatest attribute for the job.
Josue "Joe" Espada took a somewhat similar start to his post-playing career. He started off in the Marlins organization as a minor league hitting and infield coach before making his way up to become the third base coach for the big league team. He then moved onto the Bronx where spent time with the Yankees as a special assistant to Brian Cashman. He then became a third base coach for the Bronx Bombers before moving over to the Houston Astros where he's been a part of their recent success.
His managerial experience thus far has been limited to multiple stints in charge of Puerto Rican winter league teams including a turn as the head honcho when his team played for Puerto Rico in the World Baseball Classic of 2017. He has interviewed for and missed out on managerial opportunities for the Texas Rangers in 2018 and the Chicago Cubs for the upcoming 2020 season. He is well known to Eppler but again there's not a lot of managerial experience there.
This choice is more similar to the one suggested for Mike Shildt formerly of the Cardinals. He has on his resume two years as a losing manager in charge of the Toronto Blue Jays followed by five years at the helm of the Boston Red Sox, including their first World Series Championship in his first year in Beantown in 2013 after having gone 97-65 to win the division. He stayed there for the next four seasons with mixed results. After the Championship he had two consecutive 5th place finishes but followed that up with two straight first place records giving him three top-of-the-division results out of his five years there.
Overall, Farrell has a winning managerial record combined between Toronto and Boston. He's since served as an analyst for the broadcast teams both at ESPN and Fox. Right now he's helping the Cincinnati Reds in scouting. At age 59, he's senior enough to draw respect from the younger players and being from New Jersey he's something of a local guy for the Mets to consider.
10 comments:
Happy Thanksgiving Eve
Yes Happy Thanksgiving to all and a question: does anyone know if trading draft picks is on the menu for the CBA talks?
Reese, let’s take a look at another organization to see how much it’s important to sign a good manager. The Dodgers hired Dave Roberts several years ago with no experience and lots of ego. Does anyone think he brings anything to the table? This guy just listens to what he’s told from the twenty Assistant GM’s on the team and loves the spotlight. His moves stink most of the time and I’ve never seen him do anything impressive, except for the time he brought in the outfielder to make a five man infield in extras against a team and it worked. Now, most managers would do that, but I’ve forgotten what most managers do because we have had idiots on the bench for over ten years.
I want a teacher, a fundamentalist, a manager that is involved with the success of his players by expecting them to do things correctly and holding them accountable. Someone who will tell Cano (if he even shows up in February) that either you break a sweat by the second inning or go home and stay there. Can we please have nice things?
I can show you average teams that had good managers and won, but they need to be well stocked in order to have a poor manager but win. No thinks quality leadership is important until you don’t have it.
No *one thinks quality leadership is important, until you don’t have it.
My first choice is Bochy or Showalter, along with a coach that can be molded like Edgardo Alfonso, Carlos Beltran, or Lee Mazzilli. I like Shildt, but something tells me to don’t rush to him yet.
Chavez only has one year of AAA managing experience that wasn’t successful; no thanks. Farrell is arrogant and that has gotten him into all sorts of emotional issues; no thanks. Espada may be wonderful, but if he was so why did they hire Dusty Baker last year? No thanks.
Sorry to be an a-hole, but I am tired of being a training ground or a recycling plant for losers.
Gus, that last sentiment is a bulls eye.
Well, the losers in question include Ausmus...being around a long time doesn't assure you are a winner. See Mr. Collins as a good example.
Bruce Bochy also owns a career losing record.
Showalter is in the positive but not by as much percentage as Shildt.
Looks like it isn't
Hot Topics This Day
Steven Matz signs with St. Louis Cardinals.
Matz said that he wanted to be with a winning ball club, one that has a chance to go all the way. Didn't think that he had ever been with a club that is as good as this STL Cardinal one.
Owner Steve Cohen commented that he felt that the agent for Steven Matz was "unprofessional" and it upset him. Understandable.
Steve Cohen: It's Steven Matz here for goodness sakes alive, not Sandy Koufax. Steven had a losing record here aside from his rookie season when he won five games and looked awesome. But the league's batters in the NL caught up to Steven I think. His last ERA (2021) here was around 5.00. Did Steven Matz ever admit that he had suffered an injury after this awful 2020 performance? No.
I was never really a big Steven Matz fan, I just felt that with Steven there was a lot more talent in him than he was able to show on any consistent basis. Often I felt that his dismal performances in 2020 were as much "attitudinal" then anything else. But Steven couldn't (for some reason beyond me) materialize his best pitching performances in succession.
Steven Matz did pitch with four other outstanding pitchers here in the Mets rotation. All better than he was really. Perhaps this is what happened here with him, I don't know. If coming back here Steve, did you expect the Toronto Blue Jays version of Steven Matz or the Mets guy that we all saw in the past? Did it dawn on anyone here, that Steven Matz 2021 "more successful season" was merely a one time wonderment based upon an American League that had not yet faced him enough times? Could be and we will see in 2022.
Steve, get over this please.
There is much work to be done here.
Please don't dawdle on signing free agent guys like LSP Carlos Rodon and others for this rotation, if you really want them here. It isn't so much right field, but rather the starting pitching. The best FA starters will be grabbed up quickly, as you know. And all that will be left to sign for here, will then be the second shelf starters offering little impact in the 2022 Mets rotation. As we have seen here before.
It's the two and three starters that need upgrade. The one, four and five guys are more than good ones.
This team's steep tradition was always the starting pitching. It must be this way again. Must.
Let's Go Mets!
I wonder why no team (including us) seems to have any interest whatsoever in Shildt, who brought the Cardinals to the post-season and was fired.
Whose dog did he savagely abuse?
When looking for the Manager Pat Murphy would be a good choice. Yes, he has only been a Intern Manager for the Padres. But his other manager experience is from ND & AZ University College 947-400-2 record. At the present time he has been Craig Counsel Bench Coach for 5 years. in fact Pat was Craig's Manager at ND. He is well rounded experience good analytical back ground. Plus the Mets would like to get Sterns the POBO for Brewers. Pat is also well respected across the MLB.
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