Current managerial interview list
DMZ · November 10, 2008 at 12:00 pm · Filed Under Mariners
Via Hickey who offers a lot more commentary and quotes to check out.
– Joey Cora, White Sox bench coach
– Chip Hale, Diamondbacks third base coach
– DeMarlo Hale, Red Sox third base coach
– Brad Mills, Boston bench coach
– Jose Oquendo, Cardinals third base coach
– Don Wakamatsu, A’s bench coach
and Randy Ready who is the only person on the list not currently a ML coach
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46 Responses to “Current managerial interview list”
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A long way to go, but I love the list. It seems like the M’s are looking for people who can bring fresh ideas.
The fact that the M’s would publicly release the list of names is pretty stunning. In the past few years, they wouldn’t even confirm reports that the sun rises in the east.
I guess Zduriencik is going to be a bit more open about the process than Bavasi was. At least, on the record.
Given that the team is so bad there is likely little to no interest amongst more established candidates … this list has all of hallmarks of rebuild.
Might as well give it to Joey Cora.
I’m resolutely anti-homer but in this case I don’t think it really matters, since I don’t think whoever the Ms hire is going to be here in 3-4 years anyhow.
I like that most are from more forward-thinking organizations, but I worry Cora may have the inside track. And though I know absolutely nothing else about Chip Hale, I’m not sure I trust the team to a guy who essentially plays 3rd string to Bob Melvin.
Still, I like the new direction, and in the absence of being a total bonehead, the field manager doesn’t make that much difference anyway.
Let’s just get this out of the way so the team can start fixing the roster.
The fact that the M’s would publicly release the list of names is pretty stunning.
Is it really that stunning? I know Geoff Baker said it was, but I remember they revealed most if not all of the managerial candidates the last two times around as well (not counting McLaren’s promotion). They did hold back Bob Melvin as a mystery candidate, but they seemed relatively open about the other names, unlike the GM interviews where people have had to ferret it out. Or is this just a change from Bavasi’s regime, rather than something more deep-rooted?
Anyone else remember Randy Ready’s old ESPN commercial in which he was showing off his collection of protective cups from all 17 teams he had played for up to that point? Classic.
I don’t like that only one of these guys is currently a manager at any level.
Firstly, managers in baseball have limited impact, but they have vastly more control over game-tactics and strategy than third-base coaches. Why abjure those who have actual managerial experience?
Secondly, it seems to me that ANY plausibly experienced, go-along-get-along sort of guy could make a perfectly good first-base/third-base/bench coach. In turn, this suggests that, in interviewing mainly major league coaches in those positions, the Mariners are not selecting from a pool of proven talent.
they’ve released the list, mentioned that there are likely more interviews to come, and apparently Zduriencik is having a conference call this afternoon to discuss the process.
in 2002 the list of potential candidates were from “an American League source”, and Gillick neither confirmed or denied; after the first wave had interviewed, Gillick allowed as how he had added a few more to the list, and referred to some of the interviewees by name.
Okay, so this is being more direct about it than past practice as well, then.
I believe all of these guys have some amount of minor league managerial experience, except Oquendo, who managed Puerto Rico in the 2006 WBC. Randy Ready is also a coach for Portland AAA right now.
I think it’s a good list, they all had good minor league success (except Oquendo), and I think people (e.g. USSM) have made good arguments about both not going the retread route and also considering successful minor league managers.
I like Randy Ready. We deserve an easy to spell manager after having to cope with spelling Zduriencik. Also, Ready’s wikipedia page is quite entertaining on various levels. That probably would change if he became a MLB manager.
From a purely linguistic standpoint, Chip Hale and Randy Ready are head and shoulders above the competition.
If I had to bet on who it will be, though, I’d put my money on ‘none of the above’. Just a feeling.
@vj
Yeah, Wiki has him with 789 homers and 238 RBI, which is a pretty neat trick.
in more FO meet-and-greet, Tom McNamara is scheduled to be on the 1-3 show on KJR tuesday
Curious if Dan Rohn would get considered? Or did the Mariners burn that bridge?
“Mariners”? I think you’re backwards, sir.
Well, at least they all have minor league manager experience. A minor league manager would be better than a major league “base coach.” I wondered about Dan Rohn as well. Wasn’t he made a “managerial consultant” as sort of a manager-in-waiting for when Hargrove would get fired and then got canned when Melvin did? Neither side would be willing to reopen those wounds I would think.
Guys, Dan Rohn might have been a great managerial candidate, but he pretty much hosed himself by badmouthing Hargrove’s decision making to the other coaches and staff. No matter how frustrated you get, if you’re going to cause drama in the clubhouse, you’re not helping your case to be the next skipper.
OK, here’s the scoop courtesy of the Traverse City Record Eagle in February 2007 (reprinted on the Tacoma News Tribune’s Web site):
“Following a 10-0 loss to Toronto on Sept. 13 (2006), general manager Bill Bavasi announced that Rohn and bench coach Ron Hassey had been fired.
“(Hargrove) told me he was eliminating the position,†Rohn said. “He said he didn’t like the negative publicity.â€
Fans suspected there was more to it, blogging that Hargrove had simply eliminated his competition. One fan wrote that Hargrove was “afraid that Dan was after his job, so he stabbed him in the back.â€
The Tacoma (Wash.) News Tribune reported on Sept. 15 that Hargrove and Rohn’s personalities “clashed†and that Rohn “disagreed with Hargrove’s managing and, worse, talked to other coaches and players about it. When that got back to Hargrove, Rohn’s departure was a matter of time.â€
Hargrove is still the team’s skipper.”
Colm: boo for using “proven talent”; yay for using “abjure.” I look forward to your comments on the denouement of this process.
Randy Ready remains the best male porn name since Rogers Hornsby. (Though who would’ve guessed our very own Roy Corcoran is already a star?)
This can’t be the FINAL list, I’d be willing to be there will some re-treads being interviewed for this job. Right?
Though lest we not forget about that late, great Milwaukee Braves 1B — Joe Adcock.
I don’t know much about Brad Mills’s own beliefs but he’s been Francona’s right hand man all along and they’ve done a nice job of integrating “new school” attitude toward bunting and OBP at the clubhouse level so that the players don’t feel it’s overbearing. Rather than browbeat players about walking and OBP, they emphasize a “Keep the line moving!” slogan. And Mills has seen how Francona *never* rips players in public, keeping everything behind closed doors and how Francona is almost constantly communicating with his guys. Seeing how Francona did things successfully doesn’t mean Mills will be able to, but he would come to the job with a pretty reasonable model of how to run things.
Hale? He’s been there for most of that same period, with Francona, but as 3rd base coach, not bench coach. He’s done a good job at third and had a good minor league managing resume, IIRC. But I can’t remember ever hearing him talk.
I’d like it to be Randy Ready just so we can read clever headlines like “Zduriencik thinks Randy’s ready” over and over again.
Also, correct me if I’m wrong but I’m pretty sure major league base coaches do quite a bit more than just wave guys around. One example would be Ron Washington who Eric Chavez credits for his fielding as an A’s base coach. Just because they aren’t in the dugout for half of every inning doesn’t mean they aren’t doing a lot of the same things a manager does.
I should clarify.
The last effing thing I’d like to see is some over the hill burnout roped in as the new M’s manager, because of his “proven Major League experience”.
I want someone who has shown that they know, tactically and politically, how to manage a team; I don’t want to see millions thrown at Bobby Valentine or Phil Garner etc.
And yes, I am speaking far above my level of competence.
That’s what these posts are for, innit?
GO JOEY CORA!!!
JOEY CORA ’08!!!
Please, Ozzie – we’re talking about ’09.
Where is Chuck Tanner when you need him? Is this the best they could do?
the Times has a brief bios page up, and Baker has notes on the conference call with Zduriencik, including the news that Riggleman is officially out
I’m hearing Grover’s got the itch again. Why isn’t his name on the list? (joke.)
I hope it’s Cora.
oh, and the M’s have settled on titles/roles for McNamara and Blengino, and hired (Zduriencik homeboy) Carmen Fusco as head of pro scouting
The only thing I know of Jose Oquendo is that he was a terrible batter in the original RBI Baseball for the NES. Based on this alone, I have serious doubts about his ability to be a successful manager.
ah, but how’d he do in Strat-o-Matic?
Carmen Fusco
Wasn’t that, like, Fonzie’s girlfriend on Happy Days or something?
This is the future manager of the Mariners?
Also, Jose Oquendo was pretty god awful in Stratomatic. Light hitting non walking and overrated as a fielder (I think he was something like a 3 e22 despite his reputation as a man with a golden glove). Probably a B hit and run, stealing A or B, running 1-16. So you could use him like you would have used Willie F Bloomquist…
Larry Stone has updated his article to include quotes from Riggleman & from Zduriencik’s conference call:
“Zduriencik left open the possibility that another candidate or two could be added to the list, though it’s not going to be former Brewers manager Ned Yost or ex-Mets manager — and new Milwaukee bench coach — Willie Randolph. Zduriencik hasn’t spoken to either in weeks.
Onetime Mets manager Bobby Valentine, another rumored candidate, was never contacted by the Mariners.”
Has Cora ever managed in the minors?
If so, how did that go?
He managed the Mets’ rookie-league team in 2001 and 2002, with a record of 54-79. In 2003 he managed an Expos farm team in low A ball that went 58-80.
sorry, that was Baker’s article — Stone is here
1999-2001 general manager for Caguas (Puerto Rican Winter League)
2000 coached with Class A Daytona (Chicago Cubs)
2001 managed Advanced Rookie Kingsport, 31-35 (New York Mets)
2002 Advanced Rookie Kingsport, 23-44
2003 managed Class A Savannah, 58-80 (Montreal Expos)
2005 managed LaGuaira, 31-31 (Venezuelan Winter League)
2005-07 3B coach, White Sox
2008 bench coach, White Sox
Is there anywhere to check which of these guys speak Spanish or Japanese?
In light of the ever-increasing numbers of players for whom English is a second language (if at all), shouldn’t the ability to more easily communicate with your star players count a lot? If I ran the team it would.
well, we know Cora & Oquendo speak Spanish; Wakamatsu says he took a year of Japanese in college but claims he doesn’t really speak it.
Joey Cora speaks the language of the crying inner child in all of us.
interestingly, both Cora and C. Hale kept stressing fundamentals and playing the game correctly. huh. you’d think they watched the Ms last year or something.
I’m missing something. Why do any of you believe Joey Cora would be a good manager? He didn’t strike me as a real team leader while playing here. His meager (non-majors) managerial record stinks. I don’t get the enthusiasm.
Let’s get past the “homer” syndrome and get somebody who can actually manage a team.
Why isn’t Ryne Sandberg, managing the Cubs’ Iowa AAA team, being considered?