HOUSTON -- The Astros’ search for a manager to replace AJ Hinch will stretch beyond just bench coach Joe Espada, with owner Jim Crane opening up a national search that will include experienced names like Bruce Bochy, Dusty Baker and Buck Showalter. Espada, Bochy, Baker and Showalter are among the
HOUSTON -- The Astros’ search for a manager to replace AJ Hinch will stretch beyond just bench coach Joe Espada, with owner Jim Crane opening up a national search that will include experienced names like Bruce Bochy, Dusty Baker and Buck Showalter.
Espada, Bochy, Baker and Showalter are among the candidates Crane is considering, a source told MLB.com on Wednesday. Other names on the team’s early list are former Rangers manager Jeff Banister, Cubs third-base coach Will Venable and Dodgers special assistant Raúl Ibañez. KRIV-TV in Houston was the first to report the names.
The Astros are moving quickly in their efforts to replace Hinch, who along with general manager Jeff Luhnow was fired on Monday after MLB had suspended them for one year for their role in the sign-stealing scandal. With only four weeks before pitchers and catchers report to West Palm Beach, Fla., for the start of Spring Training, time is of the essence. The Astros would like to fill both positions by early February, a source said
The Astros, a source said, are expected to hire a manager before they hire a general manager. Crane said Monday he would run the baseball operations until a new GM can be hired. A source says Crane met with the coaching staff Monday at Minute Maid Park for the first time since Hinch and Luhnow were dismissed.
Here’s a closer look at some of the candidates to take over as manager, along with their current or former roles:
Dusty Baker (former Giants, Cubs, Reds and Nationals manager): A three-time National League Manager of the Year, Baker managed for 20 years with four teams, leading the Giants to the 2002 World Series and taking the Cubs, Reds and Nationals to the playoffs. Baker is highly respected in the game with 1,863 career wins, but his failures in the postseason have been notable. He’s known as a players’ manager, but he's 70 years old.
Jeff Banister (Pirates special assistant): Banister, 55, went 325-313 in five seasons as manager of the Rangers, winning two AL West titles in his first two years. The Astros wrestled control of the division away from Texas and won the AL West from 2017-19. Banister grew up in the Houston area and attended the University of Houston. The AL Manager of the Year in 2015, he was the Pirates' bench coach from 2011-14 and returned to the Pittsburgh organization after he was dismissed by the Rangers following the 2018 season.
Bruce Bochy (former Giants and Padres manager): Bochy, 64, just recently stepped down after a hugely successful 13-year run with San Francisco (2007-19), where he led the Giants to World Series titles in 2010, 2012 and 2014. That came on the heels of 12 years as the San Diego Padres manager, which included one World Series appearance. The former Astros catcher would bring a wealth experience and knowledge to a club that will contend in the AL this year.
Joe Espada (Astros bench coach): Espada, 43, would make a smooth transition into the managerial chair after serving as Hinch’s bench coach the last two years. Espada was a finalist for the managerial jobs with the Cubs and Giants this offseason. He came to the Astros after four years with the Yankees (2014-17), serving the last three as the Yankees' third-base coach. Prior to that, he had an eight-year stint with the Marlins (2006-13), including time as third-base coach for four seasons (2010-13).
Raúl Ibañez (Dodgers special assistant): Ibañez, 47, spent 19 years as a player in the big leagues, mostly with the Mariners. He also played for the Royals, Phillies, Yankees and Angels. Ibañez has been a special advisor with the Dodgers since 2016. He was a finalist for the Rays' managerial position in 2014 even though he had not officially retired as a player.
Buck Showalter (former Yankees, D-backs, Rangers and Orioles manager): A three-time AL Manager of the Year, Showalter, 63, served as manager of the Yankees (1992-95), D-backs (1998-2000), Rangers (2003-06) and Orioles (2010-18). He has a 1,551-1,517 record during his managerial career, during which he was known for taking over floundering clubs and turning them around. He guided the Yankees, D-backs and Orioles to the playoffs and managed the Yankees and D-backs the year before they won the World Series (1996 and 2001, respectively).
Will Venable (Cubs third-base coach): Less than four years removed from his playing career, Venable is considered an up-and-coming managerial candidate. Venable, 37, played basketball and baseball at Princeton before spending nine years as a player in the big leagues, including eight with the Padres. He was named special assistant to Cubs president of baseball operations Theo Epstein in 2017 and served as the Cubs' first-base coach in '18 and ’19 before shifting to third base prior to this season.
Brian McTaggart has covered the Astros since 2004, and for MLB.com since 2009. Follow @brianmctaggart on Twitter.
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January 15, 2020 at 04:05PM
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Potential targets in Astros' managerial search - MLB.com
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