San Diego Padres Fill MLB’s Last Open Managerial Spot; Here’s a Look at Baseball’s New Skippers

The San Diego Padres had set their sights on the World Series even before the commencement of the 2024 season. Their do-or-die spirit has been made apparent in their predicted drafting decisions and lineup changes this month. Now, they have selected Mike Shildt as their new manager to fill up what was the last managerial spot in the MLB franchise. Incidentally, the Padres are not the only team to make changes in their executive lineups.

There are seven other big-league teams that have been implementing similar changes in their back offices. It seems like the entire queue of MLB officials is being shaken around in the hopes of a better and more victorious tomorrow. One might ask, who are the new skippers that got added to the rosters?

One, two, three, four… eight skippers in a row!

The San Diego Padres hired manager Mike Shildt to fill in for Bob Melvin, who migrated to one of the Padres’ rival teams this season. Shildt has had managerial experience for four years, working for the St. Louis Cardinals team. During his time there, the team placed first in the National League Central once in 2019. They also secured second place twice in 2020 and 2021 and third in 2018, the year Shildt made his managerial debut. The Padres lineup is in safe hands, as it seems. But what about the other teams? Did they get as lucky as the San Diego Padres with their selection of skippers?

Seven other teams have hired new managers for the upcoming season. The Los Angeles Angels hired ex-Rangers manager Ron Washington to replace Phil Nevin. They did not want to entertain a club option for Nevin, who managed them to lose 149 games in two seasons. Their rival, the Houston Astros, had an exactly opposite reason for their new managerial hire, Joe Espada. Astros ex-manager and legendary slugger Dusty Baker retired this season after giving the team a World Series title in 2022.

The Cleveland Guardians hired Stephen Vaught, replacing Terry Francona after he resigned following a health issue. Rival team: The Milwaukee Brewers had no other option than to let their pristine example of a manager, Craig Counsell, go. Counsell decided to migrate to the Chicago Cubs with a mind-bending contract after much speculation. Pat Murphy replaced him.

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Despite being initially seen as the frontrunners to secure Counsell, the Mets ultimately opted for Yankees bench coach Carlos Mendoza in their hiring decision. The San Francisco Giants had a reason similar to that of the Angels for their decision to offload Gabe Kapler. Ex-Padres manager Bob Melvin filled his place. It’s a full-circle moment, isn’t it? Let’s see what the new skippers bring to their teams for the 2024 season.

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