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NL West Notes: Kelly, Pham, Dodgers, Padres, Preller

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Merrill Kelly’s gem of an outing in Game 2 has made him the talk of baseball, and The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal took a look back at the right-hander’s unique path to the World Series stage.  Beginning his career in the Rays’ farm system, Kelly signed with the KBO League’s SK Wyverns and spent four seasons pitching in South Korea, despite feeling an urge to return to North American baseball halfway through that stint.  Still, pitching in the KBO League sparked Kelly’s career to the point that Diamondbacks had interest in a free agent deal during the 2018-19 offseason, and Kelly signed a two-year, $5.5MM deal with club options attached for 2021 and 2022.

This was the only multi-year offer Kelly received that winter, so he jumped at the chance at some extra security as he made his MLB debut at age 30.  Between that initial contract and a subsequent extension signed prior to the 2022 season, Kelly’s time in Arizona has now included five seasons, at least $32.5MM in guaranteed salary, and now a key role in the postseason.  Kelly has a 2.25 ERA over four starts and 24 innings in these playoffs, and holds an interesting distinction as the first pitcher to earn a win in both the Korean Series (helping the Wyverns capture the 2018 title) and the World Series.

Some more from around the NL West….

  • Before the Diamondbacks picked up Tommy Pham from the Mets at the trade deadline, the Dodgers were known to be one of several other teams who considered acquiring the veteran outfielder.  Pham told Jorge Castillo of the Los Angeles Times that he wanted to join the Dodgers last offseason, but president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman twice turned down overtures from Pham’s agent, as L.A. was focused on adding a left-handed hitting outfielder instead.  David Peralta ended up being that lefty swinging outfielder, and while Peralta had a subpar season, Pham hit .256/.328/.446 over 481 combined PA with the Mets and D’Backs this season.  Pham has continued to contribute during Arizona’s playoff run, including a four-hit night in Game 2 of the World Series.
  • A.J. Preller’s management style as the Padres’ president of baseball operations has come under increased criticism due to the team’s disappointing 2023 season, as well as the reported discord between Preller and now-former manager Bob Melvin.  Preller spoke with Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune and other reporters about what he is looking for in hiring the Padres’ next skipper, with Acee adding details and anecdotes within the piece related to Preller’s approach, his (to some, overbearing) attention to detail, and the communication breakdown that occurred between Preller and Melvin over the last year.

Padres Notes: Christenson, Soto

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Bob Melvin isn’t alone in going from the Padres to the Giants, as reports have suggested that San Diego third base coach Matt Williams will be joining Melvin in San Francisco.  Padres associate manager Ryan Christenson also looks to be on the move, as The Athletic’s Andrew Baggarly writes that Christenson is expected to be a part of Melvin’s staff with the Giants.  Christenson has been Melvin’s second-in-command for the last six seasons, first as Melvin’s bench coach with the A’s from 2018-21 and then joining him with the Padres as a bench coach and associate manager for the last two seasons.

  • With the Cubs and Yankees both already rumored to be eyeing Juan Soto this offseason, the trade speculation about the Padres star isn’t likely to end until he is either extended by San Diego, or until a trade actually happens.  Of course, it isn’t yet clear if the Padres are willing to move Soto at all this winter, and The Athletic’s Chris Kirschner hears from a league source that if Soto is dealt, it might not happen until closer to the trade deadline.  Dealing Soto that late would naturally reduce the trade package San Diego would receive in return, yet for a Padres team desperate to contend in 2024, they might first want to see if they can get on track with Soto in the lineup before considering a deal.

Cubs Reportedly Interested In Juan Soto

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The Cubs are reportedly among the teams that have interest in dealing for Padres superstar Juan Soto this offseason, per Bruce Levine of 670 The Score, who reports that Chicago will be “involved” in Soto’s market. It’s the second report this week to suggest a potential trade partner for the Padres in a Soto deal, as earlier reporting indicated that the Yankees have checked in with the Padres regarding Soto’s availability.

Reports have indicated that the Padres will look to cut payroll this offseason by as much as $50MM. With key pieces of the club’s pitching staff like Blake Snell, Josh Hader, and Seth Lugo likely ticketed for free agency this winter, that leaves the club minimal room to either re-sign or replace those arms as they look to bounce back from a difficult 2023 campaign that saw them miss the postseason with an 82-80 record. A trade of Soto, who MLBTR’s Matt Swartz projects to receive $33MM in his final trip through arbitration this offseason, would free up plenty of budget space for the Padres this offseason while also providing an influx of young talent that could impact the club in 2024 and beyond.

Meanwhile, the Cubs are coming off a relatively surprising season that saw them exceed expectations. Rather than the expected sell-off that would have seen them deal Marcus Stroman and Cody Bellinger, the Cubs picked up third baseman Jeimer Candelario and reliever Jose Cuas at the trade deadline and entered September in good shape to return to the postseason in a full campaign for the first time since 2018. Unfortunately, the club collapsed down the stretch with a 7-15 record over their final 22 games. Ultimately, the club finished with an 83-79 record, just one game back of the Diamondbacks and Marlins in the NL Wild Card race.

With Bellinger set to hit free agency this offseason, replacing the outfielders 134 wRC+ and 4.1 fWAR figures to be a key focus of the offseason in Chicago. Soto, who slashed .275/.410/.519 with a 155 wRC+ and 5.5 fWAR in characteristically excellent 2023 campaign, would certainly fill the gap in the club’s offense left by Bellinger’s impending departure. That being said, Soto’s fit in Chicago is imperfect. Most notably, the club has both Ian Happ and Seiya Suzuki locked up to patrol the outfield corners through the 2026 campaign, complicating Soto’s positional fit on the team. While Happ has plenty of experience in center field, he made no appearances at the position in 2023 and played just 12 innings there in 2022; his last season as the club’s regular center fielder was in 2020, his age-25 campaign.

Of course, that’s to say nothing of Chicago’s outfield-heavy crop of prospect talent residing in the upper minors, headlined by top prospect Pete Crow-Armstrong and his elite center field defense. Both Crow-Armstrong and Alexander Canario made their big league debuts this September, while Owen Caissie, Kevin Alcantara, and Brennen Davis are also limited to the outfield. Of course, that logjam could be cleared by including one or more of the aforementioned prospects in the return package for Soto, though even in that case the Cubs would likely be forced to play Soto or Happ primarily at DH in 2023 upon the arrival of Crow-Armstrong.

Another potentially complicating factor for the Cubs is Soto’s pending free agency. With Soto set to hit the open market following the 2024 season and the Cubs still building up toward contention, it’s fair to wonder if a club better situated for a World Series run in 2024 would be more aggressive in looking to acquire Soto than the Cubs. Although an acquiring club could certainly look to extend Soto to a long-term deal after dealing for him, agent Scott Boras is known for encouraging his clients to establish their value on the open market and Soto previously rejected a $440MM extension offer from the Nationals earlier in his career.

The Cubs have rarely shown an appetite for megadeals at that level, as evidenced by last offseason’s signing of Dansby Swanson to a seven-year, $177MM deal in lieu of a pursuit of another top shortstop like Trea Turner or Xander Bogaerts, both of whom signed commitments spanning a decade or longer. That said, it’s worth noting that Soto is far younger than the typical free agent. Swanson’s current deal in Chicago runs through his age-35 season; Soto could sign a 10-year deal next offseason and celebrate his 36th birthday during October of the final year of that contract.

Levine goes on to discuss a potential return package for Soto if the Padres and Cubs were to agree on a trade. He notes that utility player Christopher Morel has garnered trade interest from multiple clubs, and that sources indicated the Padres are particularly high on him. Morel hit well during his sophomore campaign in 2023, slashing .247/.313/.508 with 26 home runs. Morel primarily served as Chicago’s DH this season, though he logged time at all three outfield spots, second base, third base, and shortstop throughout the season. While Morel has proven playable all around the diamond, he’s appeared to be a below-average fielder at most of those positions. His best defensive position appears to be second base, though in Chicago he’s blocked at the keystone by 2023 Gold Glove finalist Nico Hoerner, who’s under contract through 2026. Between Morel’s bat, versatility, and pre-arbitration status, he figures to be a sought-after piece in trade discussions with the Cubs this offseason even in spite of his defensive shortcomings.

Ryan Flaherty, Mike Shildt Receive Interviews For Padres’ Managerial Vacancy

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The Padres recently gave manager Bob Melvin permission to pursue a job with the Giants, which quickly resulted in Melvin making the switch and signing a three-year deal. Now the Padres have their own managerial vacancy to deal with.

It was immediately speculated that bench coach Ryan Flaherty and senior advisor Mike Shildt were the top internal options and that seems to have been borne out this week. Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune reports that Shildt was interviewed Wednesday, with Flaherty scheduled to have his own interview on Friday. But it won’t be just those two getting consideration, as Acee says it’s likely pitching coach Ruben Niebla will be in the mix, in addition to external candidates.

“I think we’ll sit down with some internal candidates the next few days, but we’re going to make sure we exhaust all the different possibilities to get the right choice. There’s no real timeframe,” president of A.J. Preller tells Acee. “It’s a big offseason for us. We’ve got a lot of decisions to make. This is the first one. We want to try to get it right.”

Flaherty, 37, joined the Padres in November of 2019 as quality control coach. In January of 2022, the Mets were interested in him for their vacant bench coach position, but the Padres denied that club permission to interview him. That perhaps indicates the Padres are quite fond of Flaherty and they made him bench coach in San Diego a year later. He doesn’t have managerial experience but is clearly well respected around the game, having garnered plenty of interest since retiring as a player.

Shildt, 55, managed the Cardinals from 2018 to 2021 but was surprisingly dismissed after clashing with the front office. He then joined the Padres in a player development role but has expressed an interest in returning to the dugout at some point.

Niebla, 51, has been around the game for some time, having served as a coach in the minor leagues for many years. He was hired by the Padres to be their pitching coach after the 2021 season. It’s unknown if the club is interested in interviewing him but Acee relays that Niebla has previously expressed an interesting in managing.

It’s unknown which external candidates will be considered or how long the Padres plan to take to make a hire, but it seems they don’t have a strict timeline based on Preller’s comments. It’s a key offseason for the club, who will be looking to bounce back from a disappointing 2023 season. The club had a run differential of +104, which was actually third best in the National League and miles better than the -15 of the pennant-winning Diamondbacks. But the Padres went 9-23 in one-run games and 2-12 in extra innings, causing them to fall just shy of the playoffs.

Reports emerged after the season of discord between Preller and Melvin. While they initially planned to work together again in 2024, the Giants came calling and it seems the Padres did little to stand in the way of Melvin jumping to the Giants. They received no compensation for Melvin’s departure, apparently content to get his $4MM salary off the books and start fresh with a new skipper. The Friars have a number of high-priced veterans and will surely be motivated to win while those players are still in/near their primes. It’s also their final season before Juan Soto departs via free agency, though other teams figure to call and talk trades, especially with the Padres looking to cut some costs.

MLBTR Podcast: Adolis García, the Tyler Glasnow Decision and Bob Melvin

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The latest episode of the MLB Trade Rumors Podcast is now live on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and wherever you get your podcasts! Make sure you subscribe as well! You can also use the player at this link to listen, if you don’t use Spotify or Apple for podcasts.

This week, host Darragh McDonald is joined by Anthony Franco of MLB Trade Rumors to discuss…

  • The Rangers are in the World Series for the first time since 2011 (0:55)
  • Looking back on the journey of Adolis García (5:00)
  • What’s next for the Astros after dropping the ALCS? (7:40)
  • Bob Melvin reportedly moving from the Padres to the Giants (10:15)
  • Is Tyler Glasnow a trade candidate or not? (14:45)
  • The Offseason Outlook of the Dodgers (21:45)

Plus, we answer your questions, including…

Check out our past episodes!

  • Boston Searches for a Boss, Kim Ng and Surgery for Brandon Woodruff – listen here
  • The Mets’ Front Office, TJ for Alcantara and the D-Backs Extend Their GM – listen here
  • Mariners To Spend? Tigers To Contend? And Managerial Vacancies – listen here​

Yankees, Padres Have Had Preliminary Discussions On Juan Soto

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The Yankees have checked in with the Padres regarding the trade candidacy of Juan Soto, reports Andy Martino of SNY. Those discussions, which Martino unsurprisingly categorizes as “preliminary,” should be one of many calls that San Diego receives on the superstar outfielder in the weeks and months to come.

Teams are still prohibited from making trades, although there was never any chance of the Padres making such a monumental move this early in the offseason anyhow. Clubs can identify and discuss early targets in preparation for the reopening of the trade window, which occurs the day after the end of the World Series.

Speculation about Soto’s availability has lingered back to before the trade deadline. The scuffling Padres elected to buy over the summer, hoping those additions would combine with improved play out of their existing roster to push them back into contention. San Diego didn’t start winning consistently until it was too late, never erasing the deficit and finishing two games behind the Diamondbacks.

The underwhelming place in the standings alone was always going to reignite chatter about Soto’s availability. Adding fuel to the fire were various late-season reports that the Friars hoped to cut back spending. Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune pegged the target figure around $200MM, which would be nearly $50MM south of this past season’s level. Even if the Padres don’t slice payroll to that extent, it seems clear they will be more austere this winter than they have in the past couple offseasons.

MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projects Soto for a $33MM salary next year, his final season of arbitration eligibility. That’d easily top the $30MM record which Shohei Ohtani established last winter for an arb-eligible player, making Soto the highest-paid player on the San Diego roster. Yet even that lofty figure is well below the open market value for one prime-aged season of a player who is among the game’s five best hitters.

The three-time All-Star overcame a relatively slow start to turn in a characteristically excellent season. Soto hit .275/.410/.519, popping 35 home runs while leading baseball with 132 walks. Among batters with 500+ plate appearances, he ranked third in on-base percentage and 11th in slugging.

Soto would be a massive upgrade for any team in baseball. While that’ll make him a popular target, it would also make trading him a massive decision for the Padres. San Diego is going to make another push to compete in 2024. Removing Soto from the equation makes that quite a bit harder, even if they’re able to reallocate some of that payroll room into addressing a mediocre bottom of the lineup and/or filling a rotation that could lose each of Blake Snell, Michael Wacha and Seth Lugo to free agency.

Even if the Padres were fully determined to cut player spending to the $200MM range, they don’t have to trade Soto to make that happen. If Wacha, Lugo and Nick Martinez each hit free agency, the Friars would have around $127MM in salary commitments for next season. That doesn’t include Soto’s arbitration projection, which would push them near $160MM. Arbitration projections for Trent Grisham and Scott Barlow would nudge them past $170MM.

That may not leave a ton of space in the budget for free agent acquisitions — and they’ll certainly need to address the rotation in some form — but it doesn’t force their hand on a Soto trade specifically. Any of Grisham, Barlow or Ha-Seong Kim would have appeal if the Padres were to consider marketing them instead.

Martino suggests that Soto could be available if another team puts forth an appropriate offer, indicating the 25-year-old is not categorically untouchable. That aligns with comments from president of baseball operations A.J. Preller at the start of the offseason. At season’s end, Preller told reporters the organization would reengage Soto’s representation at the Boras Corporation about a potential extension (link via AJ Cassavell of MLB.com). Asked about the possibility of a trade if they can’t work out a long-term deal, San Diego’s baseball ops leader noted they’ve “never been a group that (rules out) anything” before reiterating that their “first path” would be a chat with Soto’s camp about a contract.

If the Padres get to a point this offseason in which they’re seriously entertaining a Soto blockbuster, the Yankees are one of a number of teams that could be involved. New York is as good a fit as any given their willingness to spend at the top of the league and a need to address left field. Every team with payroll room would have room on the roster for Soto, although only teams with a legitimate path to contention in 2024 are plausible suitors to top the trade market for a player one year from free agency. The Yankees are the first of many teams that are likely to be mentioned in Soto rumors during the offseason.

Giants Hire Bob Melvin As Manager

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October 25: The Giants have made it official, announcing today that Bob Melvin is now their manager.

October 24: The Giants “are poised to announce” that Bob Melvin has been hired as the team’s new manager, The Athletic’s Andrew Baggarly reports.  It isn’t known when the official announcement could be made, though the league prefers that teams save major news for between postseason rounds, so the Giants may wait until for the two days between the end of the NLCS and the start of the World Series on Friday.

Between the late-season firing of Gabe Kapler as manager and the reports of discord between Melvin and Padres president of baseball operations A.J. Preller, there has been plenty of speculation over the last month that Melvin might find himself on the move from San Diego to San Francisco.  Padres chairman Peter Seidler’s stated preference was that both Melvin and Preller remain with the organization in 2024, and Preller even said in a post-season wrapup press conference that “Bob is our manager, and he’s going to be our manager going forward.”

However, Melvin remained on the Giants’ radar, and a parting between Melvin and the Padres seemed inevitable once San Diego granted Melvin permission to interview with the Giants this past weekend.  As Baggarly reports, that interview took place on Monday, and involved several members of San Francisco’s ownership group and baseball operations staff, not to mention franchise icon Buster Posey.  It seems as though the interview was enough to confirm Melvin’s status as the favorite for the job, and the veteran skipper will now get a new job as an early birthday present, as he turns 62 on Saturday.

Melvin’s resume includes three Manager of the Year Awards, eight postseason appearances, and a 1517-1425 record over 20 seasons with the Padres, Athletics, Diamondbacks, and Mariners.  The hiring in San Francisco is also something of a homecoming for the Palo Alto native, and a continuation of Melvin’s linkage of the Bay Area and his baseball career.  Melvin played with the Giants for three of his 10 seasons as a big league catcher, and had an 11-year stint managing the A’s from 2011-21.

As it happens, this is the second time in almost exactly two years that Melvin take a new managerial job while leaving another job with one year remaining on his contract.  The A’s had contractual control over Melvin for the 2022 season but chose to let him walk to the Padres without compensation, with reports stating that Melvin’s $4MM salary was seen as onerous for an Oakland club that was about to embark on a major teardown.  It is also fair to assume that the Athletics front office was open to letting Melvin make a graceful exit to a better situation, rather than keep him as manager for at least one season of what looks like it will be a lengthy rebuild process.

This past weekend’s reports from Baggarly and Dennis Lin suggest that Melvin’s current salary (also $4MM for 2024, the last year of his Padres contract) might have been a factor in San Diego’s decision, as the organization is planning to reduce expenditures in a number of different areas.  With a mounting debt that could be in conflict with MLB regulations and some broadcasting uncertainty due to the Diamond Sports Group’s bankruptcy proceedings, the Padres look to be cutting back on the high-spending ways, including a reported reduction in player payroll to around $200MM for next season.

Finances aside, the simpler answer is probably just that the Giants’ interest allowed for the Padres to part ways with Melvin in relatively smooth fashion, without the awkwardness of a firing.  Preller has already fired three different managers (Bud Black, Andy Green, Jayce Tingler) during his nine-plus years in charge of San Diego’s front office, and three other men (Dave Roberts, Pat Murphy, Rod Barajas) have also worked as interim managers.  Of course, whether it was a firing or a “parting of the ways,” the bottom line is that the Padres have had another manager come and go while Preller remains.

Lin and Ken Rosenthal examined how the Preller/Melvin relationship soured in a piece for The Athletic last month, and the criticisms of Preller’s management style also predated Melvin’s arrival in San Diego.  In fact, Melvin’s hiring was seen as a stabilizing element after the clubhouse turmoil that marked the end of Tingler’s managerial stint, yet it seems as though the ship was only steadied through the success of the 2022 season.  This year, the Padres underachieved despite their massive payroll, with a very poor record in one-run (9-23) and extra-inning (2-12) games undermining a team that, by all other statistical measurements, should’ve won a lot more than 82 games.

With even more pressure on Preller to get the Friars on track, the next managerial hire will be one of the most crucial decisions of his tenure.  Two internal candidates (Mike Shildt and bench coach Ryan Flaherty) have already emerged as leading contenders for the job, and it might be that the Padres wanted to start lining up some candidates before officially green-lighting Melvin’s interview with San Francisco.  San Diego will surely interview some other people out of due diligence, though it wouldn’t be a shock if the job does end up going to either first-time manager Flaherty, or former Cardinals skipper Shildt.

As for Melvin, he’ll now take over another team in need of a culture change.  After winning 107 games in 2021, the Giants are 159-163 over the last two seasons, and Kapler’s hands-off managerial style was starting to seem more like a detriment than a plus.  Several Giants players, either on or off the record, felt the club was somewhat directionless, with Logan Webb outright stating he felt “we have to make some big changes in here to create that winning culture.”

These criticisms extended not only to Kapler but to president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi, whose contract is believed to run only through the end of the 2024 season.  As such, Zaidi is also certainly feeling the pressure to build a contending roster, and the Giants are expected to be aggressive shoppers this winter after missing out on both Aaron Judge and Carlos Correa as a big-ticket addition last offseason.  Faced with what might be a make-or-break scenario, it probably isn’t surprising that Zaidi has turned to a familiar face as manager — Zaidi previously worked as the Athletics’ assistant GM during Melvin’s tenure in Oakland.

The terms of Melvin’s contract aren’t yet known, though Baggarly suggests it could be a relatively short-term deal, should Melvin view the San Francisco job “as a fitting place to round out” his career.  There has been some buzz about possible coaching changes coming to the Giants’ staff, though Baggarly suggests that the majority of San Francisco’s 13-person staff could be retained.  That perhaps puts a different spin on the Giants’ managerial search, as the focus on internal candidates and others with past Giants ties (i.e. Stephen Vogt) might have been a way of gauging how any of these candidates might have been willing to mesh with Melvin, if he was Zaidi’s preferred choice all along.

Latest On Padres’ Managerial Situation

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The possibility of a managerial change in San Diego rose back to the forefront yesterday, as the Padres granted permission for the Giants to speak with Bob Melvin. The three-time Manager of the Year, who’s familiar with both the Bay Area and San Francisco president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi from his long stint with the A’s, now seems a strong candidate to leave San Diego for a division rival.

Melvin is under contract with the Padres for next season. As a result, the Friars could require compensation to approve him taking the job elsewhere. Dennis Lin of the Athletic writes that the Padres may not demand more than a marginal return to allow the veteran skipper to depart, however.

That’s a reflection of the apparently strained relationship between Melvin and baseball operations leader A.J. Preller. Multiple late-season reports indicated there was a strong divide between the two. San Diego ownership clearly doesn’t believe the situation had become untenable. After a meeting between Preller, Melvin and chairman Peter Seidler, the organization announced a few weeks ago that Melvin would return. However, the Giants’ interest could afford San Diego a fresh start while clearing Melvin’s $4MM salary. Had he been fired, the Padres would’ve remained on the hook for the money.

If Melvin heads to San Francisco, the Padres have a few internal candidates to take his place. Bench coach Ryan Flaherty and senior advisor Mike Shildt seem the likeliest options. In a piece at The Athletic, Britt Ghiroli and Lin write that the 37-year-old Flaherty is highly regarded within the organization and seemingly has a strong relationship with Preller. As a result, they suggest the former Orioles infielder appears the top internal option.

By contrast, Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune casts Shildt as the in-house potential favorite. The 55-year-old has prior MLB managerial experience, having led the Cardinals from midway through 2018 until he was dismissed after the ’21 season due to what St. Louis called “philosophical differences” with the front office. (Flaherty’s only managerial experience consisted of a two-week interim stint in 2022 while Melvin was recovering from surgery.) Shildt has spent the last two years working with Preller’s front office and has been open about his hope for another managerial position.

Both The Athletic and the Union-Tribune suggest San Diego could also consider external opportunities. It’s too soon to say with certainty that Melvin is even departing, much less the position will come down to Flaherty or Shildt. Given the Giants’ stated goal of finalizing their hire before the start of free agency, there figures to be a resolution within the relatively near future.

Padres Permit Bob Melvin To Interview For Giants’ Managerial Position

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Padres manager Bob Melvin has been given permission by the team to interview with the Giants about their managerial vacancy, according to The Athletic’s Dennis Lin and Andrew Baggarly.  “Melvin has emerged as the favorite in San Francisco, with league sources indicating that he received assurances he would be a top candidate before he agreed to participate in the interview process,” Lin and Baggarly write.

Reports surfaced two days ago that the Giants were temporarily halting their search for a new manager while waiting to hear back from rival teams for their go-ahead to interview employees.  Melvin was chief among this new group of candidates, and it could very well be that the Giants were specifically waiting on the Padres on whether or not Melvin would be allowed to speak with the division rival.  Melvin is still under contract with San Diego through the end of the 2024 season, though rumors have swirled for months about Melvin’s future with the club and his relationship with president of baseball operations A.J. Preller.

By this point, it would seem like an upset if Melvin doesn’t end up as San Francisco’s next manager.  While the official interview has yet to take place, Melvin and Giants president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi are quite familiar with each other — Melvin was the Athletics’ manager when Zaidi began his baseball career in Oakland’s front office over a decade ago.  Lin and Baggarly note that it could create an even more awkward situation between Melvin and Preller if Melvin didn’t end up getting the Giants job, so perhaps regardless of what happens with the San Francisco interview, Melvin might not be back as the Padres’ skipper in 2024.

Back in September, Lin and Ken Rosenthal delved into the internal issues that have plagued the Padres organization even before their disappointing 2023 season.  Chief among these problems is the allegedly frosty relationship between Melvin and Preller, though both men have downplayed the idea of any discord.  After the Padres finished with only an 82-80 record this season, there was plenty of speculation that either Melvin or both Melvin and Preller could be fired, yet club chairman Peter Seidler gave a full vote of confidence to his management team at season’s end.  Preller also stated soon afterward that “Bob is our manager, and he’s going to be our manager going forward,” seemingly putting the matter to rest.

However, many pundits felt a parting was coming sooner rather than the later, especially when the Giants’ managerial position became open after Gabe Kapler was fired.  The past ties between Melvin and Zaidi made the veteran skipper a logical candidate from day one, assuming the hurdle of the Padres’ clearance for an interview could be jumped.

It is possible the Padres and Giants might work out a trade to officially send Melvin to the Bay Area, or the Padres might simply see this as an opportunity for a fresh start.  Melvin leaving for another job rather than being fired, as Baggarly and Lin note, would save the Padres the $4MM owed to the manager in salary for the 2024 season.  This tracks with the Padres’ overall plan to cut costs next season, ranging from both internal financial matters like a manager’s salary to player payroll.

If Melvin was to be hired by the Giants, San Diego would suddenly be in need of a new manager, though Lin and Baggarly cite bench coach Ryan Flaherty and coach Mike Shildt as possible candidates to take over the job.  Best known for his days as an Orioles utilityman, Flaherty has been on the Padres’ coaching staff for the last four seasons, and was promoted to bench coach prior to the 2023 campaign.  Prior to hiring Melvin, Preller’s previous two managerial hires were Andy Green and Jayce Tingler, who (like Flaherty) had never managed at the MLB level.

On the other hand, Shildt is a former skipper, managing the Cardinals from 2018-2021 and leading the club to postseason appearances in the last three of those seasons.  Shildt was rather surprisingly fired after the 2021 season due to what Cardinals president of baseball operations John Mozeliak described as “philosophical differences,” and the Padres then interviewed Shildt for the managerial vacancy that was eventually filled by Melvin.  San Diego ended up hiring Shildt anyway that winter for a player development position, and he moved into a coaching role this past season.

Matt Williams Possibly Joining Giants Coaching Staff?

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Bob Melvin’s upcoming interview with the Giants has only increased the speculation that the Padres manager could soon be taking over in San Francisco’s dugout, to the point that Melvin’s prospective coaching staff might already be coming into view.  According to Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle, Melvin “would be likely” to bring Padres third base coach Matt Williams along with him from San Diego to San Francisco.  Williams was a four-time All-Star with the Giants during his playing career, and two other former Giants players are also under consideration for coaching roles — Pat Burrell as a new hitting coach, and Ryan Vogelsong as the new pitching coach.

  • The Athletics are parting ways with bullpen coach Mike McCarthy, Fangraphs’ David Laurila writes.  2023 was McCarthy’s first year on Oakland’s coaching staff, and his first year on a big league staff altogether.  Before joining the A’s, McCarthy spent five seasons coaching for the Triple-A affiliates of the Padres and Twins.
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