Ranking the MLB managerial openings

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KANSAS CITY, MO – SEPTEMBER 13: Kansas City Royals manager Ned Yost (3) and general manager Dayton Moore present right fielder Jorge Soler (12) with an award for setting the Royals single season home run record before an MLB baseball game between the Houston Astros and Kansas City Royals on September 13, 2019 at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City, MO. (Photo by Scott Winters/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

6. Kansas City Royals

After managing the Royals for nine-plus seasons and guiding the franchise through its most successful period since the 1980s, it was time for Ned Yost to call it a career. The decidedly old-school skipper wasn’t going to be the right person at his age to lead the Royals through what looks like another lengthy rebuilding effort. Yost leaves as one of the most beloved managers in Kansas City history, having ended a 30-year World Series drought.

Kansas City’s front office, led by Dayton Moore, will remain intact. Moore, the architect of the 2014 and 2015 World Series teams, has been in charge for the Royals since 2006. During that time, the Royals have had only three winning seasons.

Moore deserves credit for guiding the Royals to their World Series title, but putting him anywhere near the upper echelon of MLB executives is definitely a stretch. The Royals hit it big on Eric Hosmer, Mike Moustakas and Lorenzo Cain, but their player-development wins have mostly been few and far between. The World Series runs were also timed perfectly during a down period for both the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox. Luck played a bigger part in turning the Royals into champions than skilled general managing from the front office.

The Royals don’t have a great farm system at the moment, nor are they extremely progressive when it comes to analytics. Bobby Witt Jr. is a nice piece to build a system around, but he’s only 19. There’s also a new ownership group coming in. If progress isn’t made on the rebulid within the first few seasons, a new GM could be given a chance to take over for Moore. The Royals might end up going with a veteran, Ron Gardenhire-type to manage the team for a few years while they get closer to contending.

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