With Charlie Montoyo being let go in Toronto, who are the next 3 managers to be fired?
With the shocking news breaking that Toronto Blue Jays skipper Charlie Montoyo was fired earlier today, it’s time to turn attention towards three other managers that could be out the door soon.
A few popular candidates for a list of this kind would be Nationals manager Davey Martinez and Orioles skipper Brandon Hyde, yet these two seem to have staying power in their respective clubs. Martinez recently had his option picked up (along with GM Mike Rizzo) by the club, so he will be around for at least another season.
Hyde has somehow turned this Orioles club into a winning team, as they are sitting at a .500 record (44-44) entering today, something that nobody could’ve seen coming heading into the season. This comes on the heels of a 9-1 stretch in their last ten and their -12 run differential, which is a huge difference compared to recent year’s marks. He, like Martinez, is safe for now.
MLB managers: Who is next to be fired?
3. Miami Marlins manager Don Mattingly
After shockingly leading the Miami Marlins to their first playoff berth in 17 seasons during their COVID-shortened 2020 campaign, Don Mattingly has done nothing to help this club take the next step. After going 31-29 in an abbreviated season in 2020, the Marlins finished last year with a 67-95 record, good for fourth place in the NL East.
So far this season, Miami is 41-45, 12.0 GB in the NL East and 5.0 GB of an NL Wild Card spot. These aren’t terrible numbers and can be turned around with one hot streak, but that remains unlikely.
A managerial free agent at season’s end, the winningest and longest-tenured manager in Marlins history may not make it to the end of the year if the team’s losing ways continue. It is worth noting that Mattingly was not a hire by current GM Kim Ng, and general managers are known to prefer working with someone that they bring aboard themselves.
2. – Chicago Cubs manager David Ross
In one of the most popular manager hires in recent memory, Chicago Cubs fans and players were ecstatic to have David Ross, a popular former player for the Cubs, brought aboard as the new skipper in town.
While Ross hasn’t been a terrible manager for this Cubs team, he hasn’t necessarily been great, either. With the majority of his decent players traded away at last year’s deadline and any stragglers set to be shipped out this year, he hasn’t exactly had much to work with.
Since being brought aboard in Chicago, Ross is 128-148 without a single playoff appearance aside from an NL Wild Card loss to the Marlins in 2020. Last year, the Cubbies were 71-91, and this year, they look to be even worse. Through 54 games, they are 23-31 so far this year.
It is highly unlikely that Ross will still be leading this Cubs squad by the time they are ready to be contenders again. With a below-average lineup mixed with a below-average pitching staff, he’s been pretty much doomed from the start.
1. – Chicago White Sox manager Tony La Russa
I can’t possibly be alone in saying that I believe Tony La Russa should’ve never made the return to managing in the big leagues. After a decade-long hiatus from leading a major league team, he returned to lead the Chicago White Sox to a first-place finish in the NL Central last season.
This year, the White Sox have stumbled out of the gate and are just 38-40 to start things off. La Russa has been at the center of a lot of negative press in recent days as reports, including one from MLB insider Bob Nightengale, have begun to surface that there is tension and unease in the Sox’s clubhouse.
"“The answer I get just inside the clubhouse, I mean, guys are complaining about Tony La Russa, guys complain about the front office and things like that,” Nightengale said. “But when it comes down to it, everybody is saying there’s really no leadership in that clubhouse.”"
The White Sox’s losing ways can’t all be placed on La Russa, as a number of their stars — including Eloy Jimenez, Yoan Moncada, Yasmani Grandal, Garrett Crochet and Aaron Bummer (to name a few) — have all missed varying amounts of time this season.
La Russa can’t seem to keep his name out of the press in a negative light. He has openly criticized his own players before, made highly questionable in-game strategy calls, and has been at the helm of a team that is statistically worse than the Baltimore Orioles this year.