It's Opening Day, a chance to wipe the slate clean and start fresh, a reason for every team and fan base to hope for big things in the season to come.
But of course, while everyone starts at 0-0, nobody will finish that way. For some teams, 2025 will be a triumph. For others, however, it's bound to be a disappointment — one that could even cost some people their jobs. While hope springs eternal around the league, some managers are entering the regular season with the heat under their seats already cranked way up. Here are five in particular who feel likely to get the axe at some point before 2026.
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5. Bob Melvin, San Francisco Giants
Maybe this is harsh for a guy entering just his second year in San Francisco. But it's a new day by the Bay with Buster Posey in charge, and it's worth remembering that Melvin was Farhan Zaidi's choice, not Posey's. Add in the fact that his contract reportedly isn't guaranteed beyond this season, and it's not hard to see San Francisco opting to go in a different direction if the team once again misses out on the playoffs.
Which could be a tall order, especially in what projects to be one of the toughest division in baseball. There's talent here, with Willy Adames added to the heart of the order and Justin Verlander joining what should be a sneaky-good rotation. But that still might not be enough to get the team over the hump, and it if isn't, Posey would in within his rights to bring his own guy in and start fresh.
4. Brandon Hyde, Baltimore Orioles
At what point do we start getting a little impatient with Baltimore's whole deal? Hyde has stewarded the franchise through its bottoming-out and back into contention, helping to grow the team's young core into one of the most promising in the league.
But he also has yet to, you know, actually win a playoff game as leader of the Orioles. This team's competitive window is right now, and it doesn't seem unfair to set the bar at winning at least one playoff series in 2025. Which, considering the competition in the AL East and early injuries to Grayson Rodriguez in Gunnar Henderson, could lead to some awfully uncomfortable conversations if Baltimore is once again left wondering how to get over the hump.
3. Ron Washington, Los Angeles Angels
From pretty much the moment the team hired him, Washington has felt like a placeholder in L.A.; signing the oldest manager in baseball (he'll be 73 next month) to just a two-year contract doesn't exactly scream long-term thinking. Nothing is guaranteed beyond 2025, and while Washington hasn't exactly been set up for success during his time with the team, well, you know what they say about not being able to fire the owner.
Maybe the Angels will get around to extending Washington, trusting his veteran leadership of an increasingly young clubhouse. More likely, though, the franchise will just keep spinning its wheels, and Arte Moreno will be looking for another quick fix after a 10th straight losing season.
2. John Schneider, Toronto Blue Jays
If you were to look up "playoffs or bust" in the dictionary, you'd find a picture of the 2025 Toronto Blue Jays. It's hard for a team to have more riding on a single season, with both GM Ross Atkins and president Mark Shapiro in the final year of their contracts and homegrown stars Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Bo Bichette set to hit free agency next winter.
Where does that leave Schneider? Fighting for his job, especially considering how much ire he drew from Jays fans the last time this team made the postseason back in 2023. Schneider has yet to win a playoff game during his tenure in Toronto, and if he can't rectify that this year, the Jays will be cleaning house in a few months' time.
1. Oli Marmol, St. Louis Cardinals
Marmol surprised everybody when he not only survived a last-place finish in 2023 but came out of it with a two-year contract extension. The 2024 season wasn't quite so disastrous, but St. Louis again missed the playoffs, and now Marmol's future is once again murky as the team gets set to welcome a new lead executive in Chaim Bloom.
Maybe Marmol leads the Cardinals to an unlikely division title and earns himself another contract extension. But if St. Louis once again flounders, it's far more likely that Bloom will let him go than either re-up with a manager he didn't hire in the first place or let that manager serve as a lame duck in 2026. With franchise legends like Albert Pujols and Yadier Molina circling the water, Marmol is just about out of rope, and John Mozeliak did him very few favors.