Padres Managerial Search Down To Ron Washington or Jayce Tingler
Braves third base coach Ron Washington and Rangers Major League development coordinator Jayce Tingler are indeed the final two candidates to fill the Padres managerial vacancy, per MLB.com’s AJ Cassavell.
Washington and Tingler have been the rumored final candidates for a couple of days now, but Cassavell has added a note of finality to the search that could reach a conclusion shortly. The common bond here between Tingler and Washington is their relationship to Padres GM AJ Preller. Both connect to Preller’s time as an assistant general manager with the Texas Rangers.
There remains an outside possibility that a third candidate could enter the fray, but the odds are in favor of either Washington or Tingler becoming the next manager of the Padres. The Padres appear hopeful that one might even serve on the coaching staff for the other, and though a “team of rivals” managerial team makes sense on paper, at least one team official thinks this possibility is unlikely.
The crux of the difference between these two candidates appears to be a question of experience versus ideology. Tingler is a well-regarded, forward-thinking contemporary of Preller’s, whose front office background and comfort with analytics make him a good fit from a synergy standpoint. His coaching experience, however, is limited.
Washington has a suspect history with analytics, but he is a two-time pennant-winning manager and one of the most highly-regarded infield coaches in the league. If Preller and the Padres value a weathered hand to steer the ship, as has been rumored, then Washington fits the bill.
Latest On Padres’ Managerial Search
TODAY: “Many folks around baseball believe” Tingler will be hired as the Padres’ next manager, according to MLB Network’s Jon Heyman (Twitter link). While nothing is yet confirmed, “Tingler is seen as [the] favorite.”
OCT. 16: The Padres could be nearing the final steps in their search for a new manager, as two candidates will receive second interviews for the position. Dennis Lin and Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic (Twitter link) report that Jayce Tingler is in San Diego today, while Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune reports that Ron Washington will also meet with the team later this week. These secondary interviews will involve Padres ownership for the first time, as executive chairman Ron Fowler and general partner Peter Seidler will be meeting with Tingler and Washington.
It isn’t known if any of the other known candidates from the Padres’ first round of interviews will also be brought back for a second meeting, or if Tingler and Washington are the only two finalists for the job (or if any candidates could still surface in the future). As per Acee, Fowler and Seidler will give their input but the final hiring is with GM A.J. Preller, which makes for an interesting dynamic given Preller’s connection to both candidates.
The expectation was that San Diego would go with an experienced former big league skipper with their new hire, after failing to find success with a first-time manager in Andy Green. Of the five people interviewed for the job, however, only Washington and Brad Ausmus had any substantial MLB experience. Tingler and Nationals third base coach Bob Henley have only managed minor league clubs, while Padres bench coach Rod Barajas served as the team’s interim manager for the final eight games of the season after Green was fired.
If experience is still seen as a key factor in the Padres’ decision-making, Washington would have the clear advantage, with a 664-611 record and two AL pennants on his resume as the Rangers’ manager from 2007-14. This overlapped with Preller’s time working in the Texas front office, though Preller also worked with Tingler during this same period. Tingler was a manager for the Rangers’ Dominican Summer League and Arizona League clubs, and also worked as the Rangers’ minor league field coordinator from 2012-14. Tingler’s current role is player development field coordinator for Texas, after working in jobs ranging from assistant GM to interim bench coach over the last five seasons.
Latest On Padres’ Managerial Search
The Padres have made a fair bit of progress in their managerial search, though it remains unclear at this point which direction they’ll go. There’s now added clarity on the handful of serious candidates as well as the interviewing timeline.
It’s now clear that Braves third base coach and former Rangers skipper Ron Washington is a serious possibility. He interviewed today, as Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune reports. It was already known that Brad Ausmus had interviewed as well.
But those aren’t the only candidate to get a sit-down interview. Indeed, Scott Miller of Bleacher Report tweets that quite a few others have already been in to meet with GM A.J. Preller and company.
Rod Barajas and Jayce Tingler were already known to be candidates. They have in fact held interviews, according to Miller. Unlike the two men mentioned already, Barajas and Tingler are each looking for their first opportunity to helm a big-league team.
It may be that the list doesn’t extend beyond those four names. Miller reports that long-time MLB managers Buck Showalter, Joe Girardi, and Mike Scioscia appear not to be part of the ongoing Padres search. Whether there are more candidates still under consideration beyond those isn’t yet clear.
Latest On Padres’ Manager Search
While there hasn’t been any word about the Padres conducting formal interviews for their vacant managerial position, the belief is they’re looking at four to five candidates for the job, Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune reports. Rangers player development field coordinator Jayce Tingler is among those in the mix, per Acee.
The Padres are reportedly “expected” to select an experienced manager to replace Andy Green (they’ve been connected to ex-MLB skippers Ron Washington, Joe Maddon, Ron Washington, Brad Ausmus and Buck Showalter). However, having a built-in rapport with general manager A.J. Preller, who’s leading the search, could prove to be of greater importance. Washington, the Braves’ third base coach, managed the Rangers when Preller was in their front office from 2007-14. According to Acee, Preller developed a deep respect for Washington during that period, in which the Rangers made three trips to the playoffs and won a pair of American League championships.
Preller also knows Tingler from Texas, as the latter has worked in various coaching and front office positions with the organization dating back to 2007. The 38-year-old Tingler has no experience as a major league skipper, though the Rangers did consider hiring him last offseason before choosing Chris Woodward. Tingler’s currently managing in the Dominican Winter League.
Rangers Announce Five Members Of Coaching Staff
The Rangers announced five members of their 2019 coaching staff Wednesday, including the hiring of Dodgers assistant hitting coach Luis Ortiz as their new hitting coach. In addition, Texas announced that bench coach Don Wakamatsu and third base coach Tony Beasley are returning to the staff in those roles next season. Bullpen coach Hector Ortiz will move to the role of first base coach, while 2018 first base coach Steve Buechele has been named a special assistant in the baseball operations department. Jayce Tingler, meanwhile, will return for a second stint with the coaching staff as the player development field coordinator.
Luis Ortiz, 48, served on the Dodgers’ coaching staff under newly hired manager Chris Woodward this past season. The new role with the Rangers represents a homecoming of sorts. While he’s not a native of Texas — Ortiz was born in the Dominican Republic — he began his coaching career in the Rangers system and spent the 2008-12 seasons as a hitting instructor/coordinator for the organization. Since that time, he’s been a field coordinator and hitting coordinator with the Padres and spent another two seasons as an assistant field coordinator in the Indians organization.
Tingler previously served as an outfield/baserunning coach in 2015-16 before spending the 2017-18 seasons as an assistant GM in the front office. He was a popular managerial candidate this offseason and connected to multiple vacancies, though he clearly remained with the Rangers organization. He has eight years of minor league managerial experience under his belt — all in the Rangers system.
The remaining decisions for the Rangers all center on the pitching side of the equation. With Hector Ortiz moving to first base coach, they’ll need to add a new bullpen coach. Texas also formally announced what was reported earlier this week by MLB.com’s T.R. Sullivan — that pitching coach Doug Brocail will not have his contract renewed. Beyond that, the Rangers also announced that assistant pitching coach Dan Warthen will not be asked back for the 2019 season, either. Those decisions “will be announced in the near future,” per tonight’s release.
The Rangers’ Managerial Search
After parting ways with Jeff Banister late in the season, the Rangers are working to decide who’ll lead their dugout in 2019. GM Jon Daniels and company originally looked at a broad slate of possibilities, including late-season interim skipper Don Wakamatsu, but have now opened the search up to additional potential candidates.
We’re tracking developments in the hiring process in this post. The latest:
Latest Updates
- Both Twins bench coach Derek Shelton and Dodgers third base coach Chris Woodward have emerged as “strong” candidates in the Rangers’ managerial search, per Ken Rosenthal and Dan Hayes of The Athletic (Twitter link). Rosenthal notes that Woodward, who interviewed earlier today, was “extremely” impressive in his interview.
Click below to review the prior updates to the search and additional remaining candidates …
