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Skip Schumaker

Jon Jay To Join Marlins As First Base Coach

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Former big leaguer Jon Jay has signed on as first base and outfield coach with the Marlins, per Katie Woo of The Athletic. Jay joins his former Cardinals team mate Skip Schumaker in Miami, after the latter was recently appointed manager.

Jay retired in 2021 after a 12-year career in the big leagues. He appeared for seven different teams, but is known mostly for his time with the Cardinals. There, he hit .287/.354/.387 across six seasons and 757 games in the Cardinals outfield, winning the World Series in 2011. After St Louis traded him to San Diego ahead of the 2016 season, Jay would spend a lot of time shifting around the majors, never appearing for the same team across multiple seasons. Between 2015 and his retirement in 2021, Jay appeared for the Padres, Cubs, Royals, Diamondbacks, White Sox, Diamondbacks again, before wrapping up his career with a short stint at the Angels.

It’s not a great surprise that a gig with the Marlins under Schumacher is his first. Jay is a native of Miami, and he and Schumaker spent a number of years together on the Cardinals, including on that World Series winning side of 2011. Jay joins pitching coach Mel Stottlemyre Jr. and bullpen coach Wellington Cepeda as those on board for 2023, but Schumaker still has a bit of work to do to fill out his coaching staff.

Marlins Hire Skip Schumaker As Manager

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The Marlins have settled on their next manager, announcing Tuesday evening they’ve tabbed Cardinals bench coach Skip Schumaker. He replaces Don Mattingly, who spent seven years in the role before he and the Marlins mutually agreed to part ways. Schumaker’s contract runs through the 2024 season, and the Marlins hold a club option on his services for 2025.

“After an extensive process, it is with great pride and excitement that we announced Skip Schumaker as manager of the Miami Marlins,” chairman and principal owner Bruce Sherman said in the statement announcing the news. Schumaker made a statement of his own. “I’m very excited and grateful that Bruce, (general manager Kim Ng), and the Marlins organization have given me an opportunity to manage a very talented team. Delivering a winning, sustainable culture with the expectation of getting into the postseason is the next step for this organization and South Florida – and I can’t wait to get started.”

As another disappointing season was winding down in Miami, it was reported that Mattingly and the club would go their separate ways. Over the past few weeks, recent reporting indicated that the final four candidates were Schumaker, Rays’ bench coach Matt Quatraro, Astros’ bench coach Joe Espada and Yankees’ third base coach Luis Rojas.

Schumaker, 43 in February, played in the big leagues from 2005 to 2015, spending time with the Cardinals, Dodgers and Reds. He signed a minor league deal with the Padres for 2016 but announced his retirement in March. It didn’t take long for him to get involved in post-playing roles, as he was hired by the Padres to be their first base coach for 2018. Prior to the 2020 season, the Friars gave him the title of “associate manager.”

One year ago, the Cardinals surprisingly parted ways with manager Mike Shildt despite a solid run in the dugout. Once they promoted Oli Marmol to take over, they suddenly had a vacancy at the bench coach position and hired Schumaker to take that over. The Marmol-Schumaker pairing seemed to work well, as the Cards went 93-69 in 2022 and recaptured the Central division. However, the club will now be looking for a new bench coach for a second year in a row.

For the Marlins, they are looking to take a turn after years of frustration. Outside of the pandemic-shortened 2020 season, they haven’t made the playoffs since way back in 2003. There have been many frustrating stops and starts for the fans in that time, with 2022 once seeming like it could have been the year that the Marlins made a serious jump into contention. They had a strong pitching staff and supplemented their position player mix by bringing in outside additions like Jorge Soler, Avisaíl García, Jacob Stallings and Joey Wendle. Unfortunately, all four of those players dealt with injury or underperformance or both. When combined with injuries and disappointing results elsewhere on the roster, Miami fell well out of contention again and ended up with a 69-93 record.

Ng and the rest of the front office will surely be hoping that Schumaker will be instrumental in turning things around. The impacts of coaches can be difficult to quantify, but there’s no doubting Schumaker has made a quick rise through the ranks. It was just a few years ago that he was still playing, and he quickly joined the big leagues as a coach without first requiring a stint in the minors. From there, he got a promotion in San Diego and then has been quickly poached by two different organizations, highlighting the respect he has around the game. If that’s not enough, Marlins players are quickly showcasing their approval, with Jazz Chisholm Jr. and Sandy Alcantara both taking to social media to share their enthusiasm (Twitter links).

Of course, a manager alone can not turn a poor team into a champion. There is still a lot of work for the Marlins to do this winter in upgrading their roster. But for now, they can cross one item off their to-do list, adding a young up-and-coming manager who seems to have tremendous respect throughout the game.

Craig Mish of SportsGrid and the Miami Herald was first to report the Marlins were hiring Schumaker, and to report Schumaker’s contract details.

Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.

Marlins Down To Four Managerial Finalists

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11:30am: Heyman tweets that the Marlins have narrowed the group down to four and expect to make a decision soon. Heyman tweets that the Marlins have narrowed the group down to four and expect to make a decision soon. Raul Ibanez was interviewed early in the process but is not among the four, Heyman adds.

Craig Mish of SportsGrid and the Miami Herald reports that former Mets skipper Luis Rojas, who’s currently the Yankees’ third base coach, also secured a second interview, suggesting that he’s the fourth (and apparently last) finalist in the mix for the job.

9:37am: The Marlins are continuing to narrow the field in their search for manager Don Mattingly’s successor and have deemed a handful of names to be finalists in their search. Per Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times, Rays bench coach Matt Quatraro and Astros bench coach Joe Espada are among a “small field” of finalists in Miami. Jon Heyman of the New York Post adds Cardinals bench coach Skip Schumaker to the list of finalists.

Both Quatraro and Espada were considered finalists in last offseason’s Mets managerial search, before the team ultimately hired a more experienced option in the form of veteran Buck Showalter. The Marlins, it seems, are taking a different approach; the entire group of known candidates to have interviewed in Miami would be first-time managers at the big league level. Quatraro and Espada have both interviewed with at least five teams for managerial vacancies in recent years.

Schumaker, meanwhile, is a fast-rising name in the coaching ranks himself. The former big league utilityman was playing in the Majors as recently as 2015 and landed his first Major League coaching gig when the Padres named him first base coach in the 2017-18 offseason. San Diego eventually elevated him to the unusual title of “associate manager,” before the Cardinals, for whom he played eight Major League seasons, tabbed him as their new bench coach a year ago. Along the way, Schumaker has also interviewed for managerial vacancies with the Mets and Red Sox.

Other names known to have interviewed thus far include Royals bench coach Pedro Grifol and Phillies third base coach Dusty Wathan. Braves bench coach Walt Weiss reportedly declined an opportunity to interview, though the fact that there was even interest suggests that the Marlins aren’t dead-set on hiring a rookie skipper. Weiss spent four seasons as the Rockies’ manager from 2013-16.

Skip Schumaker Interviews For Marlins Managerial Vacancy

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Jon Morosi of MLB Network reports that Cardinals bench coach Skip Schumaker interviewed with the Miami Marlins to replace Don Mattingly, who mutually agreed to part ways with the club following the 2022 season, as manager. Morosi writes that Schumaker is among the favorites to land the position. Prior to joining the coaching staff in St. Louis, Schumaker also served as the Padres first base coach in 2018 and 2019 before being promoted to associate manager 2020. Schumaker played in the majors for 11 seasons before becoming a coach, splitting his playing career between the Cardinals, Dodgers, and Reds and slashing a career .278/.337/.364.

The Marlins appear to be looking for a rookie manager with some previous dugout experience to replace the veteran Mattingly, as they’ve reportedly interviewed Astros bench coach Joe Espada, Rays bench coach Matt Quatraro, and Royals bench coach Pedro Grifol in addition to Schumaker. Espada and Quatraro have both reportedly received second interviews, and stand out as possible favorites for the job alongside Schumaker. While Espada and Grifol have both reportedly interviewed for other open positions, Schumaker’s interview with Miami is the only such interview that has been reported. The Athletic’s Katie Woo notes that Schumaker has a mutual option with the Cardinals for the 2023 season, and another for 2024.

While Schumaker doesn’t appear to be interviewing for other managerial openings this offseason, that’s not to say this is the first time a club has had interest in him for the manager’s seat. Schumaker has been fielding interviews for a managerial role since 2019, when the Mets interviewed him for their open manager position following that season. Schumaker also interviewed with the Red Sox after the 2020 season and the Cardinals following the 2021 season (before being hired as bench coach) for their managerial vacancies. While those vacancies all ultimately went to other candidates, there’s clear interest around the league in what Schumaker could bring to the table as a manager.

2022 was a tough season in Miami. While the young pitching the Marlins have become known for largely delivered, highlighted by Sandy Alcantara’s Cy Young caliber campaign, nearly the entire starting lineup under performed; only first baseman Garrett Cooper (113 OPS+) and outfielder Bryan De La Cruz (103 OPS+) posted an above average offensive season in 2022 among Marlins qualifiers. A full season from second baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr. in 2023 would surely help improve Miami’s struggling offense, but with both Jorge Soler and Avisail Garcia having turned in concerning seasons to open their multi-year contracts with the organization, it will take further internal improvement for Miami to compete next season without significant offensive additions.

Cardinals To Hire Skip Schumaker As Bench Coach

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Nov. 7: Katie Woo of The Athletic tweets that Schumaker’s deal is a one-year contract with options.

Nov. 6: Skip Schumaker is returning to the Cardinals. The former infielder will join new manager Oliver Marmol’s staff as the bench coach, per Rob Rains of stlsportspage.com (via Twitter). The agreement will be finalized this weekend, per Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

Schumaker was thought to be a candidate to take over as manager after Mike Shildt was let go, and while that job ultimately went to Marmol, Schumaker returns to the Midwest anyway to serve as Marmol’s right hand. Schumaker was the Padres’ first base coach last season. He now steps into the role that Marmol himself filled for St. Louis last year.

The scrappy infielder/outfielder was a fan favorite of the Cardinals’ rabid fanbase during his playing days. He spent eight seasons in St. Louis, slashing .288/.345/.377 in 2,687 plate appearances.

Coaching Notes: Goodwin, Schumaker, Guardians, Brewers

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The Red Sox are parting ways with first base coach Tom Goodwin, chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom told reporters (including Molly Burkhardt of MLB.com). Goodwin had been in that role for the past four seasons, joining Alex Cora’s staff before the latter’s first year as Boston’s manager. After a fourteen-year major league playing career, Goodwin moved into coaching and minor league managing in the Red Sox’s system. Between two separate stints with the Sox, he spent six seasons as Mets’ first base coach. Goodwin’s departure might be the only change on Cora’s staff, as Bloom told reporters the Red Sox are hoping to bring back the rest of the group in 2022.

The latest on a few other coaching situations around the league:

  • The Cardinals have been in contact with Padres associate manager Skip Schumaker about potentially joining the  organization in some capacity, reports Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Almost immediately after the Cards dismissed Mike Shildt as manager, speculation arose about Schumaker — a former Cardinals utilityman — as a potential successor. St. Louis opted to promote bench coach Oliver Marmol instead, although it’s still possible Schumaker could assume some other position on the Cardinals staff. The 41-year-old remains employed by San Diego, but Padres’ coaches were given permission to explore opportunities elsewhere after the Friars dismissed manager Jayce Tingler.
  • The Guardians are on the hunt for a new hitting coach after parting ways with Ty Van Burkleo a few weeks ago. Paul Hoynes of cleveland.com reports that his replacement is expected to come from outside the organization. Searching for a hitting instructor is unfamiliar territory for the Guardians’ front office and manager Terry Francona. Van Burkleo had served in that role for the entirety of Francona’s tenure as Cleveland’s manager, joining the staff leading into the 2013 season.
  • Brewers coaching staff advisor Ed Sedar is retiring, the club announced this morning. Sedar was a longtime member of the staff, working as a base coach for the Brew Crew from 2007-20. He transitioned into an advisory role last winter, with former big league outfielder Quintin Berry stepping into the vacant third base coaching role. Sedar spent the better part of three decades in the Milwaukee organization, first joining the club as a minor league coach in 1992.

Latest On Cardinals’ Managerial Opening

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9:56 PM: The Cardinals plan to have their next manager in place by mid-November, per The Athletic’s Katie Woo. With the rest of the coaching staff remaining intact, it makes sense that the Cards could be relatively quick with their manager hire.

7:06 PM: The speculation has already begun on who might replace Mike Shildt as the next manager of the St. Louis Cardinals. The popular internal candidates appear to be Oliver Marmol and Stubby Clapp, per Jon Morosi of the MLB Network (via Twitter).

St. Louis usually likes to promote from within, and both Marmol and Clapp have surfaced before as candidates for managerial openings. Neither, then, would be a shocking choice, though given the surprising nature of Shildt’s release, anything could be on the table. Without knowing the real nature of the disconnect between Shildt and Cardinals’ president of baseball ops John Mozeliak, it’s tough to speculate on potential targets.

Players in San Diego, however, are hearing that former Cardinal fan favorite Skip Schumaker might be a candidate for the role, per Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune (via Twitter). There would be support from Padres’ players were Schumaker considered as the Padres’ next manager, notes Acee, though it’s not clear yet what direction President of Baseball Ops A.J. Preller will lean.

Latest On Red Sox Managerial Search

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The Red Sox won’t be interviewing Red Sox bench coach Matt Quatraro for their managerial vacancy. Per Sean McAdam of the Boston Sports Journal, Chief Baseball Officer Chaim Bloom cannot hire anyone from the Rays for a period of two years. The condition was put into Bloom’s contract when the Rays allowed him to be hired away by Boston, which certainly makes sense, given the number of Rays executives who have been poached by other organizations the past couple of years.

Expanding the agreement to include uniformed personnel also makes sense, given that the Rays and Red Sox are divisional rivals. One might imagine the Rays being more amenable to letting someone like Quatraro take a promotion with, say, the Pirates, a league away. They proved once again to be rather prescient in putting this agreement in place before letting Bloom join Boston.

Bloom has no shortage of candidates, however. James Rowson of the Marlins, Will Venable of the Cubs, Mike Bell of the Twins, Skip Schumaker of the Padres, Luis Urueta of the Diamondbacks, and Don Kelly of the Pirates are all rumored to be in the mix. And while none of those names carry the public weight of, say, Alex Cora, the rumored favorite for the position, the process is sincere, per Rob Bradford of WEEI. Bradford is quick to point out that Kevin Cash was an unknown of a similar ilk when Bloom and the Rays chose him to be their manager.

Alex Cora remains the favorite until we hear otherwise, but these other candidates have time to make an impression. Boston cannot speak with Cora until after the World Series when his suspension will be lifted.

Red Sox Interview Luis Urueta, Don Kelly, Skip Schumaker, James Rowson

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6:15pm: The Red Sox have also interviewed Marlins bench coach James Rowson, Speier tweets.

5:46pm: The Red Sox have asked the Twins for permission to interview their bench coach, Mike Bell, according to Speier.

3:33pm: Boston has also interviewed Padres associate manager Skip Schumaker, Kevin Acee of the San Diego-Union Tribune tweets.

10:45am: The Red Sox interviewed Diamondbacks bench coach Luis Urueta for their vacant managerial post last week, ESPN’s Enrique Rojas reports. It’s the second time in the past year that Urueta has interviewed for the position. He was also a candidate after Alex Cora was let go, although the team opted to instead stick with an internal option in Ron Roenicke, who won’t return as skipper in 2021. Meanwhile, MLB Network’s Jon Heyman (Twitter link) reports that the Sox interviewed Pirates bench coach Don Kelly as well.

Urueta, 40 in January, has held his current position in Arizona for three seasons. He’s previously served as Arizona’s minor league field coordinator in addition to managing the Diamondbacks’ Rookie-level affiliate, managing in the Dominican Winter League and managing Team Colombia in the 2017 World Baseball Classic.

The 40-year-old Kelly has fast risen as a popular managerial candidate after retiring as a player following the 2016 season. The longtime Tigers utilityman began working in Detroit’s player development part upon retiring and moved to their scouting staff the next year. He was hired as Houston’s first base coach for the 2018 season and hired as the Pirates’ bench coach under rookie skipper Derek Shelton last offseason.

There’s considerable speculation that Cora could return to Boston after his suspension for his role in the Astros’ 2017 cheating scandal has been served. That ban runs through the current postseason. However, the Red Sox have also reportedly interviewed Cubs third base coach Will Venable and, per Heyman, could talk to Dodgers first base coach George Lombard.

Padres Notes: Strahm, Coaches, Front Office

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Reliever Matt Strahm will undergo surgery on his right knee next week, Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune reports (Twitter link), and the southpaw is expected to be recovered for by Spring Training.  Strahm is looking to fix his right patellar tendon, three years after undergoing a procedure on his left patellar tendon.  The right knee issues bothered Strahm throughout the season, Acee said, and led to an injured list stint in September.

Despite the injury, Strahm still had some effective bottom-line stats over 20 2/3 relief innings, posting a 2.61 ERA and 3.75 K/BB rate.  With the caveat of a small sample size, the left-hander also posted a career-low (6.5 K/9) strikeout rate, and the lack of missed bats led to some unimpressive ERA predictors (4.93 FIP, 5.01 xFIP, 4.24 SIERA).  It’s possible that between these numbers and any uncertainty over his knee situation, the Padres could look to non-tender Strahm, who is projected to earn between $1.6MM-$1.9MM in his second trip through the arbitration process.  On the other hand, the Padres might prefer to retain a member of their bullpen considering Trevor Rosenthal and Kirby Yates could depart in free agency, and Luis Perdomo will miss 2021 after undergoing Tommy John surgery.

The latest from San Diego…

  • In another tweet from Acee, the Padres aren’t planning to make any changes to their coaching staff.  One potential exception could be Skip Schumaker, if Schumaker receives any consideration for any of the managerial openings around baseball.  Schumaker worked in San Diego’s front office for two seasons before becoming a first base coach in 2018-19 and then serving under skipper Jayce Tingler in an “associate manager” position.  Schumaker was a candidate for the Mets’ managerial job last winter prior to New York’s (short-lived) hiring of Carlos Beltran.
  • The Padres won’t be renewing the contracts of 25 employees in the baseball operations department, the club announced today.  Most of the 25 employees were offered severance packages.  According to The Athletic’s Dennis Lin (Twitter link), many of the employees let go were in player development roles related to the Padres’ farm system, indicating “continued uncertainty about the minor leagues.”  It isn’t yet known if there will be any sort of normal minor league season in 2021, and even if there is, several minor league franchises are expected to be contracted as part of a more uniform, MLB-operated farm system.
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