The Brewers' Next Manager; Latest -- Valentine may have inside track to the job; Cora, Melvin, Roenicke also finalists

[Brewer Fever]

I find it hard to believe but Chicago baseball writer Bruce Levine said on the radio down there today that Ted Simmons was the probable next manager of the Brewers.

[hawing]

I find it hard to believe but Chicago baseball writer Bruce Levine said on the radio down there today that Ted Simmons was the probable next manager of the Brewers.

That's probably how Cubs fans react when they hear speculation that the Brewers could get Ryne Sandberg for their manager.

 

[Invader3K]

I like Ted Simmons. I'd be fine with that; but I'd be shocked if he is manager next season.

[colbyjack]

I really want the Brewers to think outside the box, and as noted by several people above, you kind of have to end this trend with former Milwaukee Brewers. I wouldn't mind a lot of the candidates being mentioned (outside of Bobby Valentine, Bob Brenly and Bob Melvin), but again, I would be somewhat refreshed if they hired a dude most people weren't even familiar with.

 

Dave Martinez has that vibe to him and is a great suggestion. Mike Sarbaugh was named the International League's best managerial candidate according to BA during their mid-summer tools survey, and has an incredible record of success with the Indians (although I just noticed that Sarbaugh is also a former Brewer farmhand). I can't really name any others, because while it's cool to learn about hitting and pitching prospects, how much do we really know about managerial prospects?

[Sage]

Are we even sure that Ted wants to manage? I thought I had heard something a few days ago that he was worried about his health, and looking for a front-office job to avoid traveling. (Don't quote me on that, I can't think of where I read it)

Apparently Juan Samuel is getting plenty of attention. I wonder if Melvin will interview him... I doubt it, but it's another name to throw in.

[PrinceFielderx1]

What about Phil Garner? I like the fact that he will probably utilize the speed on the Brewers team and they will probably have 150-200 SB's if he is Manager. He manages aggressively and preaches small ball and good situational hitting. This is everything I think the Brewers need.

[And That]

Are we even sure that Ted wants to manage?

I don't have a link to support this, but I remember hearing a few times that the only coaching job Simmons would take is a manager's job.

[RockCoCougars]

I would be very surprised if Simmons was the pick. I would have to think that there is some bad blood on both sides over how the Yost firing went down and his resignation. Reports are that he turned the job down then, so I highly doubt if he would come back to work for the same owner and GM two years later.

 

I second the Garner idea. In my opinion, he was a very good manager. Despite having outmanned teams, and generally mediocre to poor pitching staffs- more often then not, he seemed to have his teams come out of the gate strong and in semi-contention well into the summer. They generally collapsed late in the summer because they just didn't have the depth and the horses to compete with the big dogs and their deadline deal pick ups. Why not at least bring him in for an interview?

[Flood Pants]

I would be very surprised if Simmons was the pick. I would have to think that there is some bad blood on both sides over how the Yost firing went down and his resignation. Reports are that he turned the job down then, so I highly doubt if he would come back to work for the same owner and GM two years later.

Good point. However, I can see a counterpoint here. Ted was unwilling to take the job that his friend and former teammate was fired from. But he has no personal ties to Macha, does he? He can take this job without "betraying" Ned. and maybe there's some bad blood, but if managing is indeed his dream job, that's a pretty good reason to get over bad blood. I would not at all be surprised if Simba is our next manager.

[Fatter than Joey]

I would be very surprised if Simmons was the pick.

 

I wouldn't -- He is by all counts a smart baseball man, he is a "winner" and someone that could fire up the fanbase this off-season.

 

I would have to think that there is some bad blood on both sides over how the Yost firing went down and his resignation. Reports are that he turned the job down then, so I highly doubt if he would come back to work for the same owner and GM two years later.

 

My opinion of Simmons is that he is flat out a very smart guy.

 

I think that if you have been involved in MLB for ~40 years, as a player, executive and coach you don't let "bad blood" get in your way of what you want. The reality for dudes seeking jobs at the MLB -- at any position as a player, executive or manager/coach -- is that at any given time there are probably only 5 to 6 openings that are going to be an option. If you limit your own options because of "bad blood", you probably are going to remain unemployed.

 

Simmons may not have liked what happened to Yost -- but Simmons was a GM himself, (granted for a short time) and w/o looking at what happened in his tenure with Pittsburgh, I am guessing he dirtied his hands on more than one occasion -- I am guessing he isn't going to let things like Yost getting canned get in the way of his own career ambitions. I don't know exactly why Simmons rejected the job after Yost got what was coming to him, but perhaps he felt like becoming an interim manager wasn't going to look good on his resume.

 

All this said, I don't necessarily endorse Simmons as my choice for the next Milwaukee manager -- but I'd certainly hope he was interviewed, and I would rather see Simmons than a guy like Brenly.

[Invader3K]

Here's an idea I'm not sure has come up yet. How about Don Wakamatsu? It seemed like he was well regarded in Seattle despite the team's performance, and was perhaps dismissed unfairly. He's a younger manager who seems like he would have the "energy" that Macha seemingly didn't.

[crewcrazy]

Wakamatsu would be an interesting idea, and Melvin surely would call up Jack Z and get an honest assessment of how he handles a team. By all accounts, Wak wasn't fired for being a bad manager, he just lost a clubhouse that was already toxic due to disgruntled veterans (Griffey, Bradley, Figgins, etc.). At the very least, he wouldn't be your typical retread manager, in my opinion.

[hawing]

Wakamatsu would be an interesting idea, and Melvin surely would call up Jack Z and get an honest assessment of how he handles a team. By all accounts, Wak wasn't fired for being a bad manager, he just lost a clubhouse that was already toxic due to disgruntled veterans (Griffey, Bradley, Figgins, etc.). At the very least, he wouldn't be your typical retread manager, in my opinion.

"Wak-ed" makes more sense than "Wakamatsued." Plus per B-Ref, his given name is Wilbur Donald Wakamatsu, thus making "Wilbured" a possibility.

[patrickgpe]

from doug russel of 1250 (take it for what its worth)

 

A baseball source tells me that the Brewers and Bob Brenly are close to an agreement for Brenly to become the next Brewers manager. Brenly told me within the hour he has "nothing to say right now" on the matter. Stay tuned to Sports Radio 1250 WSSP for more information.

[And That]

About Brenly...

 

there aren't enough facepalms on Google image search to express my feelings about him.

[RockCoCougars]

from doug russel of 1250 (take it for what its worth)

 

A baseball source tells me that the Brewers and Bob Brenly are close to an agreement for Brenly to become the next Brewers manager. Brenly told me within the hour he has "nothing to say right now" on the matter. Stay tuned to Sports Radio 1250 WSSP for more information.

Highly doubtful. Doesn't MLB have a process with rules in place for managerial hirings (for example, doesn't every team need to conduct one interview with a minority candidate)? I would guess that the process would take more than 72 hours.

[BrewCrewForever]

Oh man, if they hire Brenly, they might as well have kept Macha. Talk about an uninspiring pick for the next Manager.

 

I’m with And That, I couldn’t post enough face palms to show how ridiculous I think this decision is.

[brewmann04]

i see a tweet from 1250 about possible Bob Brenly being named the next brewer manager any body else seen that

[And That]

Wasn't it rumored that Brenly gave a terrible interview last time around?

[Fatter than Joey]

Doesn't MLB have a process with rules in place for managerial hirings (for example, doesn't every team need to conduct one interview with a minority candidate)?

 

That's the NFL.

 

I would guess that the process would take more than 72 hours.

 

Brenly mentioned in September, when he eliminated himself from the Cubs position that he was talking to other teams about their managerial vacancy -- the Brewers certainly could have been one of them.

[RyDogg66]

I very much like Doug Melvin, but would probably rather have him replaced than keep him around if it means having Bob Brenly on the bench.

[pretendastronaut]

For my own sanity I'm going to just believe that report about Brenly is flat out false.

[LS Brewer]

I am not challenging anyone but I am actually just curious the reasons why people would have a problem with Brenly. I have never had a problem with him as an on-air announcer. Is there something about how he managed in Arizona that shows a potential problem?

[RockCoCougars]

Doesn't MLB have a process with rules in place for managerial hirings (for example, doesn't every team need to conduct one interview with a minority candidate)?

 

That's the NFL.

 

I would guess that the process would take more than 72 hours.

 

Brenly mentioned in September, when he eliminated himself from the Cubs position that he was talking to other teams about their managerial vacancy -- the Brewers certainly could have been one of them.

So much for wishful thinking. Melvin is going to hire another 'winner' who won solely because his team was stacked with pitching. Heaven help us if this is true.

[pretendastronaut]

Doesn't MLB have a process with rules in place for managerial hirings (for example, doesn't every team need to conduct one interview with a minority candidate)?

 

 

 

That's the NFL.

 

 

No, MLB has a minority hiring process as well, but I'm not aware of the specifics. The Dodgers got a little press about how they selected Don Mattingly as Torre's successor, by promoting from within they skirted around the minority hiring process guidelines.