San Francisco Giants: Mark Kotsay the favorite for the manager job?

The hunt for the San Francisco Giants next manager is underway and a recent report has identified Mark Kotsay as the early favorite.

Replacing Bruce Bochy is a tall order, and that’s the task at hand for the San Francisco Giants front office after the longtime bench boss announced his retirement after 13 seasons at the helm.

What does Bochy think of the job he’s leaving behind?

“He’s got the best job in baseball,” Bochy told reporters of his eventual successor. “And I mean that. I talked about the owners and our front office and this city, the surrounding areas, the ballpark and the fans. He’s getting the best job in baseball.”

So far, the team has cast a wide net during the interview process.

Andrew Baggarly of The Athletic wrote: “Based on the reported names of managerial interviewees — Kapler, A’s quality control coach Mark Kotsay, Royals quality control coach Pedro Grifol, Rays bench coach Matt Quatraro, Astros bench coach Joe Espada, Cubs first base coach Will Venable — we might be able to sketch a profile of what the next Giants manager will look like.”

The team has also interviewed internal candidates Ron Wotus and Hensley Meulens.

However, the early favorite appears to be Kotsay, according to one recent report:

So who is Mark Kotsay?

Baggarly wrote: “Kotsay, 43, has worn just as many hats as Grifol while working in baseball operations for the San Diego Padres before becoming their hitting coach. He has spent the past four seasons with the A’s as bench coach and now as quality control coach, a hybrid role in which he serves as an intermediary between the players and the front office while also taking a lead in player development.”

Prior to his coaching career, he played 17 MLB seasons with the Florida Marlins, San Diego Padres, Oakland Athletics, Atlanta Braves, Boston Red Sox, Chicago White Sox and Milwaukee Brewers. He racked up 1,784 hits and 21.3 WAR during his time in the big leagues.

It remains to be seen if the San Francisco Giants are getting close to pulling the trigger on a managerial hire, but Kotsay is a name to watch following today’s report.