SF Giants: Ranking the rumored manager candidates to replace Gabe Kapler

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When the San Francisco Giants fired Gabe Kapler, the reactions were strong and swift across the Giants' fanbase. In one corner were the folks that thought that Kapler had done a good job with what he had overall and that it was the front office to blame for the team's struggles in 2023. In the other corner, there were the fans that either never liked Kapler from day one or didn't like Kapler's managerial style and felt as though the Giants would be better off with someone else at the helm.

Time will tell as to who ends up being right, but the fact remains that the Giants need a new manager and the search appears to be heating up of late. While Farhan Zaidi's own questionable future with the franchise potentially could be keeping some top candidates away from the Giants' skipper job as any change there could cost the manager their job as well, San Francisco still seems to have a strong pool of options they are considering at the moment

Here is a ranking of the rumored manager candidates to replace Gabe Kapler

There is no real science here as evaluating managers in the best of circumstances is already extremely tough. A lot of what baseball managers do is behind closed doors and that means that outside observers will never really know what forces behind the scenes could be in play. However, taking a look at the resumes of some of the candidates that have been connected to the Giants in their search does have some value even if the results are likely to be imperfect.

Let's take a look at seven managerial candidates that the Giants appear to be considering to be their next manager.

7.) Jason Varitek

At the bottom of the list here is Jason Varitek who was only recently granted permission by the Red Sox to interview with the Giants. Varitek's resume as a player is excellent and he is widely regarded around the league. However, he hasn't been a true big league coach for very long and when you combine that lack of top level experience with more of an old school approach that doesn't seem like a great fit for the Giants, he seems like a longshot bid at the moment.

6.) Donnie Ecker

Ecker has certainly helped his candidacy for any future managerial openings with his work at the Texas Rangers' hitting coach this season. It also certainly doesn't hurt his case that he is familiar with the organization as he was formerly the Giants' hitting coach and the offense seemingly suffered after he left. Bringing in Ecker certainly has its merits and would probably help the offense perform, but the Giants seem like they want to go in a new direction and bringing in Kapler's old hitting coach doesn't seem to fit with that plan very well.

5.) Mark Hallberg

The Giants seem to have several internal candidates they are considering with third base coach Mark Hallberg being among them. Hallberg may be a decent compromise option as he is already familiar to the organization and its players who is regarded highly, but who also has been around long enough to not be considered a Kapler acolyte. His lack of managerial experience outside of the low minors is problematic, though, and the Giants seem to have better internal options available even if Hallberg ends up a good manager someday.

4.) Stephen Vogt

You will struggle to find more than a handful of people across baseball that is as beloved as Stephen Vogt, Vogt put together a stronger playing career than he is given credit for and the vast majority of the people that have interacted with him have been certain that he remain an important part of the game either as a coach or a TV analyst.

As a coach for the Mariners, it appears as though Vogt has chosen the coaching path and it is likely that he will get a shot as a manager someday. Vogt does have some connections to both the front office and the Giants (he did play in San Francisco in 2019 after all) which certainly helps. Lacking managing experience is again a knock against him, though, and it may be best to let him develop more as a coach before giving him the reins of a team that is looking to compete in the short-term.

3.) Kai Correa

One of the Giants' top internal candidates has to be bench coach and interim manager Kai Correa. Correa has already been considered a future manager for a while now and his name was being batted around as Kapler's replacement as soon as he was named interim manager for the final handful games of the 2023 season.

Correa is a really good defensive coach and know that analytics side of the game as well as anybody which seems like a fit with what the Giants' front office is going to want. However, Correa doesn't seem like enough of a departure from Kapler's regime and may need some more seasoning before being ready to take a skipper job.

2.) Alyssa Nakken

The Giants interviewing their assistant coach, Alyssa Nakken, was big news across the league as she was the first known example of a woman interviewing for a MLB managerial opening. Despite a vocal minority not being happy about that happening, Nakken's candidacy should not be ignored as she has already had to disprove plenty of doubts previously to get to where she is today.

A big league coach since 2020, Nakken has been a part of the organization since 2014 so she knows the players and organization well. There is also no denying that in order to break the glass ceilings she has, her performance has had to be top notch to even get her foot in the door. It would be an outside-the-box hire to be sure, but that could be exactly what the Giants need even though her connections to Kapler may work against her here.

1.) Bob Melvin

As soon as the Giants dismissed Kapler, the biggest name that started to be thrown around as a potential option to replace him is Padres manager Bob Melvin. Melvin is one of the most respected managers in all of baseball with a track record of success that goes back to 2003. He also has connections to the Bay Area and the front office which could be a nice starting point for at least a conversation.

The biggest question about Melvin is whether or not he would actually leave the Padres. San Diego is clearly going for it right now, but there was a lot of drama around the Padres this season and the team really underperformed expectations overall. The whispers right now are that Melvin could be looking for the exit from that chaotic situation and if that is truly the case, he should be the Giants' top target among the known options available.

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SF Giants: Ranking 7 of the rumored manager candidates to replace Gabe Kapler