SF Giants search for new manager is beginning to feel inevitable

In the two most recent SF Giants manager searches, momentum has seemed to flow towards the eventual candidate. The momentum swung heavily towards Bob Melvin before he was hired and the same thing is starting to happen with Nick Hundley.

The former Giants catcher has been linked to the Giants for some time now. MLB insiders have viewed him as a strong candidate especially given his experience with president of baseball operations Buster Posey. Andrew Baggarly of The Athletic has written that Hundley is the front-runner for the job.

Nick Hundley feels inevitable as next SF Giants manager

What do we make of all this?

Of course, reporting can always be wrong or maybe the Giants will continue to interview other candidates and will be blown away by someone else. However, it is undeniable that Hundley makes sense as the next manager based on what he represents and what Posey seems to be looking for.

A president of baseball operations usually either wants an extension of themself in a manager or someone to balance them out. It is sort of like how a presidential candidate might choose a running mate. You can pick someone who is somewhat similar to you, like Bill Clinton choosing a fellow southern Democrat like Al Gore as his running mate, or you can pick someone who covers what you lack like John Kennedy, a northeastern Democrat, choosing Lyndon Johnson as his running mate.

Farhan Zaidi hired Gabe Kapler to be an extension of himself in the dugout, but once Kapler lost the clubhouse hiring Melvin was meant to balance Zaidi out a bit.

Melvin was more of a balance to Posey as well. They probably saw the game in a similar way as former catchers, but Melvin brought a wealth of managerial experience with him while Posey was in his first year as an executive.

Perhaps the fit was not as good as it could have been which is why Posey could opt for someone like Hundley even if he has never managed before. As a first-time manager who used to be Posey's backup, he may be more pliant and open to suggestions from the front office than Melvin was.

In a way, choosing Hundley as the manager would be an attempt to rectify the mistake of not hiring Stephen Vogt as manager last time around. Vogt had never managed before but has gone on to lead the Cleveland Guardians to two straight AL Central titles.

Hundley is similar to Vogt in that he is a former backup to Posey who is light on experience but brings more youth and energy to the role. He would also be far less polarizing than someone who served on Gabe Kapler's staff.

A lot can change, but Hundley represents a lot of what Melvin was not which is why the momentum is shifting towards him in the search and it would come as no surprise if he is hired as the next manager of the Giants.