UPDATE: Ron Gardenhire and Dusty Baker are interested in the Nats' manager job, according to James Wagner of the Washington Post.
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The Washington Nationals surprised nobody when they fired manager Matt Williams one day after the 2015 MLB season ended. The longstanding rumors were confirmed when the Nationals announced the move yesterday morning, and now more rumors will surface in regards to who will manage the Nats in 2016.
When the job status of Williams began to come into question earlier this season, it was discovered the Nationals had "serious discussions" with MLB Hall of Famer Cal Ripken Jr. before they offered Williams the job. It's possible the Nats revisit those talks because general manager Mike Rizzo plans to consider all options when hiring the team's next skipper.
"As we go through the laundry list of things we look for in our manager, in the perfect leader of the ballclub on the field, leadership qualities, knowledge of the game, X's and O's are all important," Rizzo told Chelsea Janes of the Washington Post. "Communication in the clubhouse, communication within the coaching staff is vital. Experience is always helpful. It always adds a layer of expertise to anybody's resume. We feel that where we're at in our timetable, our time frame of winning a championship, we would lean toward someone who has some type of managerial experience at the major league level. But again, we're gonna be open minded and look for the best candidate that we can that allows us to win a championship here in the very near future."
And the rumors are already circulating.
Based on those criteria, here are four other candidates the Nats may consider for 2016.
4. Randy Knorr
Knorr served as the Nats' bench coach under Williams and was considered for the manager position back in 2013. Although he was fired yesterday, Rizzo said, "We have not ruled out Randy Knorr as a guy that we would talk about for the job this year," via Byron Kerr of MASNSports.com.
The 46-year-old previously served as manager of the Potomac Nationals (Washington's High Class A Affiliate) and guided them to a Carolina League championship in 2008. He's been around the clubhouse long enough to know how things operate, which is something Rizzo will likely take into consideration.
3. Ron Gardenhire
The former longtime Minnesota Twins manager hired an agent earlier in the year to gauge any managerial openings around the MLB. Well, he's in luck, because there's expected to be more than just the vacancies in Washington and Miami.
After it was reported Jayson Werth said to Williams, "When exactly do you think you lost this team?" it appears as if there were some respect/hierarchy issues in that clubhouse. Gardenhire is a well-respected manager and has much MLB experience (1,068-1,039 record in 13 seasons with Minnesota), which certainly makes him a candidate if Rizzo is looking to make a safe hire.
2. Demarlo Hale
Watch out for the Blue Jays' bench coach this offseason. He's going to be a candidate in a number of places (as he was last offseason), and he also interviewed for the Nationals' job before they gave it to Williams.
"According to a person close to the situation, Hale impressed Nationals officials during his interview," Adam Kilgore of the Washington Post wrote in 2013.
Hale has served as the Blue Jays' bench coach since 2013 and also coached for the Baltimore Orioles and Boston Red Sox.
"For years he has been used by teams to satisfy a rule of interviewing a minority candidate," Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe wrote in September. "Hale may finally get a legitimate shot at a manager's job given his work with John Gibbons. He is respected by the players, with a strong work ethic and coaching acumen. We'll see if a team finally gets real with Hale."
1. Bud Black
There were previous rumors linking Black to the Los Angeles Angels GM job, but sources close to Black said he wants to return to the dugout. The San Diego Padres fired him after a 32-33 start this season and his name has already surfaced in Washington.
"It isn't known how high Black is on the Nats' list of candidates to replace the just-dismissed Matt Williams, but his name has come up, according to people familiar with the situation," writes Jon Heyman of CBS Sports.
"Black, a Manager of the Year winner in 2007 and '10, is the opposite of Williams. He communicates as well as anyone. Hell, he loves to communicate, which was the biggest clubhouse complaint about Williams."
Black managed the Padres from 2007-2015, but never made the playoffs and has a losing record over that span. But the Nationals are much more talented than the Padres ever were in those years, so this could be a favorable match for both parties.