Tampa Bay Rays new president of baseball operations, Matt Silverman, released a list of candidates on Thursday in regard to the team's manager vacancy. Shortly after Joe Maddon opted out of his contract with the Rays, Silverman said he wanted to have the position filled by Thanksgiving.
Silverman says what he provided is a "preliminary list of possibilities," but it's important we know who these candidates are in case the Rays make a decision sooner rather than later. Here is who the team is considering:
Dave Martinez, Rays' Bench Coach: Martinez is perhaps the front runner because of his tenure in Tampa Bay, especially under the tutelage of Maddon. The former big leaguer has served as the Rays' bench coach for the past seven years under Maddon, which obviously means the two got along in terms of their philosophies and their relationships with the players. The Rays must be highly considering Martinez because they'd rather not have a Tim Bogar situation on their hands.
Raul Ibanez, DH, Kansas City Royals: Ibanez has played 19 major league seasons and although he hasn't officially retired, it's pretty obvious he's going to after his steep decline this season. During his time with the Mariners, Phillies, Yankees and Angel/Royals (in 2014), the 42-year-old has batted .272 with 305 home runs and 1,207 RBIs. The New York Yankees are interested in hiring him as their hitting coach, but we'll see what happens now that he's linked to Tampa Bay.
Manny Acta, Former Manager of Cleveland Indians and Washington Nationals: Not too sure why he's on this list, but maybe he has some sort of connection with the Rays organization. Acta managed the Nationals from 2007-2009 and the Indians from 2010-2012 and has amassed a 372-518 record, never notching a winning season in six years. He was a former player, but never made it out of the minor leagues. He also served as the third base coach for the Montreal Expos and New York Mets in addition to managing the Dominican Republic team during the 2006 World Baseball Classic.
Craig Counsell, Milwaukee Brewers' Special Assistant: Counsell is another experienced former player who retired after the 2011 season. After 16 years in the MLB, Counsell amassed a .255 batting average and 1,208 hits with the Colorado Rockies, Florida Marlins, Los Angeles Dodgers, Arizona Diamondbacks and Milwaukee Brewers. In 2011, Counsell was hired as a special assistant to Brewers' general manager Doug Melvin, where he's been ever since. He turned down an opportunity to become the hitting coach for the Boston Red Sox because he wanted to stay with his family in Milwaukee, so we'll see if he changes his mind if the Rays offer him a great opportunity with their team.
Ron Wotus, San Francisco Giants' Bench Coach: Wotus has spent 26 years in the Giants organization. After his 11-year career as a player (two years in the majors), he began his coaching career as a manager in the minor leagues (1991-1997) and was named Manager of the Year on two separate occasions. His first coaching gig in the MLB was in 1998 when he was the third base coach on Dusty Baker's staff. He's currently the Giants' bench coach and also focuses on infield defense.
Don Wakamatsu, Kansas City Royals' Bench Coach: Wakamatsu managed the Seattle Mariners in 2009 and 2010. He went 85-77 in 2009, but followed that up with a 42-70 record in 2010 before he was fired in the middle of the season. He moved on to Toronto where he became the Blue Jays' bench coach in 2011 and remained there through 2012 before he was replaced by DeMarlo Hale. In 2013 he worked as a scout for the New York Yankees and then was hired as the Kansas City Royals' bench coach in 2014, so his stock is up being that they went to the World Series.
Kevin Cash, Cleveland Indians' Bullpen Coach: Cash was a finalist for the managerial position in Texas, but was passed up for Pirates' bench coach Jeff Banister in October. After he retired from the MLB in 2011, Cash joined the Blue Jays in 2012 as a scout and was then hired by Terry Francona to become the Indians' bullpen coach, where he's been since 2013.
Charlie Montoyo, Ray's Minor League Manager: Montoyo recently became the all-time winningest manager in the history of the Durham Bulls', the Tampa Bay Rays' Triple-A affiliate. He's coached for 18 years in the Rays' farm system, including his current position as manager of the Bulls since 2007, where he's amassed over 600 wins and a league championship in 2009. He won the Minor League Manager of the Year award in both 2010 and 2013. Despite his success, we've already seen a number of minor league managers interview for the big league positions and get turned down, so based on the pattern this year, it doesn't look as if Montoyo would be one of the top candidates.