In a surprising decision, Texas Rangers general manager Jon Daniels has chosen Pittsburgh Pirates bench coach Jeff Banister as the team's next manager, passing on Rangers' bench coach Tim Bogar, who also served as the team's interim manager for the final 22 games of the season.
Banister will leave the Pittsburgh Pirates organization after 29 years and join the Rangers to succeed the Ron Washington era that lasted eight seasons. Despite Banister's extensive experience as a coach, his hire is still a bit shocking because numerous reports surfaced at the end of the Rangers' season that suggested Bogar was the "runaway favorite" to land the manager position.
After Washington resigned on September 5, Bogar was appointed interim manager and led the Rangers to a 14-8 record in their final 22 games, which helped them narrowly avoid the worst record in the MLB. The team finished a dismal 67-95, but Bogar's guidance at the end provided a glimmer of hope as they won 12 out of 13 games against opponents that included the Los Angeles Angels, Atlanta Braves, Oakland Athletics and Houston Astros.
Additionally, Bogar has invaluable experience as a baseball coach, serving as a minor league manager for four minor league teams and winning "manager of the year" with three of them. Per his MLB resume, Bogar was with the Boston Red Sox from 2008-2012 and served as the first-base coach, third-base coach and bench coach before leaving after Bobby Valentine was fired. He then was hired as the Rangers bench coach in 2013, but now his status with the team is unknown because he's likely frustrated with Daniels' selection.
The Twins currently have a vacant spot for their manager position, and they might elect to interview Bogar in the coming weeks once their search intensifies. If Bogar is unhappy with Texas, that would be a perfect solution for both sides if it were to play out that way.
Nonetheless, the Rangers will welcome Banister as their new manager. He'll have a lot of work to do since the Rangers are dealing with a number of injuries this offseason (Prince Fielder, Shin-Soo Choo, Yu Darvish and others) and the team has holes to fill in the outfield and starting rotation. On top of that, they're in a tough AL West division that includes the Los Angeles Angels, Oakland Athletics and Seattle Mariners.
But this is nothing new for Banister, as he's undertaken a number of challenges within the Pirates organization. He served as the manager of four minor league teams from 1994-1998 before being named the Major League Field Coordinator of the Pirates. He worked that role from 1999-2002 before becoming the Minor League Field Coordinator from 2003-2010 and was then hired as the Pirates bench coach under manager Clint Hurdle, where he's been ever since. Banister witnessed the Pirates' 20-year playoff drought and was part of the 2013 and 2014 teams that made the postseason.
Banister, a Texas native, will manage his first MLB team in the 2015 season.
