The J

With the Giants, Twins, Orioles, Rangers, and Angels all having open managerial jobs, the market for new leaders is hot as ever. The Twins, Orioles, and Angels have gone the more traditional route, hiring ex-players or managers with leadership experience. In contrast, the Giants and Nationals are hedging their bets on younger, less experienced leadership.

For the traditionalists, Kurt Suzuki and the Angels were an expected match. As an ex-player with experience in every situation, ranging from being a veteran presence on young teams to starting on a World Series-winning team, Suzuki was tailor-made to be an MLB manager. He enters his new role hoping to be the change of pace the Angels need. Suzuki will have plenty to work with, as the Angels quietly had the 4th most HRs in the league, along with prospects Nelson Rada and George Klassen, who are expecting to make their debut after promising finishes to their 2025 season in AAA. The Orioles’ hiring of Greg Albernaz was a bit of a surprise on the surface, but makes more sense after a deeper dive. Relatively new to coaching, he started as Gabe Kapler’s catching coach in 2019. It was there in San Francisco where Albernaz became close with current Cleveland Guardians Manager, Steven Vogt, who he eventually followed him to Cleveland as their bench coach. His age and time in the minors have helped him connect with young players, fitting with the Orioles’ young talent that struggled throughout the 2025 season. Albernaz looks to return Baltimore to their 2024 form where they won 91 games and showed major promise to lead the AL for years to come. 

The Minnesota Twins have made an extremely stereotypical small-market hire with Derek Shelton. Shelton was the safe option that has plenty of experience throughout a front office; he bounced around organizations as a hitting coach, minor league developmental coach, and minor league manager. Shelton got his first MLB managerial job with the Pirates from 2020 to 2025 and was fired halfway through the 2025 season. Having a .420 win percentage in that time, he was never able to lead the Pirates to a winning season. After a disappointing stint in Pittsburgh, it will be interesting to see if his time in Pittsburgh was a matter of situation or his own leadership. 

The San Francisco Giants hiring of Tony Vitello has been the biggest splash in this young offseason. The former Tennessee Volunteers head coach becomes the first college head coach to make the jump to being an MLB manager. An all-or-nothing move from the Giants new president of baseball operations, Buster Posey. Vitello has been at the top of the college baseball world alongside Jay Johnson the past couple of years, setting the standard for the modern state of college baseball. Known for his fiery personality and defending his guys with everything he has, it remains to be seen how much it holds up throughout a 162-game season, instead of the ~60-game college season. Vitello, on multiple occasions, has discussed the new wave of negotiations in college baseball, recruiting a lot more with a checkbook instead of education and development. The hope is that with this knowledge, Vitello won’t be completely oblivious to dealing with the egos that come along with money. The Major Leagues and college baseball have never been more connected due to the NIL era. Still, Vitello will need to learn the difference between kids getting extra spending money and grown men getting paid millions to earn the respect of the clubhouse. Especially on a team with predominantly internationally signed or high school draftees, Vitello needs to set his standard early and keep his foot on the gas to make it work in San Francisco.

Finally, the Washington Nationals have fully departed from their 2019 World Series team with their dismissal of Dave Martinez halfway through the 2025 season. Finishing 66-96, they had a bottom-5 offense and rotation in the league. They hope to turn things around with the hiring of 33-year-old Blake Buterra. Buterra will be another must-watch hire with only 5 years of managerial and front office experience. He’s been successful everywhere he’s been, winning Cactus League Manager of the Year twice before he turned 30, along with 2 years as a key part of the Rays’ minor league development system. Taking over the youngest team in baseball with a solid young core of McKenzie Gore, CJ Abrams, Dylan Crews, and James Woods, his credentials line up perfectly with the direction the organization appears to be headed in.