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Mets Rumors: Buck Showalter, Joe Espada, Matt Quatraro Finalists for Manager Job
December 12, 2021
The New York Mets are reportedly moving closer to naming a manager.
According to Joel Sherman and Ken Davidoff of the New York Post, Buck Showalter and Joe Espada are each considered finalists for the vacant position. Jon Heyman of MLB Network noted Tampa Bay Rays bench coach Matt Quatraro is a third finalist.
Sherman and Davidoff's report also noted the Mets plan on involving owner Steven Cohen in the process as they look to potentially hire a manager at some point this week.
Perhaps it shouldn't come as much of a surprise that Showalter and Espada are connected to the New York managerial position considering their previous ties to general manager Billy Eppler.
Eppler was the assistant general manager with the New York Yankees in 2014 and 2015 when Espada was in the front office and then the third base coach. What's more, Eppler was the general manager of the Los Angeles Angels and recommended the American League West team hire Showalter as manager after an interview following the 2019 campaign.
However, ownership overruled him in lieu of Joe Maddon, per Sherman and Davidoff.
Espada has seemingly been on the brink of landing a managerial job after serving as the third base coach for the Miami Marlins and Yankees prior to becoming the bench coach for the Houston Astros.
Anthony DiComo of MLB.com noted he interviewed for the Angels job, Texas Rangers job, San Francisco Giants job and Chicago Cubs job that all went elsewhere. He has plenty of experience and helped the Astros reach the World Series twice and is apparently in the running for another position in New York.
Showalter is a veteran manager who held the position with the Yankees, Arizona Diamondbacks, Rangers and Baltimore Orioles at different times throughout his career.
He is 1,551-1,517 in his career with three Manager of the Year awards on his resume.
As for Quatraro, he was a manager for years in the Tampa Bay Rays' minor league system before becoming the assistant hitting coach for Cleveland. He also returned to the Rays as the third base coach and bench coach in recent years.
Whoever becomes the next manager of the Mets will look to turn around a franchise that has missed the playoffs in each of the last five years.