The San Francisco Giants got a head start on what is shaping up to be a busy managerial market this offseason by firing Gabe Kapler before the start of the team’s season-ending series last week.
The Giants failed to make the postseason for the third time in four seasons under Kapler, who National League Manager of the Year in 2021 when he led the Giants to an NL West division title with a franchise-best 107-55 record.
Kapler went 295-248 as the Giants’ manager, and the position figures to be an attractive one with San Francisco expected to be very active in free agency this offseason.
Will Venable and Stephen Vogt, two candidates with ties to the franchise, have been installed as the co-favorites at +500 by SportsBetting.com.
Venable, 40, played nine seasons in Major League Baseball and is current the associate manager for the Texas Rangers. He was born in Greenbrae, Calif., north of the Golden Gate Bridge, and his father, Max, played for the Giants from 1979-83.
Vogt, 38, retired as a player after last season and played one of his 11 major league seasons with the Giants in 2019. He was an immensely popular player with the cross-bay Oakland Athletics from 2013-17 before returning in 2022, and spent this season as the bullpen and quality control coach for the Seattle Mariners.
A Visalia, Calif., native from south of Fresno, Vogt also grew up as a Giants fan and attended several games a year as a child.
The third shortest odds belong to longtime infielder Mark DeRosa. While DeRosa does not have previous MLB managerial experience, he did manage Team USA in this year’s World Baseball Classic and is currently an analyst for MLB Network.
The book’s list of potential candidates for the Giants’ opening includes 23 names, including four entertaining longshots from the franchise’s past.
GIANTS NEXT MANAGER ODDS*
Will Venable (+500)
Stephen Vogt (+500)
Mark DeRosa (+700)
Bob Melvin (+800)
Mark Hallberg (+900)
Kai Correa (+1200)
Ron Wotus (+1200)
Don Mattingly (+1400)
Joe Espada (+1400)
Matt Williams (+1400)
Clayton McCullough (+1600)
Donnie Ecker (+1600)
Rodney Linares (+1800)
Benji Gil (+2500)
Danny Lehmann (+2500)
Don Kelly (+2500)
George Lombard (+2500)
Jarnathan McNamara (+2500)
Ramón Vázquez (+2500)
Buster Posey (+4000)
Will Clark (+4000)
Bruce Bochy (+5000)
Dusty Baker (+10000)
*SportsBetting.ag
–Field Level Media
