Marlins nearing managerial hire! Is Craig Albernaz the right pick?

[Ely Sussman]

The Offishial Show—Episode #220

He was the most-likely candidate entering the managerial search process, and one month later, Craig Albernaz is poised to be the next manager of the Miami Marlins. Ely Sussman reacts to Tuesday's news that the Chicago White Sox have selected Will Venable to fill their vacancy, which seemingly paves the way for Albernaz to reunite with some old friends in Miami.

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Compared to most other years, there was a lot of continuity among MLB managers during this hiring cycle. Only the Marlins, White Sox and Cincinnati Reds had vacancies following the end of the regular season, and the Reds quickly struck a deal with future Hall of Famer Terry Francona. Per Bob Nightengale of USA Today, the Marlins and White Sox both landed on Albernaz and Venable as finalists in their searches with the Sox also seriously considering Phil Nevin. As first reported Tuesday night by MLB.com's Scott Merkin, Chicago has hired Venable.

Here is a glance at the résumés of Albernaz and Venable as featured in the 2024 media guides of the Cleveland Guardians and Texas Rangers, respectively:

They have had somewhat comparable journeys as coaches, but I would've preferred Venable over Albernaz. The former spent four full seasons handling MLB bench coach duties whereas the latter had only one. Venable has had opportunities to work intimately with Joe Maddon, Alex Cora and Bruce Bochy, each of them World Series-winning skippers with their own distinct styles. Those experiences must've been invaluable.

Neither managerial hire can be announced until Thursday at the earliest (Major League Baseball instructs its clubs not to steal the thunder from the World Series on gamedays).

Read more about Albernaz's candidacy here.

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[THOMAS JOSEPH]

Enjoyed and agree with your insights. 

We've heard that Venable was the heir-apparent to Bochy and thus, would wait it out. To me, this shows the incredible draw of being one of thirty in the world, despite all the moaning and gnashing of teeth about "no one wants the job" in Chicago (or Miami, for that matter). That thinking is inane, but we hear the same ridiculousness repeated. Perhaps in a similar vein as free agents, who (as Samson pontificates about) are mercenary to the core. Offer enough money and I bet they'll sign. Who wouldn't? With a few jobs available, it's an exponentially stronger lure. I wager many guys missed their specific windows and never had an MLB managerial opportunity. Nothing is guaranteed,

What does this mean for Schumaker? Sitting out a year, taking another (non-managerial) post? It sure looks like one of the two, despite the howling regarding the prestige of a MotY. One job was available, for crying out loud. He wasn't coming back to Miami, after all.