We are now into the third full month of the 2023 MLB regular season and it’s safe to say that things are heating up in the Majors. Several teams have gotten off to strong starts, while others are starting to fall behind in the 2023 MLB Playoff race. But, which managers right now have hot seats to contend with? Let’s take a look at the five managers that — at this point — either are or could find themselves on the hot seat.
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5. Buck Showalter
Last season, the Mets won 101 games and made the MLB Playoffs for the first time since 2016. New York added Justin Verlander to its rotation and retained the team’s lineup from last season, but the results have not been the same. New York entered play on June 12 with a 31-35 record and three games back of the final NL Wild Card spot.
Showalter’s status is fine for right now, as owner Steve Cohen stated that he’s not looking to make major changes at this moment. But if the Mets — the MLB team with the largest payroll — do fail to make the postseason again this season, many in New York will question his decisions this season.
4. Phil Nevin
Angels manager Phil Nevin was one of the managers we listed as potential targets for removal entering the 2023 season. Much of that has to do with the pressure on Nevin and this group to produce and break a playoff drought that extends back to the team’s last postseason appearance in 2014. The Angels are not in a playoff spot as of this writing, but the Halos led by Shohei Ohtani and Mike Trout are just a game and a half back of the third and final AL Wild Card spot.
On a one-year deal for the 2023 season, Nevin is on a thin leash. If the Angels can break the drought, the ex-Padre will likely remain. But with a lot of money invested into the Angels roster and a lot of Los Angeles’ hopes of retaining Ohtani dependent on this season, Nevin’s seat is still warm at the moment.
3. A.J. Hinch
The Tigers began the 2023 season with limited expectations, thanks to numerous injuries to its pitching staff and a focus on developing Riley Greene and Spencer Torkelson for the future. Detroit spent much of the first seven weeks flirting with first in a weak AL Central division, but have since bottomed out. Since Memorial Day, the Tigers lost eleven of its last 12 games and fall to 26-37 on the season. That leaves into doubt the future of current manager A.J. Hinch.
Hinch is a holdover from the prior regime in Detroit. If the Tigers continue to falter this season, Scott Harris and his staff could look for a new manager for 2024.
2. Bob Melvin
Padres manager Bob Melvin pushed a lot of buttons correctly last season, when San Diego made the NLCS for the first time since 1998. Much was expected by the Padres this season, thanks to the addition of Xander Bogaerts and the return of Fernando Tatis Jr. However, things have not gone well in San Diego. The Padres, which boast the third-largest payroll in the league, went 31-34 in the team’s first 65 games and sit fourth in the standings, behind the Diamondbacks, Dodgers, and Giants.
Melvin will have time, but should the Padres miss out on the playoffs for the second time in three seasons, San Diego may be in the market for a new manager.
1. Oliver Marmol
Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol finds himself in roughly the same position as Melvin. St. Louis won the NL Central in 2022, but sit with the third-worst record in the National League as of June 12. While the Cardinals own the league’s ninth-best team OPS (.748) and wOBA (.326), a 4.28 team ERA have proved to be major problem for St. Louis.
Right now, the Cardinals are on pace to miss the playoffs for the first time since 2018 and the team’s .409 winning percentage would be St. Louis’ worst in decades. With those numbers, it’s hard to envision Marmol sticking around should the Cardinals not be able to get back on track.
