Updated: 7/8

 

A week before the halfway point of the season, the Washington Nationals wallowed in the basement of the NL East. A team that showed some level of promise during the early part of the season all became a distant memory. The breakout of sophomore sensation, James Wood, gave all sorts of excitement good things were coming for the team. Instead, outside of their budding superstar (and for the exception of the injured Dylan Crews), the rest of the roster has miserably played short of expectations that supposed to be a season full of progression. As the end result and without further ado, ownership decided to clean house by firing President Of Baseball Operations Mike Rizzo and manager Dave Martinez. Both men were responsible for giving the organization their first World Series title. Coming in their place will be assistant GM Mike DeBartolo and bench coach Miguel Cairo. Cairo got a taste of managing with his stint with the Chicago White Sox when Tony LaRussa stepped away from the club due to his health. He finished his stint respectively by finishing two games over .500. He wasn't given a chance to make the job a permanent one. 

 

A Trio Of Clubs Make A Change In The Midst Of Horrible Starts

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May became the month where change was in the air 

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The Pittsburgh Pirates, the Colorado Rockies and the Baltimore Orioles decided to make the change in the dugout after a horrendous start. While one team would have not been a factor in the postseason discussion, one had expectations to be competitive and be in the postseason mix. Then there's the team that won their division not so long ago, and, was in the postseason for two consecutive seasons

 

In-season firings had not been happening for the past couple of seasons. It looked like it was time to end the horrid before it got to the point of no control.

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Flying South Was Not An Option

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The Baltimore Orioles, a team that battled the New York Yankees for the division crown last year, was expected to field better results this year and return to the postseason. Instead, they are underperforming to expectations (despite some key injuries) and mired in the basement. As the end result, the plug was pulled from Brandon Hyde after five full seasons. Hyde stayed from the rebuild........ on to the peak of their three-season run ('22-'24) of winning ball....... to this disappointing start. He was named AL Manager Of The Year in '23. In an era of "What Have You Done Lately", past performances doesn't matter because all that matters is now. Third base coach Tony Mansolino will be running the ship on an interim basis. The question now remains will GM Mike Elias be next since he didn't make any effort in re-signing ace pitcher Corbin Burnes and decided on free agent starter Charlie Morton.    

 

Rocky Mountain Low

 

The Colorado Rockies were clearly going nowhere this season in a hotly competitive NL West division. They were going to be a doormat because their ownership refuses to make the club competitive and relevant. The last time they spent money, it was overpaying on Kris Bryant's contract that has proven to be a disaster. What broke the ice: the worst lopsided loss in the ballclub's history in a 21-0 pounding by division rival San Diego Padres. The club won the next day but ownership decided it was over for Bud Black, who was at the helm for at least eight full seasons. Black had the team competitive for his first two seasons; it went down from there. 

 

In the same process, the club let go of Black's bench coach: Mike Redmond. Redmond was with him from the beginning after his stint as manager of the Miami Marlins.

 

Third-base coach, Warren Schaeffer, was named as the interim for the rest of the season. Clint Hurdle, who came back from retirement a few seasons ago after his run as manager of the Pittsburgh Pirates, becomes the bench coach. Hurdle was already the interim hitting coach after Hensley Mullins was relieved of his duties earlier in the season.

 

Rockies ownership had to put out an apologetic statement about their performance the past few seasons as totally unacceptable and the fans deserved better. 

 

 

Change In The Steel City​​​​

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The goal to being a competitive ballclub, with expectations of making the postseason, were in play this season. They have Paul Skenes for an entire season, the veteran leadership of Andrew McCutchen for another year, and a healthy O'Neil Cruz showcasing his all-around talent. So far, the expectations have not been trending in that direction as it has resulted in a disappointing start to the season. The team is in the basement in the NL Central. As the direct result of this start, the Pittsburgh Pirates brass decided to let go of manager Derek Shelton. GM Ben Cherington felt a change was necessary based on the performance of the team. The players were nonchalant in the move as something had to be done in order to get things going. ​​​​​​​​​

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When a manager gets fired, it's typically seen as an unofficial white flag to the season. The players want to prove that presumption wrong.

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Bench coach Don Kelly will fill-in as the interim manager for the rest of the season. However, the message to the players is they need to play better.

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Next?

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Four have been shown the door this season. The question now is which manager will be next.

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An article from CBS Sports website listed four possible names to watch for. The names are:

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-Aaron Boone (YANKEES)

-Alex Cora (RED SOX)

-Mark Kotsay (A'S)

-Brian Snitker (BRAVES)

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The reason for Boone is due to their subpar. mediocre performance last month as they lost control of the division during the very last week to the Toronto Blue Jays and are endanger in slipping to third place behind the always surprising Tampa Bay Rays. The behind the scenes dysfunction may result in Cora becoming a victim due in the fact the Sox haven't gone to the playoffs since his return a few seasons ago. Things have not gone well during the first year of transition for the A's as they made modest upgrades to the roster; Kotsay could be a scapegoat in the process. It seemed Snitker's job was safe after recovering from an 0-7 start, but it looks like the season has went in a downward direction as they are well below .500. They have been playing uninspired ball despite the returns of Ronald Acuna Jr and Spencer Strider. Yes, key injuries have ravaged the pitching staff but having a terrible bullpen plus an offense underperforming at times are inexcusable as they are in fourth place underneath the rebuilding Miami Marlins. It wasn't a coincidence that Fredi Gonzalez was bought back to the organization despite this being Snitker's final year of his contract.

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One name that wasn't mentioned was Minnesota Twins manager, Rocco Baldelli. Baldelli had the team rolling in May as it produced one of the longest winning streaks this season thus far. It has come back down to earth as the club is under .500 and falling deeper out of the picture as the Detroit Tigers have firm gripped the division. Their postseason hopes are becoming distant but do they have enough to overcome this deficit? There's still enough time to make a statement, or, become deadline sellers. 

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Stay tuned as more of the hot seat unfolds throughout the season.