The San Francisco Giants sparked some controversy when they hired Tennessee coach Tony Vitello as their new manager, despite his lack of professional managing experience. However, on Thursday, the San Diego Padres took an even bolder step by hiring a manager who has never managed before—anywhere.
Craig Stammen, who spent seven years in the Padres organization as a relief pitcher, was forced to retire in 2023 due to a shoulder injury. Over the last two seasons, he worked as an assistant to the major league coaching staff and contributed to the baseball operations department. In a move reminiscent of when Dick Cheney led the search for George W. Bush’s vice president in 2000 only to end up getting the job himself, Stammen was part of the Padres’ first round of interviews before officially joining the process and ultimately getting hired.
During his 13-year MLB career, split between the Washington Nationals and the Padres, Stammen posted a 55-44 record with a 3.66 ERA and six saves. MLB.com dubbed him the “de facto leader of the bullpen” during his time in San Diego—a phrase that is surprisingly rare in baseball commentary. In fact, a quick Google search suggests this might be the only place that exact term appears online, making the title somewhat akin to Brandon Belt declaring himself Giants captain simply by buying a hat.
This represents an ambitious and risky move for the Padres, especially following the retirement of manager Mike Shildt after two seasons. Shildt was the first Padres manager to win 90 games in back-to-back seasons. Now, with an expensive and veteran-laden roster, the pressure will be on Stammen to deliver playoff success. The starting lineup should largely remain intact, depending on what happens with Luis Arraez in free agency.
The starting rotation, however, remains uncertain with Dylan Cease and Michael King entering free agency. On the bright side, the Padres’ bullpen was excellent last season and has good potential to improve now that Stammen is stepping into the “official leader” role in the bullpen.
Is it strange for Stammen to be managing players he recently played alongside? Perhaps. It might even be a bit weirder than the Giants hiring Vitello, who, despite no pro managing experience, coached many major leaguers during his college career.
Meanwhile, the Washington Nationals made a splash of their own by hiring 33-year-old Blake Butera—the youngest managerial hire since the Minnesota Twins brought on Frank Quilici in 1972. Quilici managed the Twins to a 280-287 record over three and a half seasons, despite being younger than stars Harmon Killebrew and Tony Oliva.
Though Butera is very young, he does have four seasons of single-A managing experience under his belt, with two league titles to his name. He also previously worked as farm director for the Tampa Bay Rays, a role that often involved trading players off their 40-man roster to general manager Farhan Zaidi.
So, while the Giants’ decision to hire Vitello might be seen as a risk, at least he’s seasoned enough to have seen “Jurassic Park” during its original theatrical run and has managed actual baseball games outside of MLB The Show. Plus, he’s certainly not Walt Weiss—a fact Giants fans can be grateful for.
https://www.mccoveychronicles.com/san-francisco-giants-news/102013/padres-managerial-hire-takes-heat-off-sf-giants-decision