A new report has revealed additional names to watch in the White Sox managerial search.
According to MLB insider Jon Heyman, former Angels manager Phil Nevin, Cardinals bench coach Daniel Descalso, and Texas Rangers bench coach Will Venable are among a “long list” of targets to become the club’s next skipper. Of the three, Venable appears to be attracting the most interest.
“Former Angels manager Phil Nevin and Cardinals bench coach Daniel Descalso are among a long list of White Sox managerial targets.
“One big target is Rangers bench coach Will Venable, the seeming heir apparent in Texas who turned down the Mets.”
Venable, 41, has found himself in a few different roles since retiring after nine big league seasons. He was first named as a special assistant to Cubs president Theo Epstein in September 2017, served as the team’s first base coach from 2018-19, and later as the third base coach in 2020.
Alex Cora and the Red Sox then brought in Venable ahead of the 2021 season to be the team’s bench coach. After two seasons in Boston, enable landed with the Rangers and has served as an associate manager alongside Bruce Bochy since 2023.
Even before Texas won the World Series last season, Venable saw his name floating around vacancies. He most notably declined an interview with the Mets for their opening last October due to “comfort with his situation,” though it’s unknown whether he’s reconsidering his options ahead of 2025. If so, he could be an intriguing name to watch for the White Sox throughout this process.
Someone with a little more managerial experience is Nevin, who recently interviewed with the Padres for their opening last winter. The 52-year-old originally took over as the Angels interim manager after Joe Maddon was fired in 2022 and signed on for an additional year with a club option for 2024. That was ultimately declined after he went 119-149 over his two seasons at the helm from 2022-23. Nevin was very popular among players because of his personal skills, however, and has been itching to get back into a major league dugout in some capacity.
If the White Sox want to go in a completely different direction, there are plenty of other names believed to be in the mix. Last week, it was made known by The Athletic’s Keith Law that even long-time MLB manager Buck Showalter is “angling” for the job.
“I wrote about their future in a piece last week, on the 23rd. There’s pitching coming. Getz is trying to overhaul some areas of the organization that have stagnated for years. Simply having Kenny Williams out of the picture helps too. One thing I heard that I would hate for them is that Buck Showalter is angling for the manager’s job – given his propensity to interfere in player development, he’s the wrong hire for that position.”
Showalter, 68, has spent a combined 22 years at the helm of five major league teams. His stints include the Yankees (1992-95), Diamondbacks (1998-2000), Rangers (2003-06), Orioles (2010-18) and Mets (2022-23). In that span, Showalter owns a record of 1726-1664, yielding a .509 winning percentage and four Manager of the Year awards.
He notched his most recent accolade with the Mets in 2022 after leading the club to their first 100-win season since 1988. Despite losing to the Padres in the Wild Card, Showalter seemed to be pressing all the right buttons in the first season of his three-year deal. That all changed quickly after a loaded Mets roster flopped in 2023, leading to Showalter’s dismissal after David Stearns was hired as the president of baseball operations. The skipper has since served as an analyst on MLB Network and appears to be itching to get back into a major league dugout.
Before that, other rumblings from 670 The Score’s Bruce Levine suggest that the Dodgers’ Clayton McCullough may be a leading candidate for the White Sox job. Likewise, USA Today’s Bob Nightengale has remained steadfast in his connection of former Marlins manager Skip Schumaker.
“I was advised not to expect too much about the job because they really like McCullough and consider his experience ideal for leading and developing the young team.”
Anonymous American League Coach (via Bruce Levine)
With Terry Francona having been named the next manager of the Reds, Schumaker accepting a potential job offer from the White Sox may have become more likely since it’s the only vacancy outside of Miami. Of course, more spots could open up at the end of the postseason, but both the Marlins and White Sox may be close to making their final decisions by then.
The White Sox hope to have a new manager hired by late October or the first week of November. Under MLB guidelines, they can ask permission to speak with candidates who are currently working for playoff teams and then interview them in October. And while Francona may not have been a great fit on the South Side, it’s fair to believe he was likely on the list of candidates that Chris Getz has said is up to about 20 at this point.
With the search intensifying, we will be watching for future developments. Follow us on social media @SoxOn35th for further updates!
Feature Photo: © Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images
