The list of publicly known names in the White Sox managerial search continues to grow as the team moves closer to a hire.
According to a new report by Sox Machine’s Josh Nelson and James Fegan, Tigers bench coach George Lombard and Padres special assistant A.J. Ellis are the two latest names to be in the running. Despite this newly uncovered connection, the White Sox have begun informing some candidates that they have been eliminated from consideration. The team is still hoping to make a hire by the end of October, though interest in assistants from teams still in the league’s Championship Series has delayed some formal interviews.
“… as Josh has been told a new slate of names the Sox are considering strongly, a source indicates to me that it would premature to consider them “finalists” because the team has some candidates who remain in the initial stage of review.”
Lombard, 49, has served as A.J. Hinch’s bench coach for all four of his seasons in Detroit. He began his coaching career with the Red Sox’s minor league affiliates before filling the same role, roving outfield and baserunning coordinator, with the Braves in 2015. The Dodgers then hired Lombard as their first base coach, a role he would hold from 2016 to 2020 under Dave Roberts.
Lombard has previously been interviewed for positions with the Marlins (base coach) and Pirates (manager). Given his time with a World Series Champion Dodgers team, which is just a top-class organization itself, Lombard has some great experience to go with his current coaching role on a team that just made the ALDS.
Ellis, 43, is a former big league catcher for the Dodgers, Phillies, Marlins, and Padres. An 18th-round draft pick back in 2003, Ellis has been working for the Padres since 2019, when he joined the front office as a special assistant to the baseball operations department. In 2024, he assumed a role that saw him interact with the MLB team and minor league affiliates as an assistant.
The two names, who would wind up being first-time managers if hired, join a variety of other candidates. The known list of names from recent reports has reached eight, though it’s likely other coaches are in the running as well:
- Former Marlins manager Skip Schumaker
- Dodgers bench coach Clayton McCullough
- Former Mets skipper Buck Showalter
- Former Angels manager Phil Nevin
- Cardinals bench coach Will Venable
- Rangers associate manager Daniel Descalso
- Tigers bench coach George Lombard
- Padres special assistant to major league staff and baseball operations A.J. Ellis
Under MLB guidelines, the White Sox can ask permission to speak with candidates who are currently working for playoff teams and then interview them later this month. As Nelson and Fegan reported, it appears that some formal interviews have yet to take place, which could delay this process slightly depending on the outcome of the playoffs.
With the search intensifying, we will be watching for future developments. Follow us on social media @SoxOn35th for further updates!
Featured Photo: © Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images
