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Names for prospective managers of the San Diego Padres have been flying around since Mike Shildt announced his retirement Oct. 13. Some of the names that have been suggested for the position have been obvious to fans of the Padres. Ruben Niebla (current pitching coach) and Brian Esposito (current bench coach) seem like automatic considerations, while other names have been a bit more surprising.
One of the most talked about names that was not among the initial reports after Shildt’s retirement is Albert Pujols. The former St. Louis Cardinals, Los Angeles Angels and Los Angeles Dodgers slugger was thought to be in the running for the Angels managerial vacancy, but was removed from consideration just before the team named Kurt Suzuki as the manager of the Halos. Pujols has been linked to the managerial vacancy in Baltimore, and he is set to interview in San Diego on Wednesday.
Pujols is expected to manage the Dominican Republic in the World Baseball Classic this summer, but that will have to change if he is able to secure a position as an MLB manager. He is a soon-to-be Hall of Fame player (he’s eligible for election in 2028) with more than 700 home runs and 3,300 hits to his name, but does that mean he will be a good manager? That remains to be seen.
There have been several names linked to the Padres position like Niebla, Esposito and Pujols. Others were reported on Tuesday with Nick Hundley, Mark Loretta and Ryan Flaherty all expected to interview with San Diego. Former Padres catcher and current Spanish-language broadcaster for the team, Carlos Hernandez, has also expressed interest in being the new manager.
There will be many interviews and plenty of speculation before the Padres make their pick, but if they decided that Pujols was the man for the job, how would the Friar Faithful feel? Do you think he would be a good fit in San Diego? That is the question Gaslamp Ball is asking this week in our Padres Reacts Survey Poll.
