As the Los Angeles Dodgers continue with their extensive search to find Don Mattingly’s replacement, they remain the lone club without a manager in place.
Mattingly didn’t go long between jobs, agreeing to become the Miami Marlins manager on a four year-deal, and the Washington Nationals were the latest to fill their vacancy by hiring Dusty Baker.
Among the candidates for the Dodgers’ managerial opening is team director of player development Gabe Kapler. He was initially pegged as the favorite, though may have been supplanted by San Diego Padres bench coach Dave Roberts.
With Kapler nonetheless appearing to be under consideration, famed Chicago White Sox first baseman Frank Thomas said recently he believes Kapler is better suited in the front office, according to Bill Shaikin of the LA Times:
Hall of Fame slugger Frank Thomas said Sunday he hopes Gabe Kapler remains in the Dodgers’ front office rather than becomes the team’s manager. “I think he’s better suited for being a general manager than a field manager,” Thomas said.
Thomas worked alongside Kapler as a Fox Sports analyst last year before Kapler joined the Dodgers front office. While Thomas believes his coworker is better off in the front office, he didn’t rule out Kapler succeeding as a manager:
“I think highly of Gabe,” Thomas said. “I really enjoyed working with him. He’s very intense. I think he could make it as a manager. He’s a brilliant mind. He’s very into the numbers game that’s going on now with all the general managers. I would want to see him stay in the front office. I think he’s got a real future there for the next 20 to 30 years.”
On top of having a relationship with Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman that dates back to their time in Tampa Bay, Kapler’s work ethic and use of sabermetrics make him a natural fit as manager under Friedman and general manager Farhan Zaidi.
That being said, Dodgers ownership reportedly asked Friedman to hold off on an early hire and consider candidates beyond Kapler. With Chicago Cubs bench coach Dave Martinez scheduled to interview next week, the Dodgers appear to be a handful of days, at minimum, from anointing a new manager.
