The Miami Marlins hired former Los Angeles Dodgers first base coach Clayton McCullough to fill their vacant manger position after parting ways with Skip Schumaker following his two years at the helm.
McCullough is the second Dodgers coach in the past six years to leave to organization for a managerial position. The other was former third-base coach Chris Woodward in 2018, when he was named the new Texas Rangers manager. Woodward has since returned to the Dodgers in a special assistant role.
Before joining the Marlins as their manager, McCullough was a candidate for the same position with the Chicago White Sox, but fell out of the running in late October. The White Sox went on to hire Will Venable.
Meanwhile, McCullough was on the Marlins’ radar quickly once the team began their search for a new manager, according to Fabian Ardaya of the Athletic:
The Marlins targeted McCullough early in their process, according to a person with knowledge of the situation, speaking twice with the 44-year-old ahead of the Dodgers’ World Series run before visiting him in his Jupiter, Fla., home after the Dodgers clinched the title.
Since joining the Dodgers organization as their Minor League field coordinator, McCullough has been a rising star in the coaching ranks for some time now. He interviewed with or was connected to the New York Mets, Milwaukee Brewers, Cleveland Guardians and Kansas City Royals previously.
McCullough now takes over the Marlins as their 17th manager in 32 seasons. It has not been a position with much stability aside from Don Mattingly’s tenure from 2016-2022 being the longest in franchise history.
Clayton McCullough beginning to build Marlins coaching staff
The first order of business for McCullough now that he is taking over as manager is building out his staff. One of the first candidates being reported is former Dodgers prospect Pedro Guerrero, who will be joining the Marlins as their hitting coach.
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