Teams Go Younger, Cheaper In Hiring New Managers For 2026

The Good Old Boy fraternity that usually generates major-league managers isn’t as solid as it used to be.

Using the nine new pilots as an accurate barometer, teams are thinking younger, cheaper, and more innovative in hiring their next field generals.

Nine of the 30 teams have new managers this spring and six of the nine are newbies, with zero experience in major-league dugouts. One even jumped directly from the college ranks.

Each will face his own set of challenges, including commanding respect from 26 different personalities in the clubhouse.

As Billy Martin once said, “My job as manager was to keep the five guys who hated me away from the five who were undecided.”

Of the nine, these are most likely to succeed:

College Guy

1. Tony Vitello, Giants – After Bob Melvin missed the playoffs in both of the years he helmed this team, president of baseball operations Buster Posey – a former star catcher and current Hall o Fame candidate – reached into the college ranks. Since becoming the University of Tennessee coach in 2018, he turned the school into a national collegiate power. But where Vitello succeeded, the Giants failed, topping .500 just once since 2017. Maybe Rafael Devers, in his first full Bay Area season, and Luis Arraez, a three-time batting king who is also newly arrived, can team with Willy Adames to provide enough punch to support the solid 1-2 pitching punch of Logan Webb and Robbie Ray. But it won’t be easy in a division dominated by the arch-rival Los Angeles Dodgers. At least the rookie manager thinks young at age 47.

2. Walt Weiss, Braves – The opposite of Vitello, the former Atlanta bench coach inherits a team that once won a record 14 straight division crowns and recently had seven straight playoff appearances – including a world championship in 2021. A former star shortstop who spent four years managing the Colorado Rockies, Weiss promises to utilize his whole roster – something predecessor Brian Snitker didn’t do – and to bat former MVP Ronald Acuna, Jr. in his old leadoff spot. He’ll need pitching behind Chris Sale and Spencer Strider but there should be lots of offense even without suspended left-fielder Jurickson Profar (steroids). Michael Harris II and Ozzie Albies, who slumped last year, had strong springs and could bounce back, helping Acuna, Matt Olson, and Austin Riley in generating runs.

After Bochy

3. Skip Schumaker, Rangers – Like Weiss, he’s a former infielder with managerial experience (NL Manager of the Year in 2023 with the Miami Marlins). He has big shoes to fill, however, as Bruce Bochy not only won a World Series three years ago but has emerged as a top candidate for the Hall of Fame’s Eras Committee when it votes on managers this fall. Texas hopes Brandon Nimmo replaces Adolis Garcia but wonders how far the new boss can bring his charges over last year’s .500 mark (81-81) that left Texas nine games behind Seattle. At least he’ll have Jacob deGrom, Nathan Eovaldi, and Mackenzie Gore as a powerful Big Three in his rotation. Finding dependable relief might pose a problem, however.

4. Craig Albernaz, Orioles – Perhaps the most anonymous manager in the majors, he succeeds Brandon Hyde after a seven-season run that resembled a roller-coaster. Baltimore won the AL East in 2023 but dropped like a stone since, finishing 19 games behind last year. As a result, the Birds got busy, landing Pete Alonso and Taylor Ward to beef up the offense that should be better in hitter-friendly Oriole Park and adding proven pitchers Shane Baz, Ryan Helsley, and Chris Bassitt. The new pilot spent last summer as associate manager in Cleveland, which won the AL Central with a late charge, and hopes to reach the playoffs again – even though a win by the O’s would cap a worst-to-first campaign.

5. Craig Stammen, Padres – Like Vitello, he was hired out of a blue by a team that plans to contend. Best known for once yielding four home runs in a row during a relief appearance, Stammen succeeds Mike Shildt, who resigned after a torrent of angry fan mail that followed two playoff debacles (vs. the Dodgers in 2024 and Cubs in 2025). A veteran of the San Diego front office, Stammen knows the team – and knows he’ll get plenty of offense from Manny Machado, Xander Bogaerts, and Fernando Tatis, Jr. But the continued absence of San Diego native Joe Musgrove from the rotation hurts, as Michael King and Nick Pivetta can’t do it alone. Having Mason Miller as closer should be a big help, however.

Changing Clubs

6. Derek Shelton, Twins – Though he’s 11 years older than highly-regarded predecessor Rocco Baldelli, he’s the only manager in the majors moving from one team to another since the start of last season. Shelton’s tenure in Pittsburgh lasted nearly six seasons but he just didn’t have the horses. He might in Minnesota if everyone stays healthy but star pitcher Pablo Lopez is already out for the year with an elbow issue. The budget-conscious Twins dumped 11 players during a pre-deadline frenzy last July but still have All-Stars Byron Buxton, coming off a 35-homer campaign, and Joe Ryan, a solid starting pitcher.

7. Kurt Suzuki, Angels – Neither Ron Washington nor Ray Montgomery could do anything with Arte Moreno’s high-priced players last season. The result was the team’s 10th straight losing season and an out-of-left-field managerial move. Hired after the more expensive Albert Pujols and Torii Hunter were considered, Suzuki is a former catcher operating on a one-year contract – maybe because a lockout looms in December and the Halos didn’t want to pay anyone not to manage. Still the home of three-time MVP Mike Trout, Anaheim finished 18 games out last year and didn’t do much during the winter. Suzuki will need Trout and Jorge Soler to find the Fountain of Youth, Jo Adell and Zach Neto to maintain their power production, and ancient closer Kirby Yates to save a shaky starting rotation. Newcomer Grayson Rodriguez might help.

Tough Task

8. Warren Schaeffer, Rockies – A five-time Wild Card that reached the World Series only in 2007, the Rockies were so horrendous last year that the came within a whisker of losing the most games in major-league history. Schaeffer, elevated from third-base coach to manager after Bud Black finally wore out his welcome, finished 50 games – 50 !! – under .500 even though he held the reins for only 122 games. Out of the playoffs since 2018, the Rockies won’t get there this year either. Pitching, a perennial problem, remains the main stumbling block; nobody won more than six games or saved 11 games last summer. With the days of the Blake Street Bombers a distant memory, catcher Hunter Goodman is the primary power source these days (former MVP Kris Bryant remains a free agent albatross, unable to stay healthy or come close to his former form).

9. Blake Butera, Nationals – It was no surprise that Washington’s youthful baseball operations chief, 35-year-old Paul Toboni, would hire someone even younger to sit in the managerial hot seat. At 33, Butera is not only the youngest manager in the majors but also younger than some of his players. He succeeds Dave Martinez, who started last season wearing a curly W, and Miguel Cairo, who replaced him July 6. The youngest manager since Minnesota’s Frank Quilici in 1972, Butera inherits a roster of budding stars (James Wood, CJ Abrams, Dylan Crews, Daylen Lile) and not-ready-for-prime-time players (Harry Ford and Cade Cavalli). In a division dominated by three powerhouses, the Nats may struggle to avoid increasing their 2025 total of 96 defeats.