The New York Mets have formally submitted a request to interview Tampa Bay Rays bench coach, Matt Quatraro, for their managerial vacancy, according to ESPN’s Buster Olney.
The 48-year-old has slowly worked his way through the ranks of the minor leagues and into the majors where he has begun to garner consideration for major-league manager jobs.
After working within the Rays’ minor-league system, Quatraro was hired to the Cleveland Guardians’ MLB staff as an assistant hitting coach for the 2014 season where he remained for three years. He returned to the Rays in 2018 as their third-base coach but was quickly promoted to bench coach a year later after Charlie Montoyo was hired as manager of the Toronto Blue Jays.
Quatraro is the first known candidate that the Mets have requested permission to interview in a search that general manager Billy Eppler admitted included a “wide” list of candidates.
Amongst other potential targets are veteran manager Buck Showalter, Houston Astros bench coach Joe Espada, and former Tigers and Angels manager Brad Ausmus.
While Major League Baseball is in the first week of what is expected to be a lengthy lockout between it and its players, teams can still make managerial or staff hires. The lockout is only freezing the players and their ability to move in either free agency or on the trade market.
The Mets are one of two teams in baseball (Oakland Athletics) currently looking for a manager and with the lockout just beginning, the search for a new skipper is only expected to heat up more in the coming weeks.
