Brad Ausmus rarely batted lead-off during his 18-year playing career, but he started things off for the New York Mets’ managerial search this week.
MLB insider Jon Heyman reported on Monday that Ausmus interviewed for the Mets job — the first known candidate to do so.
Ausmus has five years of managerial experience in the majors — four of them coming with the Detroit Tigers where he went 314-332 with one playoff appearance in 2014.
Following his dismissal in 2017, he was brought on by the Los Angeles Angels and then-GM Billy Eppler for the 2019 campaign. He lasted just one season after going 70-92 before Joe Maddon was brought in to run things.
Eppler is now the Mets GM running the managerial search, so it’s still apparent that he thinks highly of Ausmus despite their disappointing year together in Los Angeles.
The Mets have at least one more interview coming this week. It is believed a conversation with Rays bench coach Matt Quatraro will be had next.
New York reached out to the Rays for permission to interview Quatraro on Monday.
Among other candidates is Houston Astros bench coach Joe Espada, who worked with Eppler when he was the Yankees’ assistant general manager, and 20-year managing veteran, Buck Showalter.
Espada has gained traction as a legitimate MLB managerial candidate over the last few seasons while flourishing within the Astros organization — all the while staying out of the shadow of the team’s sign-stealing scandal.
While he holds no managing experience, his links with Eppler and his track record of working with the Yankees and Astros — especially under Dusty Baker — makes him a strong contender for the position.
But most of the early talk has swirled around Showalter, who would bring a wealth of knowledge and stability to an organization that has lacked just that in recent years from the manager position.
The 65-year-old has managed in New York, helping to build up the Yankees toward a dynasty in the 1990s under Joe Torre before finding success in league afterthoughts like the Arizona Diamondbacks and Baltimore Orioles.
