The New York Mets have decided they do not want to have a member of the Rays organization running their team on the field, as owner Steven Cohen announced Saturday that they had hired Buck Showalter over Matt Quatraro as their manager.
Showalter, who has managed the New York Yankees, Arizona Diamondbacks and Baltimore Orioles, was the third of three finalists interviewed by the Mets. Quatraro had been first to interview, followed by Houston Astros bench coach Joe Espada.
Showalter will be the fourth manager for the Mets since the start of the 2018 season.
The Rays bench coach has also interviewed with the Oakland Athletics, who have the only open managerial position remaining.
Steve Carney is the founder and publisher of St. Pete Nine. One of the people most associated with baseball coverage in Tampa Bay, he spent 13 seasons covering the Rays for flagship radio station WDAE, first as producer of Rays Radio broadcasts, then as beat reporter beginning in 2011. He likes new analytics and aged bourbon, and is the owner of one of the ugliest knuckleballs ever witnessed by baseball scouts.
