Kansas City Royals: Seven potential successors to Ned Yost
By Cullen Jekel
The Minors Manager
Michael Ryan, Manager, Altoona Curve
Currently, there are seven managers in Major League Baseball who at one time managed in the minor leagues. That list includes first-time non-interim managers Brandon Hyde (Orioles), Charlie Montoyo (Blue Jays), and Mike Shildt (Cardinals). Hiring from the minors has become a popular thing lately for big league squads.
There’s a decent sized list of present successful minor league managers, but I’m going with Michael Ryan, manager of the Altoona Curve, the Pittsburgh Pirates Double-A affiliate. Ryan’s been managing in the Pirates system since 2013, and has risen from A to Advanced-A to Double-A, making the playoffs at all three stops, winning titles at the last two.
If a young prospect is ready for the jump to the majors, he often goes straight from Double-A to the majors. Why shouldn’t that be the same with a manager? Ryan’s got nothing left to prove by making a stop with the Indianapolis Indians. His next stop should be in the majors, regardless of whether that’s with the Pirates or the Kansas City Royals or some other club.
Others Considered: Scranton/Wilkes-Barr (Yankees Triple-A) manager Jay Bell, Oklahoma City Dodgers manager Travis Barbary, Portland Sea Dogs (Red Sox Double-A) manager Joe Oliver.