3 Potential Landing Spots for Joe Maddon

The Chicago Cubs and Joe Maddon decided to part ways on September 29. Now that he is back on the open market, plenty of suitors should be asking for his services. After all, Maddon is one of the better managers of the late 2000s and 2010s. In his 23 years as a manager, Maddon is 1,225 and 1,045. He led the Tampa Bay Rays to their first-ever World Series appearance and won the World Series with the Chicago Cubs. With plenty of open vacancies, here are a few teams that should consider hiring Joe Maddon to become their manager.

New York Mets

Image courtesy of Sports Illustrated

The Mets fired manager Mickey Calloway despite his team finishing with a winning record of 86-76. New York is a tantalizing place and Maddon could help lead the team back to the playoffs for the first time since 2016.

What makes the Mes so interesting is how they won 86 games. They were 10 games under .500 at the All-Star break, had an offense that was silent, and were full of injuries. Jed Lowrie who the team signed in the offseason, had a lingering injury that never healed. He ended up missing the entire season. Slugger Yoenis Cespedes was supposed to return for the second half but fractured his ankles at his ranch and also missed the entire season. Jacob deGrom had a rocky first half that saw him serve a stint on the IL. New York’s bullpen was subpar and Edwin Diaz fell apart. Despite all this, the Mets roared back and finished the season three back of the Milwaukee Brewers.

With a core made up of Pete Alonso, Jacob deGrom, Noah Syndergaard, Marcus Stroman, Jeff McNeil, Michael Conforto and Amed Rosario, the Mets have the talent to battle for a playoff spot in the competitive NL East.

San Diego Padres

Image courtesy of The San Diego Union-Tribune

The San Diego Padres are coming off of a disappointing season that saw the team finish 70-92. Despite this, help is on the way as the Padres boast the best farm system in baseball. Even though the Padres elevated a few of their top prospects to the majors this past season, they still have six players on MLB’s top 100 prospects. San Diego also possesses one of the most polarizing young players in baseball in Fernando Tatis Jr. Tatis Jr. was the front runner for NL Rookie of the year before he injured his back in August and missed the rest of the season. Tatis joins, Eric Hosmer, Wil Myers and Manny Machado in the Padres lineup.

San Diego will need to add some pitching to their rotation, but the team is well on their way to competing in the National League. Maddon can come in similarly to how he did with the Cubs in 2015 and compete for the foreseeable future.

Los Angeles Angels

Image courtesy of Business Insider

Joe Maddon played in the Angels minor league system and also worked his way up as a coach. He even managed for the Angles in 1996 and 1999. Overall Maddon spent 31 years with the organization before leaving to become the manager of Tampa Bay. Bringing Maddon back makes sense. The organization is hoping he can get the team back into the playoffs for the first time since 2014.

Besides his past ties to the organization, the most lucrative part of managing the Angels is Mike Trout. He is hands down the best player in baseball and making a case for the greatest of all time. The Angels also have the best two way player in the game, Shohei Ohtani. With Ohtani leading the pitching staff, while Trout continues to belt homers, this might be one of the best gigs in baseball. Also, Maddon would love to add leading Mike Trout back to the playoffs on his resume.

Feature Image courtesy of The Washington Post.

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