The San Francisco Giants have received permission from the San Diego Padres to interview manager Bob Melvin, according to Dennis Lin and Andrew Baggarly of The Athletic. The Giants, who have been on the hunt for a new manager since firing Gabe Kapler late in the season, had to request permission because Melvin remains under contract through 2024.
Padres owner Peter Seidler previously stated his desire was to retain both Melvin and general manager A.J. Preller despite what had been categorized as an "unfixable" relationship between the two. Preller, for his part, had confirmed that Melvin would return for the 2024 season. Now, Melvin's future in San Diego is once again up in the air.
Per Lin and Baggarly's report, "Melvin has emerged as the favorite in San Francisco, with league sources indicating that he received assurances he would be a top candidate before he agreed to participate in the interview process."
Melvin, 62 this week, has served as the Padres skipper the last two seasons. Whereas he enjoyed a successful first year in San Diego, he led the Padres to a disappointing 82-80 mark this season. It wasn't all Melvin's fault as the Padres posted a MLB-worst 9-23 record in one-run games. No other team finished with fewer than 10 victories in that kind of game in 2023.
Prior to joining the Padres, Melvin spent 11 years with the Oakland Athletics. He won 52.8% of his regular season games with the Athletics, earning a reputation for getting the most out of his rosters.
If the Giants do hire Melvin, it'll mark the second time in the last two decades San Francisco has plucked a skipper from their division rivals. The Giants hired Bruce Bochy away from the Padres prior to the 2007 season, and Bochy would deliver three World Series titles to San Francisco.
