The New York Mets have settled on Buck Showalter as their next manager. Owner Steve Cohen announced the hire himself on Twitter, and MLB Network's Jon Heyman says Showalter received a three-year contract.
Showalter, 65, has managed in the majors for 20 seasons. Over that span, he's gone 1,551-1,517 (.506) with the Yankees, Diamondbacks, Rangers and Orioles. He guided three of those four teams to the postseason and won division titles with the Yankees, Diamondbacks and Orioles. Showalter, who last managed in 2018, has won the AL Manager of the Year award three times, most recently with Baltimore in 2014. Showalter will enter his Mets tenure in 24th place on the all-time managerial wins list. Among active managers, just Tony La Russa, Dusty Baker, and Terry Francona have more wins than Showalter.
Showalter was reportedly one of three finalists for the job, along with Astros bench coach Joe Espada and Rays bench coach Matt Quatraro. Regarded as the favorite for some time, Showalter had a prior working relationship with Mets GM Billy Eppler, and his experienced and steady hand no doubt appealed to owner Steve Cohen, who is no doubt seeking some visible stability after a somewhat tumultuous start to his tenure.
Showalter, who becomes the 23rd manager in franchise history, inherits a Mets team that went 103-119 in two seasons, including the abbreviated 2020 campaign, under Luis Rojas. Rojas was relieved of his duties soon after the end of the 2021 regular season. Showalter's Mets, however, will also benefit from a winter spending spree that saw the team sign Max Scherzer, Starling Marte, Mark Canha, and Eduardo Escobar. The Mets will have to continue applying the finishing touches to their roster once Major League Baseball's owner-induced lockout ends, but there's certainly a strong foundation in place.
Everything about the Mets' recent behavior strongly suggests the expectation is to win now, and in that regard, Showalter will be under some degree of pressure in his first season in Queens. He is the fifth person to manage both the Yankees and Mets, joining Yogi Berra, Dallas Green, Casey Stengel, and Joe Torre.
The Athletics are now the lone team without a manager. They interviewed several of the same candidates as the Mets, including Espada and Quatraro.