San Diego Padres name Mike Shildt manager as team tries to reverse 2023’s $256,000,000 failure

The San Diego Padres have honed in on their newest manager in the form of Mike Shildt. The team struggled mightily in 2023 and saw their previous manager leave for another team. A ship without a rudder, the Padres spent the last few weeks deciding on a candidate and have come to the conclusion of their search.

Jim Bowden reported on X, formerly known as Twitter:

"The Padres have hired Mike Shildt as their next manager. Strong hire. He managed the Cardinals from 2018-2021 going 252-199 with a 1st place finish and 2 2nd place finishes."

Mike Shildt has managerial experience, something many fans preferred to see in their new manager. The trend in recent hires has been to get coaches and analytically-inclined young managers, but that may have shifted. He is also familiar with the team as he was a bench coach with Padres recently.

Shildt formerly managed the St. Louis Cardinals and earned a first-place finish during his time there. The Padres would like to see his experience in that pay off and return the team to its former glory.

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Mike Shildt beats Ryan Flaherty, Phil Nevin for Padres' manager role

Mike Shildt has officially landed the San Diego Padres job. It was reported recently that they were considering Ryan Flaherty, another internal hire from an assistant coach's position.

Mike Shildt managed the Cardinals

They also reportedly considered Benji Gil and former Los Angeles Angels manager Phil Nevin for the role. They opted to go with Shildt and he will take over what was the final vacancy in Major League Baseball.

The Athletic's Britt Ghiroli said on X, formerly known as Twitter:

"Mike Shildt beat out Ryan Flaherty, Phil Nevin and Benji Gil for the Padres manager job. It was the last MLB opening."

Shildt takes over a roster with tons of stars, though it remains to be seen if they will trade Juan Soto or not. They're aiming to cut payroll, and that may be how they do it. Their $256 million investment in 2023 didn't make the playoffs, so they may be reconsidering.