Gabe Kapler?

So Don Mattingly is out as Dodger manager. That is great. I have wanted Mattingly out for a while and called for it just a few days ago. He couldn't get a $300 million dollar team to the World Series. He'd had a loaded team for years, and how many chances do you get? 5 years is enough. You have arguably the best pitcher in the league and you have some great bats and you can't get to World Series? So I'm REALLY glad he's out.

But now the talk is that Gabe Kapler will become the next manager. Gabe Kapler? A guy with no managerial experience? That Gabe Kapler? Really? There are tons of black managers out there who are viable candidates at the moment. At the moment there are almost no black managers in the game. There is only one Latino manager, Fredi Gonzalez of the Braves.

There are lots of black managers out there with experience and smarts.

• What about Dusty Baker? Dusty Baker was recently cold-calling the Padres trying to get work. He's a proven, capable, experienced manager. He took the Giants to the World Series. He took the Cubs to the brink of the World Series. He's been a very successful manager.
• What about Don Baylor? He's been a successful manager with the Rockies and Cubs.
• What about Jerry Royster? He was always a hard-nosed, tough player, and he wanted to manage so much that he went overseas to manage! He's paid his dues as a coach and manager in the minors as well.
• What about Ozzie Smith? He is a legend and beloved by baseball fans.
• What about Ron Washington? He was a great manager for Texas and is well-respected.
• Gary Pettis has been a coach for years now. Where's his chance?
• Hal McRae who has been a manager and coach.
• What about Eric Davis who had a great career and has interest in giving back to the game?

Then on the flip side, you have managers like Joe Girardi who walked into a bench coaching job the year after retiring, was manager of the Marlins two years later, and the year after that, in spite of a mediocre record as Marlins' manager, became the Yankees' manager.

Mike Matheny got a job working for the Cardinals in the front office after one year of retirement.

Brad Ausmus also got a managing job having had no prior coaching experience.

This is quite apart from the absence of Latinos in management positions. There are guys like Jose Oquendo and Sandy Alomar Jr. who have been out there for some time. Ozzie Guillen led the White Sox to a World Championship. Joey Cora and Alex Cora have earned the right for consideration as managers. Same goes for Carmelo Martinez

It seems a travesty that these younger white ex-players have leapfrogged many black and Latino players to get jobs. Baseball is doing a terrible job promoting diversity in management. There isn't even the requirement that MLB teams interview Latino or black candidates.