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Jim Bowden names who he thinks Giants should hire as Bochy’s replacement

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© Stan Szeto | 2019 Jun 26


The 2019 season for the San Francisco Giants has been one full of many uncertainties, twists, turns, and oddities, but one thing is for certain: This is Bruce Bochy’s last season as manager of the team.

His time with the Giants has been legendary, his managerial decisions have been masterful, and he won three World Series championships. He was calling the shots during five no-hitters during his 13 years with the team, coached them through two-different complete-game shutouts in Wild Card games, and he will be a member of the Baseball Hall of Fame.

As his legendary run comes to a close, MLB analyst and former GM Jim Bowden stopped by the Murph & Mac show on Tuesday morning to discuss who will replace Bochy next season, and if his replacement will be a new-school manager who makes decisions based on analytics, or an old-school guy like Bochy has been throughout his career.

“I think that every organization’s situation is different,” Bowden began. “So for example, if I look at the New York Mets disaster, if I were them I’d hire Joe Girardi and go get that expensive, proven, older manager that you’re talking about because that’s what I think that organization needs with a rookie general manager. That would be the best fit.

“At the same time I would tell you that as much as I enjoyed watching Bruce Bochy and Tony La Russa and Jim Leyland and Bobby Cox and that group of managers, I feel like the baton has been passed to a really special group of young managers, and I’ll mention four of them: AJ Hinch, Alex Cora, Aaron Boone, and Dave Roberts. All four of them are young, all four of them are smart, all four of them are really good in-game managers, all four of them have old-school in them, all four of them have embraced analytics and understand how to properly implement them with the team and it’s working.

“If I’m Farhan Zaidi, to me, looking at a Giants organization that I’m building back to be, hopefully, perennial contenders again which will happen at some point, I think the model that I would use in terms of what I think the sexy new car is, the new Lamborghini,” Bowden continued. “I would say it’s someone like Hinch, Cora, Boone, Roberts. Great communication skills, extremely intelligent, understand old-school, new-school, works well with the front office, understands analytics, and more importantly can really communicate with this generation of players. That’s what I would be looking for, so if I were the Giants I would want to hire a guy that, next year when you and I do this interview, we have that fifth name to put with the other four.”

Bowden went on to suggest a specific person to replace Bochy after he retires this year.

“I’ll give you the specific replacement if I am Farhan Zaidi,” Bowden said. “I am going to get Kevin Cash, and I’m going to pay him whatever it takes. He’s my guy. Kevin Cash fits with those other four, just pay him whatever it takes and don’t worry about it.”
Cash, who is currently managing the Tampa Bay Rays, signed a contract extension through the 2024 season last October, and that contract includes a club option for the 2025 season. He is just 41-years old and has led the Rays to a 374-370 record during his five seasons with the club.
Listen to the full interview with Jim Bowden below. To hear him discuss Bruce Bochy’s replacement, start from 10:16.