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Earlier this offseason, Cubs bench coach Brandon Hyde was being considered for managerial vacancies with the Twins, Reds and Rangers. All of those jobs were filled by other men.
Now, there’s a report that Hyde is still a candidate to be a manager in 2019:
Two current bench coaches - #Nationals’ Chip Hale, #Cubs’ Brandon Hyde - among those who will interview for #Orioles’ managing job, sources tell The Athletic. Team will talk to at least six in person. Ex-manager such as Hale thought to be preference, but new GM Elias open-minded.
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) December 2, 2018
Hyde was a minor-league manager in the Marlins organization from 2005-09, then their bench coach in 2010 and 2011. In 2012 he came to the Cubs as minor league field coordinator and was named director of player development later that year. He was Rick Renteria’s bench coach in 2014 and then first-base coach under Joe Maddon from 2015-17. Last November he moved back to bench coach after Dave Martinez departed to manage the Nationals:
Brandon Hyde moves from the first-base coaching box to the bench-coach job after rejecting a chance to join the Mets staff, the Cubs confirmed Thursday.
Hyde turned 45 in October and might seem to be a good choice for a team like the Orioles, who are trying to rebuild after a horrendous 2018 season.
If Hyde is hired in Baltimore, the Cubs would have two coaching vacancies to fill, as they have yet to name a pitching coach. Tommy Hottovy has been reported to be a strong candidate for that position.
But it is getting late early, as Yogi Berra once said. It’s December, the Winter Meetings are only a week away, and you’d think the Cubs would want to have a coaching staff in place by the time those begin.
As always, we await further developments.