The Chicago White Sox got the ball rolling on the managerial carousel when they fired Pedro Gifol two days after the team snapped an American League record-tying 21-game losing streak.
There are several other managers on the proverbial hot seat, but one name has emerged as the odds-on favorite to be the next to receive his pink slip this season.
That would be Toronto’s John Schneider, who has been at the helm for the Blue Jays’ highly disappointing 2024 season. Schneider is the -200 “favorite” to be the next manager fired by SportsBetting.ag.
Schneider leads a list of eight names being offered by the sportsbook.
NEXT MANAGER FIRED ODDS*
John Schneider, Blue Jays (-200)
Skip Schumaker, Marlins (+300)
Bud Black, Rockies (+600)
Ron Washington, Angels (+600)
Dave Martinez, Nationals (+800)
David Bell, Reds (+900)
Mark Kotsay, Athletics (+1000)
Oliver Marmol, Cardinals (+2000)
*Odds by SportsBetting.ag provided for entertainment purposes only.
Expected to contend at least for a wild-card spot in the American League, the Blue Jays entered Sunday with a 54-63 record. They’re 15 1/2 games behind the AL East-leading Baltimore Orioles and 10 1/2 games out of the wild-card picture.
That has ratcheted the heat up under the seat of Schneider, who is in his third season with Toronto. The Blue Jays opted not to deal Vladimir Guerrero Jr. or Bo Bichette at the deadline, and may look to change managers to make another run at it in 2025 rather than blow up their talented core.
The next-shortest odds belong to Schumaker, whose Marlins entered Sunday mired at the bottom of the National League along with Black’s Rockies with identical 43-75 records. Only the 28-91 White Sox are worse.
By contrast, the two managers with the best records among the group are St. Louis’ Marmol at 60-58 and Cincinnati’s Bell at 56-61. While Marmol would appear to be a longshot to be fired during the season with the Cardinals only 2.0 games out of a wild-card spot, Bell is at the helm of a young but talented Reds team that finds itself in last place in the NL Central and on the brink of falling out of contention 5.5 games behind the final wild-card spot.
The Washington Nationals are likely out of contention at 8.0 games out of the wild-card picture, which could put Martinez’s job in jeopardy. The other two names come out of the AL West, where the Angels are in fourth place at 51-66 and the Athletics in last at 49-69.
Both managers are in unenviable positions.
Washington, in his first season as the Angels’ manager, is working with a roster that lost Shohei Ohtani to free agency and Mike Trout to yet another significant injury. Meanwhile, the A’s are in lame-duck status as they play out the string in Oakland ahead of their move to Sacramento and eventually Las Vegas.
“I remember when I took this job, some people thought I would be out by the All-Star break. I ain’t going anywhere,” Washington told USA Today earlier this summer. “This is where I belong. I know this is going to change going forward. I have no doubt. We’re not going to be losers. That (expletive)is going to change.
“I’m telling you, I’m going to turn this (expletive) around with my coaches and players. You just watch.”