The San Diego Padres have hired Bob Melvin of the Oakland Athletics as their new manager, a person familiar with the deal said Thursday.
Melvin, 60, will receive a three-season contract, the person told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the hiring has not yet been officially announced.
The manager replaces Jayce Tingler, who the Padres fired on October 6 after the team collapsed in the second half of the season. San Diego built a comfortable lead at the spot that earned it the second wild-card spot in the National League playoffs and finished negative for the 10th time in 11 seasons.
Melvin’s arrival marks a sea change in the decision of general manager AJ Peller, whose two previous picks to the job lacked major league experience.
Melvin has a history of 18 major league managerial experience seasons and is 1,346-1,272 with the Athletics, Mariners and Diamondbacks.
He was named Driver of the Year three times in both leagues.
This year, Melvin became the most successful manager in Oakland team history, but the Athletics missed the playoffs after making it three consecutive seasons. He was 853-764 with the Athletics.
Melvin managed the Mariners two seasons and the Diamondbacks five.
It is unknown whether uncertainty about the Oakland ballpark situation influenced Melvin’s decision to go to San Diego. It could have been, because the Athletics allowed him to meet with the Padres with one year remaining on his contract.
On Wednesday, Preller hired Ruben Niebla of Cleveland as his pitching coach.
The Athletics hired Melvin midseason in 2011 to replace Bob Geren, who they had fired. Melvin gave stability to the club when it needed it most. He earned the respect of players by being fair and friendly and not being afraid to take risks with young players.
Oakland won the AL West during the 2020 season shortened to 60 games due to the pandemic after landing the wild card in consecutive years.
In the postseason, the Athletics defeated the White Sox in the wild-card round and ended a nine-game losing streak in postseason life-and-death games – a major league record dating back to the 1973 World Series.
They then succumbed to the Houston Astros in a four-game division series in the American League.
In 2012, Oakland became the first team in Major League history to win a division after going down five games with fewer than 10 to play. He swept Texas in three games to take the division. (AFP)