Buck Showalter Reportedly Interested in Pirates GM Job and That's Crazy
By Parker White
There's no doubt that former Baltimore Orioles manager Buck Showalter wants to be back into baseball. However, if these rumors have validity, he may be done with the day-to-day in the dugout.
According to Pittsburgh-based insider Dejan Kovacevic, Showalter is interested in the Pirates' vacant general manager job.
Buck Showalter is interested in the GM job, I’m informed. And yes, that’s GM, not manager. My own candidates of choice: Marc DelPiano and Tony LaCava. Get ready for the barrage of names. Those are mine to get started. #DKPS #Pirates
— Dejan Kovacevic (@Dejan_Kovacevic) October 28, 2019
On Monday, the Pirates surprisingly fired long time GM Neal Huntington after sticking with him through eons of disappointment, so you can add another position to the list of things Pittsburgh needs to accomplish this offseason, including hiring a new manager.
Showalter apparently believes he's right for the job, but not that job.
Report: Buck Showalter has interest in Pirates’ GM job https://t.co/DOF2G7bti7
— Larry Brown Sports (@larrybrownsport) October 28, 2019
It's unclear if the Pirates would have any interest in Showalter as their next personnel man, with no real experience in the field. The ex-Orioles, Yankees, and Diamondbacks skipper also seems like a poor fit for manager in Pittsburgh, in all honesty, as he wouldn't be much of a departure from the recently-fired Clint Hurdle. The price tag will likely be pretty high for someone as respected as Showalter, which isn't something Pirates owner Bob Nutting would bend to, either, if you look at his track record.
Showalter hasn't been able to get any of the managerial jobs he's openly campaigned for recently, so we fail to see why a front office gig would be a logical fit, either.