While the MLB postseason may be the focus at the moment, there are already plenty of rumors about who might fill various open manager roles around the league.
One of the potential candidates for an open manager position is Kansas City Royals third base coach Vance Wilson. The 52-year-old Wilson is a veteran of eight MLB seasons spent with the New York Mets from 1999-2004 and the Detroit Tigers in 2005 and 2006. In 2002, the former catcher threw out 49 percent of would-be base stealers, leading all MLB catchers.
Wilson signed with the Royals and played 59 games with the Double-A Northwest Arkansas Naturals in 2009 before retiring in 2010. He would eventually return as the Naturals manager, part of seven years he spent managing in the minor leagues.
Royals star endorses Vance Wilson for managerial position
Wilson has also served on the Royals coaching staff since 2018, where he made an obvious impact on first baseman Vinnie Pasquantino. Since debuting on June 28, 2022, Pasquantino has been a big part of the Royals’ nucleus and has had plenty of experience around Wilson. That experience led Pasquantino to lend his support for Wilson in any managerial role he might pursue, even if that meant leaving the Royals in the offseason.
Those words may well resonate with a franchise looking to change the culture in the clubhouse, and that could well be the Minnesota Twins, a team that parted ways with Rocco Baldelli after seven seasons. Wilson landing in Minnesota would mean he was now with a division rival, something that Pasquantino and the Royals would have to endure should Wilson be on the Twins’ interview list.
With openings ranging from San Francisco to Atlanta, there is little doubt that Wilson will get some attention from potential suitors this offseason. If Wilson gets an interview, it certainly sounds like he can count on the support of one of his former players as he pursues another job.