Arizona Diamondbacks confirm first wave of managerial candidates

The search is on.

The Arizona Diamondbacks are looking for the seventh manager in franchise history after dismissing Kirk Gibson last week.

Via the team’s Twitter account, they’ve verified the first crop of candidates.

The following are confirmed candidates for the #Dbacks managerial job. Additional candidates will join the list once permission… (1/2)

— Arizona Diamondbacks (@Dbacks) October 1, 2014

…is received by their current team: Sandy Alomar Jr., Jay Bell, Andy Green, Phil Nevin, Jim Tracy, Turner Ward. (2/2)

— Arizona Diamondbacks (@Dbacks) October 1, 2014

Later in the day, the Diamondbacks confirmed a seventh candidate:

The #Dbacks have also received permission to interview White Sox third base coach Joe McEwing for the managerial opening.

— Arizona Diamondbacks (@Dbacks) October 1, 2014

Alomar Jr., 48, is currently the first base coach of the Cleveland Indians, a position he’s held since 2010. He was the interim manager for the Tribe for six games in 2012 after Manny Acta was fired.

As a player, Alomar was a six-time All-Star and won a Gold Glove in 1990. Over his 20-year career, he batted .273 with 112 home runs and 588 RBI.

Bell, 48, is the bench coach for the Cincinnati Reds under manager Bryan Price. He served in the same capacity with the Diamondbacks under manager Bob Melvin in 2005 and 2006 before shifting responsibilities within the organization. Bell was also the hitting coach for the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2012.

The two-time All-Star was an original Diamondback, after signing as a free agent prior to the team’s inaugural season in 1998. He ranks eighth in franchise history with 91 home runs and tenth with 304 RBI. He also scored the biggest run in team history when he crossed the plate on Luis Gonzalez’s base hit to win the 2001 World Series.

Green is another former Diamondback. The 37-year-old was a 24th-round draft pick out of the University of Kentucky in 2000. He spent seven years in the Arizona organization and played in 136 games over parts of three seasons in the big leagues.

He managed the D-backs’ Double-A affiliate in Mobile in 2014 and guided the team to a 79-58 record and a playoff appearance.

Nevin, 43, managed the D-backs’ Triple-A affiliate in Reno in 2014. The Aces finished the season with an 81-63 record, which was tied with Las Vegas for the best mark in the Pacific Coast League. However, the Aces lost a five-game playoff series to Omaha, three games to two.

Nevin was the number-one overall selection in the MLB First-Year Player Draft in 1992 out of Cal State Fullerton. He would spend 12 years in the Majors with seven different teams, batting .270 with 208 homers and 743 RBI. He was an All-Star in 2001 while with the San Diego Padres.

The 58-year-old Tracy had only a bit of Major-League playing experience (87 games), but has been a successful manager for three different clubs. He skippered the Los Angeles Dodgers from 2001 to 2005, guiding them to the playoffs in 2004. He would also spend two years (2006 to 2007) in the Pittsburgh Pirates’ dugout and managed the Colorado Rockies from 2009 to 2012.

He has an overall managerial record of 856-880 in 11 seasons.

Ward just finished his first season as the Diamondbacks hitting coach and seventh in the organization. Prior to joining the staff at the big league level, Ward managed in the minor leagues, including a two-year stint at Double-A Mobile, and won back-to-back Southern League championships.

The 49-year-old played 12 seasons in the Majors for six different teams, including the D-backs. He was a career .251 hitter with 39 home runs and 219 RBI.

McEwing has been involved in the White Sox organization for seven years and spent three as the third base coach. He has managerial experience in the Sox minor-league system, and was also named the Carolina League Manager of the Year in both the 2009-2010 seasons. McEwing also played professionally for 16 years, spending nine years with the St. Louis Cardinals, four with the New York Yankees, and one each with Kansas City and Houston. The 47-year-old was also inducted into the Irish-American Baseball Hall of Fame in New York City in 2013.

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