Skipper Search...The Whole Dang List

Through various local and national reports, here are the eight guys who have interviewed (as identified by the media, not the team) for Clint's old job. New GM Ben Cherington may have his own favorites, like old BoSox skipper John Farrell, but is said to be satisfied with the candidate's list as is so far, and selecting a skipper is the next box to check on BC's to-do list.

The top two, via the grapevine:

Derek Shelton, 49, Twins bench coach -  It's not Shelton's first interview rodeo; he was also on the short list for the Twins and Rangers. Shelton is also in his 15th season as a major league coach, and has managed for three years in the Yankees’ minors, was a hitting coach for the Indians and Rays, was quality control coach for the Jays, and is the Twins bench coach for Rocco Baldelli. He's also supposed to be a new-school, analytic friendly coach, and was a Blue Jays coach in 2017 while Cherington was a Toronto VP.

Matt Quatraro, 45, Rays bench coach -  Q was a minor league catching instructor, hitting coach, manager and hitting coordinator in the Rays’ system before being hired as the Indians’ assistant hitting coach in 2014. Tampa Bay brought him back as their third base coach a year later, then he became Charlie Montoyo's right hand man. He was also on the Giants' list this year.

Other serious & reportedly interviewed contenders, at least in the initial slog:

Banny - photo Pittsburgh Pirates

Jeff Banister, 55, Pirates special assistant - He served as the manager of the Texas Rangers from 2015 through 2018. Before joining the Rangers, Banny spent 29 years within the Pirates organization as a player and coach in both the major and minor league system.

Mark Kotsay, 43, A's Quality Control coach - Kotsay started coaching in 2014, retiring after a 17-year MLB career, as the Padres' hitting coach, moved to Oakland as a bench coach and became their QC guy in 2017. He's a little light on the resume, but does have low-budget, small market training, and is a known factor to BC - Kotsay played for Beantown when Cherington was a BoSox exec in 2008-09.

Stubby Clapp, 46, Cardinals first base coach - He has no MLB experience as a manager, but led the Cards AAA Memphis from 2017-18 club, winning back-to-back Pacific Coast League titles while being named PCL Manager of the Year in 2017.

Ryan Christiansen, 45, A's bench coach - He's been in the Oakland system for 14 years as a player, five as a minor league manager, and the last two as bench coach. His big advantage is that he knows what it's like to work in a small market environment and should have some "Moneyball" DNA after his long stint with the Athletics.

Ryan Christianson 2017 - photo Mark Rebilas/USA Today Sports

Joey Cora, 54, Pirates third base coach - After an 11-year playing career, he managed in the Mets minors, coached for the White Sox, then became the bench coach at Miami. In 2016, he became the skipper at Altoona and joined the big league staff the next year. He's served as an interim manager in the bigs briefly and as a VWL field general. Cora was in the mix for the Mets bench coach position but lost out after being in the final three.

George Lombard, 44, LA Dodger first base coach - He was the Braves minor league field coordinator, and the BoSox minor league outfield coordinator, hitting coach and manager before becoming a sort of utility coach role with LA. His calling card is that he's a high-energy guy & good communicator, and he has what should be a prerequisite for the Bucco job - a degree in psychology.

Other people who have been mentioned as potential candidates:

Joe Espada, 44, Astros bench coach -  Though he lost out on the Cubbie and Giants jobs, Espada is still play in Pittsburgh. Espada interviewed with the Angels, Blue Jays, and Rangers last year before returning to Houston as bench coach. He served as Joe Girardi’s third base and infield coach with the Yankees.

Mike Bell, 44, Diamondbacks VP of Player Development -  He's the younger bro of Reds skipper David Bell. He's managed in the minors but spent most of his 13 years with Arizona on the player development side of the ledger. He interviewed with the Mets this year and Rangers & Orioles last winter.

Omar Vizquel, 52, White Sox minor league manager -  Little O has coached in the show for five seasons with the Los Angeles Angels and Detroit Tigers before joining the White Sox prior to the 2018 season, managing Class A Winston-Salem that year and AA Birmingham for the past two campaigns.

Walt Weiss, 55, Braves bench coach - Weiss didn't have much luck as the Colorado Rockies field general from 2013-16 (283-365/.437). He hopped to the Big Peach, where he's learned to love analytics. He's a dark horse in this race.

Bob Geren, 58, LA Dodgers bench coach -  He's a fan of data and was an Oakland manager, the New York Mets bench coach when they went to the 2015 World Series, then the Dodger's number two man in the dugout, but has only been tenuously linked to Pittsburgh. He interviewed with the Giants.

Sam Fuld, 37, Phillies Major League Player Information Coordinator - the Pirates had interest in the analytics whiz, but it's been reported that he declined to interview with Pittsburgh, though other reports had him in play, so we'll see. The Stanford grad was the link between Philadelphia's analytic gang and the ballplayers.

Too young but future comers:

Don Kelly, 39, Astro first base coach - He's a local kid who's a Mt. Lebanon graduate, played at Point Park and was briefly a Bucco bench guy. Kelly spent his first season on the Astros staff this season after scouting for two years for the Detroit Tigers. He retired as a player at the end of 2016 season.

Don Kelly 2007 - photo Nick Laham/Getty

Will Venable, 37, Cubs first base coach - Venable has only one season as a coach with nine years under his belt in the show. He's considered a fast riser among candidates who just needs seasoning before he ends up as a manager/FO suit.