So we’re finally starting to get some updates on the Washington Nationals’ management search. There was radio silence for a while as Paul Toboni settled into his role as Nats President of Baseball Operations. However, three candidates for the position have become public. They are former interim boss Miguel Cairo, former Orioles manager Brandon Hyde and current Guardians bench coach Craig Albernaz.
It was reported yesterday that all three had applied for the job. Hyde was the first name to become public. Jon Heyman reported that Hyde interviewed for the role Yesterday, the first public record of an interview. Hyde was the Orioles manager from 2019-2025, when he was fired after a slow start.
Hyde would be an interesting appointment. He certainly wasn’t going to be the sexy signing after the way his time with the O’s ended. After a magical run in 2023, which saw Hyde win Manager of the Year and a strong follow-up season in 2024, things really got stale in 2025. Hyde was fired after a 15-28 start to the season. While Mike Elias caused Hyde to fail with a poor pitching staff, the O’s still performed below their talent level.
Despite the ugly ending, Hyde’s experience in Baltimore will come in handy as a Nationals manager. He oversaw a rebuilding team with young talent and eventually took them to the playoffs in 2023, when the O’s won 101 games. Sure, Hyde has limitations and may not be the guy to bring a World Series back to DC, but he has proven he can take a young team to the playoffs.
Hyde is also familiar with this area after managing the Orioles. That is always a useful feature. To me, Hyde would be the definition of a solid hire. Not necessarily a home tenant, but a decent manager who can get things back on track.
Later in the afternoon, two more interviews became public. Andrew Golden of the Washington Post reported that the Nats interviewed Miguel Cairo, as well as Craig Albernaz of the Guardians.
It would be very surprising if Cairo got the job, but it looks like Toboni is making him part of the process. I’m not sure if he’s a real candidate or if this is more of a courtesy interview. Anyway, the more interesting name of that duo is Albernaz.
Craig Albernaz is the associate manager of the Guardians and seems to be a real up-and-coming management talent. Despite only coaching since 2020, Albernaz seems like a real star. After just one year as the Guardians bench coach, he became a finalist for the Marlins job and was eventually promoted to associate manager.
He’s one of those guys who will almost certainly become a manager one day. It’s a matter of when, not if. This seems like a guy who would be very attractive to Paul Toboni. At 42 years old, he is a young man for this position. Many of Toboni’s first hires were young guys, so Albernaz would continue that trend.
Working for the Guardians also gives him a more analytical background. Cleveland is known as one of the more analytical organizations in the league. That background is very attractive to the Nats, who need an infusion of data into the organization.
Right now, Albernaz is my favorite candidate of the trio, but Hyde is also a solid candidate. As information comes out, it looks like the manager search is really starting to get underway. That’s a good sign and hopefully the Nats can get someone in place in the coming weeks.
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