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Report: Houston Astros Bench Coach Espada to Interview For Managerial Vacancies Around MLB
The Houston Astros are off Wednesday, but bench coach Joe Espada will play a doubleheader of sorts on his own.
Espada would nearly be going home were he to take over for the Miami Marlins. The Espada's and their two daughters live in Jupiter, Florida, just hours away from Miami.
Not only will Espada interview for the Marlins managerial job, but he'll also sit down in Chicago to interview for the White Sox vacancy.
Interviewing for managerial vacancies is something the Astros' coach since 2017 is used to. Since joining Houston's staff, Espada has interviewed for four such positions: with the Texas Rangers after 2018, the Chicago Cubs after 2019, the Oakland A's after 2021 and now the Marlins after 2022.
Other organizations have taken note of what he has done with the Astros, the club is a perennial contender. Even international organizations have given Espada his due. In both the 2013 and 2017 editions of the World Baseball Classic, Espada coached for his home team of Puerto Rico.
The respect for him in Team Puerto Rico's governing body runs deep. After the president of the federation gave away the managerial position for the 2022 tournament to Yadier Molina, general manager Eduardo Pérez resigned for the team.
Not only would Miami be a good fit on an up and coming team for an up and coming coach, it would be a more literal return home. While Espada is a Puerto Rican-native and resides in Jupiter, FL, his first MLB coaching job was with the Florida Marlins in 2010.
There he served as the third base coach through the 2013 season before the club reassigned him to their Jupiter affiliate to gain managerial experience.
Espada has failed to win the favor of a managerial vacancy before, but this time it seems as if the stars have aligned.
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