'Heavy Favorite' Suggested to Replace Bruce Bochy as Rangers Manager

Bob Nightengale reported that a former Miami Marlins manager is a "heavy favorite" to be the Rangers' next manager.

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On Monday, the Texas Rangers announced that manager Bruce Bochy agreed to part ways following a 2025 season that saw them miss the playoffs after finishing 2-13 and fading from the postseason race. 

It was the second straight year the Rangers would miss October baseball after winning the World Series in 2023. As the season was coming to a close over the final 15 games, questions were surrounding what Bochy’s future was in the dugout. That was answered on Monday.

Now, the question is, where will Texas look to turn for its next manager? According to Bob Nightingale of USA Today, their answer might be in the front office.

Rangers Senior Advisor Rumored as a Favorite to Be Next Manager

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Nightingale reported that Rangers’ senior advisor Skip Schumaker is a heavy favorite to move down to the field and replace Bochy in 2026. Schumaker has managerial experience as the Miami Marlins manager in 2023 and 2024. Two years ago, he led the Marlins to the National League Wild Card Series before being swept by the Philadelphia Phillies. 

Skip Schumaker, who spent the past year as senior adviser for the Texas Rangers, is the heavy, heavy favorite to succeed Bochy as the Rangers manager. https://t.co/re9NRFgHSv

— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) September 30, 2025

In two years in South Florida, he went 146-176. He left before the end of the 2024 season due to a family emergency and announced to the team that he would be returning in 2025. He was hired last November by Texas as a senior advisor.

Since he retired in 2016 as a player, Schumaker has coaching experience with the San Diego Padres as their first base coach and associate manager, and the St. Louis Cardinals as their bench coach, before being hired in Miami.

The Rangers were the latest opening after the Minnesota Twins fired Rocco Baldelli and the San Francisco Giants fired Bob Melvin. According to Jeff Passan of ESPN, questions remain as to whether or not Tony Mansolino with the Baltimore Orioles, Warren Schaeffer of the Colorado Rockies, and Miguel Cairo of the Washington Nationals will be retained as interim managers.

Texas was hit hard by injuries this year, and that ended up being a big reason why they missed the playoffs. Their pitching ended up being good enough despite losing Nathan Eovaldi, but they just didn't get enough offense. Injuries to Marcus Semien and Corey Seager did not help.

Schumaker makes sense to come down from the front office to replace Bochy, who has won 2,252 games as a manager over 28 years. If that ends up being the route they take, a healthy roster in 2026 would make the transition easy for Schumaker to have Texas in contention once again in the American League West.

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