The former catcher has a year of success in Kansas City - no small task.
Baltimore Orioles' third base coach DeMarlo Hale (45) is among the candidates for the Red Sox manager's job, as as Tony Pena and at least two others.Having paid a price for dragging out their search for a manager last year, the Boston Red Sox seem intent on wrapping up the process more quickly this time.
Former Red Sox catcher Tony Pena and Baltimore third-base coach DeMarlo Hale are the latest names in the derby, joining Los Angeles Dodgers third-base coach Tim Wallach and former big league catcher Brad Ausmus in the search.
Pena is the bench coach for the New York Yankees. They had an off day in the American League Championship Series Monday, which is when Pena reportedly planned to meet with the Red Sox.
Hale is expected to interview Wednesday. Wallach has already met with the Red Sox, and Ausmus is expected to do so in the next several days.
Missing from this list, at least so far, is Toronto manager and former Red Sox pitching coach John Farrell. Portrayed in media as a candidate that interests the Red Sox, Farrell's chances are inhibited by two obstacles.
One is that last year, the Blue Jays installed rules designed to keep him from jumping to a rival in the same division. The other is that Toronto was 73-89 in a season that ended with some grumbling (notably from veteran Omar Vizquel) that Farrell and his staff had done insufficient work.
The Red Sox are trying to avoid the problems that occurred last year. The Nov. 29, 2011 hiring of Bobby Valentine left them behind in the pursuit of free agents, and in other offseason matters.
Pena, 55, is an especially intriguing choice. In 2003, he was named AL manager of the year when he led the Kansas City Royals to an 83-79 record, their only winning season since the strike-shortened 1994 season.
It came after a 100-loss season in 2002, Pena's first season. The Royals could not sustain their 2003 success, losing 104 games in 2004.
In 2005, Pena resigned after his team's 8-25 start. The 2003 season showed he could win, however briefly, with a small-market team of limited talent and means.
That has led many analysts to suggest that Pena could win with an organization that gave him a fighting chance.
Boston would seem to be such a franchise, yet whoever gets the manager's job now will take over a team that lost 93 games last year and is preaching discipline, not aggression. when it comes to free agent spending;.
The Red Sox brought in several managerial candidates last year, too, but there are differences in this year's search. One is that general manager Ben Cherington is expected to wield greater influence in making the final decision.
Another is that the Red Sox hope to have their manager soon. An unofficial target date of Election Day (Nov. 6) has been mentioned in the media, but it could be sooner.
Hale, 51, was a well-respected member of Terry Francona's coaching staff in Boston. When Francona and the Red Sox had a bitter parting of the ways after the 2011 season, Hale was not considered as a replacement.
Wallach, 55, has been considered for managing jobs in San Diego and Milwaukee.
Ausmus, 43, is a San Diego Padres assistant. He is widely seen as a future manager, but his youth and lack of experience are question marks.
The Red Sox seem determined not to repeat the mistakes made last year, when the hiring of Bobby Valentine left the impression that interviews of other candidates had been a needless waste of time.
Valentine's hiring exposed a division within the organization. Cherington had zeroed in on Dale Sveum, but upper management rejected him and chose Valentine, with Sveum winding up as manager of the Chicago Cubs.
Less than 15 hours after the worst Red Sox season in 47 years had ended, Valentine was fired. The next hiring is expected to be more in line with the Red Sox organization's commitment to advanced statistical data.
That a less controversial manager is being sought goes without saying.