It's not every day that you get major politicians weighing in on what Major League Baseball teams should do with their managerial vacancies, but that's what we got today.
The President of Mexico, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, has called on the San Diego Padres to hire Benji Gil as their next manager.
Radio host Alex Padilla in San Diego found the clip and shared it on social media:
Mexicos president just pushed for the Padres to hire Benji Gil!
While it's rare to see politicians stunt for baseball managers, it's understandable why the President would want to see Gil get the job.
A native of Mexico, Gil played eight years in the big leagues with the Texas Rangers and Anaheim (Los Angeles) Angels. He has coached with the Angels since 2022 and spent time coaching in Mexican professional leagues.
He also coached Mexico at the 2020 Summer Olympics (played in 2021) in Toyko and led the Mexican squad at the World Baseball Classic in 2023. Mexico reached the Final Four of the event, falling to eventual champion Japan in the semifinals.
As a player, Gil was a lifetime .237 hitter. He popped 32 career home runs and drove in 171. He was part of the 2002 Angels team that won the World Series, beating the San Francisco Giants.
For what it's worth, Gil is a candidate for the Padres job. The team is considering newly-fired Cubs manager David Ross as well, but it seems as if the Friars have a final four for the job, with Gil being one of them.
More must-reads: