Before the Baltimore Orioles' 2025 MLB campaign began, nobody would have predicted that the team might be managed by former third base coach Tony Mansolino once the 2026 season rolled around.
This isn't a knock on Mansolino. Rather, it would have been hard to imagine how Brandon Hyde — who led Baltimore to 192 combined regular season wins in 2023 and 2024— would no longer be running the club, especially because most believed they would make it to the postseason in 2025.
Of course, that is not how things turned out. The Orioles got off to an abysmal start this year, fired Hyde, and promoted Mansolino to interim manager. While the team was too far gone to compete for a postseason spot by the time Mansolino settled into his new role, most would agree that he has done an admirable job in Hyde's stead.
But has he done enough to convince Baltimore's front office to keep him around for 2026?
The Athletic MLB insider Ken Rosenthal published a September 25 article that was headlined, "15 MLB teams that could change their manager or head of baseball operations this offseason". Mansolino was filed under the article's "Best bets to change" category, but Rosenthal made it seem like there was no certainty that Baltimore's front office would move on from him.
Rosenthal asserted that while the Orioles are expected to look at outside candidates for the managerial job, Mansolino is still firmly in the running.
15 MLB teams that could change their manager or head of baseball operations this offseason https://t.co/pRhRxWQfK8
— The Athletic MLB (@TheAthleticMLB) September 25, 2025
Rosenthal then quoted Mansolino's comments on a September 18 FOX broadcast, where he said, “I think you’ve got to make a choice when you’re in an interim situation... You’ve got to make a choice between doing the right thing by the team and the players and the group, or trying to keep the job.
“This whole time, my staff and I have made the choice to do the right thing as opposed to trying to hang onto something that might not be there. And I think in doing so, we’ve won over the clubhouse, we’ve won over the team, and we’ve played well since.”
“Despite the circumstances and everything that surrounded us, I do feel like the clubhouse, the players, the front office, everybody kinda banded together”@Ken_Rosenthal talks with Tony Mansolino about what the Orioles are doing better since he took over as interim manager pic.twitter.com/cgwJ81j0B5
— FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX) September 19, 2025
Ultimately, Rosenthal made it sound like the decision will come down to whether Baltimore's front office thinks Mansolino is a strong enough presence to lead this young and talented team to its potential.
The team reaching that verdict one way or another might decide who the Orioles' manager will be in 2026.
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