The recriminations are beginning for the San Diego Padres after a brutal second half of play.
According to Jon Heyman of MLB Network, the Padres have decided to fire manager Jayce Tingler in light of the team’s failure to make the playoffs. Heyman adds that the move does not come as a surprise.
Jayce Tingler will be relieved of managerial duties by the Padres. Tingler is a solid baseball man who did a good job last season. But considering the team’s lofty expectations and late-season collapse, this news was eaxpected.
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) October 2, 2021
Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune added that the Padres disputed the report, calling it “premature.” However, he added that this is a standard denial, and the expectation is that Tingler and his staff will be fired after Sunday’s season finale.
The Padres call report by @jonheyman that Jayce Tingler will be fired “premature.”
This is all typical firing season stuff.
As has been reported, this is AJ Preller’s call, and the expectation is Tingler and the coaching staff will be dismissed.— Kevin Acee (@sdutKevinAcee) October 2, 2021
Someone was going to be the fall guy for what happened to the Padres, and Tingler is the unlucky one. He can’t have many complaints considering how the second half went. The Padres went 25-42 after the All-Star break, culminating in a brutal 6-19 record so far in September. They’re on their way to a sub-.500 season, a remarkable fall considering they were 67-49 at the end of play on Aug. 10.
It’s a quick fall from grace for Tingler, who was the NL Manager of the Year runner-up in 2020 and got only two years on the job. Ultimately, though, this was a team with World Series ambitions that won’t come all that close to making the playoffs.
Tingler’s departure isn’t the first change the Padres have made in response to their collapse. It’s unlikely to be the last, either.
