Davey Johnson is stepping down as Nationals manager following the season and bench coach Randy Knorr wants to be the man who replaces him.
Bill Ladson of MLB.com notes that Knorr managed nearly half of the Nationals’ current roster while they were in the minors and this is his second season as Johnson’s right-hand man in Washington.
Knorr has been tasked with filling in for Johnson as manager occasionally this season and has made headlines on two occasions, first by yanking closer Rafael Soriano from a save situation in July and then by criticizing Bryce Harper’s lack of hustle last week.
Ladson portrays those things as Knorr being “not afraid to speak his mind.” Whether or not general manager Mike Rizzo and the Nationals’ star players agree with that assessment will probably determine if he has any shot as the full-time gig for 2014.
