KANSAS CITY, MO (SNN-TV) – The Kansas City Royals hired Tampa Bay Rays bench coach Matt Quatraro as manager Sunday, turning over the young core of a rebuilding franchise to a forward-thinking manager with experience winning in a small market.
Quatraro replaces Mike Matheny, who was fired as part of a wide-spread shakeup within the Royals after a 65-97 finish for their sixth straight losing season. Quatraro was chosen by Royals general manager J.J. Picollo, who took over as head of the club’s baseball operations after the firing of longtime front-office executive Dayton Moore.
One of the priorities that owner John Sherman had in overhauling the front office was that it lean more heavily on advanced analytics. And the 48-year-old Quatraro reflects that same emphasis in the manager; the Rays have excelled in using analytics to guide their decision-making, allowing them to consistently compete despite modest payrolls.
Quatraro, who interviewed for the Mets and A’s manager jobs last season, will take over one of the youngest teams in baseball, flush with up-and-coming talent such as AL rookie of the year candidate Bobby Witt Jr., catcher MJ Melendez and first baseman Vinnie Pasquantino.
After retiring as a player, Quatraro began working as an instructor in the Rays’ minor league system. He started out as a hitting coach for Class A Hudson Valley but eventually rose to become the franchise’s minor-league hitting coordinator. He was hired by Cleveland as its assistant hitting coach in 2010, and worked alongside manager Terry Francona through the 2017 season — a period in which Sherman was a minority owner of the franchise.
Quatraro eventually returned to the Rays as their third base coach, and when Charlie Montoyo was hired as manager of the Blue Jays after the 2018 season, he was promoted to bench coach. He had served since as a sounding board for Rays manager Kevin Cash, helping the club win two division titles and make four straight playoff appearances.
