Bob Melvin no longer is the A's manager, but he has thoughts as to who should be the next one.
After agreeing to a three-year contract with the San Diego Padres to become their new manager, Melvin spoke with NBC Sports California's Brodie Brazil about the void created by his departure. When asked if he thought someone on his own coaching staff in Oakland -- such as bench coach Ryan Christenson, third base coach Mark Kotsay or former A's coach Ron Washington -- should take over for him in Oakland, Melvin responded in the affirmative.
"Yeah, all those guys that you talked about ... they are in good hands," Melvin told Brazil. "I didn't create that whole thing; our staff did. It's never been about me, it's been about the entire group, and that coaching staff has been there for a while. They are in good hands, and as it stands right now, they have a really good team, too. So, I feel really good about that, the fact that almost everything is still in place there.
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"And Billy (Beane) and David (Forst) are running the show, and that carries more weight than me being the manager, is Billy Beane running the show. He did it long before me, he's going to do it after me, and he more than anybody else is the constant in Oakland."
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Melvin didn't pick a favorite but reaffirmed that the A's already have an excellent set of candidates within the building.
"Correct," Melvin said. "Now, they're forward-thinkers, so they're going to probably think outside the box, too, but they cannot make a bad decision amongst the guys that we just talked about."
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No matter who takes over for Melvin, they'll have big shoes to fill. But clearly, he believes they'll be capable of doing so.