Batting Around: Who is the best manager in baseball? Record and bullpen management isn’t all that matters

Throughout the season, the CBS Sports MLB experts will bring you a weekly Batting Around roundtable breaking down pretty much anything. The latest news, a historical question, thoughts about the future of baseball, all sorts of stuff. Last week we discussed the season’s most surprising teams. This week we’re going to tackle the game’s best skippers.

Who is the best manager in baseball?

R.J. Anderson: It’s impossible to say with confidence since we don’t have a complete picture of any manager’s contributions. We see their on-the-field tactics and how they deal with the press, but not how they handle personalities or bridge the clubhouse and the front office. As such, these kinds of questions tend to be answered by: 1) whose team has the best record and/or 2) whose team has exceeded expectations. If you go by the first of those guideposts, you’d pick Dave Roberts most years; if you go by the second, you’d end up with someone like Craig Counsell, Pat Murphy, Stephen Vogt, or Kevin Cash. (Or, this year, AJ Hinch and Bob Melvin.) I don’t know that you can go wrong with any of those choices, but, again, I’m not going to pretend I know who is tops among them.

Matt Snyder: Yeah, this is a really, really tough question. The resumes of Bruce Bochy and Terry Francona give them a leg up, historically speaking, and I believe they’ve long proven their ability to get the most out of their teams over the course of the long haul. I’d like to stick my neck out there and pick just one manager to sit at the top here in 2025. I’m inclined to go with AJ Hinch. I know that for many people, there will always be a stain, but he won 100+ games three straight years with the Astros after guiding them out of a rebuild, winning two AL pennants and the 2017 World Series. He took over the Tigers in the midst of a rebuild as well, and last season steered them to the playoffs with basically half of a rotation and with heavy platooning — even sometimes during the game — to reach the ALDS. This season, they sit atop the AL Central and look to have staying power. He isn’t even close to the only reason, but he’s shown his ability to maximize his roster with how he manages both the long-term and short-term in balance with one another. 

Mike Axisa: So much of the manager’s job takes place behind closed doors, and that stuff is impossible to evaluate as outsiders. All we can look at are his strategic decisions, and even then we don’t have all the information (this reliever may not be available this day, etc.). AJ Hinch is in the conversation given how well he massages Detroit’s lineup and pitching staff. Kevin Cash too. The Rays get more out of their players than expected because Cash puts them in positions to succeed via platoons and matchups, and he gets his players to buy in. Getting a player to accept his role is an underrated important part of the manager’s job. Force me to pick one, and I’ll say Cash is the best manager, with Hinch also in the conversation. And, of course, legends like Bruce Bochy and Terry Francona deserve a mention. At the end of the day, it’s about winning a ring, and Bochy and Francona have multiple.

Dayn Perry: Tough one with multiple ways to answer. We probably have three future Hall of Famers managing right now in Bruce Bochy, Terry Francona, and Dave Roberts. Others like A.J. Hinch, Torey Lovullo, and Craig Counsell are in the discussion, and Bob Melvin and Brian Snitker are pretty accomplished, too. Going with a blend of current-season success and career achievements, Hinch, Roberts, and Counsell are the leading candidates for me. If forced to pick one, I’ll guess I’ll settle on Hinch. My answer might be different at a later date this season.