Astros' Manager Joe Espada Expected to Visit Mariners For Potential Change of Scenery

The Houston Astros had a very up-and-down finish to the season, which resulted in an early postseason exit as they were taken down by the Chicago White Sox in the AL Wild Card round.

With that said, there are now a variety of questions that have to be answered, including what the future looks like for manager Joe Espada. On that note, there is some recent news about Espada that could indicate where the answer to that question is trending.

Early on Tuesday morning, it was reported that Espada will visit the Seattle Mariners for their vacant managerial position, according to Brian McTaggart, Daniel Kramer, and Mark Feinsand. It is important to note that a source said that Houston granted Seattle permission to speak with Espada, but neither team has confirmed the news.

This is definitely an interesting development as the future surrounding the Astros and Espada is uncertain, as Espada's contract does run out at the end of October so it is very possible that the two sides could part ways.

A few months ago, ownership opted to fire general manager Dana Brown, which was a major move, and even at the time, it seemed possible that Espada could be gone at some point too, but obviously he did end up finishing the season.

On the Mariners' side, they let go of manager Dan Wilson at the end of the season, so they are in need of a manager and it appears they have at least some interest in Espada who has been the manger of their AL West rival Astros.

It is going to be very intriguing to see how this does play out as the Astros did not have a great finish to the year and were inconsistent throughout, so it is possible that Houston would be fine letting him go, but if Espada were to go to the division rival Mariners that would be quite the storyline for next season.

Now, looking at Espada's time with the Astros, he has been the manager since Dusty Baker retired at the end of the 2023 season and was actually hired to be the bench coach in 2018 before being promoted at the end of the 2023 season.

Since Espada has been the manager for Houston he has posted a record of 256-229 which also includes AL West titles in 2024 and 2026, but not a ton of postseason success. Additionally, after Espada and the Astros were swept by the White Sox, he did say he wanted to keep managing Houston.

“I respect the process and how blessed I've been of being here for over nine years and experienced so many division titles, Championship Series, World Series, winning one. As a bench coach, as a manager, I have witnessed so many great moments, so obviously I would like to continue enjoying those moments," Espada said.

Moving forward, it is going to be worth watching how Espada does move forward with this process and whether or not he wants to stay with the Astros or if he wants to pursue an opportunity with the Mariners to give himself a fresh start.

Regardless of what Espada decides, this will be a situation to monitor, because it could have significant implications in the AL West for the Astros and the Mariners in particular, as both teams still need to lock down a manager for next season, and depending on how this plays out, one team may have their manager while the other will likely have to keep looking.

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