Sources: Marlins' Schumaker won't return in '25

Miami Marlins manager Skip Schumaker will not return to the team in 2025, sources told ESPN, ending his tenure after two seasons and making him among the most coveted free agents this winter.

Schumaker told Marlins players he would not be back next season after their 15-5 victory against Toronto on Friday night, sources said. He told the players while informing them he would miss the final two games of this season to address a family issue.

The 44-year-old Schumaker won National League Manager of the Year last year after leading the Marlins to a surprising postseason berth. When Marlins general manager Kim Ng resigned in October after the team proposed hiring a president of baseball operations over her, Schumaker’s contract was restructured, and the team option for 2025 was removed from the deal.

Under new president of baseball operations Peter Bendix, Miami has since initiated a full rebuild and traded a number of integral players from last season’s playoff team, including two-time batting champion Luis Arráez, infielder/outfielder Jazz Chisholm Jr., outfielder Bryan De La Cruz and relievers Tanner Scott and A.J. Puk. Though Miami vastly improved its farm system and added major league-ready talent as well, the season was far different from last year’s 84-win campaign. Elbow injuries to right-handers Sandy Alcantara and Eury Perez, plus a back injury to left-hander Jesus Luzardo, left Schumaker scrambling for any semblance of a rotation, as 19 different Marlins have started games.

The Marlins’ 60-100 record hasn’t soured the baseball world’s opinion of him. Schumaker, who spent 11 seasons as a major league player, is extremely well-regarded in the industry and expected to be a top candidate for the two other current managerial openings with Cincinnati — where he played his final two seasons — and the Chicago White Sox.

Other teams with unclear managerial futures include the Toronto Blue Jays, the Colorado Rockies and the St. Louis Cardinals, with whom Schumaker spent the first eight years of his major league career. Schumaker spent the 2022 season as the bench coach for Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol, who this spring received a contract extension through the 2026 season. Blue Jays manager John Schneider’s deal goes through the 2025 season, and Rockies manager Bud Black has a deal expected to expire at the end of this season.