Giants fire manager Gabe Kapler after 4 years managing the team

While the San Francisco Giants were still in contention for a playoff spot but faltered in crucial moments, Farhan Zaidi, the President of Baseball Operations, made the decision to part ways with manager Gabe Kapler. Today, with only three days remaining in the season and the team eliminated from playoff contention for the second consecutive year, the Giants dismissed Kapler.

Zaidi stated, "As a group, as a team, we played our worst baseball when it mattered the most." While recommending Kapler's departure to team ownership, Zaidi also acknowledged his share of responsibility for the team's shortcomings. Additionally, Zaidi's own future remains uncertain, as he has one year left on his contract.

Zaidi expressed his disappointment, saying, "Watching our team perform the way we did on that last road trip, still in control of our playoff destiny, was tough for everyone. It was a challenging experience for the players, a painful sight for the fans, and it forced us, as an organization, to reevaluate our approach and make some tough decisions."

Kapler departed Oracle Park in the afternoon on Friday without commenting on his time with the Giants.

Kapler's dismissal marked the first managerial change of 2023. Bench coach Kai Correa was appointed as the interim manager for the final three games of the season.

As the season-ending series against the NL West champion Dodgers approached, the Giants had a record of 78-81.

Outfielder Austin Slater acknowledged, "This is the natural outcome when you're on the losing end of baseball games. We've significantly underperformed for the past month and a half, maybe even since the All-Star break. It's a combination of sloppy play, a struggling offense, and our pitching, which had been strong for most of the year, started to reveal some weaknesses. So, there's no single point or individual or group to blame; it was an overall period of subpar baseball."

The 48-year-old Kapler compiled a 295-248 record over four seasons as the Giants' manager. However, the only winning season during his tenure was in 2021 when the Giants secured a franchise-record 107 victories and clinched the NL West title, narrowly edging out the 106-win Dodgers. Despite their impressive regular season, the Giants were eliminated in the NL Division Series that year in a five-game series against the Dodgers. They then regressed to an 81-81 record the following season.

Kapler's initial season with the San Francisco Giants occurred during the pandemic-shortened 2020 campaign. Before that, he managed the Philadelphia Phillies for two years, posting a record of 161-163.

In San Francisco, Kapler followed in the footsteps of three seasoned managers: Dusty Baker, Felipe Alou, and Bruce Bochy. The Giants achieved World Series championships under Bochy's leadership in 2010, 2012, and 2014.

The Giants are aiming to secure a new manager prior to the commencement of free agency. Zaidi has not ruled out the possibility of considering an internal candidate to replace Kapler.

Right-hander Logan Webb remarked, "I don't think we performed at our best for him. As a team, we've struggled over the last two years... There must be a set standard for how we approach baseball here."