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As far as the national media was concerned, the Rockies managerial search (as well as those of the Marlins and Indians) had been playing second fiddle to the one going on in Boston until Colorado happened on a candidate that got everybody's attention. Jason Giambi has apparently made Rockies baseball a little noteworthy again.
Jon Heyman of CBS Sports chimed in,
as did Billy Wirtz at Fox, taking the story from the angle of Giambi's former PED admission.
USA Today's Bob Nightengale used the Giambi interview news to take a look at other current MLB players who might be able to transition directly to management.
So, it seems that Giambi has already shown he has the ability to be a lightning rod for the media, one of the qualifications the Rockies are seeking (ostensibly to help keep the heat of reporter scrutiny off their young players, but if deflects attention from the front office, well that would be just a side benefit.) As Jeff Aberle pointed out yesterday, he seems to be a fit in several other ways as well. After three plus seasons with the team he's now qualified as an organizational insider, and coming from the hitting side, he's not going to be too stubborn when it comes to the front offices' ideas about pitching at altitude, likely ceding a lot on that end to Mark Wiley. He's affable with and respected by his current teammates, and according to Heyman, the Rockies think he "has a tremendous feel for the game."
Heyman also brings up the one big potential drawback with Giambi, that perhaps he's too nice in his desire to avoid confrontation with teammates. That said, he'd have their trust from the start, something that as I pointed out on Sunday, I have a difficult time believing would be true with Tom Runnells.
The Denver Post article that mentions Giambi's interview also includes an update on pitcher Jorge De La Rosa, who hopes to pitch in the Mexican League this winter.