Padres’ in-house managerial option gaining traction with Twins and Orioles

If you were looking for a low-rumble Padres subplot to turn into a headline, here it is: Scott Servais, the club's special assistant to the president of baseball operations in 2025, is suddenly moving from “quiet asset” to hot commodity. After a year working behind the scenes in San Diego, Servais’ name is now popping in multiple searches, most notably with the Baltimore Orioles and Minnesota Twins. 

That’s not just chatter; that’s market validation of a skill set built over nine seasons in Seattle, the kind that front offices covet when they’re trying to keep a competitive window propped open without losing the room.

And the timing matters. Baseball’s managerial carousel rarely spins this fast or this wide. With as many as eight chairs to fill for 2026, interviews and shortlists are hardening by the day. If there’s a moment for Servais to reenter a dugout, it’s right now, and if there’s a moment for the Padres to decide whether their “in-house” option should remain in-house, it’s also right now. Interest from Baltimore and Minnesota doesn’t just confirm Servais’ résumé; it applies pressure in San Diego.

Scott Servais enters Orioles’ and Twins’ manager shortlists for 2026

Scott Servais is the latest name to surface in the Orioles’ search, with the New York Post’s Jon Heyman reporting Baltimore has interest in the former Mariners skipper, though it isn’t yet clear if he has formally interviewed. The public slate in Baltimore already includes interim manager Tony Mansolino, former Mets manager Luis Rojas, and future Hall of Famer Albert Pujols, with Cubs bench coach (and former Oriole) Ryan Flaherty circulating as a more speculative fit. Add Servais to that mix and you get a truly eclectic board: three candidates with real big-league managing time, a rising dugout lieutenant with long-standing “future manager” buzz, and an all-time great who’s never managed in the majors or minors.

Up in Minnesota, La Velle E. Neal III of the Star Tribune reports Servais is a candidate to interview as the Twins build an extensive list to replace Rocco Baldelli, one that includes Vance Wilson, Nick Punto, Derek Shelton, James Rowson, and Ramón Vázquez. 

On paper, Servais is the most seasoned option in that group. He managed the Mariners from 2016 through mid-2024, guided their 2022 playoff return after a two-decade drought, and posted back-to-back 90-win seasons in ’21 and ’22. His tenure ended in August 2024 with Seattle treading water at 64–64, but the longer arc is hard to ignore: when he arrived, the Mariners had finished below .500 in five of six seasons; in year one, they won 86 and reset the club’s expectations.

If you’re Baltimore, the appeal here is obvious: Servais has navigated the awkward middle ground between upstart and contender. The Orioles don’t need a teardown whisperer or a celebrity splash, they need someone who can manage a room with postseason expectations, steward young stars through slumps without overcorrecting, and keep the bullpen from fraying when October spotlights get hot. Servais’ track record in Seattle, mixing veteran competence with developing cores, surviving long stretches where every game felt like a referendum, maps cleanly onto Camden Yards in 2026.

If you’re Minnesota, the pitch shifts slightly. The Twins have built a reputation for process, pitching infrastructure, and calm amid noise. Servais brings a steady public voice, years of media reps in a pressure market, and a willingness to trust player-dev pipelines without surrendering the day-to-day urgency that 162 games demand. He’s not a hobbyist tactician; he’s a culture operator who still treats matchups and bullpen sequencing like controllables, not chaos.

And if you’re the Padres, this is where “in-house” gets real. Servais spent 2025 inside your building learning your people and preferences. Letting him leave for an immediate rival aspirant (Baltimore) or a perennial playoff presence (Minnesota) is a choice, not a coincidence. With the Giants reportedly closing in on their own solution and other clubs accelerating timetables, San Diego has to decide whether Servais is merely organizational depth or a legitimate bridge back to October. Because the rest of the league is answering that question for them, by calling him.