Joe Girardi will not return as Yankees manager for the 2018 season, sources told ESPN Radio Chicago’s David Kaplan on Thursday morning.
Today the @yankees announced that Joe Girardi will not return as manager in 2018.
— Yankees PR Dept. (@YankeesPR) October 26, 2017
"I want to thank Joe for his 10 years of hard work and service to this organization." – Brian Cashman pic.twitter.com/bUYZEK23I3
— New York Yankees (@Yankees) October 26, 2017
**BREAKING NEWS** I just reported on @espn1000 MLB sources have confirmed to me that NY Yankees manager Joe Girardi will not return in 2018.
— David Kaplan (@thekapman) October 26, 2017
“With a heavy heart, I come to you because the Yankees have decided not to bring me back.”—statement from Joe Girardi #Yankees
— Sweeny Murti (@YankeesWFAN) October 26, 2017
Statement from #yankees pic.twitter.com/7VlrC2cTPy
— Meredith Marakovits (@M_Marakovits) October 26, 2017
According to the report, both Girardi and the front office agreed to part ways, as Girardi, 53, had just wrapped up a four-year, $16 million contract as the Yankees’ skipper.
In his 10 seasons, Girardi never managed a losing ball club. He won one World Series championship in 2009, and made the postseason six times. His most recent journey into October came this year, as the Yankees fell one win shy of reaching the Fall Classic.
With a formal announcement scheduled for Thursday afternoon, the Yankees will have to begin the process of searching for a new manager. At the moment, New York may look in-house for a replacement. Bench coach Rob Thomson and first base coach Tony Pena could be potential candidates, although it’s unclear if the Yankees want a low-profile name or someone with more experience at a lower cost.Â
Yankees general manager Brian Cashman is expected to be involved in the interviewing process, but his contract with the franchise also expires at season’s end.Â
As a major league catcher, Girardi played 15 seasons, and won three world championships with the Yankees during the late 1990s. In 1,620 games as manager of the Yankees, he won 910 of them — the sixth-most wins by a manager in franchise history.
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