Walt Weiss a Prime Candidate for Arizona Diamondbacks Job?

Colorado Rockies manager Walt Weiss could still be managing a National League West team next season. It just may not be the Rockies.

Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports has reported that Weiss could be one of the frontrunners for the Arizona Diamondbacks job in the offseason. There are a lot of “if’s” that would have to happen for this scenario to come true, but it is an intriguing rumor.

With Weiss in the last year of his contract with the Rockies, there is some logic behind the Diamondbacks turning their attention within the division toward the Colorado skipper. However, current manager Chip Hale would need to be released from his duties. As MLB Trade Rumors notes, Weiss has a history with Arizona chief baseball officer Tony La Russa and general manager Dave Stewart.

Rosenthal has reported that the Diamondbacks were ready to part ways with Hale, but ownership intervened. ArizonaSports.com quoted a radio interview with La Russa that seemed to counteract that report.

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“The stuff about Chip is just not true. We were very concerned, and I think it was a very strong message sent by Dave Stewart to Chip that, look, there’s an urgency that has to be apparent in the way we compete. You lose that, then that’s not acceptable,” La Russa said on a Phoenix radio show on Wednesday.

At 54-76, the Diamondbacks have struggled mightily this season. The struggles have been magnified after the team signed notable pitchers Zack Greinke and Shelby Miller in the offseason. Both have struggled in the desert, with Miller currently in Triple-A.

Weiss, meanwhile, has a 270-346 mark with the Rockies in four seasons at the helm. The best season for Weiss came in his first campaign when Colorado posted a 74-88 mark in 2013.

Of course, for Weiss to become the Arizona skipper, that means he would no longer have the job in Colorado. The Rockies seemed to be turning things around after the All-Star break and making a Wild Card run. However, Colorado is just 10-15 in August.

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Will Weiss still be with the Rockies next season? As Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post noted, it is interesting that the manager’s contract has not been extended as the days tick toward September.