It’s not too surprising that Cubs’ manager Joe Maddon, (who mentored Davey Martinez as his bench coach in Tampa Bay, brought him along with him to Chicago in the same role, and championed Martinez as he interviewed for managerial openings over the years), spoke up in support of Washington’s skipper before the start of the three-game set between their two teams, when he was asked about the second-year manager being on the hot seat with the Nationals struggling over the first two months this season.
It is somewhat surprising that Maddon spoke openly about how hard it is to judge Martinez with the bullpen he was handed this season, which has been the National League’s worst in a number of categories since the beginning of the year.