Miami Marlins GM Kim Ng shocked the baseball world on Monday morning, announcing in a statement that she would not be returning to the team in 2024. Ng told the New York Times’ Tyler Kepner that recent conversations with owner Mitch Sherman left her convinced that the two “were not completely aligned” regarding the direction of the baseball operations department, making it clear that it was time for her to move on.
In addition to the many questions this raises about the future of the Marlins and their willingness (or lack thereof) to spend the money necessary to win, there’s also the question of Ng’s future. The 54-year-old — who made history as the first woman to serve as general manager for a men’s team in the history of major North American sports when she took the job back in 2020 — figures to be in demand after leading Miami to an unlikely playoff spot this season. That playoff spot had a lot to do with Ng, who acquired batting champion Luis Arraez and promising young lefty Jesus Luzardo prior to the season and bolstered the offense with shrewd in-season deals for Josh Bell and Jake Burger.
Now, though, she’s back on the market, and it’s unclear where she might wind up in 2024. Here are the most likely candidates.
Kim Ng potential landing spots
Boston Red Sox
There are exactly two teams in the league without a lead baseball decision-maker right now: the Marlins and the Red Sox. Boston let Chaim Bloom go in September after falling out of playoff contention down the stretch of this season, and the search for his replacement appears to have been a bumpy one so far. Per MassLive, the team has been rejected by several of its top candidates, largely due to concern about the heavy turnover in the baseball ops department of late — this will be the fifth person in charge since 2011 — and what sort of infrastructure the job will come with.
Still, Boston has made it to the first round of interviews, sitting down with assistant GM Eddie Romero last week. Interestingly, at the top of the team’s wish list right now is Michael Hill — the man whom Ng replaced as GM in Miami, and who later went on to replace Ng as as MLB’s senior vice president of baseball operations. If the Red Sox had interest in Hill, it stands to reason they’d also be interested in Ng, who had more on-field success with the Marlins than Hill did.
New York Mets
After that, options begin to dry up quickly. The Mets do technically have a GM opening after Billy Eppler — demoted from the lead job after Steve Cohen brought in David Stearns last month — was let go due to allegations of injured-list manipulation. It seems unlikely that Ng would want to take a step backward after her success in 2023, but if her concern is a lack of resources and commitment from ownership, Cohen and New York would seem to check those boxes resoundingly.
New York Yankees
Okay, let’s get this one out of the way. Yes, Ng served as assistant GM to Brian Cashman from 1998 to 2001. And yes, there are plenty of Yankees fans who would like to see a changing of the guard after the team’s bitterly disappointing 2023 season. But this is wildly improbable for at least a couple of reasons. First, there are no signs that Hal Steinbrenner remains less committed to Cashman than he has been, with the owner reaffirming his support for the embattled GM last month. Second, Ng left the organization on less-than-civil terms, unhappy that the team brought in Randy Levine to serve as team president — above Ng on the organizational chart — in 2000. She left for the Dodgers less than two years later, seeking greener professional pastures, and it seems unlikely that she’d be down to return with Cashman and/or Levine still around.
Of course, it’s also possible that Ng sits out 2024 entirely, waiting for the carousel to offer more openings next winter. Her stock has never been higher after guiding Miami to the playoffs, and if she doesn’t feel confident in the Marlins offering her the resources she needs to succeed, it would make more sense for her to sit tight rather than risk a disappointing season that leaves her stuck in the future.
