Two managers with uncertain futures send their teams out for what could be the final time when the Colorado Rockies and host San Francisco Giants wrap up the 2025 season on Sunday afternoon.
Giants manager Bob Melvin goes for a third straight win over Rockies interim manager Warren Schaeffer in the regular-season finale for clubs that will be on vacation next week rather than in the postseason.
The earlier-than-desired completion of the season will be the second straight for Melvin, who replaced Gabe Kapler after a 79-win 2023 campaign and led the club to 80 wins in 2024. A victory Sunday would allow the Giants (80-81) to record one more win than last season.
Did Melvin do enough considering the huge investments the organization made in Matt Chapman, Willy Adames, Jung Hoo Lee, Justin Verlander and Rafael Devers? The Giants will have to answer that question in the offseason.
Despite exercising the option year in his manager’s contract for 2026, Giants general manager Zack Minasian was noncommittal about Melvin’s future in a recent interview with KNBR radio in San Francisco, the club’s flagship station.
“When you have years like this, it pushes you more and more to evaluate all of your departments,” Minasian said. “In regards to Bob, he’s a consummate professional, and he really cares about the Giants. As the season ends, we’ll evaluate our options going forward.”
The Rockies pulled the plug on longtime manager Bud Black 40 games into the season. Despite entering the season finale on a five-game losing streak, Schaeffer (36-85, .298) has led the team to a higher winning percentage than Black (7-33, .175).
That hasn’t prevented Colorado’s losingest season in franchise history (43-118). Since 1900, only three teams have lost more games in a single season: the 2024 Chicago White Sox (121), the 1962 New York Mets (120) and the 2003 Detroit Tigers (119).
When they remove the interim tag from Schaeffer’s name in the offseason, the Rockies will have to decide whether it’s to make him the full-time skipper or to head in a new direction.
Several players have endorsed Schaeffer, a former Rockies minor leaguer and major league infield coach, including 24-year-old outfielder Jordan Beck.
“I like what he’s changed; I like what he brings to the table,” Beck told reporters recently. “There is real accountability and there is true conversation. He makes guys feel really comfortable and prepared, and that’s important for a young team.”
If the season finale helps sway opinions, it’ll come down to a matchup of Rockies rookie McCade Brown (0-4, 7.54 ERA) and Giants ace Logan Webb (14-11, 3.30).
Brown will be making his seventh career start still searching for his first win. The right-hander is coming off his best effort to date, a 10-strikeout performance over five innings of one-run ball in a 4-3 loss at Seattle on Tuesday.
The 25-year-old has never faced the Giants.
Webb is set to make his career-high 34th start after compiling 33 each of the last two seasons. The righty has a chance to tie his career best in wins, set while going 15-9 in 2022, but is winless in his last three starts.
The 28-year-old is 10-3 with a 3.12 ERA in 106 2/3 innings over 18 career games (17 starts) against Colorado.