According to reports from CBSsports.com, Carson City’s Matt Williams is on the verge of being named the new manager of the Washington Nationals.
It’s not know when the team will make a formal announcement. It may not come until after the World Series. Williams has worked as a first and third base coach for the Arizona Diamondbacks the past couple of seasons.
Ron McNutt, who coached Williams during his Carson High days, said he hasn’t spoken with Williams for about two weeks.
“When I talked to him a couple of weeks ago, he was going to Washington for interviews,” McNutt said Saturday afternoon. “He said he would give me a call in a couple of weeks. I was going to give him a few more days before I got back in touch.”
Williams, who played for the Giants, Indians and Diamondbacks during his career, has never managed at any level. He did work with current Washington GM Mike Rizzo when he played third base for the D-Backs. Rizzo was the D-Backs director of scouting at that time.
“Matt was an outstanding athlete,” McNutt said. “He always played the game hard; no nonsense. If given the opportunity, I think he’d bring those qualities to the job. On top of everything else, he’s an outstanding person.”
Williams, 47, would take the place of Davey Johnson, who retired at the end of the 2013 season.