The Arizona Diamondbacks filled their manager vacancy Friday by hiring Boston Red Sox bench coach Torey Lovullo.
Jon Heyman of Today's Knuckleball reported the move. John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 in Phoenix initially reported the Diamondbacks would hire Lovullo.
Lovullo has been Boston's bench coach since 2013 after previously serving two seasons on manager John Farrell's staff with the Toronto Blue Jays.
He was interim manager for the Red Sox in 2015 for 49 games while Farrell underwent chemotherapy, posting a 28-21 record.
The 51-year-old former MLB infielder played for seven different teams during parts of eight seasons, spending most of his time in the minors.
Aside from his stint as Red Sox interim manager, Lovullo managed at the Single-A, Double-A and Triple-A levels from 2002 through 2010. He won a World Series title with Boston as a coach in 2013.
Lovullo takes over a D-backs team that finished under .500 in each of the past two years under Chip Hale. They haven't reached the postseason since 2011 and have just one playoff berth in the past nine years.
Heyman believes Lovullo may prove to be the right man for the job in the desert:
ESPN's Jim Bowden agrees with that assessment:
Arizona won only 69 games last season despite making a big splash during the offseason, but there is plenty of talent in place.
With Zack Greinke as the ace starter and a lineup that includes the likes of Paul Goldschmidt, A.J. Pollock, Jake Lamb, Jean Segura and Yasmany Tomas, Lovullo has a lot to work with.
Lovullo has a winning pedigree as a bench coach, and if he can alter the losing culture that has overtaken the Diamondbacks in recent years, they have a chance to be contenders in 2017 and beyond.
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