managerial material

If you haven’t noticed, Tim Bogar, the former Jackson Mets shortstop, has done a pretty impressive job as the interim manager in Texas. After a slow start under Bogar, the injury-thinned Rangers have won 10 of 11 and are 11-6 overall since Bogar stepped in for Ron Washington, who resigned on Sept. 5. Surely Bogar, a successful minor league manager, will be considered for the job next season. … Meanwhile, ex-JaxMets catcher John Gibbons will return in Toronto in 2015, according to reports. Gibbons is 154-165 in his second stint with the Blue Jays, who were officially eliminated from playoff contention on Tuesday. Toronto, which faded this year after a great start, hasn’t made the postseason since 1993. … Clint Hurdle, the 1990 Jackson Mets skipper, celebrated the clinching of a second straight playoff appearance on Tuesday after his Pittsburgh club beat Atlanta. … Former JaxMets catcher Ned Yost has Kansas City on the brink of its first playoff berth since 1985 yet still seems to attract more than his share of criticism for his game management. The Royals won their 86th game on Tuesday, matching last year’s total with five games left, and have posted their best back-to-back years since 1979-80. Yost is in his fifth season at the KC helm. … In Minnesota, the last-place Twins have clinched a fourth straight 90-loss season, but former JaxMets shortstop Ron Gardenhire reportedly will return as manager in 2015 – if he wants to. Gardenhire, 56, steered the club to six division titles in a nine-year stretch, but hasn’t sniffed the postseason since 2010, when he was the American League’s manager of the year. … The only question about the future of Buck Showalter, the onetime Mississippi State star, is whether he’ll win AL manager of the year for the job he has done in Baltimore. … Wondering what the shakeup in Atlanta will mean for the minor league field personnel. Aaron Holbert has done a good job as manager of the Double-A Mississippi Braves the last three years and would seem deserving of a promotion. But who knows how much change is coming for the Braves?