Bud Black reportedly set to interview with Nationals today

Former Padres manager Bud Black will reportedly get his chance to impress Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo today. The Washington Post was first to report Black's interview after the ex-San Diego skipper called the opening in the nation's capital a "very attractive position" during an MLB Network Radio appearance last week.

Black may be the early frontrunner to take over after Washington fired Matt Williams last week. According to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports, "Black is the preferred choice of some in the Nationals front office."

After a wild offseason last winter, Padres general manager A.J. Preller thought he had his team primed for a postseason run. But with San Diego sputtering at 32-33, Preller opted for another change, firing Black in mid-June.

Black owns a 649-713 record over his nine seasons managing the Padres, his first job as a major league manager. While consistently dealing with cheaper payrolls, Black's Padres only finished above .500 in two of his nine years and never made the playoffs. In fact, he is only the third manager since 1900 to hold a job with one team for more than eight seasons despite never making the postseason or winning more than 90 games in a year, according to Elias.

Black was named the National League's Manager of the Year in 2010, when the Padres won 90 games but missed the playoffs with a late-season collapse.

Black spent 15 years in the majors, mostly starting pitcher. The left-hander compiled a 121-116 record with a 3.84 ERA with five different teams, including starting 33 games for the 1985 World Series champion Royals.

After his playing career ended in 1995, Black became the Angels pitching coach in 2000. As part of manager Mike Scioscia's staff, Black won another World Series ring in 2002.

Certainly, the ability to work with the likes of Max Scherzer and Stephen Strasburg has to be attractive to Black. Not to mention his familiarity with former Padres minor league right-hander Joe Ross, who impressed in his rookie season with the Nationals.

Black also had the opportunity to see Trea Turner up close during San Diego's spring training last year before the highly regarded prospect was finally delivered to Washington.

The Nationals are one of four clubs - along with the Padres, Marlins and Mariners - searching for a manager this offseason. The chance to call the shots with Washington's roster seems more enticing than the other two opportunities, especially with the Nats still just a year removed from the best record in the NL.

Black called the Nationals "a very good team" on MLB Network Radio last week.