All in the family: Phil Nevin will manage against son Tyler this weekend at O's Park

It was a father and son sitting together in a baseball stadium. But these weren't just any two men. It was the interim manager of the Los Angeles Angels Phil Nevin sitting next to his son Tyler, an Orioles infielder. Tonight as the elder Nevin continues to serve a suspension he will get a rare treat. The ability to watch his son’s big league game.

His 10-game suspension will end Saturday and then he will manage against his son’s Orioles team. Today father and son talked about what figures to be a very, very special next four days for the Nevin family.

The last time the dad saw the son play a pro game Tyler was playing in Hartford, Conn., in 2019 in Double-A and his dad was a Yankees coach and drove two hours to see part of a game. He saw five or six of Tyler's games that year.

“It’s special,” Phil Nevin said sitting next to his son in the O’s dugout earlier. “You really have to ask me some questions after Saturday’s game as I really have no idea what to expect. We were meeting with the staff earlier and going over some things we normally do (to prepare) for the game and I got to his name and I didn’t even know what to call him. I finally said Nevin and the whole room laughed. So, it will be different. Tonight, tomorrow, just being able to watch him play a big league game if he gets in there would be special for any parent, right? Unfortunately, I have to watch it from upstairs, but maybe this is how it is all supposed to be.”

So how will dad try to get son out if he comes up in a key spot?

“I can’t answer that right now,” Phil said, laughing. “There are definitely certain guys down there I know he might have trouble with than others. Quite frankly I watch Orioles games every day. If we are playing at the same time I watch the replay at night, so I probably have seen a lot of his teammates. There are probably some things I will probably add here,” he said, stating the obvious, that he wants his team to win but hopes Tyler plays well this weekend.

“I didn’t ever let him win at Monopoly when he was a kid and I’m not going to start now,” he said.

“This moment for our family is pretty incredible,” said Tyler Nevin. “It hasn’t happened much throughout baseball history. Something that is going to be really special to be a part of. I think our family is really just going to take it all in. To see how we both got to this point is really something that is hard to put into words, how much we have helped each other over the years. It is just something that is very special.”

To make it even more of a family matter, Tyler’s younger brother Kyle is here. He just finished his sophomore season at Baylor and could be a pick in the top 10 rounds in this month’s major league draft.

Tyler Nevin choked up a bit today when he talked about how close he is with his dad and how they have been there for each other at big moments in their lives and baseball lives.

“Yeah, pretty emotional. It’s something that is incredible for what we’ve been able to accomplish together and hand in hand throughout the way. How close we have been throughout the process,” he said, his voice trailing off as his dad put his arm around him.

Yep, pretty special day here at the Yard, and it was easy to see the closeness today between a father and his son.

So which of the two will the family be rooting for?

“Definitely me during my at-bats,” Tyler said with a laugh. “I’m not in the lineup, and if I don’t have a hand in the game I would think they’re rooting for him.”

To which his dad quickly said, “They’re rooting for him.”

Phil got a 10-game suspension after the Angels and Seattle Mariners had a major brawl that led to discipline for 12 players on the two teams. The Orioles played in Seattle not long after that.

“He did text me. It was the first time he’s been booed in a big league stadium,” Phil said to more laughter.

So the older Nevin can be in the stadium today watching the game and will most likely be in an area the Orioles would provide the front office of their opponent, but he can’t be in the dugout until his suspension ends after tomorrow’s game.

“I just want to sit in the stands and have a hot dog and beer and watch my son play a major league game,” Phil said. “I kind of get to do that tonight without the beer. I probably shouldn’t have a beer in my hand. I just want to watch him play and (in the past) it just didn’t work out. He was either just called up or sent down right around when we were with the Yankees. But it’s just funny how it’s working out and it just makes this weekend more special.”

Has Phil Nevin thought about Saturday and maybe having to make a key managerial decision that involves trying to get his own son out in a key spot?

“I have (thought about it), especially as you start doing the game planning," he said. "Their lineup came over today, and because I’ve watched so many Orioles games I know what they do late in the game as far as pinch-hitting and moving guys around and the scenarios where he might come in and get an at-bat. And the scenarios of who I might bring in to face him in that kind of lane where he would be hitting. All those things are running through my mind, and I think as we get closer to Saturday it will be more of a competitive nature, but right now I’m looking forward to watching him, whether he gets in there tonight or tomorrow.

“Somebody asked what I am rooting for? I want him to do well, obviously, but not at the cost of us losing a game. It’s a fine line. I have pitchers that are trying to get him out and I'm not over there rooting for him to get a hit. It’s kind of touchy, but my players and coaches, we’ve had some jokes and jabs over there. But for the most part, they get it. I was just shocked that this hasn’t happened more. To be a part of history is kind of cool.”

“A lot of my family is here right now,” Tyler said. “And it’s something we are all going to take in. Not going to take it for granted.”

So, pretty cool weekend at Oriole Park. In a town where a father once managed two sons, with Cal Ripken Sr. managing Cal and Bill, the Nevins will compete against each other this weekend at Camden Yards.