Former Cubs coach Will Venable eyeing first World Series ring with the Rangers

Will Venable turned in a solid big league career as a player, spending parts of 9 seasons with the Padres, Rangers and Dodgers before transitioning to the Cubs front office in 2017, working directly with then-president of baseball operations Theo Epstein.

He then made the move to the coaching staff in 2018, serving as Cubs first base coach for two seasons before taking over at third base during the pandemic-shortened 2020 campaign. His stint in Chicago served as a springboard for Venable's coaching career, with the Red Sox bringing him onboard as bench coach in Nov. 2020.

Former Cubs coach Will Venable is an MLB manager-in-the-making

Through all of this, though, one thing has eluded Venable: a World Series ring. In his first season as the Rangers' associate manager under future Hall of Famer Bruce Bochy, though, he has that target in his sights after Texas knocked off the reigning World Series champion Astros in the ALCS this week.

Venable drew rave reviews when he was in Chicago and it's no surprise to see him continue to have success. This is a guy who, by every indication, will be a big league manager someday. The only reason he's not already is because he's told multiple teams he's sticking with Bochy in Texas for the time being.

“I talked to them very briefly, but that was at the point where I already had made the decision that I was staying here."

The chance to learn every day from such a prestigious baseball mind is of immense value to someone like Venable who is still just 40 years old. As Bochy eyes a championship with his third different franchise, Venable will look to check that box for the first time in the coming weeks.