I was just about to ask the same question. Cardinal? Can you clarify for us?
How often do managers actually do this sort of thing (nowadays)?
The icking dirt stuff? Pretty rarely. The true meltdowns aren’t very common.
But getting up into the umpire’s face, yelling and shouting? Still far too often, IMO.
But as often as not it’s just an act, by a manager who thinks his team has become too complacent or perhaps dispirited, and needs to be fired up. Normally it’s too transparent a ploy to be effective, though.
An Earl Weaver story (I think it was Earl, if not it should have been): He was managing yet another bad Orioles team in a doubleheader. After a long, bad first game and the start of a long, bad nightcap, he ran out to the home plate ump and pulled his usual act. The response? “Forget it, Earl. If I have to stay out here and watch this crap, so do you.”
Precisely. Thankyou for making an outstanding argument for why it needs to be discontinued, pronto.
If, as a manager, you can’t manage your team without acting like a four-year-old whose parents have told him it’s time to stop playing in the sandbox, maybe you should get another job. And if being paid millions of dollars for playing a game isn’t sufficient motivation to keep your players from becoming “complacent” and “dispirited,” then maybe they should apply for a job working an espresso machine instead. There will be no shortage of applicants to fill their vacated positions.
Well, still, baseball is a game. Grownups play it, yes, but the emotions behind their play are still those of children. The emotions behind their off-field conduct, as well, far too often, but it’s *not *always inappropriate to deal with players as children.
Not to take away from your story and I know it is nitpicky. But, Weaver managed for 20 years or so and the closest he came to a bad team was one year on a team that was barely below .500.
And that in his last season; previous to that he’d never managed a bad team. I do know that story, though, I just can’t remember who did it.
I am pleased to note, though, that Weaver was once ejected from the first game of a doubleheader and then was ejected from the second game while handing in the lineup card before the game started.
Heh. Not sure if this is the same tale, but this Leo Durocher story is pretty similar and very funny.
Yes, I’m a hometown boy, so Tommy Lasorda is probably my all-time favorite (and I’ll third the request for clarification from Cardinal).
Outside of the Dodgers, I’ve always liked Davey Johnson a lot for some reason. I think it’s because I read a book of his when I was a kid. And yes, I also have a lot of respect for LaRussa.
It’s funny, I like Earl Weaver and Walter Alston both. They were complete opposites in approach to the game, but both, I think, along with their General Managers, epitomized the best of the game. There was the “Orioles Way” and the “Dodger’s Way.” The teams played the same sort of baseball throughout their systems. Good pitching, some attention to defense for both, but Earl loved the 3 run home run, and Walter lived small ball. Walter might have paid a little more attention to defense, but in Earl’s heyday he had Brooks at third, Blade Belanger at short, and Davey at second. Then he had Cal at short and Eddie (a really underrated defensive player) at first.
Current, or nearly current? I live in Milwaukee now, and I really grew to appreciate Ned Yost, who sometimes sacrificed his won/lost record in order to give young players more playing time. La Russa and Torre and Francona of course.
Biggest question? As good as Bobby Cox is in Atlanta, why hasn’t he won more World Series?
Lastly, I would assert that the relationship between the manager and the GM is absolutely vital.
Off topic a bit as I’m not answering the OP question but I’ll ask anyway.
Are baseball managers/coaches the only managers/coaches that wear the team uniforms for games in all of sport?
Among any major sport of which I am aware, yes.
If I recall correctly, professional baseball rules state no team personnel may step onto the field who are not in uniform, excepting medical personnel. So a manager has to wear a uniform or he can’t come out and talk to his pitcher and argue with umps.
I’m not a motorsports fan - but don’t all the people in the pit wear what is essentially a uniform? Or is the “manager” not down there?
My son won a contest at Wednesday night’s game (actually he came in tied for third). It was a Fantasy baseball contest, and the top five entries got to choose from:
* Dioner Navarro game worn chest protector
* Joe Maddon game worn shoes
* Gabe Kapler autographed baseball
* Gabe Gross game used bat
* Pre-game field passes and the opportunity to sing Take Me Out to the Ballgame at a 2009 Rays game.
We got an email saying to pick between the shoes and the baseball. I think the shoes would be kind of cool. What say ye?
The shoes would be really cool - but so would singing the National Anthem (regardless of talent level).
Singing is not on the table. And it was “Take Me Out to the Ballgame”, not the National Anthem. I’m sure that the field passes and singing would have been the choice if that had been still available by the time we got to choose.
In the past there were managers who also played. Pete Rose ,I think was the last . But through baseball history, there have been a few.
In the same vein:
What is really stupid is softball teams do the same thing. Softball is a much higher scoring game. I would suggest you put the power hitters 3rd,5th and 8th. Not 3rd ,4th and 5th. But even softball managers can’t step away from stupid traditions.