Say It Ain't Joe — Baseball Bench Coach

“We look forward to 1970 with a great deal of enthusiasm, and I am sure you will like our new manager, Sparky Anderson.” This passage closed a letter written by Bob Howsam, then general manager of the Reds, to me on October 20, 1969. The letter was a very kind response to my letter of October 8 voicing the opinion that I didn’t like that the Reds had fired manager Dave Bristol after the 1969 season. I was 10 years old at that time. So I missed that one, big time, as Sparky went on to become one of the winningest managers in baseball history. Being a baseball manager typically only has one ending – you get fired. This season we’ve seen the early firings of two managers who had in previous posts won a world championship for their team. Say it ain’t Joe!

The Phillies fired manager Joe Girardi after the team’s 22-29 start to the 2022 regular season. Girardi was in his third season as the Philadelphia skipper, coming to the team in 2020 with a great resume. Joe was a former major league catcher, playing for 15 seasons on four MLB teams (1989-2003) and winning three World Series championships with the Yankees. His managerial career started in 2006 with the Florida Marlins, leading a team with the lowest payroll in baseball to playoff contention. Girardi received the NL Manager of the Year award that season, and unbelievably was fired after it. The Yankees were the lucky ones, as they soon hired Joe to skipper a team that was a playoff contender for 10 years (2008 to 2017) and won the World Series in 2009. Girardi’s Phillies came into the 2022 season with five 2021 All-Stars and high hopes of winning the NL East. A dreadful bullpen got in the way and GM Dave Dombrowski gave Joe an early exit. Some team will soon benefit, as Joe remains one of baseball’s best with a .545 winning percentage.

Another firing of a not so ordinary Joe has been in the news lately, the dismissal of Angels manager Joe Maddon. Maddon actually began coaching in the MLB with the Angels in 1994. He received his first managing gig with the Tampa Bay Rays in 2006. Joe managed the Rays to the AL pennant in 2008 and received the AL Manager of the Year award. He brought his act to Chicago in 2015, taking the Cubs to the 2015 NLCS in a second Manager of the Year performance (this time, NL). In 2016, Maddon led the Cubs to their first world championship in 108 years. He was fired after a disappointing 2019 season, and returned to his Angels roots as manager in 2020. After a surprising 27-17 run out of the gate this season, LA lost 12 straight and Joe lost his job. His next step is uncertain, but my guess is that some GM will be willing to bet on a manager with a .532 winning percentage.

The firings of the successful and experienced Joe’s before the Memorial Day mark of the season were surprising. They were not, however, the earliest firings in recent history. In 2018, the Reds dismissed skipper Bryan Price after just eighteen games. Their 3-15 start was their worst one since 1931 (until, of course this season when they matched it). The Tigers management in 2002 acted even more quickly. Phil Garner, a major leaguer for 16 seasons, managed the Brewers for eight seasons prior to helming Detroit in 2000. After an 0-6 start to the 2002 season, Phil was given the heave-ho. In 2005, Garner rebounded and managed the Astros to their first World Series. You just never know.

Hirings and firings marked the managerial career of one of the most controversial skippers in MLB history, Billy Martin. Martin’s playing career spanned from 1950 to 1961 on 7 MLB teams. He helmed six different MLB teams in his 20 years of managing, including five separate stints with the Yankees. Billy’s Yankees had a winning record in all five of his stops with New York, but each time he was fired or resigned under fire due to a dispute with Yankee owner George Steinbrenner. In 1976 and 1977, Martin led the Bronx Bombers to AL pennants; he captured his only World Series championship in 1977. Midway through the 1978 season he was forced to resign when he said this about Yankees star player, Reggie Jackson, and Steinbrenner: “one’s a born liar, and the other’s convicted.” Shortly thereafter, the Yankees announced that Martin would return as manager someday. He managed the New Yorkers four times during the next four seasons, all for less than one year.

Tony LaRussa, the second winningest, all-time manager, himself has had two separate times when he has managed his current team, the White Sox. Four decades though separate his tenures (1979-1986 and 2021-present). Tony became manager of the Sox during the 1979 season, and led them to a division championship in 1983. He was fired in 1986 at the recommendation of GM Ken Harrelson, a decision owner Jerry Reinsdorf regretted since that time. Three weeks after his 1986 firing, the A’s brought him to Oakland. Tony’s Athletics won three AL pennants and one World Series (1989). LaRussa then landed in St. Louis, as his Cardinals took world titles in 2006 and 2011. He retired after the 2011 season, only to be brought back to the dugout by Sox owner Reinsdorf beginning last season. Tony has been in the news most recently for some of his on-field strategy, most principally his decision to intentionally walk a Dodgers hitter with a 1-2 count preceding a 3-run HR to the next batter. In a recent press conference after the game, he retorted to Chicago sportswriters present: “Is there some question about whether that was a good move or not?”

Everyone indeed has an opinion on baseball managers. In Bob Howsam’s 1969 letter to me, he stated: “We appreciate your interest in expressing your views. I am aware that we do not all share the same opinions and when it comes to sports this is even more true. Everyone has a right to his opinions.” Those words are so true today, 50+ years later.

Until next Monday,

your Baseball Bench Coach