Joe Torre’s status as the Yankees manager continues to be left in limbo, and could remain so for awhile even after the meeting of the Yankees hierarchy meets in Tampa. I have stated that I, personally, still believe that Joe Torre is the best choice for the job, but assuming he does not return to the Yankees for a 13th season, then who should replace him? The names that have most often been mentioned for this position are Tony Larussa, Don Mattingly, Joe Girardi, Buck Showalter, and Bobby Valentine. Perhaps the best news for Yankee fans is that the Cincinnati Reds already hired Dusty Baker as their new manager, eliminating any chance of him becoming the next Yankees manager and ruining the careers of Phil Hughes, Joba Chamberlain, and Ian Kennedy. Anyway, I’m going to outline the pros and cons of each of the 5 main candidates to replace Torre should he not be brought back.
Tony Larussa
Pros- Larussa is by far the most experienced and well established candidates on the list. In 28 seasons as the manager of the Chicago White Sox, Oakland A’s, and St. Louis Cardinals, Larussa has compiled a 2375-2070 record (.534 winning percentage), five pennants, and two World Series rings. The four time Manager of the Year ranks 3rd on the all time managerial wins list behind only John McGraw and Connie Mack. Larussa led the 83 win Cardinals to the 2006 World Series title and probably does not receive enough credit for leading a not so talented team to a championship.
Cons- A lot of people believe that Larussa was fortunate to walk into good managerial situations like with in Oakland with “the Bash Brothers” and his early Cardinals years again with Mark McGuire and later Albert Pujols. He’s also only managed in a smaller market city such as Oakland and a city where they love everything in St. Louis, so its uncertain whether he will be able to handle the scrutiny in New York. Even more uncertain is whether he could handle George Steinbrenner. He’ll also likely command at least the same amount of money the Yankees have been paying Joe Torre over the past few seasons.
Don Mattingly
Pros- Donnie Baseball appears to have been mentored by Torre personally to take over the managerial job someday, and this may be the day. Mattingly is also a “true Yankee” which could appeal to the fans and to the Boss. He also knows the current team well after serving as bench coach and hitting coach before that.
Cons- The obvious one is that Mattingly has no managerial experience, but everyone has to start somewhere. Also, Mattingly would feature the same style of managing that Torre used, and teams often would like to head in an opposite direction when changing managers.
Joe Girardi
Pros- Girardi already has a Manager of the Year award under his belt after only a season as the manager of the Florida Marlins in 2006. Girardi led a Marlins team that everybody expected to be one of the worst teams of all time to a 78-84 record. The fact that the Marlins took a step backwards this year to a 71-91 record without Girardi would seem to indicate that he had something to do with their success. Girardi also seems skilled at handling young players, which the Yankees now have plenty of.
Cons- Girardi still has limited experience and that experience was with perhaps the smallest market out there. Girardi also feuded with Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria, which led to his exile from Florida, so it makes you wonder how he will get along with the Steinbrenner’s. There also remains several of Girardi’s former teammates on the Yankees, which could make it harder for Girardi to command respect from those players.
Buck Showalter
Pros- The two time AL Manager of the Year has experience in New York, as he managed the Yankees from 1992-1995. In Arizona, he arrived with a 65 win team and then turned it into a 100 win team in one season. In 1995 he led the Yankees to their first playoff berth since 1981. His stricter and harsher managerial style would be a nice contrast from Torre’s laid back style.
Cons- Showalter has been out of baseball for a year now and his inability to take a blooming Texas Rangers team to the next level is discouraging. His .514 career winning percentage as a manager is not all that inspiring either. He has also never brought a team to the World Series.
Bobby Valentine
Pros- Bobby Valentine has plenty of experience in New York, managing the New York Mets for seven seasons and leading them to the 2000 World Series. His style is also quite different then Joe Torre’s, but that’s about where the good things end.
Cons- Valentine has been out of American baseball since 2002, as he has been managing a team in Japan for several years now. He claims to be happy in Japan and in no hurry to return to Major League Baseball, so it would likely take quite a commitment from the Yankees to pry him away. His .510 career winning percentage is also less then stellar.
Tony Larussa
Pros- Larussa is by far the most experienced and well established candidates on the list. In 28 seasons as the manager of the Chicago White Sox, Oakland A’s, and St. Louis Cardinals, Larussa has compiled a 2375-2070 record (.534 winning percentage), five pennants, and two World Series rings. The four time Manager of the Year ranks 3rd on the all time managerial wins list behind only John McGraw and Connie Mack. Larussa led the 83 win Cardinals to the 2006 World Series title and probably does not receive enough credit for leading a not so talented team to a championship.
Cons- A lot of people believe that Larussa was fortunate to walk into good managerial situations like with in Oakland with “the Bash Brothers” and his early Cardinals years again with Mark McGuire and later Albert Pujols. He’s also only managed in a smaller market city such as Oakland and a city where they love everything in St. Louis, so its uncertain whether he will be able to handle the scrutiny in New York. Even more uncertain is whether he could handle George Steinbrenner. He’ll also likely command at least the same amount of money the Yankees have been paying Joe Torre over the past few seasons.
Don Mattingly
Pros- Donnie Baseball appears to have been mentored by Torre personally to take over the managerial job someday, and this may be the day. Mattingly is also a “true Yankee” which could appeal to the fans and to the Boss. He also knows the current team well after serving as bench coach and hitting coach before that.
Cons- The obvious one is that Mattingly has no managerial experience, but everyone has to start somewhere. Also, Mattingly would feature the same style of managing that Torre used, and teams often would like to head in an opposite direction when changing managers.
Joe Girardi
Pros- Girardi already has a Manager of the Year award under his belt after only a season as the manager of the Florida Marlins in 2006. Girardi led a Marlins team that everybody expected to be one of the worst teams of all time to a 78-84 record. The fact that the Marlins took a step backwards this year to a 71-91 record without Girardi would seem to indicate that he had something to do with their success. Girardi also seems skilled at handling young players, which the Yankees now have plenty of.
Cons- Girardi still has limited experience and that experience was with perhaps the smallest market out there. Girardi also feuded with Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria, which led to his exile from Florida, so it makes you wonder how he will get along with the Steinbrenner’s. There also remains several of Girardi’s former teammates on the Yankees, which could make it harder for Girardi to command respect from those players.
Buck Showalter
Pros- The two time AL Manager of the Year has experience in New York, as he managed the Yankees from 1992-1995. In Arizona, he arrived with a 65 win team and then turned it into a 100 win team in one season. In 1995 he led the Yankees to their first playoff berth since 1981. His stricter and harsher managerial style would be a nice contrast from Torre’s laid back style.
Cons- Showalter has been out of baseball for a year now and his inability to take a blooming Texas Rangers team to the next level is discouraging. His .514 career winning percentage as a manager is not all that inspiring either. He has also never brought a team to the World Series.
Bobby Valentine
Pros- Bobby Valentine has plenty of experience in New York, managing the New York Mets for seven seasons and leading them to the 2000 World Series. His style is also quite different then Joe Torre’s, but that’s about where the good things end.
Cons- Valentine has been out of American baseball since 2002, as he has been managing a team in Japan for several years now. He claims to be happy in Japan and in no hurry to return to Major League Baseball, so it would likely take quite a commitment from the Yankees to pry him away. His .510 career winning percentage is also less then stellar.
No comments:
Post a Comment