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The Winner Is: Mike Matheny?

Posted on 14 November 2011. Tags: Bench Coach, Cardinal Nation, Cardinals Team, Chris Malone, Chris Maloney, Class Act, Daniel Descalso, Family Sports, Joe Mcewing, Jose Oquendo, League Coaches, League Management, Management Experience, Managerial Experience, Mike Matheny, Nick Punto, Ryne Sandberg, St Louis Cardinals, Terry Francona, Traditional Franchises, Upper Management

In just a few short hours, the Cardinals will convene a press conference to announce the 33rd manager in the history of the franchise.

The keys to the family sports car are about to be handed to the sixteen year old.

There were six managerial candidates that were interviewed for the vacant spot atop the St. Louis Cardinals team on the field. Only one, Terry Francona, had major league management experience. Two, Ryne Sandberg and Chris Maloney, were highly regarded managers at the Triple A level. Two, Jose Oquendo and Joe McEwing, are former Cardinals and major league coaches that have gained a lot of respect (even if players don’t listen to “stop” signs). The final one is a former Cardinal catcher, a roaming instructor in the Cardinals system, and has no coaching or managerial experience.

Yep, that’s the one everyone would pick.

By no means am I saying that I do not support this move. Mike Matheny is a class act, a baseball mind, a good guy, and was definitively in charge of a field when it stood behind the plate. He is a player that is ingrained in the traditions of Cardinal nation. He obviously interviewed very well and said everything that the Cardinals’ upper management needed to hear. But it is a certain gamble for one of baseball’s most historic and traditional franchises to go with an inexperienced manager at the helm.

There are a ton of questions that will not be answered until 2012 and some that will be answered soon. We will not know until the season progresses how Matheny manages. We will not know if he will prefer a veteran arm to a young rookie. We will not know if players like Daniel Descalso and Nick Punto are the types of guys we will see a lot of or if he tends to run the same lineup out there 140 games a year. The biggest question on the mind of some is simple: Will the pitcher ever hit eighth again?

Some questions are about to be answered soon. One of the most important will be the appointment of the bench coach. With a manager with little experience, you would think the Cardinals will put a strong bench coach next to him to help alleviate some of the concern. The rest of the coaching staff will start to fall into place, the Pujols negotiations will heat up, and the Cardinals will delve into free agency and trades to solidify the few shortcomings they have entering the new season. Some of these moves will make it evident what type of team Matheny will prefer.

One thing is for certain. As of eleven o’clock central time this morning, all eyes are now on number 22.

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TLReplacement

Posted on 04 November 2011. Tags: Busch Stadium, Cardinal Nation, Chris Malone, Chris Maloney, Conducting Interviews, David Freese, Dead Grandma, Don Mattingly, Intimate Group, Joe Mcewing, Jose Oquendo, Lamp Shade, Larus, Last Decade, League Experience, Management Side, Mike Matheny, Radio Interview, Rolen, Ryne Sandberg, S Joe, Terry Francona, Tony Larussa

Following the parade through the streets of downtown St. Louis, and subsequent celebratory ceremony inside Busch Stadium on Sunday afternoon, long-time Cardinals manager, Tony LaRussa called a meeting. It would be his last. He told the players, coaches, and the small intimate group in attendance that he’d decided to retire, and would not be returning for another season. Nearly everyone was shocked, many were emotional, and only those who were there know exactly what it was like in that moment. David Freese recounted in a radio interview on Thursday, “I’m glad I was sitting down when he told us.”.

Some people look into online universities when they want to get into the management side of sports and learn the skills to do so.

Tony LaRussa announces his retirement after 33 years of managing in MLB. Bill DeWitt Jr, Tony LaRussa, John Mozeliak (L to R)

Less than a week later, the organization has already begun conducting interviews for LaRussa’s replacement. The list that’s apparently floating around out there, though it doesn’t appear the club has confirmed it, includes the following handful of candidates:

And right on cue, Cardinals fans are pissing a moaning about the lackluster “short list”.

“Where’s Joe Maddon??”
“They have to give it to Oquendo!”
“Francona is the only guy with any Major League experience!”
“Why isn’t Don Mattingly on the list?”
“Can’t hire Sandberg–he was a CUB!”
“They can’t give it to Oquendo!”

…and plenty of other nonsensical outcries.

Listen, poll Cardinal Nation a week ago, and ask “With whom should the Cardinals replace Tony LaRussa?”, and EVERYBODY on the aforementioned list is suddenly over-qualified. People are writing in “Helen Keller”, “My dead grandma”, “My dog, Rolen”, and “lamp shade” as quickly as they can. It’s the battle cry we’ve heard from half of Cardinal Nation for the last decade and a half: “A.B.L.”, baby, Anybody But LaRussa.

Yet, now that it’s a situation that the Cardinals are actually in, it’s being taken to the next level. Now, anyone who has ever worn the birds on the bat is suddenly deserving and qualified to manage the 2012 team. Milt Thompson? Bingo! Rex Hudler? Bring him in! Keith Hernandez? Perfect man for the job. Todd Zeile? Slap a “12” on his back, and call him skipper! I cannot, for the life of me, understand the logic behind these arguments…and spare me the “they understand the Cardinal way” stuff. A year ago, Marty Mason would’ve been “perfect” in a lot of these same folks’ minds.

I suppose it’s simply the emotion-driven sentiment that comes along with most fan bases. When you’re talking sheer numbers, and almost as many different personality types, logic & sound reasoning often elude the masses. I wrote about that earlier, but I’m no less irritated by it today than I was then.

But, now we’ve gone and taken it to a whole new level. We, as a general fan base, are demanding…DE-MAND-ING that Joe Maddon bring himself, and those highlights we’ve not seen since the Edmonds days, down to 700 Clark Street, and meet with Mo. And I mean yesterday! Repeat after me: Joe…Maddon…

(no, seriously, go ahead and say it aloud)

Joe. Maddon. Is. Under. Contract.

If the right thing to do is pursue a manager who is already under contract with another team, then why don’t the Cardinals just skip all the messing around, and just go get Mike Scioscia? He’s under contract until 2018, sure…but that’s irrelevant, because the Cardinals fans want him in St. Louis, right? Look, I’d be just as happy as the next guy to have Maddon or Scioscia in the home dugout calling the shots at Busch next summer and beyond. But for me, that wish is on the same list that has all that stuff about Jessica Alba, and for those of you familiar with the phrase, I’ll bet my other hand fills up first.

Maybe the good folks in the front office at Tropicana Field are still a little sore about the way the whole rumored ‘Colby Rasmus & others for Jeff Niemann & others’ deal that, at least according to some accounts, John Mozeliak pulled the rug out from under Andrew Friedman at the last minute. “If Mozeliak from St. Louis calls, don’t answer.” may be the standing order to the staff down in St. Pete. That kind of stuff happens, folks. There are an awful lot of egos out there, and many of them are quite sizable. Relationships between the Cardinals and Padres have been favorable in recent years, it’s reasonable to assume that other relationships aren’t as good, and some might be downright bad. It would be most unfortunate if the relationship between the Cardinals and the Rays were bad, though, for a number of reasons–not the least of which is that in some ways, the Rays are the new Expos.

I don’t know who the next manager of the St. Louis Cardinals will be. Interviews began on Thursday, when two candidates met with members of the Cardinals brass. Francona is expected to interview Friday, while interview times for Delino DeShields and the great Casey Stengel have not yet to be determined. Mozeliak has given a tentative timetable of the next few weeks to get a deal done–presumably some time before Thanksgiving is a general target. Either way though, rushing a decision is obviously a mistake, but promptness needs to be balanced with being thorough and confident in their selection.

After all, there’s other important business to tend to.

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9 Is The New 6!

Posted on 17 February 2011. Tags: 10 Years, Albert Pujols, Best Player, Bluejays, Cardinals, D Backs, David Eckstein, Diamondbacks, Eras, Hitmen, Joe Mcewing, Phillies, Red Sox, Redbirds, Royals, Ryan Ludwick, St Louis Cardinals, White Sox, Willie Mcgee, World Series, World Series Championship, World Series Championships

He’s not gone, folks. He’s here for the entire 2011 season, at which point more negotiating will take place. Even if he does end up elsewhere next season, repeat after me, “It’s. Not. The. End. Of. The. World.” Personally, I like the Cardinals chances of getting an extension done once the season is over. But should that not happen, we will survive. Why? Glad you asked.

Albert’s been on the roster for 10 years, 2001-2010. During that time, we’ve won exactly one World Series championship, 2006. Ten minus one is nine. Nine’s the new six. Confused yet? Here’s what I’m getting at: Nine is a serious number!

Fortunately, “nine” has no impact on trying to rhyme with “thumbah”.

We’ve had the best player in baseball for a decade, and 9 of those 10 years, a team not named the “St. Louis Cardinals” won the World Series. Giants-2010, Yankees-2009, Phillies-2008, Red Sox-2007, Cardinals-2006, White Sox-2005, Red Sox-2004, Marlins-2003, Angels-2002, D-Backs-2001. We had Albert in each of those years and only won the World Series once?! Inconthievable!
Nine also happens to be the number of World Series championships the Cardinals have won WITHOUT Albert Pujols. 1926, ‘31, ‘34, 42, ‘44, ‘46, ‘64, ‘67, ‘82–nine different occasions when the Cards won it all, without Albert on the roster. Granted, those eras were more focused on pitching, speed…etc, and this era is more based on power-hitting RBI hitmen like Pujols, but as I just said, 9 other teams got the hardware in the past 10 years.

Ready for another nine? How about these nine teams: A’s, Giants, Red Sox, Pirates, Padres, Bluejays, Diamondbacks, Mets, & Royals. That’s a list of where Cardinal favorites went after playing with the redbirds. “Who?” you ask? How about Willie McGee, Matt Morris, Ryan Ludwick, David Eckstein, and Joe McEwing. (In fairness, Super Joe did have 6 plate appearances, wearing the collar with two Ks for Houston to end his MLB career.)

Don’t get me wrong, there’s nothing that would make me happier than for Pujols to be a Cardinal for life. It goes without saying that I don’t want that if it’s going to handcuff the team & not allow ownership to put a competitive team around him. I would love to go to games for the next 10 years and watch him make history wearing the birds on the bat. I’m just trying to make a point about this whole circus. It’s not like we’ve won 10 straight titles because of him, or only won titles when he was on the roster. His presence certainly helps, but when the Phillies won the 2008 World Series, they did so by defeating the sub-$44M payroll Rays (who won 97 games that year, btw). It’s baseball…not golf or tennis, where one man IS the team…not basketball where one guy can carry the team (even Jordan needed Pippen).

It takes nine. Nine guys, working in concert together, under the direction of good manager, a good front office, and a good ownership group, to have success. One man does not a team make. Nine, however, will do the trick. Coincidentally enough, nine may also be the number of years required to make Albert put pen to the paper next offseason.

This article marks Dathan Brooks debut here on I-70 Baseball.
You can read more of Dathan’s work over at his blog, “Good Morning, Good Afternoon, Good Night“

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