SBN Awards: NL Manager of the Year

by Stephen Higdon on Nov 5, 2008 12:45 AM CST

Stros Bros had included a link to this a while back, but we've been ok'ed to release the ballots for the voting on a day by day basis and I missed the deadline in the handing over of the reigns.

National League	1st	2nd	3rd	Points
Lou Piniella	9	4	2	59
Charlie Manuel	2	6	5	33
Fredi Gonzalez	3	2	3	24
Joe Torre	2	2	3	19
Tony LaRussa	2	-	-	10
Ned Yost	-	3	1	10
Cecil Cooper	-	1	2	5
Manny Acta	1	-	-	5
Dale Sveum	-	1	1	4
Jerry Manuel	-	-	1	1

Cecil got some love. I have to say I think it's a little lame that Piniella gets the nod on the sole basis of his team having the best record. With their spending and trading in the last two years, they should have a great team. I'll reveal my vote: I voted for TLR because that man did more with less than anyone. I believe I had Manuel second (TLR and Manuel could be flipped, it has been a month since I cast my ballot) and and Cooper third because we did out perform our Pythag records by so much.

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When it comes to managers

it’s pretty tough to separate their efforts from that of their players – they don’t bat or pitch, so it’s hard to say whether or not they helped anyone win. You can look at whether or not a team overperforms its Pythagorean W-L, but I have my doubts about that.

In any case, I don’t think Piniella is as good a manager as people think he is. He reminds me of Joe Torre in that he gets credit for being on teams with spectacular talent. I’m not sure if Piniella has Torre’s problem with bullpen management, but he had plenty of problems with Zambrano this past year.

Very few managers are worthy of the accolades they receive. When it comes down to it, managers fill out lineup cards and manage their pitching staff. Neither Piniella nor Torre (nor LaRussa, for that matter) seem particularly adept at any of those things. But because they managed teams with spectacular players, they get credit for those players’ successes.

And that’s not to say that there aren’t managers out there who are very, very good. But the most a manager can hope to do is maximize the payoff from his players and keep from getting in their way. Earl Weaver was the king of that. Manny Acta seems like he’s that type of manager (though he doesn’t have a good team to manage, so he doesn’t get any credit).

by Only_A_Lad on Nov 5, 2008 7:50 AM CST reply actions

LaRussa?

he was buoyed by some unexpected production from random players and his team took a dive in the second half.

My impression is that the importance of managers is generally overrated.

by lnewcomer on Nov 5, 2008 12:46 PM CST reply actions

I wonder how much having Dave Duncan attached to his hip helps him

It would be interesting if the performance of pitchers before they get to and maybe after they leave the Cards were examined.

by ol Pete on Nov 5, 2008 2:19 PM CST up reply actions

I agree with both of you.

I tend to agree that the importance of managers is overrated. I think a manager can bungle things and hurt the team (e.g., running teams out of games, etc.). But the incremental benefit of a good tactical manager is probably overrated. I think it’s important for the manager to maintain a good clubhouse atmosphere, in which case the impact is neutral. But a manager whose personality contributes to a poisoned clubhouse is a big negative. My point is that the manager’s influence is marginal, except if he is really bad, in which case he may hurt the team quite a bit.

Ol Pete, you make a good point about Dave Duncan. Much of LaRussa’s success can be attributed to squeezing the most out of starting pitchers, and Duncan has the reputation of knowing how to do that. From what I have read, LaRussa wouldn’t consider taking another job, for instance, unless he can also bring Duncan with him.

by clack on Nov 5, 2008 5:19 PM CST up reply actions

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