|
The High Court |
|
Deep Thinkers Only... |
|
Managerial Maestros |
|
Who Will Hear the Hall’s Call?
The members of the High Court have studied the evidence and are ready to tell you which of these 8 managers will someday hear the Hall of Fame calling.
The Voting Ground Rules
1) Vote for as many as you consider Hall-worthy 2) Only current managers were considered 3) The nominees must have at least 10 years of ML experience 4) Tell us who will get there – not just your opinion. 5) Majority will rule (2/3 vote gets a manager in)
The Nominees
Felipe Alou, MON-SF Dusty Baker, SF-CHC Bobby Cox, TOR-ATL Mike Hargrove, CLE-BAL-SEA Tony LaRussa, CHW-OAK-STL Jack McKeon, KC-OAK-SD-CIN-FLA Lou Piniella, NYY-CIN-SEA-TB Joe Torre, NYM-ATL-STL-NYY
Career Statistical Comparisons (through 2004) (courtesy www.baseball-reference.com)
Who’s In?/Who’s Out? Votes in parenthesis Note: Players were ranked in order of most deserving. The rankings were then assigned a point value 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3.
Get The Plaque Ready
Bobby Cox (29) – Consistent excellence is the hallmark of this future Hall of Famer. No matter the personnel changes in Atlanta, Cox produces results over the long haul. While some point to playoff failures during the past 15 years, we prefer to highlight the incredible achievements of his Brave teams with a 14th consecutive NL East crown in their sights. The postseason is a crapshoot, but the regular season is a chess match – and no one has ever played baseball chess better than Cox.
Joe Torre (28) – Allow me to defer to the Chief Justice who said, “…to do what Joe has done in the crucible of New York, under the heavy gaze of the Boss, with ever-changing personnel league-wide, is nothing short of outstanding. If he never wins another title, he is a sure-fire Hall of Famer as a manager. And he wasn’t that far off as a player. No manager has ever handled the public eye quite as well. Maybe not the best tactician in the game, Torre can handle any ego and has been a maestro with the press. People shouldn’t forget that he won a division title in Atlanta.”
Tony LaRussa (23) – Never a popular manager with the media or the fans, LaRussa’s accomplishments cannot be dismissed. The World Series resume is sketchy considering his teams were often big favorites, but nevertheless, Tony’s teams have always competed well and rarely perform below their talent level. His longevity has put him in 3rd place for all-time wins, and he may have a chance to add some heavy hardware in the next few seasons in St. Louis.
Lou Piniella (15) – Sweet Lou sneaks in according to our panel, based upon his successes in Cincy and Seattle. The Tampa fiasco notwithstanding, Piniella has used his fiery approach to bring out the best in some marginally talented clubs in small market cities. Managing the Rays to a .500 record would seemingly call for immediate enshrinement, but we are guessing he will make it anyway.
Don’t Wait By The Phone
Felipe Alou (0) – Good manager who got a late start in the big leagues, and who languished too long in Montreal to rack up an impressive winning percentage. Nice career, but not Hall of Fame material.
Dusty Baker (0) – For the first 10 years of his career, he appeared to be on the fast track for Cooperstown. Blame it on Bartman, or whatever, but Dusty’s star has fallen of late, and our judges figure it isn’t going to change enough to make him a HOFer.
Mike Hargrove (0) – Enjoyed great divisional success in Cleveland with a bevy of talented hitters and few pitchers, but couldn’t pull out a World Series title. Then, he got to Baltimore and found fewer hitters and worse pitchers. Then, he headed to Seattle and found fewer of both still. Looks like Grover’s best days have already past – and they weren’t strong enough to sway us.
Jack McKeon (0) – Trader Jack is a lovable character who finally got his moment in the sun with World Series title in 2003. Overall, though, his managerial record is not strong enough to merit induction in the Hall.
Voting Results
You can contact The Powdered Wig at powderedwig@thehighcourtofsports.com. |
|
Best known for his amazing run in Atlanta, Cox piloted Toronto to the ‘85 AL East crown and garnered his first Manager of the Year award. He will likely always be underappreciated due to a seeming lack of World Series titles, but nobody in recent history has been better over the long haul than Bobby Cox. (mlb.com) |
|
It has been nearly five years since Torre got one of these special rides, but Joe’s four World Series titles in five years is perhaps the finest managerial run of the modern era. A true professional and a class act, Torre is an absolute lock for Cooperstown. (espn.com)
|
|
From the High Court Hall of Fame…
Outfield of Dreams, Part 1...Will Barry Bonds be a lock in High Court voting? Join The Powdered Wig as he takes you through the first half of The High Court’s outfield balloting.
Infield of Dreams...Join The Powdered Wig as he explores which stars of the infield (at 2B, SS, and 3B) can expect a plaque in Cooperstown.
First-Sack Sluggers...Bagwell? Palmeiro? Giambi? Join The Powdered Wig to see which veteran first basemen get a ticket to the Hall of Fame.
The Lion King...The Chief Justice presents the Hall of Fame case of Ted Simmons, one of the best hitting catchers in the history of the game.
Squatters Rights...The Powdered Wig examines the careers of catchers and designated hitters with a chance at Cooperstown. Find out who The High Court voted in. |