Who was the first great manager?

Question

We hear a lot about guys like Connie Mack and John McGraw, but do you believe they were the first great managers? Was there somebody before them you'd consider the first great manager?

I have my own thoughts on this one, but I'd like to see what others think.

Answer 1

I'd say it's a toss up between the following 2 men:

Cap Anson. Won 5 NL Championships between 1880 and 1888 as player/manager.

Charlie Comiskey. Won 4 consecutive AA Championships between 1885 and 1888, including the World Series in 1886, also as player/manager.


EDIT: The Mick - how did Stengel cost Whitey Ford a 300 win career? Ford pitched at least 30 games in all but 1 of the seasons he was managed by Stengel. I'm confused.

EDIT#2: I understand where you're coming from, I just think it's a stretch to say he cost him 64 wins in the 8 seasons he managed Ford (1953-1960.)
.

Answer 2

Managers seem to have evolved as the game evolved. Personally I think Connie Mack got way too much credit. He was a brilliant administrator but when it came to managing a baseball team, he was inflexible. He was not nearly innovative enough. Yes, he has some very talented teams but he should have won much more than he did. A losing career record as I recall.

Casey Stengel was overrated as well. He personally cost Whitey Ford a 300 win career. If you look back into the history of the team from 1949 to 1960 when Stengel managed the team, you will find that when Ford came up in 1951 I think, Stengel had him on a 5 to 6 game rotation. If you've read the history of the team you will find that Ford and Stengel went at it on many occasions about Ford wanting to pitcher more often but Stengel saying no! It wasn't until Ralph Houk took over the team in 1961, did Ford finally go on a four day rotation. We all know what the results were. Over a ten year period Stengel cost Ford dearly. I'm not saying for sure that he would have won 300 games maybe he would have, but he would have come very very close.

I don't know much about the turn of the century managers but of the ones I've actually seen, Earl Weaver was a master chess player it you know what I mean. Sparky Anderson, who was intellectually not the sharpest tool in the shed, knew baseball. There are a few others but at the moment I'm drawing a blank.

Kris - It might have been close, no guarantees of course. Might point is that Stengel didn't change with the times and it finally caught up with him. I will say this about him however, he did introduce the platoon system batting lefties against right handed pitchers and righties agains left handed pitchers.

Answer 3

i think of the affection of the game is a reason that gamers strengthen into managers. To be an astounding participant, you're able to desire to have organic expertise. without it, you may practice till you drop yet you will in no way be as solid as you prefer. would not advise you do no longer comprehend the game and comprehend what it takes to win and the thank you to do it. My dad replaced right into a occupation baseball participant. He got here up the no longer common way by means of a good number of triple A ball, sandlots. . .i replaced into fortunate sufficient to be waiting to purchase a letter on ebay. It replaced right into a letter he had written back to a fan and he defined that the guy you beat at present is the guy that beats you the subsequent time. the main needed concern is to consistently play your ultimate. He additionally observed solid seasons and undesirable seasons and each so often it purely isn't happening even tho you have the expertise. And all of us comprehend that some people purely have extra solid success than others. . .He enjoyed the game plenty that when he retired he went directly to be an umpire. He ultimately have been given out of the game because of the fact he could no longer stand being booed. It replaced into love of the game.

Answer 4

Yea. They were the greatest of their era. Connie Mack managed for 50 years!!! Even though his teams weren't always playoff contenders, he stuck with the A's till the end.
John McGraw won a ****load of games with the Giants, won a couple of WS's, and i think that's what makes him great. I think them two are neck and neck for best every.

What was the name of the guy who manged NYY in the 20s and 30s when they won those championships??

Answer 5

Connie Mack hands down.

Answer 6

Casey Stengel

Answer 7

There's two ways to answer this one, having written an article about who I felt were the ten best there ever were.

You can rank them by total number of wins in their careers, but rank only those that have won a minimum of 2,000 games. The list would look like this (and yes it is current thru 2007):

Rank Name Wins Losses Pct.
1 Connie Mack 3,731 3,948 .486
2 John McGraw 2,763 1,948 .586
3 Tony La Russa 2,375 2,070 .534
4 Bobby Cox 2,255 1,764 .561
5 Sparky Anderson 2,194 1,834 .545
6 Bucky Harris 2,157 2,218 .493
7 Joe McCarthy 2,125 1,333 .615
8 Joe Torre 2,067 1,770 .539
9 Walter Alston 2,040 1,613 .558
10 Leo Durocher 2,009 1,709 .540

Or you can rank them by actual winning percentage, throw out the 2,000 wins minimum, and the list looks like this:

Rank Name Win Pct. Wins
1 Joe McCarthy .615 2,125
2 Jim Mutrie .611 658
3 Charlie Comiskey .608 840
4 Frank Selee . 598 1,284
5 Billy Southworth .597 1,044
6 Frank Chance .593 946
7 John McGraw .586 2,763
8 Al Lopez .584 1,410
9 Earl Weaver .581 1,480
10 Harry Wright .578 1,225

Either way, it's still a good mix of manager talent.

Answer 8

Casey Stengel, Billy Martin, Sparky Anderson

Answer 9

Moses - Bethlehem Braves - Burning Bush League
Solomon - Jerusalem Giants

Answer 10

Earl Weaver