Who are some of your favorite Major League Baseball managers, all-time?

[bluzman61]

There have been plenty of great managers throughout the history of Major League Baseball. Some of my favorites include - 1) Casey Stengel, he was great at being able to successfully manage the heavily talented New York Yankees for quite a few years. He was somehow able to please his star players, as well as the less talented ones, and bring them into being a cohesive powerhouse. Later, when he managed the New York Mets, in the team's infancy, he was wonderfully funny and honest about how awful the team was. 2) Tony La Russa, possibly the smartest and most analytical manager in the history of baseball, he was always able to take an average team and make it a good team, and take a good team and make it VERY good. He's only one of two managers in Major League Baseball history to manage both American AND National League teams to World Series Championships, once for the Oakland A's and twice for the St. Louis Cardinals. Which leads straight to my #3 pick, George "Sparky" Anderson. Sparky, like Tony, led both American AND National League teams to titles. Sparky led the Cincinnati Reds' Big Red Machine to a couple titles, as well as leading the Detroit Tigers to a title. Here are a few of my favorite managers all-time, who are some of yours?

Sparky was #1 and then Walter Alston and Tommy Lasorda.

Nice picks, okfine, thanks.

 

[konradv]

The Earl of Baltimore

 

[LA RAM FAN]

Bruce Bochy (Padres), Whitey Herzog (Cardinals), Tony LaRussa (Cardinals, A's)

My dad's side is from Missouri so I kinda have a soft spot for the Cards, unless they play the Padres of course.

The white rat whitey Herzog was the most overrated clown manager ever.that idiot just had the players to make him look good.in both cases with the royals and the cardinals,he just got lucky and inherited good teams that had players that were on the verge of being great players and he was in the right place at the right time. It was his managing skills that cost the cardinals the World Series against both the royals and twins. With the royals in game six,when howser brought in Dane Iorg to pinch hit and face Todd worrel,,iorg said he was shocked that herzog left worrel in there cause while playing in the national league for the cardinals that year,he had success against worrel Who played for another team before joining the cardinals that same year.iorg said he thought for sure herzog would make a switch to one of the other relief pitchers he had available that iorg had a difficult time hitting in his career in the national league.when he did not make the switch,iorg said he was very much relieved he left worrel in there the I. The World Series against the twins,he cost them that series by leaving in a relief pitcher in when it was obvious that pitcher was struggling,he gave back to back walk after walk and herzog still left him in there incredibly which paved the way for the twins comeback to win game 7 and the World Series as well of course He was a horrible leader,after game six against the royals that they blew,he told reporters that whole night “ this World Series is over,well never be able to come back and win this now.” Wow,such great great inspiration to your team to keep their spirits upwhen you are suppose to be the leader and you are giving up,how do you expect your team to have confidence to come back and win He wouldn’t even give the royals due credit for beating them,he said afterwards,well they weren’t that good of a team,what a sore loser

 

[LA RAM FAN]

Continued,yeah herzog just inherited teams that were on the rise and had great talent.he was just in the right place at the right time in both instances.as a royals fan who had to suffer through them losing to the Yankees for three straight years back in the seventys I was a prophet back then,after the second year in a row the royals lost to the Yankees,I said back then “man if they would just get rid of that idiot whitey herzog,the royals could beat the Yankees.sure enough,I was a prophet,once they got rid of him,they finally beat the Yankees in the playoffs. Owner Ewing Kauffman wanted to get rid of him after the 76 season because he cost the royals the playoffs against the Yankees but had to wait till they did Not finish in first place in 79 before he could justify getting rid of herzog. Pitcher Paul splittorf of the royals he would be mowing down the Yankees hitters baffling them and herzog every time,would of course yank him out and bring in a relief pitcher who would blow it for them each time. In the final game of the alcs in game five of the 77 season,,billy Martin he even did the unthinkable and didnot start Reggie Jackson in that game cause he could not hit splitttorf had theasshole white rat just left splittorf finish the game,the yankees would never havehad that comeback and the royals would have been in the World Series in 77 just as they wouldhave been in 76 if not for whiteynherzog

 

[LA RAM FAN]

Billy Martin....The tempestuous one-man soap opera only won everywhere he went.

Tony LaRussa... Martin's paladin twin.

Sparky Anderson...A legend.

Joe Torre...A grounded winner...Made it very hard to hate on the Yankees.

Earl Weaver...Second only to Martin in umpire arguing theatrics..."Pitching, hitting, and the three-run bomb."

Torre was another one like herzog who was highly overrated and only won cause he had great players.baseball is the same as football,in those sports,you don’t have to have a good coach to have a team that wins all the time,the yankees had the best Talent and were able to buy their champoinships in the 90”s. Basketball is different,in that sport you have to have a good coach to be really good and win champoionships. In talking about managers that were good,don’t forget tommy lasorda,I would say it was a tie between him,Martin and weaver of managers that threw theatrics, all good managers,lasorda and weaver I really liked.i love the ops choices of sparkly Anderson and tony Larussa and Casey Stengel as well all excellent choices dgs was right also,hurdle was a great manager as well,had he been able to manage the pirates in the same era as weaver,lasorda,and Martin did in the seventys when players did not leave the pirates because of a small payroll,he would have been a great one as well