Unpopular Opinion: Geren was the right choice
I realize that the title of this diary is unpopular enough, but I've also come to another conclusion that may go way beyond being merely "unpopular":
Ron Washington would have been the worst choice to serve as the next A's manager.
Hold on. Before you grab your pitchfork or light your torch and head East to find me, please hear me out. After I'm done, you are more than welcome to convict me of heresy in the comments section.
Despite all of his critics on AN and elsewhere, Ken Macha wasn't fired last month because of his in-game tactics or because the players underperformed under his watch. In fact, he placed third in the voting for AL Manager of the year. Instead, Macha was let go because of the "disconnect" he had with the rest of the organization.
I firmly believe Billy Beane is the best GM in baseball. But the man is human, and makes mistakes. The biggest mistake of Beane's tenure, in my opinion, was bringing back Macha last year in the manner that he did. Beane emasculated Macha by essentially forcing Macha to come crawling back for his old job. And you better believe the players were aware of Macha's weak standing. Inevitably, the players, most notably a balky-backed centerfielder, used their various beefs with management as fuel to undermine what little authority Macha had. It was doomed to failure from the begininng.
So now a replacement was neccessary, and surely the A's wanted to avoid the pratfalls of their most recent hire. The original "disconnect", of course, was between Macha and the front office, namely Beane, and certain players took advantage of this to further their own aims. Which brings us around to the title and the point of this diary.
Bob Geren and Billy Beane are friends. In case you didn't know. In fact, based on where Geren stood at Beane's wedding, one could even say they are "best friends." Many on AN see this as a potential conflict of interest, or at least a potential problem down the road. However, I see the relationship of Geren and Beane to be a big plus, especially when one considers the downfall of our previous manager. To recap: Macha was canned because the front office didn't entirely believe in him, and with that information readily avaliable, the players undermined him.
Now Geren is in charge. If Beane didn't believe in him, he wouldn't have hired Geren to manage the team he has an ownership stake in. Plus, in many ways Beane is putting his reputation at stake with Geren, at least where it comes to managers and his opinion of them. We can rest assured Geren and Beane will be on the same page at all times, as a matter of neccessity. Now, when a player is pissed at Geren because he isn't getting enough AB's, complaints to Beane will fall on deaf ears. A manager who is fully backed by his front office cannot be undermined by a few disgruntled players.
As for Ron Washington: he deserves the shot he is getting, and I couldn't be more thrilled for him. Plus, going to Texas is the best case scenario for all parties. (Aside from Texas being in our division.) Many on AN cite Washington's popularity, which of course is immense. But what happens when he benches someone or has to discipline a player who felt he and Washington were buddies? Plus, how Beane and Washington would work as a GM/Manager combo is certainly up for debate. Besides, Washington gets to be closer to home in Texas, and will undoubtedly have more freedom. Washington also won't have any buddy-buddy loyalties in Texas, but the respect he earned in Oakland will carry over. In short, managing in Texas is a better oppertunity for Washington than managing in Oakland would be.
Okay, that's enough. There's plenty of room on the Bob Geren bandwagon if anyone wants to join...
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Has Beane emasculated Geren too?
That's a good argument
But isn't a manager's (even a manager under BLB) main job to keep all the players happy rather than the FO? The manager's first priority is to keep the players playing as a team, not to keep Billy happy. Washington is known as a player's coach, Geren is known for his relationship with Billy.
I think the main reason most don't trust having Billy hire his best man is if Geren should be fired, will BB be as impartial as he should?
Also
Wow....that was an excellent article
by baseballgirl on Nov 18, 2006 10:02 AM PST up reply actions
Here's a much better argument
by Tyler Bleszinski on Nov 18, 2006 10:14 AM PST up reply actions
See...I THINK that Geren is the right choice...
by baseballgirl on Nov 18, 2006 10:16 AM PST up reply actions
That may be the case
I hate Barry Bonds and many A's fans do as well, but it doesn't matter to Beane. If he thinks it will help him win and get over the hump, he's going to do it. And that's one of the reasons I love the guy.
The other thing is that Ratto goes out of his way to make Geren appear green. The truth is that he was the ONLY one of the candidates who ever actually managed a team. I know it wasn't a major league team, but when have facts ever stood in the way of a Ratto column?
by Tyler Bleszinski on Nov 18, 2006 1:53 PM PST up reply actions
Spot on analysis.
Ratto is paid to stir the pot. If he doesn't, he gets replaced. Ratto understands media, not baseball. Especially not A's baseball.
Better question: when
For example, where in the column does Ratto go out of his way to make Geren appear green? That's a straw man you've created for your latest condemnation of RR. "When have the facts ever stood in the way of a Ratto column?" That's an offensive statement to make about any journalist, especially when there's no basis for it.
I imagine Ratto would probably be flattered that you feel so strongly about him, regardless of whether your feelings are positive or negative. But as for me, I am troubled by the passion of your hatred for a voice that is one of the most reasonable in sports today.
by rubin sierra on Nov 19, 2006 11:18 AM PST up reply actions
The contarian Ratto is ...
by SalParadise on Nov 19, 2006 12:23 PM PST up reply actions
Ratto has a knack for
Garen's our guy now
by Salvatore on Nov 18, 2006 9:42 AM PST reply actions
I have to say, the best I've felt
For those who like sausage,
Hey, stop stealing Sunday's thunder!
by baseballgirl on Nov 18, 2006 10:14 AM PST up reply actions
EastCoast
I'm also not sure that Kotsay and the rest of the guys were "undermining" Macha. It seems quite possible that Macha was, in fact, a lousy communicator. There is no question that he did a lousy job of "protecting" his guys with the umpires -- I'm not sure that can even be debated.
However, too many on this site seem to think Macha was "betrayed" or somehow "mistreated." Considering the fact that many of the guys had "issues" with him -- not just a few -- it certainly seems plausible that Macha was a problem that needed to go away.
Doesn't make him a bad guy by any stretch -- just time for a change.
Good write-up
The other thing I hadn't really thought about
I also agree with everything you say about Wash "starting over" in Texas. I wish him the best. And if unfortunately he doesn't work out there, let's pray he's right back here coaching in Oakland.
A's System
Now if we could just lose Curt Young.
the big questions about geren are..
will he try to bring in ricardo ricon with the game on the line?
can he earn a black belt?
will the golf tips that didn't help macha be of any use to him?
when he's fired, will he tell all about billy's bachelor party?
I agree ...
by SalParadise on Nov 18, 2006 4:05 PM PST reply actions
EastCoastA, I Agree 100%
I appreciate all that Ron Washington did for the A's, but I think Geren is better suited to be manager of this team based on 1) His support from Billy, 2) His knowledge of the pitchers as the bullpen coach and as a former catcher, and 3) His record of success as a minor leage/winter league manager.
I'm not saying Ron Washington will be a bad manager -- he might turn out to be great, but I think Bob Geren is a safer choice and has just as much upside.
The pro-Ron Washinton arguments seem to be that the players love him and he's a better communicator. Both may be true.On the first point, I think the players also like Geren and I don't think the players should choose the manager. On the second point, I've never seen any reason to believe Geren is a bad communicator.
Who cares
All the manager can do is put them in a position to win.
Most players have multiple chances to win each game.
I always laugh when people (Giants fans) rip on Dusty Baker for their loss in 2002 game 6... you know when he went to Rodriguez, Worrell and Nenn like he had done all year when he had the lead and they all three blew it.
Best Mgrs are the ones with the best teams?
And if true, Manager Geren faces an AL West of improving teams with the A's losing:
- Zito's 23 starts
- 40 HRs by part-timer Frank
- CF/RF/LF versatility of JayPay
- LH Starter/Reliever Kennedy?
- Infielder coach extraoirdinare: Wash
Basicly Mgr. Geren inherits the same team as last year, less the above, and must face opponents that are improving thier rosters.
So,
...are you saying, ...that we can't pepper AN-land with "F I R E GEREN!!!" after intolerable losses?
by A s Eh on Nov 19, 2006 8:05 PM PST up reply actions
AL West
Just my $0.02
I don't think...
by swisherroks33 on Nov 19, 2006 9:22 PM PST reply actions

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