A friend at work asked me yesterday if any manager had been fired after a season as successful as the one Grady Little just enjoyed. The answer, of course, is yes. But what has happened, historically, after playoff teams have gone in a different managerial direction?
It hasn't always been a cure-all. Since 1901, twenty-two teams have started a season with a new manager, fresh off a playoff berth (Boston will be the 23rd). Of the 22, thirteen missed the playoffs the next season and nine returned. Since the advent of the Wild Card, four of the seven have missed the playoffs.
But three managers have stepped in and immediately led an inherited playoff team to a championship: Ralph Houk (NYY '61), Alvin Dark (Oak '74) and of course, Joe Torre (NYY '96).
Here's a blow-by-blow breakdown of the 23 teams to have made the playoffs one year and find themselves playing for a new manager the next.
1916 Boston Red Sox
The season: Catcher Bill Carrigan played himself sparingly, focusing on his managing duties. Led by his 21-year-old ace Babe Ruth, Carrigan brings the Red Sox a championship, over Brooklyn in five.
The reason: Baseball wasn't necessarily that lucrative for the likes of Carrigan, and he took a job as a banker in his native Maine.
The result: Second baseman Jack Barry took over the reins, and led the '17 team to a respectable second behind an excellent White Sox squad. With Barry overseas for the war, the '18 Red Sox would win their most recent championship.
1926 St. Louis Cardinals
The season: Player-manager Rogers Hornsby hit .317 and guided the Cards to a close pennant over the Reds and Pirates. In the World Series, Hornsby himself tagged out Babe Ruth on an ill-advised steal attempt for the final out of Game 7.
The reason: Sam Breadon, the Cards' owner, feuded with the notoriously difficult Hornsby. Rajah peeved Breadon to the point where the world champion second baseman was traded, to the New York Giants for fellow future Hall of Famer Frankie Frisch.
The result: Catcher Bob O'Farrell, battling a sore arm, was named player-manager, and the Cards finished second. With Bill McKechnie running the club the following year, the '28 Cards won the pennant. More importantly, Frisch had a ton of great baseball left in him, winning championships in '31 as a player and in '34 as a player-manager. Meanwhile, Hornsby (who called the trade the "biggest disappointment of my life") was brilliant when on the field but grating when off for the G-men, who dispatched him to the Boston Braves after one season despite monster numbers. Advantage: Cardinals.
1953 Brooklyn Dodgers
The season: Chuck Dressen led a fabulously talented and beloved Dodgers team to 105 wins and an easy pennant, but Dem Bums got some poor pitching in the World Series, which they lost to the Yankees in six.
The reason: Brash and not politically savvy, Dressen demanded a multiyear extension from Walter O'Malley. Dressen - who had a penchant for taking a tad too much credit anyway - quickly learned the hard way that employees do not make demands on Mr. O'Malley.
The result: The gentlemanly Walter Alston would preside over a second-place club in '54, but would bring Brooklyn its long-awaited ring in '55. Alston would last nearly 23 years in the post, winning seven pennants and four championships.
1960 N.Y. Yankees
The season: The legendary "Old Perfesser," Casey Stengel, leads the Yankees to 97 wins and an extraordinarily unlucky Series defeat to the Mazeroski Pirates in seven.
The reason: The Yankees gave the reasons as age and ill health, but it was widely rumoured that the Yankees had already begun to search for a replacement during the Yanks' slow start.
The result: The earnest Ralph Houk immediately won back-to-back rings, while poor Casey was responsible for putting a human face on the '62 Mets.
1963 N.Y. Yankees
The season: Ralph Houk's deep, balanced Yankees win 104 games and cruise to the pennant before being swept away by Koufax, Drysdale, Podres and the Dodgers.
The reason: Houk was promoted to GM and VP.
The result: Yogi Berra would have a controversial but pennant-winning one-year reign as Yankee skipper. Houk would preside over the Bombers' shocking decline.
1964 St. Louis Cardinals
The season: Johnny Keane led the Cards to a thrilling seven-game victory over the Yankees.
The reason: Gussie Busch never offered Keane a vote of confidence, and when GM Bing Devine, a stalwart Keane ally, was fired, Keane stunned the baseball world by quitting and taking the Yankees job.
The result: Red Schoendienst presided over a disappointing seventh-place '65 team, but would win the '67 Series with Gibson & Co. Keane led the Yankees, all right...straight into their worst period of the modern era, finishing sixth and then a dead-last tenth (Keane was fired after a 4-16 start).
1964 N.Y. Yankees
The season: Rookie manager Yogi Berra quickly developed a dubious reputation for strategy, but his explosion of anger at backup infielder Phil Linz's merrily tooting a harmonica after a Yankee defeat was seen as the turning point that salvaged another pennant-winning season for the Yankees. In the World Series, Johnny Keane's Cardinals bested the Bombers in seven.
The reason: Berra was fired for losing the Series, but few in the Yankee organization were happy with his managing during the season. When up-and-coming managerial whiz Johnny Keane offered to defect, the Yanks were delighted to poach from their postseason rivals.
The result: As mentioned one entry before, the Keane era was utterly disastrous in New York. Berra's next job would be to replace the late Gil Hodges in Flushing, and he led the mediocre and aging '73 Mets to an improbable seventh game of the World Series.
1969 Minnesota Twins
The season: Billy Martin led the slugging Twins to a 97-win season and the inaugural AL West crown before being swept by the Orioles in the ALCS.
The reason: In a hugely unpopular move, the ornery Calvin Griffith fired Billy after losing a postseason series for which Griffith had publicly predicted a Twins sweep. Griffith's trash-talking was aimed at the 109-win Orioles, merely one of the greatest teams of all time.
The result: Bill Rigney would suffer an identical fate in '70, getting swept by the Orioles in the ALCS. The Twins then entered a period of mediocrity that would last nearly two decades.
1971 Pittsburgh Pirates
The season: The beloved Danny Murtaugh led Willie Stargell, Roberto Clemente and the powerful "Lumber Company" Pirates to 97 wins, an NLCS triumph over the Giants, and an exciting seven-game World Series win over mighty Baltimore.
The reason: Murtaugh, the manager with a rocking chair, had unstable health and announced his retirement after the Series.
The result: Bill Virdon led the team to the '72 playoffs, only to fall to Cincinnati. In '73, the struggling Bucs fired Virdon and coaxed Murtaugh out of retirement; he would lead the team to two first-place finishes and a second before passing away in the '76 offseason.
1973 Oakland A's
The season: Dick Williams led the Swingin' A's to their second straight championship, narrowly besting the Orioles in the ALCS before fighting off the pesky Mets in a seven-game World Series.
The reason: In game two, backup infielder Mike Andrews made two errors en route to an extra-inning Mets victory. An enraged Charlie O. Finley forced Andrews to make a public "confession," and then ordered him to claim to be "injured" so that the A's could replace him on the roster. Even though Commissioner Kuhn quelled the public's outrage by ordering Andrews' reinstatement, a disgusted Williams vowed to resign after the World Series -- and he kept his word.
The result: Alvin Dark led the experienced club to their third straight ring in '74. Meanwhile, Earl Weaver, who was appointed to manage the All-Star Game, stepped aside to let Dick Williams lead the AL in a classy move. Williams would eventually lead the '84 Padres to the playoffs.
1975 Oakland A's
The season: Alvin Dark led the defending champion A's to an excellent 98-win season and their fifth consecutive West title. In the ALCS, though, Oakland was bounced in a three-game sweep by a Red Sox club that seemed to be a team of destiny.
The reason: In a typically unpopular move, Charlie Finley fired Dark, ostensibly because the deeply religious Dark's "off-field activities" were detracting from his "on-field attention." Most suspected, however, that Finley was outraged about a quote attributed to Dark in a small northern California newspaper that Finley would be "going to hell" unless he "changed his ways."
The result: Chuck Tanner's '76 A's were passed by the Royals and finished second. After vetoing many attempts by Charlie O. to simply sell his stars to New York and Boston, Bowie Kuhn finally approved trades that would reduce Oakland's payroll to Finley's satisfaction. By 1979, the A's would lose 108 games before their brief resurgence under Billy Martin.
1980 N.Y. Yankees
The season: In his first year under the combustible George Steinbrenner, Dick Howser led the balanced Yankees to 103 wins. In the ALCS, however, the Yankees were embarrassingly swept by the Royals -- baseball's analog to the Ottawa Senators of recent vintage, and a team that endured three straight playoff defeats to New York from '76 through '78.
The reason: Howser was simply sacked by the Boss for losing to Kansas City, but the official word was that he "resigned."
The result: In the prime years of the Yankees managerial merry-go-round, Gene Michael got the '81 job but was canned in mid-season. His replacement, Bob Lemon, led the Yankees to the '81 pennant and a six-game World Series defeat to the Dodgers. Howser got the last laugh by winning a ring sooner than Steinbrenner -- with the '85 Royals.
1981 Philadelphia Phillies
The season: Dallas Green's Phillies had only the third-best record in the NL East, but made the playoffs by virtue of being in first at the time of the strike. Mike Schmidt & Co. dropped a close NLDS to the Expos.
The reason: Still the only championship manager in Phillies history, Green left to take the Cubs' GM job.
The result: Pat Corrales kept the Phils competitive with a second-place finish, but his mid-season firing was required to spark the '83 club to the pennant. Green's Cubs dropped a heartbreaking NLCS in '84.
1982 California Angels
The season: Gene Mauch's Angels went up 2-0 in the best-of-5 ALCS, only to drop three straight to the Brewers.
The reason: Frustrated with his reputation as a choking team's manager, Mauch resigned to take a break.
The result: John McNamara led the '83 squad to just 70 wins. Mauch would return to the Halos in '85, and preside over an even more famous choke, losing the '86 ALCS to the Red Sox after leading the series 3-1 and Game 5 5-2 with two outs and nobody on in the ninth.
1985 Toronto Blue Jays
The season: Bobby Cox's young and pitching-rich Jays won 99 games, still a franchise record. Up 3-1 in the ALCS, though, the Jays failed to close out the Royals and dropped a Game 7 heartbreaker.
The reason: Offered the GM job in Atlanta, Cox left for greater responsibilities.
The result: Jimy Williams kept the Jays more or less in contention, but the '86 Jays finished fourth and a late-season swoon cost the '87 Jays a playoff berth. Only when Williams was fired in favour of Cito Gaston in '89 did the Blue Jays return to the postseason. Cox, meanwhile, was bumped back down to field manager, where he's led the Braves to twelve consecutive playoff appearances. Although he won the '95 championship, Cox was outfoxed by Gaston, his one-time batting coach, in the '92 World Series.
1995 Cincinnati Reds
The season: Davey Johnson's Reds cruised to the inaugural NL Central title and swept the Dodgers before getting swept by the Braves in front of strangely apathetic (and relatively small) Cincinnati crowds.
The reason: During the '94 strike, Johnson announced that '95 would be his last season as Reds manager, and hand-picked his old friend Ray Knight to be his successor.
The result: Knight came into training camp with a massive inferiority complex, taking several public potshots at Johnson's managing style. He would have done better to emulate it, as the Reds collapsed to .500 and beyond during his short tenure. Meanwhile, Johnson led Baltimore to the playoffs.
1995 N.Y. Yankees
The season: Robbed by a labour dispute of a chance at a potential dream World Series with the '94 Expos, Buck Showalter's Yankees clinched the inaugural AL wild card at SkyDome in the season's final weekend. It was the first playoff appearance for the Yanks in fourteen years, and Don Mattingly's first in his farewell season...but the storybook ending belonged to the surprising Mariners, who knocked off New York in a thrilling five-game ALDS.
The reason: Dissatisfied with this playoff series, Steinbrenner ordered Showalter to fire certain members of his coaching staff. Buck -- who the Boss liked -- refused, and resigned instead.
The result: Joe Torre took over and led the talented and free-spending Yankees to eight playoff appearances, six pennants and four championships in his first eight years. Showalter, meanwhile, was hired by an eager Jerry Colangelo to manage the Arizona Diamondbacks two and a half years before the team ever took the field. The D-Backs would win the NL West in just their second season.
1997 Baltimore Orioles
The season: Davey Johnson led the O's to a 98-win first-place season, besting the defending champion Yankees in the AL East. After defeating the Mariners in the ALDS, the O's would drop a heartbreaking ALCS to Cleveland.
The reason: Furious with Peter Angelos' refusal to give him a vote of confidence, Johnson resigned one day before he received the Manager of the Year award.
The result: Baltimore fell into fourth place under Ray Miller, and have been stuck right there ever since.
1999 Cleveland Indians
The season: Mike Hargrove's Tribe won 97 games, but their pitching gets absolutely shredded by Boston bats in the Division Series.
The reason: In a controversial move, the longtime skipper was fired because management believed that the intense Hargrove lost the clubhouse.
The result: Charlie Manuel kept the club competitive for two more years, missing the '00 playoffs but taking the '01 Central title. In 2002, the team collapsed into a rebuilding mode. Meanwhile, Hargrove proved unable to shake the Orioles out of the doldrums.
2001 Houston Astros
The season: After a disappointing 2000 season, Larry Dierker led the Astros to their fourth division title in his five years as manager -- only to be swept by the Braves in the first round.
The reason: Frustrated with his postseason failures, Houston management pressured the ex-broadcaster to resign.
The result: Jimy Williams didn't even make the postseason in his first two seasons, but performed well enough in management's eyes to earn an extension through 2005.
2002 Oakland A's
The season: Buoyed by a 20-game winning streak in August, Art Howe led the Billy Beane-designed A's to an excellent 103-win season and the division title in the tough AL West. The Twins, however, shocked the A's by handing them their third straight Division Series defeat.
The reason: Running the A's from the top down, Beane was not impressed with Howe's salary demands and tried to trade him to the Mets for prospects. Unable to work out a deal, Beane simply allowed Howe to take the New York job.
The result: Ken Macha led the A's to yet another second-half surge and yet another division crown. Unfortunately, he also led them to yet another first-round defeat. Meanwhile, Howe's Mets flopped and entered a rebuilding period.
2002 San Francisco Giants
The season: Dusty Baker led Barry Bonds and the Giants to the wild card and then the pennant, before coughing up a big lead in Game 6 to the Angels, who would prevail in seven.
The reason: Never really a Dusty fan, owner Peter Magowan let Baker bolt to greener pastures in Chicago.
The result: Felipe Alou led the Giants to a division title, but they fell to the Florida Marlins in the Division Series. Dusty's Cubs surprisingly took the Central, but lost to the same Fish in the NLCS.
2003 Boston Red Sox
The season: Grady Little presided over a wild-card club with great camaraderie and even greater hitting, as the Red Sox squeaked past the A's in the Division Series before collapsing in a classic Game 7 in the Bronx.
The reason: Under the postseason microscope, Little's strategic deficiencies were magnified. In Game 7 of the ALCS, Little left a clearly exhausted Pedro Martinez in the game until the eighth-inning 5-1 lead had been completely squandered.
The result: To be determined.
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