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Thought I'd put all these together from various articles....

 

Mel Stottlemyer: "I think he learned a lot this year under Joe Torre," Stottlemyre said. "I think he'll do an excellent job as manager. He'll be very thorough."

 

Antonio Alfonseca: "He is very smart," said Marlins reliever Antonio Alfonseca, a Cubs teammate in 2002. "He is easy to communicate with. Everybody respected him, and he respected everybody."

 

Al Leiter: "But there will be absolutely no question as to whether his team is prepared going into a series. He works as hard and has as much information that's given to us as any coach I've ever had."

 

Paul Quantrill: "He's only been out of the game [as a player] for a couple years," Quantrill said. "Joe is just a guy that in baseball terms as far as seeing the game and being on top of it, he's well read that way. I think he takes a lot of pride in that part of the game."

 

Andy Fox: ''He's a very sharp guy,'' said ex-Marlin infielder Andy Fox, a teammate of Girardi's with the Yankees. ``He's highly intelligent and worked real hard to become the player that he was. He's got tremendous communication skills and knows how to communicate with players regardless of their personalities.''

 

Carl Pavano: ''I think he's a good fit,'' Pavano said. ``He's got the personality, gets the most out of his players and the respect out of his players. He's going to expect a lot and I think guys are going to want to play for him.''

 

Tony LaRussa: "The year he was here he was prepping for it," La Russa said Wednesday before Game 6 of the NLCS. "He got copies of the spring training program. And I know when he was in New York he had asked a lot of questions of (Don) Zimmer and (Joe) Torre. He's got the background for it."

 

Cardinals General Manager Walt Jocketty: "He's got a chance to be one of the bright young managers of this new era. He's got great leadership qualities, and you could see that on and off the field," Jocketty said. "He was the type of guy who really paid attention and tried to learn as much as he could. I know when he was here he spent time with Tony trying to learn from him, and I'm sure he did that with Joe and everyone else he played for."

 

Scott Rolen: "He's a professional as a ballplayer, and he's a professional as a person," Cardinals third baseman Scott Rolen said. "That's what makes me feel good about him getting a manager's job. Good people deserve good things, and Joe's one of the best I have ever met."

 

Fox Analyst Steve Lyons: "He was a really smart player. He wasn't a great hitter or anything, but that's never made a great manager. He could handle pitching staffs very well. He understands the fundamentals of the game."

 

Jeff Conine: "I think someone young with fresh ideas and a different style of baseball will be good for the team," Marlins outfielder and first baseman Jeff Conine said. "Hopefully, it will be a good fit."

 

 

 

 

Doesn't mean he'll do a good job necessarily, but it sure seems he's well-liked and respected around the game.

Until the games really matter and the manager's moves have a great impact in the outcome of the game (playoffs), if the guys here just play hard for him, that's all that will matter.

Here's the PB Post's take:

 

Girardi 'the right man' for Marlins

By Joe Capozzi

 

Palm Beach Post Staff Writer

 

Thursday, October 20, 2005

 

Joe Girardi has never been a manager and has coached just one season, sitting on the bench next to New York Yankees manager Joe Torre. But Girardi, a catcher for 15 years in the major leagues, has built a reputation as an unusually apt student of the game.

 

He caught the eye several years ago of Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria, who announced Wednesday that he will introduce Girardi today as the team's new manager.

 

"Joe was an intelligent player with great leadership skills and he will bring those traits to his new position," said Loria, who met Girardi when he played for the Yankees.

 

"He is the right man to lead our team and I'm proud he will start what will be a long, successful managerial career in South Florida."

 

Girardi, 41, will succeed Jack McKeon, who led the Marlins to the World Series title in 2003 but resigned Oct. 2 after the team finished 83-79.

 

Girardi, who will sign a three-year contract, will be the second-youngest manager in baseball. Cleveland's Eric Wedge is 37.

 

McKeon, who turns 75 next month, managed 15 years in the majors, but his gruff approach cost him the support of some of his players this season.

 

"I think someone young with fresh ideas and a different style of baseball will be good for the team," Marlins outfielder and first baseman Jeff Conine said. "Hopefully, it will be a good fit."

 

Girardi, who will meet the media at 11 a.m. today at Dolphins Stadium, could not be reached for comment Wednesday after accepting the Marlins' job and declining an offer to become manager of the Tampa Bay Devil Rays.

 

His agent, Steve Mandell, said Girardi was happy with his decision.

 

"He was just impressed with the whole situation," Mandell said from Chicago. "He really respects Jeff and his staff. ... He had great chemistry. He likes the staff, he likes the players. He likes the city and he wants to bring his family down there."

 

Girardi was one of at least six candidates to interview for the job but was always the first choice.

 

"After several discussions with him it became clear that not only was Joe ready to manage, but he is the right guy to manage the Florida Marlins," General Manager Admin Beinfest said. "Joe has a tremendous reputation throughout the game and I am eager to start working with him."

 

Girardi is just two years removed from his playing career; he spent one year as a Yankees broadcaster before becoming the team's bench coach.

 

He studied engineering at Northwestern University, playing baseball just 20 minutes north of Wrigley Field and the Chicago Cubs, who drafted him in the fifth round in 1986. He broke in with the Cubs in 1989 and also played for Colorado, the Yankees and briefly with St. Louis. He retired after the 2003 season with 1,100 hits, a.267 average, 36 home runs and 422 RBI.

 

"I think Joe Girardi can succeed in anything he does, and I say that because I've been with him long enough," said former Yankees bench coach Don Zimmer, who managed Girardi when he was a rookie in '89 and coached him in Colorado and New York.

 

"He could have been an engineer and he would have been a great one, but he decided to be a catcher and he was a good one. Then he decided to be a bench coach and he was a good one. Now he is going to be a manager and he is going to be a good one."

 

Girardi's journey to the Marlins started in New York during four seasons with the Yankees, with whom he earned three World Series rings.

 

As the Yankees celebrated the final out of the 1999 Series, Girardi the catcher met Loria the fan. Loria was in the seats at Yankee Stadium and helped Girardi's wife onto the field to join her husband in the festivities.

 

At the time, Girardi didn't know who Loria was. And Loria, who then owned the Montreal Expos and was a Yankees season-ticket holder, did not know that the woman struggling to scale the wall behind home plate was Kim Girardi.

 

Loria tried to hire Girardi as the Marlins' bench coach for 2005 but lost out to Torre. But Loria kept in contact with Girardi and went after him in earnest after McKeon resigned. Among the Marlins' candidates, only Girardi received two interviews, the first a private meeting with Loria at his office in Manhattan.

 

The Marlins want Girardi to have a bond with the players as well as the owner. Girardi is considered a strong clubhouse leader and will be close in age to some of his players.

 

Conine, 39, laughed and said: "You know you are getting old when guys you've played with and against become your manager."

 

Zimmer said age is irrelevant.

 

"Someone will say he's too young of a guy. Well, only thee years ago they hired an older man who took them to the promised land," Zimmer said of McKeon.

 

"Sure (Girardi) has no experience, but somebody thinks he can manage. They're all after him."

 

Zimmer, a special adviser with the Devil Rays, said that despite speculation, he has not been asked by Girardi to be the Marlins' bench coach.

 

"I don't want to, anyway," said Zimmer, 74. "I've got a job here with the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. I'm at home and I don't want to leave home. Living at home is a big plus after you've been gone from home for 55 years."

 

One member of Girardi's staff with the Marlins is set. First-base coach Perry Hill, who is signed through next season, will return. Girardi is believed to be inclined to ask pitching coach Mark Wiley to come back, too.

 

Longtime big-league first baseman Andres Galarraga, a suburban West Palm Beach resident who retired after the 2004 season, has been discussed by insiders as a potential Marlins hitting coach. But he said Wednesday night that he does not want to coach yet on the major-league level.

 

"I want to spend time with my family," he said, adding that he has not spoken to Girardi. "Maybe in the future I can talk about that."

 

Other options for hitting coach include Bill Robinson, who held that job for McKeon, and former manager and major-league slugger Don Baylor.

 

Insiders applaud Girardi hiring

By Tom D'Angelo

 

Palm Beach Post Staff Writer

 

Thursday, October 20, 2005

 

ST. LOUIS ? Cardinals manager Tony La Russa knew little about Joe Girardi before the new Marlins manager joined his team in 2003.

 

But when Girardi was acquired to back up Mike Matheny, La Russa noticed something different about his No. 2 catcher.

 

"The year he was here he was prepping for it," La Russa said Wednesday before Game 6 of the NLCS. "He got copies of the spring training program. And I know when he was in New York he had asked a lot of questions of (Don) Zimmer and (Joe) Torre.

 

"He's got the background for it."

 

Girardi, 41, became the eighth manager in Marlins history Wednesday, replacing Jack McKeon. Girardi played parts of 15 seasons in the major leagues and spent this season as Torre's bench coach.

 

"There are guys, the way they think, the way they carry themselves on the field ? the more you get to know them you think that's a guy who's going to be a pretty good manager," Fox analyst Steve Lyons said about Girardi.

 

Added Cardinals General Manager Walt Jocketty: "He's got a chance to be one of the bright young managers of this new era."

 

Girardi's last stop as a player was in St. Louis, where he played in 16 games in 2003. He impressed the team not only as a leader but also for what he did June 22, 2002, the day Cardinals pitcher Darryl Kile died suddenly. The Cardinals were in Chicago, and Girardi, a member of the Cubs at the time, was the player chosen to inform the crowd that no game would be played.

 

"He's a professional as a ballplayer, and he's a professional as a person," Cardinals third baseman Scott Rolen said. "That's what makes me feel good about him getting a manager's job. Good people deserve good things, and Joe's one of the best I have ever met."

 

Jocketty signed Girardi in 2003 and knew him when both were in Colorado in the mid '90s.

 

"He's got great leadership qualities, and you could see that on and off the field," Jocketty said. "He was the type of guy who really paid attention and tried to learn as much as he could. I know when he was here he spent time with Tony trying to learn from him, and I'm sure he did that with Joe and everyone else he played for."

 

Like McKeon and many other managers, Girardi's experience as a catcher will serve him well.

 

"I always thought a catcher had the best chance going in because the defensive side of the game is so important, especially the pitcher-catcher competition with the hitter," La Russa said.

 

The Devil Rays also pursued Girardi. Lyons was not surprised Girardi opted for the Marlins.

 

"When I heard Joe's name associated with Tampa Bay I was thinking, there is no way he's going to Tampa Bay," Lyons said. "Florida is a much better situation. It is clearly a better team, a little better something to work with.

 

"He was a really smart player. He wasn't a great hitter or anything, but that's never made a great manager. He could handle pitching staffs very well. He understands the fundamentals of the game."

 

Commentary: The new man must win now

By Greg Stoda

 

Palm Beach Post Columnist

 

Thursday, October 20, 2005

 

This is only the most important managerial hire in the history of the Florida Marlins.

 

That's what Joe Girardi ? he of exactly zero games experience as a manager at any level, let alone in the big leagues ? will be looking at from the moment he is introduced today at Dolphins Stadium.

 

Here's hoping, for the Marlins' sake, Girardi soaked up a bunch of knowledge as New York Yankees bench coach last season at the knee of Joe Torre, because a grace period he will not receive. The Marlins well might have been one of the game's biggest disappointments last season, but that doesn't mean they won't be among the favorites to challenge for the National League title during the next one.

 

And that's new ground for any incoming Florida manager.

 

Rene Lachemann? He was the man the Marlins put in their dugout to take charge of the team at its inception, but that was just the beginning of the whole South Florida baseball experiment and thereby an excuse by definition.

 

John Boles? He replaced Lachemann in the middle of Lachemann's fourth season to finish out the schedule, which made it nothing more than a stopgap move.

 

Jim Leyland? The Marlins hadn't so much as produced a winning season before they promptly uncorked their surprising 1997 World Series-winning run with Leyland, who only lasted one more year with the team.

 

Boles, again? The championship group had been decimated in moves driven by Marlinomics, and Boles simply turned into a long-term caretaker of the graveyard.

 

Tony Perez? His was an almost anonymous tenure in replacing Boles to complete a fourth consecutive losing season (2001) since the World Series celebration.

 

Jeff Torborg? He added a fifth consecutive losing season, and then was 16-22 when dismissed just more than a quarter of the way through what turned out to be the 2003 World Series crusade.

 

Jack McKeon? Take another peek at the Torborg record when McKeon took over without pressure of any sort.

 

Girardi, however, will assume control of a team that is supposed to be good.

 

"They have some talented young players," Girardi himself said of the Marlins when speaking to mlb.com early in the interview process. "You look at (Josh) Beckett and (Dontrelle) Willis... those two stand out. They have (Miguel) Cabrera in left field, who is probably as good a hitter as anyone in baseball."

 

Girardi long ago began studying the Marlins in depth, and liked enough of what he learned to accept team owner Jeffrey Loria's job offer.

 

Which is why anything resembling the 83-79 records Florida has produced the past two seasons would count as a third consecutive failure next season. Girardi will be starting in a tough spot no matter how much Loria trusts and respects him. Loria trusted and respected Torborg, too, and even had a friendship with him.

 

And look how that turned out.

 

Loria's last choice was a good one, though, when he picked McKeon out of cigar-smoking retirement on a porch in the North Carolina mountains and watched him turn Torborg's floundering players into champions. McKeon, however, came with more than 1,500 games of experience as a major-league manager plus a comprehensive background riding the front bus bench in the bushes.

 

If he does pull off the same kind of success as McKeon did in his first Florida season, Girardi will have done so working off a blank r?sum?.

 

Girardi recently told the Chicago Tribune that his managerial style will be a combination of going "with his gut and with his heart" in the manner of mentor Don Zimmer blended with a bookish appreciation for "tendencies... and numbers" gleaned from engineering studies at Northwestern.

 

But whatever he does had better work, and right away. The water is deep and cold after the past couple of Marlins seasons.

 

The obvious questions having to do with payroll, stadium and coaching staff must have been answered to Girardi's satisfaction. What the Marlins should have done was sign Girardi to a contract longer than the reported three-year deal to which he agreed. The risk, of course, is Girardi taking this job as a steppingstone to one ? Yankees? Chicago Cubs? ? with a higher profile and greater personal appeal.

 

This is the most important managerial hire in Marlins franchise history, after all, and Loria should treat it as such. Starting now.

 

Listen to Greg Stoda from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. on Mondays and Fridays on ESPN 760-AM

I didn't know Big Cat lived here... that's awesome.

I didn't know Big Cat lived here... that's awesome.

 

 

Yeah, his children go to the same school as my brothers.

Glad to see the Girardi love-fest

Conine=future coach..

 

I am happy we got Girardi. He's the first young manager we've ever had. Our team is seasoned and filled with a mixture of veterans and youthful talent. Girardi seems like a fantastic way to find the common ground within the team. He'll choose our pitching staff more wisely, and hopefully make the right minor league callups (McKeon did a piss-poor job this season)

 

If he works out this year, I want to see Girardi in a Marlin's uniform for the next 15 years. We need to have a consistent team, and that means an incumbent at manager.

The obvious questions having to do with payroll, stadium and coaching staff must have been answered to Girardi's satisfaction.

 

 

I don't know how to take this statement. Could there be something in terms of the stadium that we don't know? :mischief2

He'll choose our pitching staff more wisely, and hopefully make the right minor league callups (McKeon did a piss-poor job this season)

 

That's all Beinfest, the GM does player moves, the manager just writes the lineup and manages the game.

He'll choose our pitching staff more wisely, and hopefully make the right minor league callups (McKeon did a piss-poor job this season)

 

That's all Beinfest, the GM does player moves, the manager just writes the lineup and manages the game.

Manager does minor league moves.

He'll choose our pitching staff more wisely, and hopefully make the right minor league callups (McKeon did a piss-poor job this season)

 

That's all Beinfest, the GM does player moves, the manager just writes the lineup and manages the game.

Manager does minor league moves.

 

No he doesn't. Beinfest handles promotions/demotions.

  • Author

Regardless, Jack wasn't playing guys anyway.

Girardi as a manager and Conine as a coach in a few years...

 

hmmm

Hotcorner,

 

Good stuff! Would you mind if I used those quotes in my upcoming Girardi piece? I'll link back to this thread, of course.

 

Looking forward to the Joe Girardi era!

I hope the idea of retaining Robinson isnt seriously being considered , we need a fresh start and he certainly didnt do a good job last year.

  • Author

Hotcorner,

 

Good stuff! Would you mind if I used those quotes in my upcoming Girardi piece? I'll link back to this thread, of course.

 

Looking forward to the Joe Girardi era!

 

 

Yes I mind. Those quotes are now my property since I cut & pasted them into my own thread.

 

:mischief

 

Nah, of course not. They just came from various newspapers. I should've posted the links myself but I'm lazy... anyway you don't need to link the thread. :p

My advice to Mr. Girardi:

 

"Don't try to be a great man, just be a man and let history decide..." - Zephram Cochrane

Conine=future coach..

 

I see him more in the front office

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