RMJ 79 May 4

The Cubbages have become good friends in just a few months. Cubby and I ride to the ballpark together, and Jan spends a lot of time at our house watching Chief play with our puppies, Vesta and Babe. Vesta is a boxer, and she can run with Chief. Babe is a blond Lab, and she is learning to swim in the lake out back. We have enjoyed Jan and Mike, but I’m not sure we have enjoyed each other as much as the dogs have.

We were going to go to church together — without the dogs — today, but Judy and I didn’t wake up in time for the 11:00 service. Cubby came by at 2:00 and we headed for the Dome and our Sunday-night ESPN special with the Marlins.

I was in the dugout, talking with Jon Miller, when my old teammate Joe Morgan came by. We sat on the bench and talked about playing and managing, and it was really enjoyable. Even Joe, who has been a good friend for many years, seemed to look at me in a new light since I have become a manager.

“You have to be careful not to let this job change you,” Joe advised.

“I know,” I said. “We’ve both seen that happen to a lot of guys. And it may happen to me. But one thing I have going for me is that I didn’t spend 15 years of my life preparing to do this job. I didn’t even ask for it. And as a result, I don’t feel any sense of desperation to keep it. I can do other things.”

“That’s good,” he said. “If you manage for the fans or the writers or even the general manager, you’ll never win. You have to manage for yourself.”

He then told me a story about Giants manager Dusty Baker. In a recent game, Dusty had used a lefthanded hitter to pinch-hit against a lefthanded pitcher. It worked, so he was not second-guessed. But if it had failed …

The point is, to thine own self be true. And that is a tall order, even if you are not desperate.

As he was leaving, I remembered something my mother had said. She told me that when we played the Cardinals on ESPN, Joe had said, “Most people don’t know this, but Larry’s real name is Leroy.”

“Hey, Joe,” I said, calling him back, “my real name is Larry, short for Lawrence. My mom said you said my real name was Leroy.”

“I thought it was,” he said. “Why did we always call you Leroy?”

“It was because of a column a guy did on me my first year in Cocoa at spring training,” I said. “The caption under my picture said, ‘Leroy Dierker.’”

“That’s funny,” he said, “I never knew that.”

He started to walk away, then he turned back to me, “What’s your Mom and Dad’s name?” he asked. “I’ll say ‘hi’ to them tonight during the game.”

“Chuck and Marilynn,” I said. “They’ll be watching.”

I had my doubts about whether or not he would remember to slip the greeting into the broadcast. I have offered the same courtesy as a broadcaster, but I haven’t always followed through.

About a half-hour before game time, a press runner came down to ask me my mother’s name.

“Joe Morgan wants it,” he explained.

At that point, I felt certain that Chuck and Marilynn would get a nice surprise. Joe is a bright guy. As a player, one of his abiding assets was concentration. I certainly appreciate his thoughtfulness.

Anyway, Joe followed through, and Mom and Dad got a better surprise during the game. It was a beauty, and we won it 1-0 over Kevin Brown and the Marlins, to give us two out of three against a talented team. I know these nail-biters are tough on Chuck.  He tends toward anxiety more than Marilynn.

A stolen base by Bagwell and a two-out single by González in the first inning were the difference in the ballgame.

Our batters kept coming back to the dugout, shaking their heads in disbelief after facing Brown. He may have the best sinker I have ever seen.

But this game had an Astros flavor, right from the start. Pat Listach made four great plays; Biggio made one; Bagwell made one; Spiers made one; and Bell made one. I told the writers that I could not recall a game with so many great defensive plays. And each of them was critical to preserving the one-run lead.

Some people think baseball is too slow — that there is not enough offense. I hope some of them saw this ballgame. It was one of the most exciting games of the year.

 

Before the season, I told many writers and broadcasters that my lack of experience would not be a major factor going against the top managers in the league. This was probably wishful thinking, but it has turned out that way so far. There isn’t much Jimmy Leyland can do about Darryl Kile pitching a four-hit shutout. 

In the end, it’s the players’ game — and I think it is useful to keep that in mind. That thought can prevent you from getting the big head when the team wins, or beating yourself up when it doesn’t.