WHATEVER HAPPENED TO RECYCLING

 Baseball has a history of recycling managers, and not a proud one. Every time a manager gets fired, clubs delve into the list of out-of-work managers fired from other teams. Sometimes they have been fired by the teams who are currently looking. The most famous, of course, is Billy Martin, who was hired and fired five times over the space of 13 years.

Currently, the Boston Red Sox are looking and, of course, are considering rehiring Alex Cora who was fired early this year over a cheating scandal. The Chicago White Sox just rehired Tony LaRusso, who last managed the team in 1986.

But this is no longer the norm. Usually, out of 30 possible jobs, you might find two or three rookie managers. This year, only 9 of a possible 29 jobs are held by men who have managed at least one other team. Baseball used to be considered to be an Old Boys Club, but no more. The biggest reason for this is the reliance on computer-driven statistics. When potential managers are being interviewed, there is a major concern by the front offices that the candidate is committed to the sabermetrics currently in vogue. Outside of a few "legends of the past," such as Joe Maddon or Tony LaRusso,you have little chance of being hired if you think a laptop is where you let girls sit. The days of using only your eyes and experience of making decisions is long past. If you want to see a good example of this, watch the movie "Moneyball," especially the first half hour.

Even coaching is feeling the brunt of the new metrics. You used to judge a pitcher by things like, how good is his curve ball or how hard does he throw.  Now you need to know spin rates, arm angles and BABIP, which is Batting Average of Balls In Play. Hitting coaches have to know bat speed, time in the zone and launch angles. Base running coaches need to know...a different career, since the new metrics frown on stealing bases. But don't worry, there are plenty of other jobs. It used to be that a manager had a first base coach, a third base coach and a pitching coach. Not any more.  A manager has that plus:

Fielding Coach      Outfield Coach    Throwing Coach       Catching Coach    Bench Coach

Bullpen Coach       Hitting Coach       Asst Hitting Coach   Strength Coach    And some I missed

And let's not forget the translators, since ballplayers no longer feel the need to learn English. The Yankees Masahiro Tanaka has been with the team for seven years, but if a coach goes out to talk to him, the Japanese interpreter is right with him. Here's a question for the ages: Gary Sanchez, Yankee catcher, needs a Spanish interpreter during interviews. When he goes to the mound to talk to Tanaka, how do they communicate? And why do they cover their mouths? Bad breath? There's a question I'd like to hear in an interview.

Not a lot of choices for the quotes part of the blog. Most writers were concerned with the political end and I only include sports related quotes, But there were still some good ones.

***THEY SAID IT***

 "Don’t believe what you see: At the end of three quarters, Saturday, Fox’s Joel Klatt praised Nebraska’s defense for being quick and alert. At the time, Ohio State was up, 38-17, with nearly 400 yards gained."  -- Phil Mushnick

"A majority of ESPN’s NFL headlines are about COVID-19, tests, penalties, mask violations cases. Well, NY fans have to be glad at least they aren’t about the Giants or Jets"   -- Janice Hough 

"Hall of Famer Tony La Russa, 76, became just the third 75-or-older manager in MLB history when the White Sox hired him last week. Hey, it was either that or a cardboard cutout of Connie Mack."  -- Dwight Perry

"In case you missed it, National Fossil Day was on October 14. It will not be on November 28th, the revised fight date between retirees Mike Tyson and Roy Jones."  -- RJ Currie

"Now that the troublesome Antonio Brown is joining Tom Brady’s Bucs, people need to stop saying that everybody deserves a second chance. By rough estimate, this is Brown’s fourth."  -- Bob Molinaro

"Heading into this weekend's Dallas game, the Philadelphia Eagles lead the NFL is most sacks given up. The Cowboys lead the league in giving up."  -- RJ Currie

 "Meanwhile NFL is looking at a 16 team playoff if more games get cancelled due to COVID. If they keep this up we’ll soon be looking at almost all teams in the NFC except the NFC East."  -- Janice Hough

"A bettor plunked down $8,600 on No. 1 Clemson — at minus-1,000 odds — to beat Syracuse and collected $8.60 from FanDuel for his troubles. That’s like shelling out for the Kobe beef and Maine lobster just to get the after-dinner mint."  -- Dwight Perry

Chad Picasner