Does a Baseball Manager Actually Make a Difference?

If a baseball manager is unable to show up for a game, does it really hinder team performance?

Manager impact has always been mysterious. Managers come off as old, older and often accompanied by a short fuse. We’ve seen coaches come into other sports and make an immediate impact. We really haven’t seen that in baseball, and if we have, we don’t really talk about it.

What does a manager actually do? I’ve been guilty of saying, at one point or another, “I can do his job.” However, I do look great in a windbreaker and walk with a limp.

Let’s look at three different sports to see who really makes the biggest impact on a team’s success.

NFL Football: The Head Coach

In football, you can do more with less if you have a certified genius at the helm. The New England Patriots have cobbled together teams from undrafted free-agents, ex-lacrosse players, converted wide receivers and sixth-round draft picks to win multiple championships. They are able to do this because of their head coach. Bill Belichick finds good (enough) athletes who quickly can grasp and apply his tutelage. He knows what they’re good at even before they do.

“Every battle is won before it’s ever fought.”― Sun Tzu, The Art of War

There is no situation Bill Belichick hasn’t seen or isn’t ready for. Through preparation and details, a head coach in football can enhance player performance, despite a lack of talent or experience.

Example: The Malcom Butler interception in the 2015 Super Bowl. How did an undrafted free-agent (hello!) cornerback from the University of West Alabama (sounds made up) come off the bench (do I have to spell this out for you, he wasn’t that good!) to make one of the biggest plays in the Super Bowl? Preparation and details.

To recap, Butler was sent in at the last minute for a goal-line defense package against the Seattle Seahawks, who were within one yard of winning their second consecutive Super Bowl. He made an interception on a quick-slant route at the goal line that secured the Patriots their fourth Super Bowl (at the time) since 2001. Butler had seen that same route in practice, he just didn’t stop it. The Patriots head coach recognized it and, clearly, made an adjustment.

“The inside receiver got off the line and up into the end zone. Malcom didn’t really have enough awareness for the play, so he had to go all the way around behind the receiver and the defensive back. There was just too much space and it was an easy touchdown. So, the coaching point was, if they are close enough together, Malcom had to be ready to get over the top and the defender on the inside guy (Brandon Browner) has to jam the receiver so he can’t pick the cornerback going over the top.”—Bill Belichick

Does this sound boring? It should, because details are boring, but they win championships.

NBA Basketball: The Player

There is no doubt that one outstanding basketball player can take over and control a game all by himself. We’ve seen this in the past with Michael Jordan, and we’re currently seeing it with LeBron James. Yes, let’s recognize ancillary characters like Scottie Pippen and Kyrie Irving. They are good players, but not game-changers. When Jordan left to play baseball in 1994, Pippen couldn’t get past the Orlando Magic by himself. It was only when M.J. returned that the Bulls started winning championships again. Even the Zen Master himself, Phil Jackson, couldn’t wield any heroics from his triangle offense during the Jordan absence.

When LeBron won his two championships with the Miami Heat from 2011-2013, their head coach Erik Spoelstra had as much of an impact as the ball boy. LeBron was the one leading the team, directing players on court and supporting  teammates on their main role: “Feed me the ball, and get out of the way.”

One basketball player can affect both sides of the ball. Not only is the LeBron the best offensive player on his team, he’s the best defensive player, too (maybe in the entire NBA). Because of his size and speed, he covers an enormous amount of ground on defense, while supplying the majority of the Cavs’ points, rebounds and assists. That same level of impact can’t be said for football and baseball players. Tom Brady can’t catch an interception.

A starting pitcher can only help his team once every five days, and most of them don’t offer much offense at the plate. (Shout out to Madison Bumgarner and Jake Arrieta #PitchersWhoRake.) Even a good position player like Kris Bryant might not get a ball hit to him at third base in a particular game or he might walk three times at the plate, thus reducing his overall impact. You can’t deny LeBron anything when you play against him in a game. Tryon Lue doesn’t coach the Cavaliers, LeBron James does.

There’s a basketball term created and used a lot for Wilt Chamberlin at a time when the NBA was first getting popular on TV. It encapsulates why the player is most impactful factor in the game of basketball: “You can’t stop him, you can only hope to contain him.”

MLB Baseball: The Front Office

The saying “you never played the game” is no longer applicable. MLB front offices are filled with guys who “didn’t play” on their high school teams. Yet, they’re orchestrating everything you see on the field. The sport of baseball is largely talent-driven. At the MLB level, the sport isn’t predicated on a manager giving an inspirational seventh-inning-stretch speech or drawing up new bunt defenses. It’s an individual sport trapped in a team atmosphere. This is why much of what happens on a baseball field doesn’t make sense at times, but that’s what makes it unique.

Contrary to popular belief, managers can have a slight impact on their teams. The catch: They have to be really good. One way to quantify how a manager impacts a ball club is through the “grind run.” A grind run is calculated by the number of runs saved based on the manager’s good decision rate. (61.7% is considered good.)

Here are the estimated “grind runs” saved for pitchers and hitters from 2013-2017 according to the book, The Shift by Baseball Prospectus writer Russell A. Carleton.

Best Managers           “Grind Runs” per season

Buck Showalter                           7.38
Terry Francona                            5.98

Worst Managers

Mike Matheny                           -4.78
Joe Girardi                                  -3.25

Overall, the front office is more integral in the success of a team than its manager. It’s hard to win in baseball when you have less talent than the other team. It’s possible to do in football and basketball, but not in baseball. The front office is responsible with finding a variety of individual talent, and then putting it all together. Brian Sabean and Theo Epstein have a combined six World Series Championships between them. Their respected skippers, Bruce Bochy and Joe Maddon are HOF bound, but if I want to win a ballgame, I’ll take Buster Posey, Anthony Rizzo, Brandon Crawford and Ben Zobrist.

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