Tony La Russa
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Tony La Russa | ||
|---|---|---|
| Infielder, Manager | ||
| Born: October 4 1944 | Batted: Right | Threw: Right |
| MLB debut | ||
| May 10, 1963 for the Kansas City Athletics | ||
| Final game | ||
| April 6, 1973 for the Chicago Cubs | ||
| Career statistics | ||
| AVG | .199 | |
| Hits | 35 | |
| RBI | 7 | |
| Teams | ||
|
As Player As Manager
| ||
| Career highlights and awards | ||
| ||
Anthony La Russa, Jr. (born October 4 1944, in Tampa, Florida) is a manager in Major League Baseball, currently with the St. Louis Cardinals. In 2004 he became the sixth manager in history to win pennants with both American and National League teams; in 2006 he became the first manager ever to win multiple pennants in both leagues and became one of only two managers to win the World Series in both leagues. With a 2,375-2,070-3 (.534) record as a manager, he is ranked third all-time for total number of career wins, trailing only Connie Mack (3,731) and John McGraw (2,763) on the MLB All-time managerial wins list. He is also third all-time for games managed (4,448), trailing only the above two managers (all above numbers for him are through 2007. He is one of only three managers to be named Manager of the Year in both of baseball's major leagues.
La Russa has 1,055 wins and 887 losses (.543) as manager of the Cardinals since 1996 through 2007. He was 522-510-3 (.506) with the Chicago White Sox 1979-1986, and 798-673 (.542) with the Oakland Athletics 1986-1995, according to Baseball-Reference.com
Some sources give La Russa two extra wins, however; Rene Lachemann is credited with two managerial wins for the Cardinals during the 1999 season while La Russa was hospitalized for an ulceration in his stomach lining.[1] [2] However, the baseball rules give the temporary acting manager no credit for the win (or loss) when standing in for the real manager because of absence due to illness[citation needed] and La Russa correctly gets the credit for those two wins.
On August 21, 2007, he tied Bucky Harris to become the third-highest manager in total games managed in baseball history (4,408).
On August 22, 2007, he passed Bucky Harris to become the third-highest manager of all-time in total games managed in baseball history in his 4,409th game; behind only John McGraw (Mgr. 1899, 1901-1932 for 33 years; 4,769 games) and Connie Mack (Mgr. 1894-1896, 1901-1950 for 53 years; 7,755 games).
La Russa became the leader in wins by Cardinals' managers on August 31, 2007, when the Cardinals defeated the Cincinnati Reds 8-5, passing Red Schoendienst (1,041-955) to take the title.
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[edit] Playing career
La Russa (often misspelled LaRussa) was signed by the Kansas City Athletics as a middle infielder prior to the start of the 1962 season. He came up to the A's the next season, making his debut on May 10, 1963. In the following off-season he suffered a shoulder injury while playing softball with friends, and the shoulder continued to bother him during the remainder of his playing career.
Over the next six seasons, La Russa spent most of his time in the minor leagues, making it to the now-Oakland A's roster in 1968 and 1969. He spent the entire 1970 season with the big club, and then late in 1971 the A's traded him to the Atlanta Braves. His final big league playing stop was with the Chicago Cubs, where he appeared as a pinch-runner in one game, on April 6, 1973. He also spent time in the organizations of the Pittsburgh Pirates, Chicago White Sox, and St. Louis Cardinals.
In 132 total games played, (40 in the starting lineup), he went 35-for-176, a batting average of .199. His 23 walks pushed his on base percentage to .292. He had 7 RBI and scored 15 runs. He made 63 appearances at second base, 18 at shortstop, and two at third base, fielding .960 in 249 total chances and participating in 34 double plays.[3]
[edit] Managerial career
Before becoming a manager, he earned a Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree from Florida State University, but never entered the legal profession. La Russa has been quoted as saying, "I decided I'd rather ride the buses in the minor leagues than practice law for a living." He is one of a select number of major league managers in baseball history who have earned a law degree or passed a state bar exam; others include John Montgomery Ward (New York Giants, Brooklyn and Providence, late 1800s), Hughie Jennings (Detroit, 1907-20, New York Giants, 1924), Miller Huggins (St. Louis Cardinals and New York Yankees, 1913-29), Muddy Ruel (St. Louis Browns, 1947), Jack Hendricks (St. Louis Cardinals, 1918, Cincinnati, 1924-29) and Branch Rickey (St. Louis Browns, 1913-15, St. Louis Cardinals, 1919-25, later the creator of the modern farm system in baseball and still later the executive who broke the color line by signing Jackie Robinson), Jim O'Rourke and James Lyman Price.
The White Sox hired La Russa as their manager two-thirds of the way through the 1979 season. He was named American League Manager of the Year in 1983, when his club won the AL West but fell to the Baltimore Orioles in the American League Championship Series. The White Sox fired La Russa after the club got off to a 26-38 start in 1986.
La Russa had a vacation of less than three weeks before his old club, the Athletics, called him to take over as manager. With the A's, he led the club to three consecutive World Series, from 1988 to 1990, sweeping an earthquake-delayed Series from the San Francisco Giants in 1989. In 1988 and 1990, La Russa's Athletics lost the World Series to the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Cincinnati Reds in significant fashion, despite the fact that the A's were heavily favored on both occasions. He earned two additional Manager of the Year awards with the A's, in 1988 and 1992, again winning the Western Division in the latter year.
After the 1995 season, in which the A's finished 67-77, the Haas family, with whom La Russa had a close personal relationship, sold the team after the death of patriarch Walter A. Haas, Jr. La Russa left to take over for Joe Torre at the helm of the St. Louis Cardinals. The team promptly won the National League's Central Division crown in 1996, a feat his club repeated in 2000, 2001, 2002 (his fourth Manager of the Year award), 2004, 2005, and 2006 (the Cardinals also tied for the National League Central crown with the Houston Astros in 2001). He became the first manager to win the award four times. La Russa's fourth Manager of the Year award was arguably the most emotional; La Russa led the Cardinals to the National League Championship Series (where they would ultimately lose in five games to the San Francisco Giants) in a year in which the Cardinals were traumatized by the deaths of beloved Hall of Fame broadcaster Jack Buck and 33-year-old pitcher Darryl Kile just four days later.
However, it was not until 2004 that the Cardinals finally won the National League pennant under La Russa. The team had the best record in the majors at 105-57, and defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers, 3 games to 1, in the National League Division Series, and the Houston Astros, 4 games to 3, in the NLCS. That put the club in the 2004 World Series against the Boston Red Sox, the Cards' first Series appearance since 1987. However, they were swept by the Red Sox, losing four games to none.
In 2006, La Russa managed the Cardinals to a four-game-to-one World Series victory over colleague Jim Leyland's Detroit Tigers. This makes him only the second manager to win a World Series in both the American League and the National League, a distinction shared with his mentor, Sparky Anderson. La Russa's 83-78 record with the Cardinals in 2006 becomes the lowest winning percentage for a World Champion, dropping behind the 1987 Minnesota Twins' 85-77 record.
Through 2006, La Russa's regular season managerial record is 2,297-1,986 (.536), including 977-803 (.549) with the Cardinals. He credits Paul Richards with first inspiring him to believe he could succeed as a major league manager.
It was as a player with the A's that La Russa first met catcher Dave Duncan, who would join his coaching staff in Chicago in 1983. The two have worked together on every La Russa-managed team ever since, and he often credits Duncan as playing a key role in his success.
On August 4, 2007 LaRussa lined up his pitcher Joel Piñeiro to bat in the 8th spot. Previously in the 1998 season, from July 9 to September 27 used the same method with his rotation. La Russa continued to bat the pitcher 8th throughout the rest of the 2007 season. LaRussa has argued that he wishes a position player to bat in the ninth spot so that "there are men on base" for Albert Pujols, who bats third.
On October 22, 2007, LaRussa signed a two-year deal to remain with the St. Louis Cardinals as manager, which would extend his reign to a Cardinals' record 14 years.
[edit] Managerial record
(through Sept. 30, 2007)
| Team | Year | Regular Season | Postseason | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Won | Lost | Win % | Finish | Won | Lost | Win % | Result | |||
| CWS | 1979 | 27 | 27 | .500 | 5th in AL West | - | - | - | ||
| CWS | 1980 | 70 | 90 | .438 | 5th in AL West | - | - | - | ||
| CWS | 19811 | 31 | 22 | .585 | 3rd in AL West | - | - | - | ||
| CWS | 19811 | 23 | 30 | .434 | 6th in AL West | - | - | - | ||
| CWS | 1982 | 87 | 75 | .537 | 3rd in AL West | - | - | - | ||
| CWS | 1983 | 99 | 63 | .611 | 1st in AL West | 1 | 3 | .250 | Lost in ALCS, AL Mgr. of Year | |
| CWS | 1984 | 74 | 88 | .457 | 5th in AL West | - | - | - | ||
| CWS | 1985 | 85 | 77 | .525 | 3rd in AL West | - | - | - | ||
| CWS | 1986 | 26 | 38 | .406 | 5th in AL West | - | - | - | ||
| CWS Total | 522 | 510 | .506 | 1 | 3 | .250 | 1 Post-Season Appearance | |||
| OAK | 1986 | 45 | 34 | .570 | 3rd in AL West | - | - | - | ||
| OAK | 1987 | 81 | 81 | .500 | 3rd in AL West | - | - | - | ||
| OAK | 1988 | 104 | 58 | .642 | 1st in AL West | 5 | 4 | .556 | Lost in World Series, AL Mgr. of Year | |
| OAK | 1989 | 99 | 63 | .611 | 1st in AL West | 8 | 1 | .889 | Won in World Series | |
| OAK | 1990 | 103 | 59 | .636 | 1st in AL West | 4 | 4 | .500 | Lost in World Series | |
| OAK | 1991 | 84 | 78 | .519 | 4th in AL West | - | - | - | ||
| OAK | 1992 | 96 | 66 | .593 | 1st in AL West | 2 | 4 | .333 | Lost in 1992 ALCS AL Mgr. of Year | |
| OAK | 1993 | 68 | 94 | .420 | 7th in AL West | - | - | - | ||
| OAK | 1994 | 51 | 63 | .447 | 2nd in AL West | - | - | - | ||
| OAK | 1995 | 67 | 77 | .465 | 4th in AL West | - | - | - | ||
| OAK Total | 798 | 673 | .542 | 19 | 13 | .594 | 4 Post-Season Appearances | |||
| StL | 1996 | 88 | 74 | .543 | 1st in NL Central | 6 | 4 | .600 | Lost in NLCS | |
| StL | 1997 | 73 | 89 | .451 | 4th in NL Central | - | - | - | ||
| StL | 1998 | 83 | 79 | .512 | 3rd in NL Central | - | - | - | ||
| StL | 1999 | 75 | 86 | .466 | 4th in NL Central | - | - | - | ||
| StL | 2000 | 95 | 67 | .586 | 1st in NL Central | 4 | 4 | .500 | Lost in NLCS | |
| StL | 2001 | 93 | 69 | .574 | 1st in NL Central | 2 | 3 | .400 | Lost in NLDS | |
| StL | 2002 | 97 | 65 | .599 | 1st in NL Central | 4 | 4 | .500 | Lost in NLCS, NL Mgr. of the Year | |
| StL | 2003 | 85 | 77 | .525 | 3rd in NL Central | - | - | - | ||
| StL | 2004 | 105 | 57 | .648 | 1st in NL Central | 7 | 8 | .467 | Lost in World Series | |
| StL | 2005 | 100 | 62 | .617 | 1st in NL Central | 5 | 4 | .556 | Lost in NLCS | |
| StL | 2006 | 83 | 78 | .516 | 1st in NL Central | 11 | 5 | .688 | Won in World Series | |
| StL | 2007 | 78 | 84 | .481 | 3rd in NL Central | - | - | - | ||
| StL | 2008 | - | - | - | ||||||
| StL Total | 1,055 | 887 | .543 | 39 | 32 | .549 | 7 Post-Season Appearances | |||
| AL Total | 1,320 | 1,183 | .527 | 20 | 16 | .556 | Won 1 World Series | |||
| NL Total | 1,055 | 887 | .543 | 39 | 32 | .549 | Won 1 World Series | |||
| TOTALS | 2,375 | 2,070 | .534 | 59 | 48 | .551 | Won 2 World Series | |||
[edit] La Russa in books and computer games
In 2005, La Russa was the focus of a book by sportswriter Buzz Bissinger. Bissinger's Three Nights in August delves into La Russa's role as manager during a 3-game series in 2003 between his Cardinals and manager Dusty Baker's Chicago Cubs, their longtime rivals. The book received much praise from both fans and critics, though some complained that Bissinger sets out to glorify La Russa's "old school" managerial style as a direct challenge to the statistical analysis theses of Michael Lewis's 2004 book Moneyball.
As David Leonhardt of The New York Times wrote of the "stats vs. hunches" debate in an August 29, 2005 piece, "What makes this fight truly comparable to those that periodically roil the world of art history or foreign policy is that the differences between the sides are not as great as the sniping between them suggests. La Russa spends much of his time jotting down information on index cards and studying statistics in his office."
George Will's book Men at Work likewise depicts La Russa and his long-time pitching coach Dave Duncan as making more use of statistical analysis than any other team in the major leagues.
La Russa also provided the AI for a series of successful computer and video games, Tony La Russa Baseball (1991-1997). The games won numerous awards and featured "new" statistics selected with La Russa (and provided by prominent sabermetrics authors John Thorn and Pete Palmer) as tools for players as they managed their teams.
[edit] Controversy
On March 22 2007 La Russa was arrested in Jupiter, Florida for suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol. He was found asleep at the wheel of his running SUV while at a green light. He did not initially respond to the police knocking on the window, even though he still had his foot on the brake. He was booked at the Palm Beach County Jail and blew a .093 blood alcohol content, which is above the legal limit of .08.[4]
Calling his arrest on the DUI charge an "embarrassment," Cardinals manager Tony La Russa apologized to "anyone who is close to me, members of the Cardinals organization, our fans." He was defended by the organization and players, such as Albert Pujols. However, the incident took on renewed significance as a result of developments [1][2] in the death of Cardinals pitcher Josh Hancock, who died while DUI.[3]
On November 28 2007 La Russa pleaded guilty for DUI. La Russa said he had decided to plead guilty to the misdemeanor because it was in the best interest of all concerned.
"I accept full responsibility for my conduct, and assure everyone that I have learned a very valuable lesson and that this will never occur again," La Russa said in a statement released by his attorney, David Roth. La Russa did not appear in court to plead guilty.
[edit] Personal life
La Russa was married to Luzette Sarcone from 1965-1973, with whom he has two daughters, Andrea and Averie. He has had little contact with them since the divorce.[5]
La Russa and second wife Elaine are the founders of Tony La Russa's Animal Rescue Foundation, headquartered in Walnut Creek, California, which saves abandoned and injured animals as well as running programs to bring dog and cat visits to abused children, hospital patients, seniors and shut-ins. La Russa is also a vegetarian.[6] The La Russas have two daughters Bianca & Devon and reside in Alamo, California.
La Russa speaks fluent Spanish.[4]
La Russa has an uncredited extra role in the film Angels in the Outfield.
[edit] See also
- Chicago White Sox all-time roster
- List of Major League Baseball managers in 2006
- List of Major League Baseball managers in 2007
- List of Major League Baseball managers in 2008
[edit] Notes
- ^ 1999 St. Louis Cardinals. Baseball Library.com. Retrieved on 2007-08-16.
- ^ LaRussa is Hospitalized Because of Stomach Ailment. St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Retrieved on 2007-08-16.
- ^ Tony LaRussa Statistics. Baseball Reference. Retrieved on 2007-04-28.
- ^ Cops: La Russa was asleep at intersection. Retrieved on 2007-03-22.
- ^ http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2007/baseball/mlb/05/29/la.russa0604/index.html
- ^ http://www.ivu.org/people/sports/larussa.html
| Accomplishments | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Chicago White Sox managers |
|---|
| Griffith • Callahan • Jones • Sullivan • Duffy • Callahan • Rowland • Gleason • Evers • Walsh • Collins • Schalk • Blackburne • Bush • Fonseca • Dykes • Lyons • Onslow • Corriden • Richards • Marion • Lopez • Stanky • Moss • Lopez • Gutteridge • Adair • Tanner • Richards • Lemon • Doby • Kessinger • La Russa • Rader • Fregosi • Torborg • Lamont • Bevington • Manuel • Guillén |
Oakland Athletics managers |
|---|
Philadelphia Athletics (1901-1954) Kansas City Athletics (1955-1967) Oakland Athletics (1968-present) |
St. Louis Cardinals managers |
|---|
| Tebeau • Heilbroner • Donovan • Nichols • Burke • Robison • McCloskey • Bresnahan • Huggins • Hendricks • Rickey • Hornsby • O'Farrell • McKechnie • Southworth • Street • Frisch • Gonzalez • Blades • Dyer • Marion • Stanky • Walker • Hutchinson • Hack • Hemus • Keane • Schoendienst • Rapp • Krol • Boyer • Herzog • Torre • Jorgensen • La Russa |
| Current Major League Baseball managers | ||
|---|---|---|
| AMERICAN LEAGUE | ||
| EAST DIVISION
47 Trembley (Baltimore) | CENTRAL DIVISION
13 Guillén (Chi. White Sox) | WEST DIVISION
14 Scioscia (L.A. Angels) |
| NATIONAL LEAGUE | ||
| EAST DIVISION
6 Cox (Atlanta) | CENTRAL DIVISION
41 Piniella (Chi. Cubs)
| WEST DIVISION
3 Melvin (Arizona) |
Oakland Athletics 1989 World Series roster |
|---|
| 2 Tony Phillips | 4 Carney Lansford | 7 Walt Weiss | 9 Mike Gallego | 12 Lance Blankenship | 19 Gene Nelson | 21 Mike Moore | 24 Rickey Henderson | 25 Mark McGwire | 28 Stan Javier | 33 José Canseco | 34 Dave Stewart | 36 Terry Steinbach | 39 Dave Parker | 40 Rick Honeycutt | 42 Dave Henderson | 43 Dennis Eckersley | 44 Ken Phelps | 54 Todd Burns Manager 10 Tony La Russa |
St. Louis Cardinals 2006 World Series roster |
|---|
| 3 Preston Wilson | 4 Yadier Molina | 5 Albert Pujols | 7 Ronnie Belliard | 12 Aaron Miles | 15 Jim Edmonds | 16 Chris Duncan | 22 David Eckstein (World Series MVP) | 23 Anthony Reyes | 26 Scott Spiezio | 27 Scott Rolen | 28 Gary Bennett | 29 Chris Carpenter | 32 Josh Hancock | 34 Randy Flores | 36 Jeff Weaver | 37 Jeff Suppan | 41 Braden Looper | 43 Juan Encarnación | 48 Brad Thompson | 50 Adam Wainwright | 52 Josh Kinney | 53 John Rodriguez | 61 Tyler Johnson | 99 So Taguchi Manager 10 Tony La Russa |
[edit] References
- Bissinger, Buzz. Three Nights in August: Strategy, Heartbreak, and Joy Inside the Mind of a Manager. Mariner (paperback), 2006.
- Will, George. Men at Work: The Craft of Baseball. Harper (paperback), 1991.
[edit] External links
- Bio page at MLB.com
- Baseball-Reference.com - career managing record and playing statistics
- Animal Rescue Foundation home page
- The MAD Hatter Performance and Tea Party - La Russa will be appearing in this production in December 2006.
- Baseball Almanac
- Retrosheet
- Tony La Russa page at stlcardinals.scout.com
| Persondata | |
|---|---|
| NAME | Anthony La Russa, Jr. |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Tony La Russa |
| SHORT DESCRIPTION | Baseball manager |
| DATE OF BIRTH | October 4, 1944 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Tampa, Florida |
| DATE OF DEATH | |
| PLACE OF DEATH | |
Categories: All articles with unsourced statements | Articles with unsourced statements since August 2007 | 1944 births | Living people | Florida State University alumni | Baseball managers | Oakland Athletics managers | St. Louis Cardinals managers | Chicago White Sox managers | Manager of the Year Award | Major league second basemen | Atlanta Braves players | Chicago Cubs players | Kansas City Athletics players | Oakland Athletics players | Major league players from Florida | Birmingham Barons players | Italian-Americans | Spanish-Americans | American vegetarians | People from Tampa | University of South Florida alumni | List of Major League Baseball managers in 2008
