Terry Francona Not at Fault for Red Sox' Collapse, But Manager's Tone No
Longer Fit With Team
大崩潰不能怪Terry Francona,但他帶隊的方式已經不適合這支球隊了
Terry Francona isn't the fall guy here. He was a guy who had run his course
as manager of the Red Sox after eight mostly memorable seasons.
On Friday, the 44th manager in the history of the Boston Red Sox said all the
right things. He talked about the "true colors" of the team, and about the
Sox needing a "new voice" to guide the team.
He came off as a sympathetic figure. And popular opinion was squarely on his
side the morning after. The man who won two World Series championships was
no longer the man running the team.
But, in grieving over the end of Francona's reign in Boston, don't overlook
one very important fact: It was time for a change.
Terry Francona並非替死鬼
他已經帶領紅襪度過8個美妙,令人難忘的球季
在星期五,這個紅襪史上第44任的教頭說出了一些事情
說了一些紅襪隊的真實面貌
以及球隊需要一個新的力量來帶領
他看起來像悲劇人物令人同情
而在他發表完談話後,與論紛紛倒向他那邊
帶領球隊贏得兩次世界大賽冠軍的人要離開了
但再因他離開而傷心的同時
不要忘了,該是做改變的時候了
Francona is the ultimate player's manager. He believes in staying out of the
way of his players, and expects them to perform in return. It worked in 2004,
and again in 2007. It hasn't worked in a while. The Sox haven't won a playoff
game in three seasons, and have missed out on the postseason in two straight
years for the first time since 2001-2002.
I've said time and again that Francona's biggest strength as manager is what
he does behind the scenes. Boston is a tough place to play, and can swallow
up players. When he first arrived, Francona had to deal with personalities
like Manny Ramirez and Pedro Martinez and keep them performing. He did it
well.
He stayed loyal to players through thick and thin. He kept Dustin Pedroia in
as starting second baseman after a sub .200 April, and Pedroia won the Rookie
of the Year Award. He stayed with Kevin Millar in September of 2004 long
after most fans would've moved on to Doug Mientkiewicz. He stayed with Mark
Bellhorn in '04. And David Ortiz in '10.
But different players have to be managed differently. You'd like all
employees to be disciplined and self-motivated. The truth is, not all are.
That's why it's appropriate that it's called "managing" in baseball, not
"coaching." You need to manage the personalities assembled on a roster.
Millar isn't walking through that door.
Somewhere along the way, Francona's methods stopped being effective with the
players on his roster. We've heard stories about a clubhouse grown out of
control. We've watched pitchers disrespect him on the mound with no
repercussions. We're hearing tales of beer drinking in the back room while
the game is happening on the field.
Francona是很棒的教練,他相信他的球員,不多做干涉
並期待球員會以好表現來回報
這招在2004 2007都有用
但一經一陣子收不到效果了
紅襪已經三年沒贏任何一場季後賽了
連兩年沒進季後賽
這是2001-2002球季以來的第一次
Francona對球隊最大的幫助是表面上看不到的
在波士頓打球並不容易
他剛來波士頓時就要面對如 Manny Ramirez 和 Pedro Martinez
這類有"個性"的球員
要想辦法讓他們乖乖打球
而他做得很好
他在球員狀況不好時依然相信球員
在Dustin Pedroia四月打出0.200的打擊率後
能然讓他先發,最後他贏了新人獎
在多數球迷早就支持Doug Mientkiewicz之下
他還是相信Kevin Millar(不知這段典故是啥)
他在04年時相信Mark Bellhorn
(Mark Bellhorn當年一加入就破了隊史被三振紀錄)
(沒記錯的話當年在世界大賽打了支關鍵全壘打,整體表現也比季賽好很多)
以及在10年時相信老爹Ortiz
(今年又回春了)
但因材施教是很重要的
球員都自律且積極當然是最好
但事實並非如此
這就是為什麼是"管理"一個球隊,而非"指導"一個球隊
你必須管理多個個體並組成一支團隊
而現在Francona的方法對這支球隊不管用
我們聽到一些球隊脫序的傳聞
看到一些投手在場上不尊敬他,而他沒做出反應(哪幾隻阿?)
我們聽到球員在比賽時在休息室喝啤酒
At some point the manager has to step in and say "no more." If he doesn't
have control of his team, he can't expect his team to stay under control. It
would seem this team tuned him out long ago.
When that happens, and it almost always does in sports, you need a new
beginning. There's no way Francona could return to this team in the spring
and be a different type of leader. The current group of Red Sox players need
a swift kick in the butt. And Tito was not going to be able to deliver it.
Francona will go down as the greatest manager in Red Sox history to this
point. We will always be indebted to him for what he accomplished in the
past. But this is about the future. And if the Sox are going to win in the
near future, they needed this change.
They need other changes, too. This ownership group has to review everything
associated with the team before next season. Scouting, training methods and
player contracts all have to be reconsidered. Maybe it's time to only sing
"Sweet Caroline" when the Sox are leading in the eighth.
That off-season overhaul began last night with a coaching change.
Coaching changes are a last resort. They don't happen after championship
seasons. They happen when a team fails. This team came up very short of its
goals, and whether you like the makeup of the team or not there's no denying
the talent assembled on this roster.
It will be up to the next manager to bring that talent out of these players.
有時教練必須站出來說"賣鬧阿"
不能沒多插手干預,而自動期待球隊紀律良好
現在看起來似乎這個球隊早就不鳥他的指示了
當這種情形發生時,這在運動隊伍中很常見
你需要一個新的開始
Francona不可能明年就突然轉換風格
這批球員需要有然來凶一下,嚇嚇他們
而Francona不是這種調調
他以一個紅襪史上最偉大教練的身分離職
大家非常感激他所成就的
但這跟未來有關,若紅襪想在近幾年還有做為
就必須改變
不只改變教練,上層的老闆已經開始檢視紅襪體系相關部分
球探,訓練方法,球員合約...
或許是只在八局還領先時唱 "Sweet Caroline"的時候了
(本來是每場唱)
季後"拯救紅襪"行動從換教練開始打響了第一炮
換教練是一件大事,若球隊奪冠的話絕不會換
換是因為球隊表現讓人失望
本季表現離目標冠軍遠的很
大家都同意這支球隊由許多頂級球員組成
就看下個教練能將球隊帶到什麼地步囉
http://www.nesn.com/2011/10/terry-francona-not-at-fault-for-red-sox-collapse-but-managers-tone-no-longer-fit-with-team.html
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拜託不要換掉Theo Epstein就好