Mike Quade: A Baseball Odyssey
by Al Yellon on Oct 20, 2010 8:00 AM CDT
in Chicago Cubs News
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PrintCubs manager Mike Quade was selected by the Pirates in the 22nd round of the 1979 draft, the 560th player chosen. He played for five seasons in their minor league system and then began managing Pirates minor league teams. In his baseball journey, he's played and managed in many cities around North America and the Caribbean for five major league organizations (Pirates, Expos, Phillies, Athletics and Cubs).
Here's a map that shows all the locations where Mike Quade has played or managed. Click on the image to call up a Google map I created that lists the cities, years and jobs he's had.
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Wow - He sure moved around alot.
If the Cubs still have a chance, no matter how small, it’s still Go Cubs, damn the math and pass the KoolAid.
Is there a way to measure managerial impact, statistically speaking?
I’m not familiar with any such metric. Methinks it may be too difficult to isolate that variable.
I don’t think basketball coaches do very much; with the exception of the challenge flag, I’m inclined to think football coaches do more between games than within games; but baseball managers probably have the most control and impact on the actual game’s doings (lineups plus consistent pitching, running, and hitting changes 6th inning and on). I just don’t know how much impact a MLB coach (Is it coach? Or manager? Is there a difference? These things keep me up at night) has on the actual endgame. People can complain about Quade over Sandberg or Sandberg leaving etc., but I have no understanding of how that plays out on the field; the only data point for Quade is a winning 22%of a season, which although a totally losing effort, is better than nothing.
Dan
"The riches of the game are in the thrills, not the money." --Ernie Banks
Baseball manager is equivalent to the head coach position in gridiron and basketball
And the bench coach is the equivalent of an assistant head coach. After that, things get a little murkier, as the base coaches, hitting coach, pitching coach, and other various subordinates can all handle multiple duties that don’t relate well to many other sports.
"Who ever heard of the Cubs losing a game they had to have?" -Frank Chance
"If [Ruth] had [called his shot], I would have knocked him down with the next pitch." -Charlie Root
Bench coach is a relatively new position.
I’m not sure where or when it started, but it’s not more than 20 years old. Years ago, the 3B coach was considered the “assistant manager” and did bench coach-type duties in addition to coaching 3B.
Anyone know when teams started using bench coaches? Who was the first? I don’t recall the Cubs having one before about ten years ago.
"You can observe a lot just by watching." ~ Yogi Berra
I know that Bobby Cox had one in the early-90s.
Braves fans generally knew his name well because he was the guy that took over when Bobby got thrown out of the game.
"Who ever heard of the Cubs losing a game they had to have?" -Frank Chance
"If [Ruth] had [called his shot], I would have knocked him down with the next pitch." -Charlie Root
Jim Beauchamp is credited with being the Braves' bench coach from 1991 to 2001 on Wikipedia
(source), but I remember Pat Corrales serving in the role, too.
Auto racing writer, SB Nation Indiana. Because in 49 other states, it's just sports!
by Bill Potter on Oct 20, 2010 10:09 AM CDT up reply actions
That's the guy :D
And yes, Corrales came afterward. It’s too bad that those guys’ managerial records don’t reflect wins and losses that Bobby started but they finished, since both of them seemed to make better decisions in tight, late-inning situations than Bobby ever did.
"Who ever heard of the Cubs losing a game they had to have?" -Frank Chance
"If [Ruth] had [called his shot], I would have knocked him down with the next pitch." -Charlie Root
The name that jumps to mind is Pat Corrales
"Who ever heard of the Cubs losing a game they had to have?" -Frank Chance
"If [Ruth] had [called his shot], I would have knocked him down with the next pitch." -Charlie Root
Yeah, you guys are right.
But I don’t recall the Cubs having such a coach in that era. Anyone?
"You can observe a lot just by watching." ~ Yogi Berra
Just out of curiosity (and since I was 7 at the time)
What were the coaching roles on the 1989 Cubs among Joe Altobelli, Chuck Cottier and Jose Martinez? I know Dick Pole was the pitching coach and Larry Cox in the bullpen.
Auto racing writer, SB Nation Indiana. Because in 49 other states, it's just sports!
by Bill Potter on Oct 20, 2010 10:18 AM CDT up reply actions
Cottier was the 3B coach, Martinez the 1B coach.
… you know, now that I think of it, Altobelli, a former manager, might have been a bench coach type.
"You can observe a lot just by watching." ~ Yogi Berra
I can't find anything that says Altobelli had the title "bench coach" in 1989
But that would appear to be his role, given the other titles for the coaches.
Auto racing writer, SB Nation Indiana. Because in 49 other states, it's just sports!
by Bill Potter on Oct 20, 2010 10:26 AM CDT up reply actions
Right.
I don’t think the title “bench coach” had been invented that early. Based on the posts above, early 90’s sounds about right.
"You can observe a lot just by watching." ~ Yogi Berra
Here's an interesting article about "bench coaches."
Link. Torre claims Zimmer was the first with the actual title. Zimmer’s description of his role is pretty funny.
One of Lee Elia's 15%
by waiting4cubs on Oct 20, 2010 12:01 PM CDT up reply actions
That is a funny description.
But clearly, Zimmer with Torre wasn’t “the” first. Maybe he was the first one Torre had under him as manager, but definitely, there were bench coaches before 1996 in New York.
"You can observe a lot just by watching." ~ Yogi Berra
Zim: Gotta love a guy who sticks those old
magnetic ’Scotty Dogs" to his head as a joke on the ’uninitiated"…
There are 108 beads in a Catholic rosary and there are 108 stitches in a baseball. Who says baseball isn't a religion?
not sure of before him
but according to this
Trebelhorn was named bench coach of the Chicago Cubs in 1992
Chronologically inept since 2060
"I could be writing this crap!" -- Crow T. Robot
Me: Q: I can run but not walk. Wherever I go, thought follows close behind. What am I?
Wrigster A: Theriot
and in 1984
Bench Coach – John Vukovich
Chronologically inept since 2060
"I could be writing this crap!" -- Crow T. Robot
Me: Q: I can run but not walk. Wherever I go, thought follows close behind. What am I?
Wrigster A: Theriot
Managerial Impact
Dan, I recommend checking out Chris Jaffe’s wonderful book “Evaluating Baseball’s Managers.” He (wisely) doesn’t try to boil things down to a single stat, but it’s a very thorough analysis from many different perspectives.
David Geiser
Is that THT's Jaffe?
I’ll definitely pick that up. Thank you veyr much for your thoughts!
"The riches of the game are in the thrills, not the money." --Ernie Banks
I'm very happy about this
Hiring Quade was the right thing to do. I feel bad for Sandberg, but I think he will get a job managing in the major leagues somewhere. If he doesn’t, then that would indicate that MLB, not the Cubs, has deemed him not quite competitive.
Besides Quade’s impressive success under very difficult circumstances in 2010, I think the Cubs are definitely at a point where hiring a big name manager doesn’t make much sense. The whole idea of a four year commitment to any manager makes me scratch my head, but this is particularly true in a transition time where you want to keep your roster (players, managers and coaching staff) as liquid as possible. In other words, I’m saying that one reason I like the idea of hiring Quade is that he will be easier to fire than someone like Sandberg.
I’m tired of watching the slow smolder as a manager plays out his long contract, when it’s clear that he is no longer effective and that he won’t be re-hired.. If there were some huge advantage to locking up a big name guy, I’d say sure, sign him up for four or six or ten years. But there isn’t.
David Geiser
by dvdmgsr on Oct 20, 2010 9:06 AM CDT reply actions 2 recs
Say this for Quade
With all those minor league stops, I doubt he’ll get lost if he decides to drive from Chicago to Cincinnati for a series.
"They come to see me strike out, hit a home run, or run into a fence. I try to accommodate them at least one way every game." - Gorman Thomas
He could probably navigate it by landmarks
And tell you the best diners along the way.
"Who ever heard of the Cubs losing a game they had to have?" -Frank Chance
"If [Ruth] had [called his shot], I would have knocked him down with the next pitch." -Charlie Root
And when the Interstate is closed
He’s better than GPS.
"They come to see me strike out, hit a home run, or run into a fence. I try to accommodate them at least one way every game." - Gorman Thomas
by RiskyBusiness on Oct 20, 2010 10:36 AM CDT up reply actions
My thoughts are
if you’re going to reward Sandberg for taking it like a man and getting shuttled around the Minors, then you’d be ignoring the map above, which isn’t right. I love Sandberg and he’s probably my favorite Cub of all time (shows my age as being young), but this is the right decision.
"You just don't know understand how frustrating this is"- Kevin Borseth
Ryno
I don’t want to give anyone nightmares.
But what if Joey Cora gets a managing job and the southsiders need a bench coach?
Ozzie and Ryno are friends from back when they both played here in the 80s and 90s.
Do Ozzie and/or Kenny (I’d love to see Kenny Williams as the Cubs GM) give Ryno a call?
And do the South Siders accept him? The idiots won’t but the baseball fans will want to see what he does.
Formerly known as cubstoseriesby100. Thanks Al for letting me change my outdated screenname.
by puckishcubsfan on Oct 20, 2010 10:57 AM CDT reply actions
Listened to this last night
There’s a song by Terry Cashman (of Willie Mickey and the Duke fame) called Third Base coach.
Made me think of Quade.
Actually Cashman has a series of songs about life of a baseball player.
My favorite is Good Enough To Dream which is about basically the best of those who never make it.
The first is Ballplayer about young players.
The other is about scouts called Diamond In The Rough.
Formerly known as cubstoseriesby100. Thanks Al for letting me change my outdated screenname.
by puckishcubsfan on Oct 20, 2010 11:09 AM CDT reply actions
Learned something new today Al.
I was surprised to see a Grand Rapids stop in 1996 for Mike Quade as the Whitecaps manager. They have been a Tigers affiliate for so long I didn’t know the first three years that the ’Caps were affiliated with the Athletics.
There are 108 beads in a Catholic rosary and there are 108 stitches in a baseball. Who says baseball isn't a religion?
Me either
I live in Grand Rapids, and if the ‘Caps hadn’t had a celebration of their history this year, I wouldn’t have known. A lot of friends have told me Quade managed the Whitecaps, but I could never find anything about him in the programs. Cool stuff.
Those last 37 games
Others have said this better: Results of the last 37 games are what got Quade the job over Sandberg. Those games meant nothing for the season, but they were highly significant in getting Quade the job. Among the 3 finalists, if the Cubs wanted the candidate with the major league managing experience complete with awards and endorsements, then they should have hired Wedge. Wedge did the right thing in accepting the Mariners’ offer. Once he went off the market, the Cubs made their announcement.
Any of the candidates could probably have been a good enough manager. I wanted a low profile guy from the get-go thinking the alternative provides little more than a false sense of security. When the Cubs have a good team, a manager can get his profile raised or confirm his winning reputation. None of those things can happen when the team isn’t winning.
Going forward, Ryne Sandberg is better off with another franchise and I hope one of them hires him.
Don't break your back jumpin' on the Quade bandwagon Al
I am surprised that you aren’t a little more critical about the hire, considering how much you touted Sandberg. Then again, you probably watched 35 more games where Quade was the manager than I did, so maybe you saw something that changed your mind.
I did like the way the team played under Quade.
Though I was in Sandberg’s corner, clearly, Quade did earn the chance. I’ll give Quade a lot of credit for that.
"You can observe a lot just by watching." ~ Yogi Berra
Quade's Our New Manager--HOOOOOOORAY
I am just thrilled Q has been selected as our new skipper. He has paid his dues, and I think he will do great for the Cubs. You had to pull for the guy; he did it the old fashioned way, he earned it!!!!!!!!!! Keep bringing up the young guys. The 5 Cs have a bright future with the Cubs.
All the best Al
Neal
Who's the 5th one?
Castillo? Caridad?
"Who ever heard of the Cubs losing a game they had to have?" -Frank Chance
"If [Ruth] had [called his shot], I would have knocked him down with the next pitch." -Charlie Root
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