Playoffs Or Bust?: Molitor's Murky Future

It's not like Jake will have a bunch of really tough decisions to make about his brother.  You think Joe will get pissed if he has to sit vs. a lefty every so often?  

Still, I think Doug M is my favorite candidate.  

Just say no to internal options. Hire the best, and the best can't be found within the organization.

I feel like the "Cheap people we already know and want to support" ship has sailed.

It's not like Jake will have a bunch of really tough decisions to make about his brother. You think Joe will get pissed if he has to sit vs. a lefty every so often?

 

Still, I think Doug M is my favorite candidate.

And even if Joe doesn't like it, Jake is the older brother.

From someone with younger brothers, it's not going to bother Jake one bit to irritate his little bro.

I don't think a playoffs or bust ultimatum is fair to Molitor, when the team is on the cusp of a possible wild card spot or better and Derek Falvey trades away a starting pitcher and the closer.

huh. well, bias happens every day in work, conscious or not. friends, people you don't like, people that you don't know.......and conflicts happen. And imagine all the second guessing from others on every move about Joe (including, most importantly, the rest of the team). It isn't just how they act, but how everyone else thinks they are acting. This is super, super, common in business, to have issues with how teams perceive a manager treats another team member, imagine how it would be with a relative. I mean, this is management 101 stuff that you have to think about every day with a team.

Well I guess every group is different.

I've brought 2 different family members aboard in the 7 years that I've owned my business and the only awkwardness it brought was remembering to call my father by his name while on the job.

Like I said, it depends how professional those involved are. If you are open, honest and fair 100% of the time, your team will never doubt your intentions.

If someone is not a good leader, well, in that case it won't matter, they'll fail either way.

huh. well, bias happens every day in work, conscious or not. friends, people you don't like, people that you don't know.......and conflicts happen. And imagine all the second guessing from others on every move about Joe (including, most importantly, the rest of the team). It isn't just how they act, but how everyone else thinks they are acting. This is super, super, common in business, to have issues with how teams perceive a manager treats another team member, imagine how it would be with a relative. I mean, this is management 101 stuff that you have to think about every day with a team.

Could not agree more.  Why make a move with significant potential to create a problem.  If they really want Jake Mauer, craft a plan to put him in that seat in 2019. 

That's not quite apples to apples there. At the end of the day it doesn't matter if you or I or anyone outside the clubhouse questions the managers moves. If Jake is open and honest with the other 24 guys on the roster that's all that matters. If "random scout A" or "season ticket salesman B" questions Jake or anyone else in a management position who cares? The manager's job is to get the best out of the 25 guys on the roster at any given time.

A lot of this, I assume, is based off the idea that Jake would continue hitting Joe in the heart of the order. What if Jake comes in and tells Joe he's hitting 7th cuz he's just not fit to hit 3rd anymore? Would there be concern then? As long as the manager is clear with his bosses and the team on why he's doing things the rest shouldn't matter. So it really is more like a small, family owned business in that sense.

Your family business is not constantly scrutinized by the media and your decisions are also not discussed on the internet by thousands of people who think they know how to run the business better than you do.  You don't have public figures for employees and I doubt the minimum salary of your employees is in excess of $500K.  There is nothing about managing a major league professional sports team that is more like a small, family owned business.

You can't see how that is different in a small, family owned business, vs a very public company like a baseball team? And yes, we have very different experiences. In all 4 places I've worked over the last 30 years, people questioned moves of management. Over and over. Nearly every week in some companies. But then, I work with dozens and dozens of management types and their people.

I think a 25 man, plus a few coaches, locker room, is actually much more akin to a small family business than it is a corporate structure.

I think in this case it wouldn't be an issue, and not even a little bit, IMO.

If Joe was an up and comer, then maybe I could see a problem, but at this point in his career - he's made his money, he's had a full career.

Im just struggling to see a specific (people have only given vague, general feelings) decision that could cause an issue.

In baseball, the stats are there for everyone to see, so I think it's a lot easier for everyone to be mostly on the same page, without second guessing ("what does the boss see in this guy that nobody else does").

Most of these guys have played for Jake at one time or another. If he's the leader that everyone raves about, I just don't think it would be an issue.

Of course, I could be wrong, but I think Jake has always had aspirations to be an MLB manager.

That being the case, I don't think he would stay in our organization this long if he got the feeling he would always be a non candidate as long as Joe is here.

Your family business is not constantly scrutinized by the media and your decisions are also not discussed on the internet by thousands of people who think they know how to run the business better than you do. You don't have public figures for employees and I doubt the minimum salary of your employees is in excess of $500K. There is nothing about managing a major league professional sports team that is more like a small, family owned business.

Well most of those things have nothing to do with whether there would be a conflict of interest or not.

Example: You don't make decisions based on what fan forums are saying, that's just noise.

Cal Ripken Sr managed Jr for a year or so - in Ripken's prime. I'm not sure this would be any different. The only difference is that there are more "talking heads" out there than now. btw, not really advocating for Jake. Just consider the "conflict" to be a non-issue.

As a Minnesotan, I like the cool, calm demeanor of Molitor. Makes him seem more cerebral than he is, when I listen to him talk.

I want a players' guy. Maybe that's Dougie M. I don't like Molitor's short leash for young players, although it has turned a rebuild season not a contention season.

Hell, what do I know....

Pretty hard to let him go if this season continues to trend positively.

Managing a professional baseball team involves dealing with 25 players and a handful of coaches. That's a small business. Every manager in baseball is scrutinized by the media and fans. If you can't handle that then you weren't the person for the job in the first place. To suggest that Jake Mauer shouldn't be hired simply because his brother is on the team is to suggest that Jake Mauer couldn't manage 25 players and a handful of coaches and their opinions about him and his brother. That is managing a small business with a family member involved, not running a corporation. The manager is not the president of baseball operations or GM or owner or any of that. His job is simply to get the best out of the 25 players he has.

​This article and message board is literally based around us questioning the current manager of the Twins. A number of people on this site question the use of Joe Mauer already. If Falvey and Levine are going to make all their decisions on hires, fires, signings, etc. based off what the media and fans say and not what they've decided is the best answer then it's time for a new front office already.

This is not only a different context, it’s a different discussion.  The number of direct reports is completely irrelevant to the question of … Is the Minnesota Twins Organization more like a small business or a large / high profile business.   If I manage a small group at Exxon, is that like a small business.  Perhaps you meant to make a different point but the size of the group managed is simply not relevant to the stature or type of business.

The Twins went "outside" to redirect their organization, this trend should continue.  The "old gang" created the mess continue the change.  The public is looking for excitement--not "hope". The "ya never know" mentality has been worn-out.  The new standard in professional sports is the "super team"--and that's what will be needed to create the requisite excitement.

There is no mean for 1-run games win % to regress towards. It is not BABIP, HR/FB, or LOB%

 

Good teams win close games. Bad teams lose them. That's that. No regression.

I think this is backwards actually.

I think good teams and bad teams are typically right around .500 in close games, but good teams blow teams out more often than they get blown out.