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October 22, 2007

You Could Look It Up

Joe Torre in a Box

by Steven Goldman

In 1984, looking to find a way to characterize managers beyond the then-meager statistical record, Bill James introduced the “manager in a box” questionnaire. Assuming one answers the questions accurately, James’s list of questions remains a good way of making visible those aspects of a manager’s background and habits that he may not carry on his sleeve, but nonetheless influence the way games in his charge play out.

James later used an expanded version of his manager in a box questionnaire as the basis of his 1997 book Bill James Guide to Baseball Managers. At that time, Torre had yet to become a historically important manager and the owner of four World Series titles, so James didn’t bother to profile him. The book was never updated, possibly due to lack of interest (there was no paperback release, and if I recall correctly a quick remainder on the hardcover). I first tried my hand at correcting for the book’s timing several years ago, but the Torre era in New York still had a way to run. Now that it’s over, we can attempt a more definitive profile.

YEAR OF BIRTH: 1940

MANAGERS FOR WHOM HE PLAYED IN THE MAJORS: Charlie Dressen, Birdie Tebbetts, Bobby Bragan, Billy Hitchcock, Ken Silvestri, Lum Harris, Red Schoendienst, Yogi Berra, Roy McMillan, Joe Frazier.

OTHERS BY WHOM HE WAS INFLUENCED: Older brother Frank Torre, a part-time major league first baseman for seven years. He also looked up to the intense Hall of Fame pitcher Bob Gibson, who was his teammate from 1969 to 1974, and later his pitching coach with the Mets, Braves, and Cardinals. It’s also likely that Torre defined himself in opposition to his father, “a volatile New York City police detective who slapped the Torre kids around every chance he got,” in the words of Maury Allen. Torre was anything but volatile, and it’s probable that whatever George Steinbrenner tried to do to bully Torre, he had already seen worse. If there was a negative side to this, it’s that Torre was sometimes patient to the point of passivity. Torre often spoke admiringly of the UCLA coach John Wooden, who wrote, “Success is peace of mind which is a direct result of self-satisfaction in knowing you did your best to become the best you are capable of becoming.” Peace of mind loomed large in Torre’s outlook as a manager.