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December 23, 2008

On the Beat

Lots of Talk, Little Action

by John Perrotto

Ruben Amaro Jr. is in the minority, and that goes beyond his Latin American heritage. The new Phillies' general manager is one of just three former major league players to currently hold that position in baseball. The others are the White Sox's Ken Williams and the Athletics' Billy Beane.

It was once common for former players to be GMs, as talent evaluation skills were what owners looked for when hiring someone to oversee baseball operations, but with the financial component of the game becoming more important each year and statistical evaluation of players now the norm, the modern-day GM tends to be someone who has a business background. Furthermore, few current players aspire to becoming GMs; the all-encompassing job consists of long hours with little time off, and most GMs make less money than the majority of players on their roster.

Amaro admits that he didn't give any consideration to being a GM during his eight-year career as a reserve outfielder with the Angels (1991), Phillies (1992-93, 1996-98), and Indians (1994-95). "I tried to extend my playing career as long as I could, because I loved the game and really enjoyed playing," Amaro said. "When it became apparent I didn't have much longer as a player, I started thinking about staying in the game, but it was always as a coach or a manager. Being a GM is just not something I thought about. Sometimes though, things have a funny way of working out."

During spring training of 1998, Phillies GM Ed Wade asked Amaro if he would like to become an assistant GM at season's end. Amaro had played baseball at Stanford while earning a degree in human biology from the prestigious university. Wade felt that he was the perfect player to transition into a front-office job. "Ed and I talked one day in spring training, and he told me he had not worked with an assistant and asked if I would be interested in being an assistant," Amaro recalled. "My jaw had to drop to the floor. It totally caught me off guard, I never expected anything like that. I wanted to keep playing, but I had a bad year and Ed and I talked quite a bit that season about what my responsibilities would be if I decided to retire and take the job. I talked to my family and we decided it was the best route to go, because a door like that wasn't going to be open very long. Accepting Ed's offer and deciding to attend Stanford are the two best decisions I've ever made."

Amaro was retained by the organization when Pat Gillick replaced Wade prior to the 2005 season. The 71-year-old Gillick stepped down when his three-year contract expired at the end of last season, which happened to coincide with the Phillies' first World Series title since 1980, and just the second in their 126-year history. President Dave Montgomery promoted Amaro to the GM job five days after the Phillies' victory over the Reds, choosing him over Mike Arbuckle, the Phillies' other assistant GM. "The most difficult part is I have such a tough act to follow, because Pat Gillick is one of the greatest GMs in the history of the game," said Amaro, mindful that Gillick had spent 32 years in that role with the Blue Jays, Orioles, Mariners, and Phillies. "At the same time, I feel very prepared to be in this job, because I worked with two outstanding general managers in Ed Wade and Pat. I learned so much from both of them, and both left such a positive impact on the franchise. Ed did a great job of putting the core of our team together and Pat made some great moves to add the finishing touches, and it all culminated with a World Series victory."