Charlie Manuel

Charlie Manuel
Charlie Manuel
Charlie Manuel.jpg
Manuel as manager for the Phillies on March 11, 2007
Philadelphia Phillies — No. 41
Outfielder / Manager
Born: January 4, 1944 (1944-01-04) (age 67)
Northfork, West Virginia
Batted: Left Threw: Right
Professional debut
MLB: April 8, 1969 for the Minnesota Twins
NPB: 1976 for the Tokyo Yakult Swallows
Last professional appearance
MLB: September 21, 1975 for the Los Angeles Dodgers
NPB: 1981 for the Tokyo Yakult Swallows
NPB statistics
Batting average     .303
Home runs     189
Runs batted in     491
Teams

As Player

As Manager
Career highlights and awards

Charles Fuqua Manuel, Jr. (born January 4, 1944 in Northfork, West Virginia) is a former Major League Baseball and Nippon Professional Baseball outfielder and current Major League Baseball manager of the Philadelphia Phillies. His team won the 2008 World Series in five games over the Tampa Bay Rays.

Contents

Early life

Although he was born in West Virginia, his family was actually living in Virginia at that time, and he lived in Virginia throughout his childhood. He was born in an automobile while his mother, June, was visiting her mother.[1] His father, Charles Sr., was a Pentecostal preacher, and the family lived in Wythe and Grayson Counties until they settled in Buena Vista when Charlie, the third of 11 children and the oldest son, was 12.[1]

He became a four-sport star at Parry McCluer High School in Buena Vista, playing baseball, football, basketball and track and field, captaining the baseball and basketball teams. His first love was basketball and he had received scholarship offers in that sport, but his plans and his life would dramatically change just before his high school graduation.

In April 1963, his father, who had been ill with diabetes and heart problems, committed suicide, leaving behind a suicide note asking that Charlie, who was already married with a child, take care of his mother and siblings.[1][2] He turned down his basketball scholarship offers, including one to the University of Pennsylvania,[3] to consider offers from the Pittsburgh Pirates, Detroit Tigers, Minnesota Twins, and New York Yankees, ultimately signing with the Twins out of high school in 1963 for $30,000.

Playing career

Major league career

Manuel played from 1969 to 1972 with the Minnesota Twins and in 1974 and 1975 with the Los Angeles Dodgers, primarily as a pinch-hitter and left fielder.

Japanese baseball

Manuel's baseball career took off when he left the United States to play in Japan. Wildly popular for his tenacious style of play and his power-hitting abilities, Manuel was dubbed "Aka-Oni" (The Red Devil) by fans and teammates.

In 1977, he hit .316 with 42 home runs and 97 runs batted in, helping the Central League's Yakult Swallows reach second place for the first time in franchise history. In 1978, he hit .312 with 39 homers and 103 RBI, powering the Swallows to their first pennant and the Japan Championship Series.

Playing for the Pacific League's Kintetsu Buffaloes, Manuel hit 25 home runs in the first eight weeks of the 1979 season.[4] He was on pace to break the Japanese record of 16 home runs in a month.[5] Most Japanese felt it would be an insult for a foreigner to hold that record.

At a game against the Lotte Orions on June 19, 1979, he was beaned by a pitch from Soroku Yagisawa, effectively stopping Manuel from taking that record.[5] The pitch broke Manuel's jaw in six places. He wore a dental bridge as a result of an earlier accident in the minor leagues. There was nothing for doctors to wire together, so they inserted three metal plates in his head and removed nerves from his face.[4] Manuel was discharged from the hospital after six weeks and immediately began playing again, against the advice of doctors and worried family. The Buffaloes were struggling to stay in the Pacific League lead and had never won a pennant. To protect his jaw, Manuel wore a helmet equipped with a football facemask. He wore the helmet for the first few games but stopped using it because it obscured his vision at the plate.[6] He finished the 1979 season with 37 home runs to win the home run title. He led Kintetsu to its first pennant win. He was voted the Most Valuable Player, the first American to receive the honor since 1964, hitting .324 with 37 home runs and 94 RBI.

A year later, Manuel shocked Japanese baseball by leaving for a week to attend his son's high school graduation in Virginia. His contract allowed it, but team officials were incredulous that Manuel would leave the team two games out of first place with three weeks to play in the first half of the season.[7] Manuel returned to lead the team to the second-half championship and the pennant. He finished the season hitting .324, with 48 home runs and 129 RBI. It was the best season for an American player in Japan to that point. Manuel won no awards that season.[8]

In 1981, he returned to the Yakult Swallows after being released by Kintetsu over contract negotiations.

Manuel finished his successful run in Japan with a .303 career average, 189 home runs and 491 RBI. He was considered one of the best imported baseball players to Japan in those days, along with brothers Leron and Leon Lee and Randy Bass.

During his time in Japan, Manuel learned to speak Japanese. The language skill and experience in Japan was useful in managing players such as So Taguchi and Tadahito Iguchi.

Managing career

Minnesota Twins and Cleveland Indians minor league manager

Ultimately, injuries, including the beaning in Japan, cut Manuel's playing days short. He returned to the United States to work as a scout for the Minnesota Twins organization before turning to coaching. As a minor league manager for nine years in the Twins' (1983–1987) and Cleveland Indians' (1990–1993) farm systems, Manuel compiled a 610–588 (.509) record, winning the Pacific Coast League and International League championships in his final two seasons (1992–1993). He was named Manager of the Year three times (1984, 1992, 1993) and managed the IL All-Star team in 1993.

Cleveland Indians manager

Manuel returned to the Majors in 1988 as the Indians' hitting coach (1988–1989, 1994–1999), where under his tutelage, the Tribe led the American League in runs three times (1994–1995, 1999) and set a franchise record in 1999 with 1,009 runs, becoming the first team to score 1,000 runs since the 1950 Boston Red Sox. The club also led the league in home runs in 1994 and 1995. From 2000 to 2002, he served as the Indians' manager, leading the team to the American League Central Division title in 2001.

He was fired as manager of the Cleveland Indians on July 12, 2002 over a contract dispute.

Philadelphia Phillies manager

2004–2006

Shortly after he was fired as manager for the Cleveland Indians, Manuel was hired by the Phillies as special assistant to the general manager. After the 2004 season, Manuel was hired as the club's 51st manager, replacing Larry Bowa.[9] In the 2005 season, Manuel and the Phillies went 88–74, only one game back of the Wild Card.

In 2006, Manuel and the Phillies finished just short of the playoffs once again, this time three games back of the wild card. However, the season did have certain positives that boded well for next season. Second-year slugger Ryan Howard hit a franchise record 58 home runs, second baseman Chase Utley was named a starter in the 2006 MLB All-Star Game, and rookie pitcher Cole Hamels showed progress and the potential that he could one day become the club's ace.

2007

The team got off to a slow start again in 2007 (in 2005, they opened at 9–12; in 2006, 6–10). They began the season with a 3–9 record and during the Phillies' post-game press conference following the team's 8–1 loss to the New York Mets on April 17, 2007, Philadelphia radio personality Howard Eskin repeatedly questioned Manuel why he did not challenge his players. Eskin, a controversial afternoon drive host on local sports-talk station WIP-610, had criticized Manuel since the manager's hiring three years earlier.[10] The Phillies proceeded to lose two of their next three games after the confrontation before going on a five-game winning streak. After the streak, the Phillies took another step back, winning only 5 of their next 13 games. The Philles were still one game below .500 on July 19 and only four games over .500 on August 25. From August 25 through the end of the season the Phillies went 23–11 to overtake the Mets.

Manuel's Phillies battled injuries all season, including losing newly acquired pitcher Freddy García for the season. Howard, Utley, and Hamels also missed significant playing time. Hamels led the pitching staff with a 15–5 record, while Jimmy Rollins set the Major League Baseball record for at-bats in a season with 716 through all 162 games played, as well as being named NL MVP. In a dramatic finale to the season, the Phillies captured the National League East title from the collapsing Mets, but were swept in the first round of the playoffs by the Colorado Rockies. Manuel finished second in balloting for the National League Manager of the Year Award for 2007.[11]

2008–2009

The 2008 season started out much like 2005 through 2007, the Phillies once again got off to a slow start with a record of 8 wins and 10 losses. They recovered quickly after their slow start to go over the .500 mark on April 24. They peaked at 22 games over the .500 mark on the final day of the season, winning 92 games and earning 1st place in the NL East for the 2nd consecutive year. On October 29, Charlie Manuel guided the 2008 Phillies to their second world title. It was his first World Series ring after years of close calls (including the 1997 Cleveland Indians). He was voted by fans as MLB "This Year in Baseball Awards" Manager of the Year.[12] Manuel reached a contract agreement with the Phils on December 9, 2008 to keep him with the team through the 2011 season. On October 21, 2009, Manuel became the first manager in franchise history to lead the Phillies to two consecutive World Series appearances. It was the first time a National League team won back-to-back pennants since the 1995–96 Atlanta Braves. During the 2009 World Series, Manuel was criticized for not pitching Cliff Lee in Game 4, a game the Phillies eventually lost.[13] He defended his decision by noting that Lee had never pitched on three days' rest before. Manuel finished sixth in balloting for the 2009 National League Manager of the Year Award.[14]

2010–2011

In 2010, Manuel managed the Phillies to their fourth consecutive NL East title.[15] The Phillies became the third NL team in history to play in the postseason in four consecutive seasons, joining the Braves (1991–2005, excluding 1994) and the New York Giants (1921–1924).[16] The Phillies finished the season at 97–65; it was the first time in franchise history that Philadelphia had completed a season with Major League Baseball's best record.[17] In November, the Rotary Club of Pittsburgh named Manuel the recipient of its Chuck Tanner Major League Baseball Manager of the Year Award. In September 2011, Manuel again led the Phillies to the NL East title, their fifth consecutive in as many years, and quickest post-season clinch ever: at game #150.[18] During the sweep of the final series against the Atlanta Braves on September 26–28, records were set. First on the 26th, with the Phillies' 4-2 victory, he became the second manager in Phillies' history to manager a team to at least 100 wins in a season, after Danny Ozark during back-to-back 101 win seasons in 1976 and 1977.[19][20] The next day, with the Phillies' 7-1 victory, Manuel moved into a franchise-record tie with Gene Mauch with 645 regular-season victories.[19] In the final game of the season with a victory in 13 innings, he led the Phillies to a franchise-record 102 regular season wins. With the victory he picked up his 646th win, setting a new Phillies' managerial record for victories and assuring that the Phillies would face the St. Louis Cardinals who defeated them in the NLDS.

Personal life

Manuel has survived a heart attack, quadruple bypass surgery, a blocked and infected colon, and kidney cancer.[21] During his time with the Indians, he worked in the dugout with a colostomy bag beneath his jacket. Manuel's mother June died October 10, 2008, at age 87 in Buena Vista, Virginia. She had suffered a heart attack earlier in the week. Because of the Phillies' 2008 NLCS five-game win, he was able to attend his mother's funeral. He currently has a fiancée named Missy.[22]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c Berman, Mark (2008-10-22). "The Phillies' Charlie Manuel: Buena Vista dream to big leagues". The Roanoke Times. http://www.roanoke.com/news/roanoke/wb/181270. Retrieved 2008-12-07. 
  2. ^ Mandel, Ken (2008-10-16). "Mom on Manuel's mind after clincher". MLB.com. http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20081015&content_id=3623741&vkey=ps2008news&fext=.jsp&c_id=mlb. Retrieved 2008-12-07. 
  3. ^ Manuel gets one last reminder that Mom's always right ESPN.com
  4. ^ a b Whiting, Robert (1990). You Gotta Have Wa. Vintage Departures. p. 278. 
  5. ^ a b You Gotta Have Wa, by Robert Whiting, Vintage Departures, 1990, pg 280
  6. ^ You Gotta Have Wa, by Robert Whiting, Vintage Departures, 1990, pg 281
  7. ^ You Gotta Have Wa, by Robert Whiting, Vintage Departures, 1990, pg 282
  8. ^ You Gotta Have Wa, by Robert Whiting, Vintage Departures, 1990, pg 283
  9. ^ "Charlie Manuel Hired to Manage Philadelphia Phillies Baseball Team". http://philadelphia.about.com/od/phillies/a/phillies_2004a.htm. Retrieved 2008-07-25. 
  10. ^ "Howard Eskin vs Charlie Manuel". http://ocsports.shorenewsnow.com/2007/04/18/howard-eskin-vs-charlie-manuel.aspx. Retrieved 2008-07-28. 
  11. ^ "Wedge, Melvin named AL, NL managers of year". http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=3110184. Retrieved 2008-07-25. 
  12. ^ Go to 2008 This Year in Baseball Awards and click on "Manager" for results and video. MLB Advanced Media, L.P. Retrieved 2011-09-05.
  13. ^ Skipping Lee was fatal for the Phillies Yahoo! Sports
  14. ^ "Manuel sixth in NL Manager of the Year voting". Philadelphia Daily News. 2009-11-18. http://www.philly.com/philly/sports/phillies/20091118_Manuel_sixth_in_NL_Manager_of_Year_voting.html. 
  15. ^ Zolecki, Todd (September 27, 2010). "Phour! Phils' NL East dominance continues". Phillies.MLB.com. Major League Baseball. http://philadelphia.phillies.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20100927&content_id=15141884&vkey=recap&fext=.jsp&c_id=phi. Retrieved September 28, 2010. 
  16. ^ Zolecki, Todd (September 27, 2010). "Phils join exclusive NL club with latest berth". Phillies.MLB.com. Major League Baseball. http://philadelphia.phillies.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20100927&content_id=15141886&notebook_id=15147732&vkey=notebook_phi&c_id=phi. Retrieved September 28, 2010. 
  17. ^ Zolecki, Todd (October 3, 2010). "For first time, Phillies finish with best record". Phillies.MLB.com. Major League Baseball. http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20101003&content_id=15371600&notebook_id=15371602&vkey=notebook_phi&c_id=phi. Retrieved October 7, 2010. 
  18. ^ Radano, Mike (September 17, 2011). "High Phive: Phils clinch fifth straight East title". Phillies.MLB.com. Major League Baseball. http://philadelphia.phillies.mlb.com/mlb/gameday/index.jsp?gid=2011_09_17_slnmlb_phimlb_1&mode=wrap#gid=2011_09_17_slnmlb_phimlb_1&mode=recap&c_id=phi. Retrieved September 28, 2011. 
  19. ^ a b Zolecki, Todd (September 27, 2011). "Phils roll, tie franchise record with 101st win". Phillies.MLB.com. Major League Baseball. http://philadelphia.phillies.mlb.com/mlb/gameday/index.jsp?gid=2011_09_27_phimlb_atlmlb_1&mode=recap&c_id=phi. Retrieved September 28, 2011. 
  20. ^ Zolecki, Todd. "Offense keeps clicking; Phils reach 100 wins". Phillies.MLB.com. Major League Baseball. http://philadelphia.phillies.mlb.com/mlb/gameday/index.jsp?gid=2011_09_28_phimlb_atlmlb_1&mode=preview&vkey=preview_web_away&c_id=phi#gid=2011_09_26_phimlb_atlmlb_1&mode=recap&c_id=phi. Retrieved September 28, 2011. 
  21. ^ Robinson, Bill (01 November 2008). "Philadelphia Phillies' skipper has survived long and rocky road". The Marietta Times. http://www.mariettatimes.com/page/content.detail/id/508143/Philadelphia-Phillies--skipper-has-survived-long-and-rocky-road.html. Retrieved 28 September 2011. 
  22. ^ Burrell part of Phils’ big inning Philadelphia Daily News

External links


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужно сделать НИР?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Charlie Manuel — Charlie Manuel …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Charlie (given name) — Charlie Gender unisex Origin Meaning free man Charlie is a given name in English speaking countries, usually a nickname for Charles, which is derived from the Germanic name Karl, meaning free man or of a beastly manner.[1] Charlie is a nickn …   Wikipedia

  • Manuel — Cette page d’homonymie répertorie les différents sujets et articles partageant un même nom. Sur les autres projets Wikimedia : « Manuel », sur le Wiktionnaire (dictionnaire universel) Manuel est un nom propre, un nom commun ou un… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Manuel — Not to be confused with Manual (disambiguation). People Manuel (name) Manuel, a fictional character from the sitcom Fawlty Towers. Charlie Manuel, coach of the Philadelphia Phillies Places Manuel, Valencia, a municipality in the province of… …   Wikipedia

  • Charlie McCreevy — European Commissioner for Internal Market and Services In office 22 November 2004 – 9 February 2010 President José Manuel Barroso …   Wikipedia

  • Charlie Chan in Rio — Directed by Harry Lachman Produced by Sol M. Wurtzel …   Wikipedia

  • Charlie McCreevey — Charlie McCreevy Charlie McCreevy [ˈtʃɑɹli məˈkɹiːvi] (* 30. September 1949 in Sallins, Grafschaft Kildare, Irland) ist ein irischer Politiker und seit November 2004 EU Kommissar für den Binnenmarkt und den Dienstleistungssektor …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Charlie Bell (footballer) — Charlie Bell Personal information Full name Charles Oliver Bell Date of birth 18 May 1894(1 …   Wikipedia

  • Charlie Pasarell — Charlie (Charles Manuel) Pasarell, Jr. (born February 12, 1944, San Juan, Puerto Rico) is a former Puerto Rican tennis player and commentator. Representing the United States as a player, he has been heavily engaged in the administration of the… …   Wikipedia

  • Charlie Brown's All-Stars — Genre Animated TV Special Created by Charles M. Schulz Directed by Bill Melendez Voices of Peter Robbins Sally Dryer Christopher Shea …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
… Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”