This. Also, look at the number of good major league managers who were catchers that had a reputation for calling a good game and managing a pitching staff. Mike Scioscia is the first name that comes to mind.
Managers in baseball don't mean much. I would rather hire an unknown than a re-tread. So good hire i guess. But if the organization doesn't improve he will be Mills 2.0, can't compete with bad players.
So does anyone have any reasons to be excited about this guy? I've never even heard of him. I heard one of the Astros radio guys say in an interview a few days ago that whoever they hire for manager this coming year is a guy they want for the next 10 years, which seems excessive. Maybe that is just lip service, but if that's the case they need to get someone they feel very comfortable with because it sounds like they are going to give them a lot of rope since the team is still so crappy.
Astros to make manager announcement at 10 a.m. Posted on September 26, 2012 at 11:51 pm by David Barron The Astros have scheduled a 10 a.m. news conference today, prompting speculation that they may be prepared to announce the name of their new manager. The team said Astros owner Jim Crane and general manager Jeff Luhnow will be on hand and that “an announcement will be made.” Team officials say they have interviewed nine candidates for the job and that they were zeroing in on three to four top contenders with emphasis on two possibilities. That group includes Rays bench coach Dave Martinez, Red Sox bench coach Tim Bogar, interim manager Tony DeFrancesco and Nationals third-base coach Bo Porter. The Red Sox are the only team of the three represented among the leading candidates that has the day off. The Astros also have an off day before their season-ending road trip to Milwaukee and Chicago.
If the Astros's next manager is coming from a non-playoff team, the choice might be down to Bogar or DeFrancesco. I am assuming that the Astros would wait until the Rays or the Nationals got eliminated to announce one of the other two.
Bo Porter, Nationals 3rd Base Coach Lives here in Houston 2005: Class A Greensboro Grasshoppers hitting coach 2006: Class A-Advanced Jamestown Jammers Manager(33-39) 2007-2009: Florida Marlins' 3rd Base Coach/outfield and baserunning instructor 2010: Diamondbacks 3rd Base Coach; promoted to bench coach in July 2010 2010(Nov)-2012: Nationals 3rd Base Coach/outfield and baserunning instructor
Porter reportedly named next Astros manager By Brian McTaggart / MLB.com | 09/27/2012 1:19 AM EST HOUSTON -- Nationals third-base coach Bo Porter has been chosen to be the Astros' next manager, according to a report. The Astros have called a 10 a.m. CT news conference for Thursday morning at Minute Maid Park, where it's believed they'll unveil their new manager. Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports.com and MLB Network reported in a tweet late Wednesday that Porter was going to be named the manager. Astros team officials couldn't be reached for comment. Porter, who lives in the Houston area and is in his second season as third-base coach for the Nationals, was in Houston to interview two weeks. The 40-year-old, who had previously interviewed for the Marlins' managerial job, will stay with the Nationals until the end of the postseason, the report said. Tony DeFrancesco has been serving as interim manager for the past month following the dismissal of Brad Mills. Prior to joining the Nationals, Porter was the third-base coach for the D-backs for one year, and later served briefly as bench coach in Arizona under Kirk Gibson. Porter played three seasons in the Major Leagues with the Cubs, A's and Rangers from 1999-2001. He began his coaching career in 2005 as the hitting coach for Class A Greensboro, and later served as manager at Class A Jamestown in '06. He was the Marlins' third-base coach and baserunning instructor from 2007-09. Earlier in the day, Astros general manager Jeff Luhnow said his goal was to find a skipper for the long haul. In other words, he wants a manager who will have what it takes to see the club's rebuilding process through to the point the team is competitive again. "That's the idea," Luhnow said. "That's why we spent so much time and energy on this process. We're looking to find a manager that's going to take the Houston Astros from where they are today, two years in a row losing more than 100 games, to the point of our goal, which is to win multiple championships. "I'd like to be here when that happens, and I'd like the manager we hire to be here when that happens. We're all motivated to get there. We don't want to hire someone with the idea he's going to be here for one phase of it. We want someone to grow with the players and grow with the organization."
Hey Porter! Hey Porter! What time did ya say? How much longer will it be till I can see the light of day?
I am curious about a couple things that maybe some folks here can help on. 1) Why the rush? Or was it rushed in others opinion? Seems like we had all winter to make this decision and yet, we not only make it quickly but give the award to someone on team still in contention. 2) I heard it said somewhere that the list started at 45. I think 9 were interviewed. So 36 were dismissed THAT quickly? 3) Perhaps they were just SOOOO impressed they felt like they had to make the move right away (no sleight intended). 4) Was Porter on someone elses radar?
Many believe he was the favorite for the Marlins job as well. If they like him, no reason not to get it done, especially if they feared losing him to someone else.
1) Other teams will be hiring managers too. Luhnow has explained the brass's thought process in detail. 2) Started with a pool (Riggleman, Bowa, other retreads. They gave Ausmus a courtesy interview too), whittled to 9, finalized at 4-5 (Martinez, Bogar, Tony D, Porter, ???), picked 1. Why is this strange? Isn't that how every job search in the history of modern job searches has worked? 3) Read the articles. They didn't let me sit in on the interviewing committee (Biggio did), so that's all we have to go by 4) Yes
BTW, interesting tidbit from 2 years ago: Bo Porter interviewed with the Pirates for their managerial vacancy and was considered one of the two favorites for the Marlins job. The Nationals announced Tuesday that Porter will be the third base coach on Jim Riggleman's staff next season. The timing of the news is somewhat surprising. The Marlins were thought to favor Porter over interim manager Edwin Rodriguez last month and even offered him the job before sticking with Rodriguez during the season. http://www.aolnews.com/2010/11/02/bo-porter-joins-nats-coaching-staff-out-of-running-in-pittsburg/ Did you also know that Bo Porter moonlights as a guitar picker out of Austin? Me neither. He'll be at the Salt Lick in Driftwood this Saturday. http://www.boporter.com/
