Orioles' Mazzilli fired

[riverside sluggers]

Orioles fire Mazzilli, appoint Perlozzo interim manager

 

August 4, 2005

ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) -- The Baltimore Orioles fired manager Lee Mazzilli on Thursday with the team mired in an eight-game losing streak and still reeling from Rafael Palmeiro's positive drug test. The Orioles have made bench coach Sam Perlozzo the interim manager for the remainder of the season. The announcement was made just two hours before Baltimore's game at Anaheim. Coming into Thursday, the Orioles were 51-56 and 10 1/2 games behind first-place Boston in the AL East.

 

The Orioles finished 78-84 in 2004, Mazzilli's first season, and this year appeared on course to ending a run of seven straight losing seasons. Baltimore got off a solid start and on April 23 gained sole possession of first place in the AL East, ahead of the defending champion Boston Red Sox and the New York Yankees. The Orioles stayed on top through June 23. Baltimore was in second place, just one game back, on July 15 -- the day Palmeiro became the fourth player in baseball history to collect at least 3,000 hits and 500 homers.

 

But Baltimore then went on the skid that cost Mazzilli his job. From July 16 through Wednesday, the Orioles lost 16 of 18 -- including their last eight in a row -- to fall into fourth place, 10 1/2 games behind division-leading Boston.

[YankeeDoodle]

I think the only reason for firing a coach/manager during the season is if you think you can still win with someone else steering the ship. And when I look at the O's I think the opportunity has passed, for this year at least. I know that a lot of people were surprised that Baltimore held onto first for as long as they did, and so even if they're in free fall now, I'm going to give that team their props.

[soxie thefangirl]

There is no way they could climb back up to the top at this point. Not with everything that has gone wrong for them. But firing Lee seems so dumb to me.

[YankeeDoodle]

I see a merge-thread time!

 

Well, it does show fans of the Orioles that their front office wants to compete? Tough division to do so. With Raffygate going on, maybe this move was also made in part to take some heat off that?

[soxie thefangirl]

I don't see them competing.

[YankeeDoodle]

They have Mora, Tejada and Roberts (one of the best DP combos), Byrnes has been hot upon arrival. B.J. Ryan's a solid closer. Starting pitching has been a concern. It's not like they're the D-Rays. Well, with the exception of Tampa Bay, Toronto and Baltimore make an effort. J.P. Riccardi seems like he's on to something in Toronto, in the long-run.

 

Maybe if they weren't stuck in a division boasting the two teams with the highest payrolls in all of MLB, who are too absorbed in their own rivalry, they could compete regularly. I can see the frustration of fans of the other teams in the AL East (yeah, they exist). For their team to be atop the AL East standing, even for a little while, that's exciting! Well I would be exuberant if the Yankees regained the top.

[Sox fan in Tex]

You have a great team, and you do ABSOLUTELY nothing to add to the ballclub's strengths before the trading deadline. Mazzilli deserved to go.

[BigPapiEnFuego]

He's not supposed to add anything. That's GM work. Fire the GM then.

[Sox fan in Tex]

My mistake, Papi. I had my facts mixed up, and now I know that Mazzilli was the manager not the GM. I guess the argument here is that the O's are tired of not competing. They have a fantastic team and over the last seven years the best they've done is a 3rd place AL East finish. A move clearly has to be made.

[26 to 6]

hopefully we can add Mazzo to our coaching staff again. He would be a terrific asset to the team, especially when we play Baltimore. Wouldnt be surprised to see him back on the staff, possibly knocking White out of his spot as the 1B Coach or being like a "co-bench coach" with Girardi.

[therealsoxGM]

heck it was very unfair to fire lee mazzilli ....he was in a lose/lose situtation because he had his GM paying Sammy Sosa(.239, 13 HR, 40 RBIs) 17 million dollars this season..shoulda fired the GM for getting that roid sucking cork bat using freak...coulda used the money for pitching...and it's not his fault either that raffy was on the roids...fire youre players...not the mangers...they can't play for you

[YankeeDoodle]

hopefully we can add Mazzo to our coaching staff again. He would be a terrific asset to the team, especially when we play Baltimore. Wouldnt be surprised to see him back on the staff, possibly knocking White out of his spot as the 1B Coach or being like a "co-bench coach" with Girardi.

What we need is a pitching coach...*whistles*

 

Ok, so if we don't "fire" StottleFIRED (sorry, couldn't resist), eventually he's going to retire.

 

McCarthy-Torre-Girardi, has a certain ring to it.

 

Anyways, that's a discussion for another time. I read that no Orioles manager has lasted more than four years since Earl Weaver ended his 14-year tenure in '82.

 

NY Times article on Torre extending his support to Mazzilli:

 

Torre Offers Mazzilli Support and a Shoulder

[yankeessuck013]

theo! sign mazzilli as a 3rd base coach!

[CrespoBlows]

theo! sign mazzilli as a 3rd base coach!

 

Umm, why?

[Ray10]

Im really not suprised. The Orioles were doing well and then they started to suck and are what 9.5 games out of first or something.

[Sizzlin22]

We should sign Mazzilli as our third base coach. s***, I would be an upgrade as a third base coach.

[yeszir]

He's going to be the next manager of the New York Yankees when Torre gets fired at season's end.

[CrespoBlows]

He's going to be the next manager of the New York Yankees when Torre gets fired at season's end.

 

Yeszir's theory is plausible.

 

Mazzilli wasn't the 3rd base coach of the Yankees, he was the 1st base coach, so no, Mazzill wouldn't represent an upgrade.

[26 to 6]

He's going to be the next manager of the New York Yankees when Torre gets fired at season's end.

Joe Torre's gonna get fired just like Theo Epstein is having an affair with Trot Nixon.

 

Torre will never be fired by the Yankees. George isnt the way he was back in the 70's and 80's. Its not logical to fire a man who took you to 6 World Series, winning 4. Its not smart to fire a man who is looked up to so much by the captain of the team. Its not reasonable to fire somebody who has done something no ever man has done since George Steinbrenner has owned the team..learned to deal with him.

 

This is Joe's 10th year as manager of the Yankees, no other manager has lasted that long under Steinbrenner, there is no way that the Yankees are going to fire him; sure hes made some questionable decisions (pitching Jeff Weaver in the 11th inning of game 4 in the 2003 WS, not bunting on Schilling in game 6 last year, etc..) but what manager hasnt.

 

And when Joe does leave (whether its because he was fired, retired, or contract expired) the replacement would be Girardi, not Mazzo.