THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, October 20, 1994 TAG: 9410200495
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY TOM ROBINSON, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 91 lines
Now that Bobby Valentine has acted upon his yen to jump to Japan, one of the most attractive managerial jobs in Triple-A baseball is open.
Submit resumes to Steve Phillips, New York Mets minor league director, in Port St. Lucie, Fla. Include evidence of a magnetic personality, solid baseball instincts and experience, and inventive game strategies in light of the difficulty hitting in blustery Harbor Park.
Phillips isn't requiring those attributes, at least for the record. As usual, he isn't saying much of anything about the job for the record, other than he'd like to hire somebody by Thanksgiving and find ``as quality a person as Bobby Valentine.''
But it can be inferred that after two seasons of the media-friendly, fan-loving, Type A-personalities of Clint Hurdle and Valentine, the retooled Tides' franchise has moved beyond the stone-faced Met Park managerial days of Mike Cubbage and Steve Swisher.
Those sound, quiet men ran successful clubs, but the image of the Tides' manager now is of somebody standing center-stage, enjoying the lights.
Norfolk is no longer a place simply to reward tenure or efficient service at a lower minor league level. Running the Tides, stepping into the managerial job one twist of fate away from the cauldron at Shea Stadium, is more than a baseball-only vocation.
Nabbing a personality is less important to Phillips than it is to somebody like Tides president Ken Young. Young, who has no say in the matter, covets another public relations-savvy manager who will visit schools and sports clubs and civic groups - and by relation sell tickets.
Phillips wants to develop prospects and win games. But though the Mets make not a cent off the Tides' operation, they have promised to provide top talent as a ground rule of their new three-year working agreement with the Tides. Talent extends to the manager's office, and there should be no shortage of well-rounded, Valentine-like candidates who would satisfy both Phillips and Young.
The job would be popular anyway, what with the Tides selling more than 500,000 tickets in each of their two seasons at Harbor Park. For atmosphere and comfort, it is among the best places to work in Triple-A.
That Valentine, a major league manager for nearly eight seasons with the Texas Rangers, held the job for a year only lends additional credibility to it - and should result in a high-quality pool of interested parties. Particularly if the Mets can again pay $65,000 , among the top Triple-A salaries last season.
Like last year, it wouldn't be far-fetched to see such ex-major league managers as Hal McRae, John Wathan, Buck Rodgers or Tom Trebelhorn putting in bids. You would include Butch Hobson in that mix, too, if he hadn't been fired as a minor league manager with the Mets a few years ago.
Known ``name'' or not, the job is likely to go to a person currently outside of the Mets. The only Mets' employee expected to be interviewed by Phillips is John Tamargo, who has worked for the Mets as a minor league manager and instructor for 13 years.
That discussion recently took place at the Mets' organizational meetings. In his first season as a Double-A manager last summer, Tamargo managed a prospect-packed team in Binghamton, N.Y., to an 82-59 record and the Eastern League championship. He is 306-232 in Class-A and Double-A the past four seasons.
Tamargo probably deserves the Tides' job on merit. Ironically, early in his career, he even managed Phillips in A ball. But chances are good that he won't get it.
Tamargo is strictly a baseball guy. Those who know him say he shrinks from the spotlight, avoids autograph sessions and disdains public speaking and all the other schmoozing that has become incumbent upon a Tides' manager.
Besides, if Tamargo was Phillips' man, wouldn't he have already promoted him?
That he hasn't probably has spared Young a conniption.
``The Mets make the decision, but we have let it be known the type of person we would like,'' Young said. ``They've said they would try to accommodate that. From our point of view, we want somebody who is outgoing and good with the public.
``People tell me I've been spoiled. Two years with the club and two great guys. I don't expect to keep getting Bobby Valentine-types, who will just pick up and go to a breakfast or a lunch everyday, if he's open, to speak.''
The absence of that type, however, would remove a piece of the marketing plan the Tides are used to exploiting.
``A likeable, outgoing guy does help attract people to the game,'' Young said. ``And if you've got a guy down there who will give you a little smile, who might even chat with you, it makes it more fun to come out.
``One guy wrote a letter and said a little wink of the eye from Bobby meant a lot to him. It means a lot to people and in the end does help attract fans.''
It's baseball, and it's big business. Most likely, that's a relationship the new guy is going to understand. by CNB