Joe Morgan (manager)
Encyclopedia
Joseph Michael Morgan is a retired American
infielder
, manager
, coach
and scout
in Major League Baseball
.
, where he played baseball and varsity hockey
. He was a high scoring hockey center who led the Eagles in points as a junior. Was also elected as team captain for the baseball team his junior year. He signed his first professional baseball contract with his then-hometown National League
team, the Boston Braves
.
, the team had become the Milwaukee Braves. Morgan, a left-handed-hitting second baseman
, third baseman
and outfielder
, put up several strong seasons at the Double-A and Triple-A levels. But he could not crack the Braves' lineup, nor those of the Philadelphia Phillies
, Kansas City Athletics
, Cleveland Indians
and St. Louis Cardinals
. In parts of four major league seasons, he appeared in just 88 games and batted
only .193.
, rising in 1970 to the AAA level, managing the Columbus Jets
of the International League
. In 1971, the team moved to Charleston, West Virginia
. He served as a Pittsburgh coach under Bill Virdon
in before returning to the minors. In 1973, Morgan's Charleston Charlies
won 85 games and the division title, but lost in the playoffs to the Pawtucket Red Sox
in five games. Nevertheless, Morgan was selected Minor League Manager of the Year for 1973 by The Sporting News
.
organization, the following season. He led the PawSox for nine years (1974–82), the longest-tenured manager in the franchise's history. Morgan won 601 games, losing 658 (.477) and was the Pawtucket skipper during its famous 33-inning game
against Rochester
in , though he was ejected in the 22nd. He won the International League
Manager of the Year award in 1977. The parent Red Sox reassigned Morgan after the 1982 season, making him a scout for 1983-84 before he was finally invited to return to the majors as a Boston coach in . Morgan coached at first base in '85 and in the bullpen
during the Sox' pennant-winning season, before replacing Rene Lachemann
as Boston's third-base coach in .
, leading the ownership to fire him during the All-Star break
. They named Morgan acting manager and began negotiations with high profile candidates, such as Joe Torre
and Lou Piniella
, who were under contract to other organizations. The Red Sox promptly won their first 12 games under Morgan — a period dubbed by the press as Morgan Magic — and the team named him as their permanent field boss. The 1988 Red Sox
won the AL East, but were swept by the Oakland Athletics
in the American League Championship Series
; two years later, the 1990 Sox
repeated history, winning their division but bowing in four straight to the A's in the playoffs
. Morgan holds the record for managing a team to eight straight post-season losses.
In , Morgan guided a flawed Boston team
to a distant second-place finish in the AL East. Although he had one year remaining on his contract, he was fired at season's end in favor of Butch Hobson
. "This team just isn't that good," Morgan warned in his parting comments. He was right; under Hobson, the 1992 Red Sox
finished last in the AL East.
Morgan's final major league managerial totals: 301-262 (.535) over 3½ years, all with the Red Sox.
on the Massachusetts Turnpike
. (The nicknames also served to prevent confusion with Baseball Hall of Fame second baseman Joe Morgan
.) His phrases such as "Roger spun another beauty" (describing one of many stellar outings by his star pitcher
, Roger Clemens
) or the often-repeated "Six, two and even" became part of New England
folklore.
In 2006, he was named to the BoSox Hall of Fame
and the Walpole High School Hockey Hall of Fame. Morgan was inducted into the International League hall of fame in 2008. His record as a minor league manager over 16 seasons (1966–71; 1973–82) was 1,140 victories and 1,102 defeats (.508) with one league championship (in the Eastern League in 1968).
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
infielder
Infielder
An infielder is a baseball player stationed at one of four defensive "infield" positions on the baseball field.-Standard arrangement of positions:In a game of baseball, two teams of nine players take turns playing offensive and defensive roles...
, manager
Manager (baseball)
In baseball, the field manager is an individual who is responsible for matters of team strategy on the field and team leadership. Managers are typically assisted by between one and six assistant coaches, whose responsibilities are specialized...
, coach
Coach (baseball)
In baseball, a number of coaches assist in the smooth functioning of a team. They are assistants to the manager, or head coach, who determines the lineup and decides how to substitute players during the game...
and scout
Scout (sport)
In professional sports, scouts are trained talent evaluators who travel extensively for the purposes of watching athletes play their chosen sports and determining whether their set of skills and talents represent what is needed by the scout's organization...
in Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
.
Early life
Morgan graduated from Walpole High School and attended Boston CollegeBoston College
Boston College is a private Jesuit research university located in the village of Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, USA. The main campus is bisected by the border between the cities of Boston and Newton. It has 9,200 full-time undergraduates and 4,000 graduate students. Its name reflects its early...
, where he played baseball and varsity hockey
Ice hockey
Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...
. He was a high scoring hockey center who led the Eagles in points as a junior. Was also elected as team captain for the baseball team his junior year. He signed his first professional baseball contract with his then-hometown National League
National League
The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League , is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball, and the world's oldest extant professional team sports league. Founded on February 2, 1876, to replace the National Association of Professional...
team, the Boston Braves
Atlanta Braves
The Atlanta Braves are a professional baseball club based in Atlanta, Georgia. The Braves are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League. The Braves have played in Turner Field since 1997....
.
Playing career
When he finally made Major League Baseball in , after military service and a long stint in the minor leaguesMinor league baseball
Minor league baseball is a hierarchy of professional baseball leagues in the Americas that compete at levels below Major League Baseball and provide opportunities for player development. All of the minor leagues are operated as independent businesses...
, the team had become the Milwaukee Braves. Morgan, a left-handed-hitting second baseman
Second baseman
Second base, or 2B, is the second of four stations on a baseball diamond which must be touched in succession by a base runner in order to score a run for that player's team. A second baseman is the baseball player guarding second base...
, third baseman
Third baseman
A third baseman, abbreviated 3B, is the player in baseball whose responsibility is to defend the area nearest to third base — the third of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run...
and outfielder
Outfielder
Outfielder is a generic term applied to each of the people playing in the three defensive positions in baseball farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder...
, put up several strong seasons at the Double-A and Triple-A levels. But he could not crack the Braves' lineup, nor those of the Philadelphia Phillies
Philadelphia Phillies
The Philadelphia Phillies are a Major League Baseball team. They are the oldest continuous, one-name, one-city franchise in all of professional American sports, dating to 1883. The Phillies are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League...
, Kansas City Athletics
Oakland Athletics
The Oakland Athletics are a Major League Baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League. From to the present, the Athletics have played in the O.co Coliseum....
, Cleveland Indians
Cleveland Indians
The Cleveland Indians are a professional baseball team based in Cleveland, Ohio. They are in the Central Division of Major League Baseball's American League. Since , they have played in Progressive Field. The team's spring training facility is in Goodyear, Arizona...
and St. Louis Cardinals
St. Louis Cardinals
The St. Louis Cardinals are a professional baseball team based in St. Louis, Missouri. They are members of the Central Division in the National League of Major League Baseball. The Cardinals have won eleven World Series championships, the most of any National League team, and second overall only to...
. In parts of four major league seasons, he appeared in just 88 games and batted
Batting average
Batting average is a statistic in both cricket and baseball that measures the performance of cricket batsmen and baseball hitters. The two statistics are related in that baseball averages are directly descended from the concept of cricket averages.- Cricket :...
only .193.
Managerial career
In 1966, Morgan became a manager in the farm system of the Pittsburgh PiratesPittsburgh Pirates
The Pittsburgh Pirates are a Major League Baseball club based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. They play in the Central Division of the National League, and are five-time World Series Champions...
, rising in 1970 to the AAA level, managing the Columbus Jets
Columbus Jets
The Columbus Jets were a Minor League baseball team that played in Columbus, Ohio from 1955 to 1970. The team moved from Ottawa, Canada where they were known as the Ottawa Athletics. The Jets were a member of the International League. From 1955-56 they were the Triple-A affiliate of the Kansas City...
of the International League
International League
The International League is a minor league baseball league that operates in the eastern United States. Like the Pacific Coast League and the Mexican League, it plays at the Triple-A level, which is one step below Major League Baseball. It was so named because it had teams in both the United States...
. In 1971, the team moved to Charleston, West Virginia
Charleston, West Virginia
Charleston is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of West Virginia. It is located at the confluence of the Elk and Kanawha Rivers in Kanawha County. As of the 2010 census, it has a population of 51,400, and its metropolitan area 304,214. It is the county seat of Kanawha County.Early...
. He served as a Pittsburgh coach under Bill Virdon
Bill Virdon
William Charles Virdon is a former outfielder, manager and coach in Major League Baseball. A premier defensive outfielder during his playing days as a center fielder for the St...
in before returning to the minors. In 1973, Morgan's Charleston Charlies
Charleston Charlies
The Charleston Charlies was the name of the third and most recent Class AAA minor league baseball franchise that was located in Charleston, West Virginia, United States. The Charlies played in the International League from 1971 to 1976 as the relocated Columbus Jets franchise. In 1977 the franchise...
won 85 games and the division title, but lost in the playoffs to the Pawtucket Red Sox
Pawtucket Red Sox
The Pawtucket Red Sox are the minor league baseball Triple-A affiliates of the Boston Red Sox and belong to the International League...
in five games. Nevertheless, Morgan was selected Minor League Manager of the Year for 1973 by The Sporting News
The Sporting News
Sporting News is an American-based sports magazine. It was established in 1886, and it became the dominant American publication covering baseball — so much so that it acquired the nickname "The Bible of Baseball"...
.
Pawtucket Red Sox
Morgan switched to Pawtucket, and the Boston Red SoxBoston Red Sox
The Boston Red Sox are a professional baseball team based in Boston, Massachusetts, and a member of Major League Baseball’s American League Eastern Division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight charter franchises, the Red Sox's home ballpark has been Fenway Park since . The "Red Sox"...
organization, the following season. He led the PawSox for nine years (1974–82), the longest-tenured manager in the franchise's history. Morgan won 601 games, losing 658 (.477) and was the Pawtucket skipper during its famous 33-inning game
Longest professional baseball game
The Pawtucket Red Sox and Rochester Red Wings, two teams from the Triple-A International League, played the longest game in professional baseball history. It lasted for 33 innings over eight hours and 25 minutes...
against Rochester
Rochester Red Wings
The Rochester Red Wings are a minor league baseball team based in Rochester, New York. The team plays in the International League and is the Triple-A affiliate of the Minnesota Twins major-league club. The Red Wings play in Frontier Field, located in downtown Rochester.The Red Wings were an...
in , though he was ejected in the 22nd. He won the International League
International League
The International League is a minor league baseball league that operates in the eastern United States. Like the Pacific Coast League and the Mexican League, it plays at the Triple-A level, which is one step below Major League Baseball. It was so named because it had teams in both the United States...
Manager of the Year award in 1977. The parent Red Sox reassigned Morgan after the 1982 season, making him a scout for 1983-84 before he was finally invited to return to the majors as a Boston coach in . Morgan coached at first base in '85 and in the bullpen
Bullpen
In baseball, the bullpen is the area where relief pitchers warm-up before entering a game. Depending on the ballpark, it may be situated in foul territory along the baselines or just beyond the outfield fence. Also, a team's roster of relief pitchers is metonymically referred to as "the bullpen"...
during the Sox' pennant-winning season, before replacing Rene Lachemann
Rene Lachemann
Rene George Lachemann is a former coach, catcher and manager in Major League Baseball. Lachemann served as the first manager in the history of the Florida Marlins and also skippered the Seattle Mariners and Milwaukee Brewers...
as Boston's third-base coach in .
Boston Red Sox
In , a talented Boston team was stumbling at .500 under manager John McNamaraJohn McNamara (baseball)
John Francis McNamara is a former manager and coach in Major League Baseball. He managed six major league teams, directing the 1986 Boston Red Sox to the American League pennant, only to experience an excruciating defeat in that season's World Series at the hands of the New York Mets.-Playing,...
, leading the ownership to fire him during the All-Star break
1988 Major League Baseball All-Star Game
The 1988 Major League Baseball All-Star Game was the 59th playing of the midsummer classic between the all-stars of the American League and National League , the two leagues comprising Major League Baseball. The game was held on July 12, 1988 at Riverfront Stadium in Cincinnati, Ohio, the home of...
. They named Morgan acting manager and began negotiations with high profile candidates, such as Joe Torre
Joe Torre
Joseph Paul Torre is a former American professional baseball player and manager who currently serves as Major League Baseball’s Executive Vice President of Baseball Operations. A nine-time All-Star, he played in Major League Baseball as a catcher, first baseman and a third baseman for the...
and Lou Piniella
Lou Piniella
Louis Victor Piniella is a former Major League Baseball outfielder and manager. He has been nicknamed "Sweet Lou," both for his swing as a major league hitter and, facetiously, to describe his demeanor as a player and manager...
, who were under contract to other organizations. The Red Sox promptly won their first 12 games under Morgan — a period dubbed by the press as Morgan Magic — and the team named him as their permanent field boss. The 1988 Red Sox
1988 Boston Red Sox season
The Boston Red Sox season was a season in American baseball. It involved the Red Sox finishing first in the American League East with a record of 89 wins and 73 losses.-Offseason:...
won the AL East, but were swept by the Oakland Athletics
Oakland Athletics
The Oakland Athletics are a Major League Baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League. From to the present, the Athletics have played in the O.co Coliseum....
in the American League Championship Series
1988 American League Championship Series
-Game 1:Wednesday, October 5, 1988 at Fenway Park in Boston, MassachusettsIn an interview conducted before Game 1, José Canseco denied reports in that day's Washington Post by baseball reporter Thomas Boswell that he had used steroids...
; two years later, the 1990 Sox
1990 Boston Red Sox season
The Boston Red Sox season was a season in American baseball. It involved the Red Sox finishing first in the American League East with a record of 88 wins and 74 losses. It was the second AL East division championship in three years for the Red Sox...
repeated history, winning their division but bowing in four straight to the A's in the playoffs
1990 American League Championship Series
-Game 1:Saturday, October 6, 1990 at Fenway Park in Boston, MassachusettsThe opening game of the series saw a battle of aces, as Oakland sent Dave Stewart to the hill against Boston's Roger Clemens. The game was a scoreless pitchers duel until the bottom of the fourth, when Red Sox third baseman...
. Morgan holds the record for managing a team to eight straight post-season losses.
In , Morgan guided a flawed Boston team
1991 Boston Red Sox season
The Boston Red Sox season was a season in American baseball. It involved the Red Sox finishing 2nd in the American League East with a record of 84 wins and 78 losses.-Notable Transactions:...
to a distant second-place finish in the AL East. Although he had one year remaining on his contract, he was fired at season's end in favor of Butch Hobson
Butch Hobson
Clell Lavern "Butch" Hobson, Jr. is a former third baseman and manager in Major League Baseball. Hobson played for the Boston Red Sox , California Angels and New York Yankees . He batted and threw right-handed.After retiring, he managed the Pawtucket Red Sox and the Boston Red Sox...
. "This team just isn't that good," Morgan warned in his parting comments. He was right; under Hobson, the 1992 Red Sox
1992 Boston Red Sox season
The Boston Red Sox season involved the Red Sox finishing seventh in the American League East with a record of 73 wins and 89 losses.-Opening Day Line Up:-Roster:-Notable transactions:...
finished last in the AL East.
Morgan's final major league managerial totals: 301-262 (.535) over 3½ years, all with the Red Sox.
Popularity
Despite the playoff setbacks, Morgan was a highly popular figure in Boston as a "native son," a former hockey player, and a blue-collar hero. He was called "Walpole Joe" and "Turnpike Joe" in tribute to the offseason job he held for many years to supplement his minor league pay: driving a snowplowSnowplow
A snowplow is a device intended for mounting on a vehicle, used for removing snow and ice from outdoor surfaces, typically those serving transportation purposes...
on the Massachusetts Turnpike
Massachusetts Turnpike
The Massachusetts Turnpike is the easternmost stretch of Interstate 90. The Turnpike begins at the western border of Massachusetts in West Stockbridge connecting with the Berkshire Connector portion of the New York State Thruway...
. (The nicknames also served to prevent confusion with Baseball Hall of Fame second baseman Joe Morgan
Joe Morgan
Joe Leonard Morgan is a former Major League Baseball second baseman who played for the Houston Astros, Cincinnati Reds, San Francisco Giants, Philadelphia Phillies, and Oakland Athletics from 1963 to 1984. He won two World Series championships with the Reds in 1975 and 1976 and was also named the...
.) His phrases such as "Roger spun another beauty" (describing one of many stellar outings by his star pitcher
Pitcher
In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throwsthe baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw a walk. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the...
, Roger Clemens
Roger Clemens
William Roger Clemens , nicknamed "Rocket", is a former Major League Baseball pitcher who broke into the league with the Boston Red Sox, whose pitching staff he would help anchor for 12 years. Clemens won seven Cy Young Awards, more than any other pitcher. He played for four different teams over...
) or the often-repeated "Six, two and even" became part of New England
New England
New England is a region in the northeastern corner of the United States consisting of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut...
folklore.
In 2006, he was named to the BoSox Hall of Fame
Boston Red Sox Hall of Fame
The Boston Red Sox Hall of Fame was instituted in 1995 to recognize the careers of former Boston Red Sox baseball players. A 15-member selection committee of Red Sox broadcasters and executives, past and present media personnel, and representatives from The Sports Museum of New England and the...
and the Walpole High School Hockey Hall of Fame. Morgan was inducted into the International League hall of fame in 2008. His record as a minor league manager over 16 seasons (1966–71; 1973–82) was 1,140 victories and 1,102 defeats (.508) with one league championship (in the Eastern League in 1968).