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| The Captain, Derek Jeter. Photo Credit: William Perlman,The (Newark) Star-Ledger |
By: Michael Hanley
Derek Jeter, in response to a question from Andrew Marchand of ESPN New York, about possibly managing down the road, he stated:
"I will not manage," the captain of the Yankees said. "My temperament would be all right to manage, but I'm not. No. Write that down."
You can’t blame him for not wanting to take on a role that includes so many responsibilities and can be a real grind with having to manage 162 games in the regular season and more games possibly in a postseason run.
The job of manager in the major leagues encompasses so much more than actually just deploring actual strategy and player changes during the games. This role also includes having to deal with and balance many different personalities up and down the roster. That can be a real job within itself.
Depending on the talent on the roster, a manager may have to deal with a superstar type of player who could be resistant at times to buying into the team concept and just be concerned about his own numbers. He also may have to be a motivator for some players if they hit a cold stretch with their bat and have lost confidence in their ability. The manager at times morphs into becoming a psychologist, listening to every players problems or concerns, then finding a solution to them all, while also keeping everyone in a position to win games every day.
Also, just keeping team morale up through the many twists and turns a season can put a baseball team through also requires some skill. Even the best teams hit one skid or two during the length of the season. The best managers know how to get through to their team and be able to help the players through a tough stretch and get that confidence rolling again. Jeter certainly could fit that mold as he has for as long as he has been with the Yankees been a guy who could reach his teammates and find the right words to motivate and increase their confidence. Of course it would be different as he would be dealing with new people he has not met before and would be an adjustment to know how to get through to those guys.
Another job within the manager’s role that can be tough with is talking with the media before and after each game. Jeter has been nothing but a professional when dealing with the toughest media in all of baseball, possibly sports, in the New York media. As a manager though, Jeter dealing with the scrutiny of each move made and getting questioned on every aspect of each game could easily send him wanting to escape to some tropical paradise with nothing but sun and sand to worry about. Its even tougher in this era of new media sources coming to the forefront. Media outlets like Twitter, Facebook, blogs, podcasts etc. are all other means to break down and dissect managers and their moves to no end. It can grind a manager down if they do not have thick skin.
And finally, the travel can be a real challenge and headache. Going from city to city
without a whole lot of rest in between series would be tough for Jeter to deal with. He has his own private life that keeps him busy and satisfied especially in the offseason. If he took on this role, his downtime would go down to almost zero as being a manager is nearly a 365 day a year type of job.
