Player-Managers

[Kidnapped18]

Originally Posted by Snapolit1

Reading through the great book "Cracker Jack Collection: Baseball's Prized Players," it's striking how many good players in the deadball era served as Player-Managers for some part of their careers. Wonder if we will ever see another Player-Manager. More complicated today than ever, but some supremely popular/respected guy like Jeter probably could have pulled it off. Would be great to see.

At least 25% (36+) of the 1914 Cracker Jack Ballplayers were player-managers

Including some of the really big names: Cobb, Mathewson, Lajoie, Speaker and Wagner

[GasHouseGang]

Cobb was the one I thought of that probably helped attract talent to the club.

[cgjackson222]

Lou Boudreau won MVP while a player-manager in 1948 for the World Series winning Cleveland Indians. Not sure which other player-managers have won MVP.

[Seven]

Hornsby and Cochrane were both player-managers I believe.

I think Gehrig had the talent and mind for it as well, but was probably too much of a nice guy. His leadership qualities were apparently second to none.

[todeen]

Originally Posted by Kidnapped18

At least 25% (36+) of the 1914 Cracker Jack Ballplayers were player-managers



Including some of the really big names: Cobb, Mathewson, Lajoie, Speaker and Wagner

Speaker mgr cards



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[FrankWakefield]

Naps, Robins?

[BobC]

Originally Posted by FrankWakefield

Naps, Robins?

You have the easy half right of the question right, Napoleon Lajoie and the Cleveland Naps. Now you need to get the other half of the question, and it is not the Robins.

[FrankWakefield]

Ok... I thought the Brooklyn NL team was called the Robins for a season or two, after Wilbert Robinson, but maybe that was after his playing days.

[BobC]

Originally Posted by FrankWakefield

Ok... I thought the Brooklyn NL team was called the Robins for a season or two, after Wilbert Robinson, but maybe that was after his playing days.

Wilbert Robinson was a player-manager for a single year in 1902, but that was with the Baltimore Orioles. Good try though.

[BobC]

I was doing a little more digging and found I had made a mistake. There aren't two major league teams that shared their popular name with their player-managers after all, there are actually four. You still got the easy one with Lajoie and the Cleveland Naps. The other three may not be as easy.

I'll go back and edit the original question also.

[Kidnapped18]

The Cracker Jack Collection

[Kidnapped18]

#106 Joe Birmingham Player-Manager Cleveland Naps 1912-1914