Baseball's best general managers
Posted: Thursday, December 06, 2007 6:48 PM
The standard has changed for general managers. No longer is it just about throwing money at agents, listening to lists of diva demands, and playing poker with millions of Monopoly dollars.
Now a general manager's role is about reaping the benefits of one’s player development system, deciding which players are to be kept and which are to be used in trades. Placing a value on talent -- a trait that seemed archaic just a few years ago -- is suddenly back in demand.
With that in mindt, which general manager would you want running your team?
DAVE DOMBROWSKI: He has torn down and he has built up. He has developed top prospects, keenly assessed the talent on other teams, and at the winter meetings demonstrated boldness and ingenuity in coming up with a package of players enticing enough for the Marlins to send Miguel Cabrera and Dontrelle Willis to Detroit. Acquiring both in the same trade was a master stroke.
THEO EPSTEIN: No longer a boy general manager, he is a man of conviction who does not waver from his positions. Regarded by his peers as an honest dealer, Epstein and his Red Sox staff have mastered the art of assigning value to players, both theirs and others, and dealing accordingly.
KEVIN TOWERS: Longevity and credibility stand out when it comes to San Diego's general manager. He worked with the same manager for over a decade, producing multiple winning teams. Now he has survived under new upper management with a new philosophy. His only remaining task is rebuilding a dry farm system.
BRIAN CASHMAN: He has achieved what seemed impossible with the Yankees, emphasizing a farm system while continuing to sculpt winning teams in the majors. And he is in a position reached by no Yankee general manager in the George Steinbrenner era -- he has enough young talent to say no when teams ask for the “Yankee surcharge.” We are looking at another decade of colossal Yankees-Red Sox battles.
MARK SHAPIRO: A man of impeccable integrity has captained a Cleveland organization that could be the next Atlanta, consistent winners without massive payrolls. Shapiro has been able to build major-league winners through persistent player development, shrewd trades (Grady Sizemore, Cliff Lee, Lee Stevens, and Brandon Phillips for Bartolo Colon, Tim Drew and cash considerations in 2002 is still the best deal of this decade), and efficient signings. In fact, he could be the next John Schuerholz.
Note: Turnover in the industry has removed Schuerholz, Terry Ryan, and Walt Jocketty from inclusion in this group.
