Ryan Sandberg paying his dues
By Kevin Cooney
Staff writer
| Posted: Friday, July 8, 2011 12:00 am
ALLENTOWN, Pa. — He has worked his way up the managerial ladder by spending five seasons roaming the back roads and the hardly glamorous life in the minor leagues. This was after a 20-year playing career that had earned him the sport’s highest honor.
And still, as he stood on the top step at Coca-Cola Park last week, Ryne Sandberg still views himself as that guy fighting for the chance to prove his stripes as a manager.
“There are a lot of times when Hall of Famers don’t want to reprove themselves,” said the manager of the Phillies Triple A affiliate at Lehigh Valley. “They want to get right to the top without honing their skills, without proving that they are good at it or like doing it.
“After my first two years of managing at A ball, I know how much I didn’t know about managing and how much I needed to learn — which was everything.”
The former Phillies farmhand, Cubs icon and Hall of Fame second baseman seems to have been a quick study. In his first year in Allentown, Sandberg and the IronPigs entered Thursday’s game at Rochester in first place in the Northern Division of the International League, owning a 50-36 record and a 3½ game lead over second place Pawtucket.
To put matters into perspective, consider that Lehigh Valley had never been above .500 at any point in its previous three seasons since becoming the Phils’ Triple A affiliate in 2008.
“The Phillies organization did a great job of assembling a veteran team around here that has talent,” Sandberg said. “My job is to instill in these guys that we are in a team concept with good work ethic. I want them to go about their business in the right way so that they can be ready to go up and help the Philadelphia Phillies, which we’ve done a lot this year.”
Considering that Sandberg has already dispatched a number of players to the big leagues — including most of the Phils’ bullpen at the present time — his performance has not gone unnoticed.
“He has been a perfect fit for the job since Day One,” Phillies assistant general manager Chuck LaMar said. “We thought he was the right man for the job, and he’s been an outstanding baseball man to our players at Lehigh Valley.”
Respect for Sandberg is evident among his former players.
“He was very good to me,” said Phils outfielder Dom Brown, who spent time at Lehigh Valley after coming off the disabled list in May. “He’s the type of guy who will work with you on things.”
Sandberg got the job in Lehigh Valley this offseason after being turned aside for the Cubs’ managerial job during the winter — a position that went to longtime minor league skipper Mike Quade. That move was wildly unpopular in Chicago, where Sandberg won the 1984 National League Most Valuable Player award and recorded 2,386 hits with the Cubs.
Sandberg moved on and agreed to join Lehigh Valley in November, replacing Dave Huppert.
“When we met with him, he didn’t mention his Hall of Fame career once,” LaMar said. “He could have come in and name dropped, but that’s not his style. He is just a very humble baseball man who enjoys teaching the game.”
If he does eventually become a major league manager, Sandberg will have his own unique place in the history of the game. Only a handful of Hall of Fame players have become MLB managers. Among that group, only Ted Williams has been named a major league manager for the first time after his induction into Cooperstown — a profile that would also include Sandberg if he should eventually get promoted.
Old baseball wisdom has always been that elite-level players have a tough time bringing out the best in younger talent because they may not be able to relate to the struggles that go along with the sport or the generation gap.
Sandberg, however, doesn’t believe that.
“I remember the struggles I had and I struggled every single year,” Sandberg said. “Didn’t matter if it was the four years in the minors or the years in the majors, I struggled at some point in the year at every season. So I have a feeling for that and an understanding of what they are going through.
“Since I’ve retired, I’ve been involved with my five kids who are the same age as the guys in here. I think guiding them through high school and college and life is something that gives me tools to relate to them here. I know their mindset.”
When the offseason comes around, Sandberg’s name could be at the front of a lot of managerial shopping lists around the majors. Already, the Marlins, Nationals and Athletics have changed managers. More are expected during the offseason — possibly including the Cubs once again. (Quade is signed through the end of the 2012 season, with an option for 2013.)
Still, Sandberg doesn’t sound like a guy who is hellbent on getting a managerial job as his next position — which could actually work out well for the Phillies since manager Charlie Manuel just recently signed an extension for three years.
“I’m just like every other guy that’s down here, and that’s why I’m looking for an opportunity,” Sandberg said. “That doesn’t mean that the next step is being a major league managerial position. Very few guys go from minor league managers to major league managers. I think coaching at the major league level is a stepping stone, in my opinion. But baseball dictates that and baseball people dictate that.
“Right now, I consider myself a Phillie and I want to get these guy up to help the Phillies. And that’s the same goal I had when I was going through the system and wanted to get to Veterans Stadium.”