Joe Morgan (manager)

Joe Morgan
Third baseman / Second baseman / Outfielder
Born: November 19, 1930 (1930-11-19) (age 81) Walpole, Massachusetts
Batted: Left	Threw: Right
MLB debut
April 14, 1959 for the Milwaukee Braves
Last MLB appearance
October 3, 1964 for the St. Louis Cardinals
Career statistics
Batting average	.193
Home runs	2
RBI	10
Teams
As a player: Milwaukee Braves (1959) Kansas City Athletics (1960) Cleveland Indians (1960, 1961) Philadelphia Phillies (1960) St. Louis Cardinals (1964) As a manager: Boston Red Sox (1988—1991)
Career highlights and awards
Minor League Manager of the Year, 1973 Won AL East championship (1988, 1990)

Joseph Michael Morgan (born November 19, 1930 in Walpole, Massachusetts) is a retired American infielder, manager, coach and scout in Major League Baseball.

Early life

Morgan graduated from Walpole High School and attended Boston College, 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.^[1] He signed his first professional baseball contract with his then-hometown National League team, the Boston Braves.

Playing career

When he finally made Major League Baseball in 1959, after military service and a long stint in the minor leagues, 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.

Managerial career

In 1966, Morgan became a manager in the farm system of the Pittsburgh Pirates, 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 1972 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.^[2]

Pawtucket Red Sox

Morgan switched to Pawtucket, and the Boston 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 against Rochester in 1981, 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 1985. Morgan coached at first base in '85 and in the bullpen during the Sox' 1986 pennant-winning season, before replacing Rene Lachemann as Boston's third-base coach in 1987.

Boston Red Sox

In 1988, a talented Boston team was stumbling at .500 under manager John McNamara, 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 1991, 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.

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 snowplow 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).

References

1. ^ "Player Bio: Joe Morgan". Player Bio. Boston College. http://bceagles.cstv.com/genrel/morgan_joe00.html. Retrieved 18 March 2011. 
2. ^ "Curci voted coach of year in SEC". Sarasota Herald-Tribune. 30 November 1973. p. 2D. http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=BhkiAAAAIBAJ&sjid=zGYEAAAAIBAJ&pg=4008,6609783&dq=joe-morgan+baseball+manager-of-the-year&hl=en. Retrieved 8 June 2010. 

External links

• Career statistics and player information from Baseball-Reference

Sporting positions
Preceded by Darrell Johnson	Pawtucket Red Sox manager 1974–1982	Succeeded by Tony Torchia
Preceded by Tommy Harper	Boston Red Sox first-base coach 1985	Succeeded by Walt Hriniak
Preceded by Tony Torchia	Boston Red Sox bullpen coach 1986	Succeeded by Rac Slider
Preceded by Rene Lachemann	Boston Red Sox third-base coach 1987-1988	Succeeded by Rac Slider
Preceded by John McNamara	Boston Red Sox manager 1988–1991	Succeeded by Butch Hobson

Persondata
Name	Morgan, Joe
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	1930-11-19
Place of birth	Walpole, Massachusetts
Date of death
Place of death