Who’d have thought Alex Ramirez, the second most successful manager in the decrepit history of the DeNA BayStars’ franchise would still be valuable to the club five months after he was fired? Ramirez is proving his worth at least to one BayStars official, who told Yukan Fuji that the last-place club’s failings under new skipper Daisuke Miura are Ramirez’s fault.
“When you see people looking around for scapegoats, that’s a pretty good indicator that a scapegoat will soon be necessary.”
–Bill James in his 1985 Baseball Abstract
His quote was in reference to a contending team, the 1984 Minnesota Twins, and the decision by many that the front office had torpedoed their pennant hopes by trading for an infielder, Chris Speier, who was hurt. The point being that when a team in contention begins assigning blame, then you can stick a fork in them because they’re done.
As of Wednesday, the BayStars had lost their last nine decisions, were 3-16 with four ties and 12 games out of first place, and according to Wednesday’s story, Ramirez is to blame.
The “fire Ramirez” media hit jobs began last July 21, a little more than a month into the 2020 season. Then, and all last season, the “fire Ramirez” camp within the team let it be known that Ramirez’s managing style led to disharmony, something this article claims remains an issue despite the club having replaced Ramirez with farm manager Daisuke Miura.
“Although the team’s representative, Kazuaki Mihara, has apologized for the front office’s inability to get its imported players into Japan before April, more than a few voices are saying the ‘war criminal’ responsible for the team’s slump is the former manager.”
“He used up all the players,” the unnamed executive said. “Miura is handicapped by Ramirez’s negative legacy.”
The story said there was talk about replacing Ramirez after the BayStars finished second in 2019, and the executive said the team’s current failure is due to the organization’s inability to pull the trigger then.
The starting pitching is definitely in disarray with ace Shota Imanaga having not returned from October shoulder-cleaning surgery, while 2018 rookie of the year Katsuki Azuma remains sidelined after Tommy John surgery in February 2020 that followed discomfort in his left elbow for over a year.
No one last year mentioned the pitching injuries, since Ramirez was more mindful than most managers of the need to manage his pitchers’ workloads with both rest and regular work.
With right-hander Kentaro Taira having twice been deactivated due to stiffness in his elbow, Ramirez, the article argues is to blame for rookie Taisei Irie getting hammered on the first team since the BayStars lack the pitching depth to have him make adjustments on the farm.
And then there’s the catch all: Ramirez’s teams didn’t practice enough because he managed “major league style.”
“Of course, during the season, but in camp as well, the team practiced less. That didn’t change in this year’s camp. The executive mentioned earlier said, ‘You can see that reflected in our team now.'”
I’m not buying that.
That’s like buying a home, deciding you don’t like the color, and then blaming the previous owner for your decision not to repaint it.
“If Daisuke Miura fails, it will be because former manager Alex Ramirez ruined the team. If Miura succeeds, it will be because he sacrifices and sends the runners more than Ramirez did.”
–Japan Baseball Weekly Podcast CL prediction show, March 22, 2021.
