Firing the manager guarantees no success

“Win or go home” is a popular expression once the postseason begins in any major American sport. No one knows this better than John Farrell, Dusty Baker and Joe Girardi – all of whom were recently relieved of their managerial duties after leading teams to this season’s playoffs.

Farrell’s firing wasn’t totally unexpected, but to many, it seemed unfair. After all, he led the Red Sox to the 2013 World Series title in his first season at the helm. Despite several sub-par seasons that followed, Farrell presided over a team that won this year’s American League East division crown – losing in the playoffs to a Houston Astros team that seem poised to win the World Series.

Baker’s firing kind of makes sense, albeit in a less obvious way. As respected as he is in baseball circles, the fact that Baker’s uber-talented Nationals failed to get out of the first round of the playoffs confirmed his reputation as a good-butnot-great manager who can’t quite get his teams over the hump. (Fans of the 2002 Giants and the 2003 Cubs can certainly relate.)

Girardi’s situation is without a doubt the most nuanced. Yes, he made a seemingly obvious replay challenge error in this year’s playoffs, and yes, the Yankees have a higher standard for winning than any other MLB team. Having said that, Girardi led a young team that had limited postseason aspirations eight months ago to Game 7 of the American League Championship Series – one game away from the World Series. Parallels to previous Yankees manager Joe Torre’s 2007 firing are not at all unrealistic.

Obviously the stakes are high in American professional sports – MLB and otherwise. But maybe if the owners took the time to take a deep breath and a step back from the situation, they would realize that replacing the manager isn’t always the only step required for future success.