USA TODAY International Edition
Salary free fall continues for managers
Their job security also on the decline
CHICAGO – Joe Maddon helped lead the Cubs to the Holy Grail of sports, with a consistent level of success they haven’t seen in a century, but there are whispers his job could be in jeopardy if they don’t play deep into October.
Astros manager A.J. Hinch and Dodgers manager Dave Roberts, who led their teams to the World Series a year ago, have contracts that expire after this season.
Interim managers Mike Shildt and Jim Riggleman, who have done marvelous jobs since taking over the Cardinals and Reds, have no idea whether their gigs will be prolonged or have a September expiration date.
Welcome to life as a Major League Baseball manager, where the hours are long, the pressure enormous and the job security lacking.
There could be as many as 10 managerial vacancies after this season, from the West Coast to the Eastern seaboard. Angels manager Mike Scioscia is retiring after 19 seasons at the helm, the longest run since Bobby Cox’s 21 years with the Braves. Orioles veteran manager Buck Showalter, who has been in Baltimore since 2010, and rookie managers Davey Martinez of the Nationals and Mickey Callaway of the Mets are under fire.
The days of Walter Alston, Tommy Lasorda, Cox and Scioscia are over. Teams don’t dole out 10-year, $50 million contracts anymore like Angels owner Arte Moreno provided Scioscia. No one earns $7.5 million a year like Joe Torre did 11 years ago with the Yankees.
A study by USA TODAY of all 30 major league teams found there are 21 active managers earning $1.5 million or less this season. There are just three earning more than the average player salary of about $4 million.
The highest-paid managers at $6 million apiece are three-time World Series champion Bruce Bochy of the Giants, Scioscia and Maddon. The contracts of Bochy and Maddon expire after 2019, with neither manager engaged in extension talks.
Bochy, who hasn’t decided whether he wants to remain as manager after 2019, likely will remain in the Giants front office. Maddon wants to continue managing, but if the Cubs fail to make the playoffs, or go out quickly, his fate is tenuous, several baseball executives told USA TODAY on the condition of anonymity. The executives did not wish to speak publicly about Maddon’s situation.
Turnover is the nature of the beast in baseball. Just seven managers have lasted at least five years in their current jobs, earning salaries dwarfed by NFL and NBA coaches.
Veteran managers Joe Girardi (Yankees), John Farrell (Red Sox) and Dusty Baker (Nationals) all were fired after leading their teams to postseason berths in 2017. They were replaced by rookie managers who are earning a total of $2.7 million this season.
Perhaps the most stunning aspect of the USA TODAY managerial survey is the suppressed salary scale. Revenue dramatically has increased throughout baseball, in excess of $8 billion this year, but manager salaries are decreasing.
Hinch, with an option for $1.4 million, and Roberts, with an option for $1.1 million, should be in line for fat long-term deals. Yet neither has a guarantee past this season.
Torey Lovullo, who signed a threeyear, $2.7 million contract, led the Diamondbacks to the playoffs last year, earning the National League manager of the year award. He has them in first place in the NL West this season. His contract expires next season.
Boone left the ESPN broadcast booth to sign a three-year, $3.75 million contract with the Yankees last winter.
The Red Sox’s Alex Cora is earning $4 million over four years.
It’s a far cry from the 10-year, $100 million deal the NFL’s Raiders paid to lure Jon Gruden from the ESPN booth, or the 10-year, $75 million deal Texas A&M gave football coach Jimbo Fisher to leave Florida State.
Most managers don’t have agents, and the ones who do are strongly discouraged by teams from using them.
Alan Nero, managing director of Octagon’s baseball division, has represented more managers (nine) than anyone else in baseball, including Maddon and Martinez. Agent John Boggs represents Ron Gardenhire of the Tigers, Paul Molitor of the Twins and Roberts.
Yet despite their efforts, new managers today are barely making more than the minimum $545,000 player salary, despite more demands. The managers, with minimum 12-hour workdays, talk twice a day to local reporters, interact with various departments, try to blend different factions, accommodate huge personalities and then must get the players to buy into the process.
“It’s a little bit of a Sarah Huckabeetype position,” Maddon said, referring to the White House press secretary.
The most demanding time for managers, they’ll tell you, is not during games but the time in between.
“I almost feel like a Catholic priest at times,” Maddon said.
“There’s like this whole procession coming in, talking about all kinds of stuff.”
These days, there are plenty of managers who have little or no control of their daily lineups and little involvement with personnel decisions. Teams don’t mind paying a middle reliever $3 million a year, but unless you have 10 years of experience and a World Series on your resume, no one is paying that kind of money to a manager.
“It’s like owners having a Jaguar, and then taking it to Jiffy Lube for a tuneup,” one high-ranking club executive said. “It’s amazing how some of these teams devalue their manager.”
Managers are terrified to disagree with their front offices for fear it will cost them their jobs.
“It’s different now,” Maddon said, “with front offices seeking out managers who are able to assimilate with them better and accept the methods. If guys coming up don’t want to accept analytics, numbers and methods in that regard, you pretty much eliminate your chance of becoming a major league manager.”