azdad1978
Championship!!!!
Players from past try to teach D-Backs about winning
Bob McManaman
The Arizona Republic
Feb. 26, 2005 12:00 AM
TUCSON - With all due respect to the "Baby Backs" phenomena the past couple of years, it was time for the Diamondbacks to start growing up. If they wanted a return to glory, they needed to toss the pacifiers and bring back the swagger.
Preschool is over. Old school is back.
The front office handled most of the metamorphosis by luring established veterans across the board, from pitchers (Javier Vazquez, Russ Ortiz and Shawn Estes), to infielders (Troy Glaus, Royce Clayton, Craig Counsell and Tony Clark) to outfielders (Shawn Green and Jose Cruz Jr.).
But before that restructuring, manager Bob Melvin made some veteran additions of his own, asking the likes of former Diamondbacks stars Mark Grace, Matt Williams and Gregg Olson, along with another former star, Will Clark, to serve as part-time coaches and advisers in spring training.
With members of Melvin's full-time staff, which includes no-nonsense bench coach Jay Bell, another ex-Diamondbacks player, they give the team a look back into the future.
The message is clear: No sniveling allowed; it's all about winning and being a total professional.
"It's nice to have those guys here, because not only do they bring a lot of veteran presence, but these guys are gamers," left fielder Luis Gonzalez said. "They played in a ton of big games in their careers. They've all played in the World Series. They bring a ton of experience and credibility to our locker room."
By putting the uniforms back on, arriving early to the park and talking and teaching baseball, they're helping to recreate the winning attitude the Diamondbacks had when they won three division titles and a World Series in four years.
Melvin touched on it when he addressed his full squad for the first time earlier this week. Something had been missing from the Diamondbacks the past two seasons, but it was there from 1999-2002.
Melvin was right in the thick of it as bench coach.
"We had a swagger," he said. "But it was a swagger we got from preparation and a swagger that we got from expecting to win, and it was a swagger you get from having some success and being a confident player.
"It's not a conceited thing. It's not a 'me, me, me' thing, but it's the expectation of going out there and expecting to win."
When the Diamondbacks finished last in the majors last season with a 51-111 record, the worst mark by a National League club since the 1965 New York Mets, the only swagger came from opposing teams who licked their chops every time Arizona appeared on the schedule.
It used to be the other way around, recalled Williams, Arizona's third baseman from 1998-2003.
"A prime example of it was when the manager from LA, (Jim) Tracy, stayed out to watch us take batting practice because he wanted to know how we prepared for that particular game," Williams said. "That's the ultimate compliment."
So was being invited back. Grace called it a classy move by Melvin, especially in Grace's case, because he had interviewed and been turned down for Arizona's managerial job.
One of Grace's top priorities will be trying to help the transformation of Chad Tracy, who is moving to first base from third and will hit either second, sixth or seventh. Grace is counseling the second-year major leaguer on how to play certain hitters defensively.
Grace has said Tracy can become a better hitter and fielder than he was, a compliment that floored Tracy and made him vow to work that much harder. It was a shrewd move by Grace, the club's TV analyst, who can sense when and how to motivate teammates.
If it means issuing a compliment or a challenge, demonstrating a new trick or telling an old joke, or simply bringing back good, old-fashioned card games to the clubhouse instead of Scrabble or Yahtzee, the old schoolers are here to help.
Clark, a throwback first baseman who starred for the rival San Francisco Giants, among other clubs, didn't take long to become a Diamondback, at least in spirit. The other day, he barked at reporters milling about in the clubhouse, only to offer a slight smile as he strode to the training room.
That was always a classic Clark move, letting outsiders know exactly where they stood while protecting the sanctity of the clubhouse cocoon, where things often are viewed as "us vs. them."
The ability to teach was a big reason some of these coaches were brought here when they were still playing, a fact not lost on General Manager Joe Garagiola Jr.
"Don't leave aside their ability to instruct, that's a huge thing," Garagiola said. "They're not here to be attitude coaches. Look, Matt Williams was a great third baseman. Will Clark was a great first baseman. Gregg Olson was a very successful major league pitcher. Mark Grace was a Gold Glove first baseman.
"You couple that with their approach to the game, it's an attractive package to be able to have available."
The old schoolers make the veterans more comfortable, too. "It can't be forced by any means," Williams said of rediscovering their swagger. "You can't just snap your fingers and it happens. You have to lead by example, and I think that's why Bob brought in all the guys that he did, to help provide that type of leadership and get everything pointed in the right direction."
http://www.azcentral.com/sports/special3/articles/0226dbacks0226.html
Bob McManaman
The Arizona Republic
Feb. 26, 2005 12:00 AM
TUCSON - With all due respect to the "Baby Backs" phenomena the past couple of years, it was time for the Diamondbacks to start growing up. If they wanted a return to glory, they needed to toss the pacifiers and bring back the swagger.
Preschool is over. Old school is back.
The front office handled most of the metamorphosis by luring established veterans across the board, from pitchers (Javier Vazquez, Russ Ortiz and Shawn Estes), to infielders (Troy Glaus, Royce Clayton, Craig Counsell and Tony Clark) to outfielders (Shawn Green and Jose Cruz Jr.).
But before that restructuring, manager Bob Melvin made some veteran additions of his own, asking the likes of former Diamondbacks stars Mark Grace, Matt Williams and Gregg Olson, along with another former star, Will Clark, to serve as part-time coaches and advisers in spring training.
With members of Melvin's full-time staff, which includes no-nonsense bench coach Jay Bell, another ex-Diamondbacks player, they give the team a look back into the future.
The message is clear: No sniveling allowed; it's all about winning and being a total professional.
"It's nice to have those guys here, because not only do they bring a lot of veteran presence, but these guys are gamers," left fielder Luis Gonzalez said. "They played in a ton of big games in their careers. They've all played in the World Series. They bring a ton of experience and credibility to our locker room."
By putting the uniforms back on, arriving early to the park and talking and teaching baseball, they're helping to recreate the winning attitude the Diamondbacks had when they won three division titles and a World Series in four years.
Melvin touched on it when he addressed his full squad for the first time earlier this week. Something had been missing from the Diamondbacks the past two seasons, but it was there from 1999-2002.
Melvin was right in the thick of it as bench coach.
"We had a swagger," he said. "But it was a swagger we got from preparation and a swagger that we got from expecting to win, and it was a swagger you get from having some success and being a confident player.
"It's not a conceited thing. It's not a 'me, me, me' thing, but it's the expectation of going out there and expecting to win."
When the Diamondbacks finished last in the majors last season with a 51-111 record, the worst mark by a National League club since the 1965 New York Mets, the only swagger came from opposing teams who licked their chops every time Arizona appeared on the schedule.
It used to be the other way around, recalled Williams, Arizona's third baseman from 1998-2003.
"A prime example of it was when the manager from LA, (Jim) Tracy, stayed out to watch us take batting practice because he wanted to know how we prepared for that particular game," Williams said. "That's the ultimate compliment."
So was being invited back. Grace called it a classy move by Melvin, especially in Grace's case, because he had interviewed and been turned down for Arizona's managerial job.
One of Grace's top priorities will be trying to help the transformation of Chad Tracy, who is moving to first base from third and will hit either second, sixth or seventh. Grace is counseling the second-year major leaguer on how to play certain hitters defensively.
Grace has said Tracy can become a better hitter and fielder than he was, a compliment that floored Tracy and made him vow to work that much harder. It was a shrewd move by Grace, the club's TV analyst, who can sense when and how to motivate teammates.
If it means issuing a compliment or a challenge, demonstrating a new trick or telling an old joke, or simply bringing back good, old-fashioned card games to the clubhouse instead of Scrabble or Yahtzee, the old schoolers are here to help.
Clark, a throwback first baseman who starred for the rival San Francisco Giants, among other clubs, didn't take long to become a Diamondback, at least in spirit. The other day, he barked at reporters milling about in the clubhouse, only to offer a slight smile as he strode to the training room.
That was always a classic Clark move, letting outsiders know exactly where they stood while protecting the sanctity of the clubhouse cocoon, where things often are viewed as "us vs. them."
The ability to teach was a big reason some of these coaches were brought here when they were still playing, a fact not lost on General Manager Joe Garagiola Jr.
"Don't leave aside their ability to instruct, that's a huge thing," Garagiola said. "They're not here to be attitude coaches. Look, Matt Williams was a great third baseman. Will Clark was a great first baseman. Gregg Olson was a very successful major league pitcher. Mark Grace was a Gold Glove first baseman.
"You couple that with their approach to the game, it's an attractive package to be able to have available."
The old schoolers make the veterans more comfortable, too. "It can't be forced by any means," Williams said of rediscovering their swagger. "You can't just snap your fingers and it happens. You have to lead by example, and I think that's why Bob brought in all the guys that he did, to help provide that type of leadership and get everything pointed in the right direction."
http://www.azcentral.com/sports/special3/articles/0226dbacks0226.html
