A beautiful example of how a man can show his strength, show his emotions, do the right thing and take care of his people all at the same time:
Last night Washington Nationals manager Frank Robinson pulled catcher Matthew LeCroy in the middle of the seventh inning after the Houston Astros had stolen seven bases and the third-stringer had committed his second error by throwing into the outfield.
The Nats survived LeCroy's performance and pulled out an 8-5 win, but according to an AP report from Joseph White at the postgame press conference, "Tears of sadness streamed down both of...Robinson's cheeks, and his voice quivered," and he had this to say:
I feel for [LeCroy.] And I hope the fans understand. And I just appreciate him hanging in there as long as he did... It's not LeCroy's fault. We know his shortcoming. They took advantage of them today... I wasn't trying to embarrass him in any way.
If you're not a baseball fan, let me provide some context: LeCroy was killing his team with a disastrous defensive performance, and he had to come out of the game. But it's unheard of for a manager to pull a catcher in the middle of the inning--it's the ultimate humiliation and a potentially explosive situation.
A little more context: Frank Robinson is a hardass. (The cheerful quote, "Close only counts in horseshoes and grenades" is widely attributed to him.) You might expect him to yank LeCroy with heartless disgust, crushing LeCroy's confidence and polarizing the team.
But Robinson stepped up to the plate (sorry) and somehow found a safe path through this minefield. He did what he had to do, pulling LeCroy and preserving the victory the rest of his team had fought for. But he made it clear to LeCroy and the world what a difficult decision that was, and how much respect and compassion he had for LeCroy. He delivered a heavy blow with the lightest of touches. Fearless, man. Frank Robinson is nails.
(Thanks to Deadspin for the photo. No thanks for missing the point.)
tags: frank robinson matthew lecroy washington nationals leadership
solid post ed - i'd missed this
Posted by: hunter | May 28, 2006 at 11:41 AM
Thanks, Hunter. I've been paying close attention to examples of compassionate leadership lately--lots to learn from there.
Posted by: ed | May 28, 2006 at 12:01 PM
Hey Ed,
I missed this too. I checked it out in the W. Post and was pretty pleased with the coverage. I also liked LeCroy's response too: "I'm man enough to take it. I don't think he should get that emotional about it. He's doing his job, just like I would do if I was in his position." Sure, nothing wrong with Robinson getting a bit emotional. He regrets the position he had to put this player in (due to the injury or starting catcher Brian Schneider.) And LeCroy did his best, not great, but he played the game.
Robinson has a reputation as a hard ass, but I think he's great. What's wrong with a little tough love for guys making thousands of dollars for each game they play.
P.S. Went to a game today with Mom and Dad. Nats won 10 - 4 over the Dodgers. Five homeruns --one was by the Dodgers, but the rest were for the Nats and Brad Johnson had two. The play of the game was CF Marlon Byrd's diving catch to end the inning (7th?) with three men on. A great day at RFK.
Posted by: Matt | May 28, 2006 at 05:00 PM
Nice. I'm always happy to see the Nats win--they were my adopted team last year, with all the time I spent in DC--and coming over the Dodgers makes it all the sweeter.
I love LeCroy's reaction, too, but I think the way in which Robinson handled the situation had something to do with that. Robinson made it very easy for LeCroy not to feel sorry for himself, to put the team first, and to actually sympathize with his manager. That is smart and compassionate leadership.
Hope you guys are having a great weekend--talk to you soon.
Posted by: ed | May 28, 2006 at 06:45 PM
Here's another note about LeCroy. Who knew?
Posted by: Paul | May 31, 2006 at 08:32 AM