Parcells on LaRussa's Retirement

Bill Parcells on Good Friend Tony La Russa: “Baseball has lost one of the great guys to ever manage in the game.”
November 2, 2011 – 9:15 am by Michael Bean
Sports Radio Interviews

The last time we heard from Bill Parcells here on SportsRadioInterviews, he was sharing stories and reminiscing about the late Al Davis, a man who meant a great deal to Parcells both personally and professionally over the course of a nearly half-century long relationship. Now we’re going to check in with the Hall of Fame coach to hear what he has to say about Tony La Russa, another close friend of his who, of course, announced his retirement this week after guiding the St. Louis Cardinals to their 11th World Series win in franchise history.

Parcells joined ESPN 101 in St. Louis to talk about baseball losing a great manager like La Russa to retirement, when he first met La Russa, going to Cardinals spring training for a number of years now since they train where he lives in Jupiter, Florida, whether he was surprised by the timing of La Russa’s decision, if he thinks it’s harder or easier to retire and walk away when on top like La Russa did, and how tough it will be to replace a manager like La Russa in St. Louis despite the Cardinals being such a well run organization.

On baseball losing a great manager like La Russa to retirement:

“Well, I’ll tell you, baseball has lost one of the great guys to ever manage in the game. He was a terrific manager. As I said the other day about him, I was privileged to be on the fringes of the inner sanctum for seven or eight springs there with the Cardinals, and you get to talk to him about strategy, and you hear the interaction with the coaches and him talk about roster composition and things of that nature. So I was really able to get a laymen’s insight into how baseball operations should be run.”

When did he first meet La Russa?

“I think the first time I ever met him was in Yankees Stadium. I was watching a game there, and the A’s were playing the Yankees. And he came across the field and I was in the Yankee dugout obviously when I was coaching the Giants. And he introduced himself, we talked a little bit, and then we hadn’t talked for awhile. And then when St. Louis opened their spring training in Jupiter, Florida, that’s where I reside, and I would go to their practices. Actually I would go every day almost. So not only would I see the spring training games, I would see their practices and coaches and players pretty much on a daily basis. And I have some good friends in the organization — the trainer is a good friend of mine, and some of the coaches on the staff I’ve become friendly with. So it was a great experience for me to be around a guy like Tony who certainly epitomizes what a baseball coach should be.”

Was he surprised that La Russa decided to retire at this point in time:

“You know, having retired a few times myself, I certainly…33 years in that business, or in the business I was in, can be a grind. I mean this is a grind. It’s not just game to game, or inning to inning, it was pitch to pitch. And that’s the way he managed — pitch to pitch. There’s just so much tread on those tires mentally, and after awhile, you begin to know that it’s time. And we all have to get off the train. Either we get off on our own volition or they ask us to get off. He’s earned the right to make his own decisions as to his future and what he wants to do. But I will say this: baseball is losing one of the great contributors to the game.”

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http://sportsradiointerviews.com/2011/11/02/bill-parcells-on-good-friend-tony-la-russa-baseball-has-lost-one-of-the-great-guys-to-ever-manage-in-the-game/