McAdam: Red Sox found what they wanted for a manager in-house

FORT MYERS, Fla. - When the Red Sox parted ways with Alex Cora in the middle of January, new chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom had both a quandary and an opportunity.

Hired months earlier, Bloom never could have anticipated that he would be undertaking a managerial search a month before the start of spring training. That was daunting, but also invigorating — a chance to handpick his choice for the dugout, someone with whom he could work closely and someone who shared his own philosophy about the game.

The Sox opened the search and interviewed at least three known external candidates -- John Gibbons, Mark Kotsay and Luis Urueta.

But as the process developed, Bloom began to see that he had a potential solution already in-house in the person of bench coach Ron Roenicke.



Roenicke had major league managerial experience. Moreover, he had major league postseason experience. But more than that, Bloom saw how Roenicke carried himself, the confidence he possessed and the demeanor he displayed. And, not incidentally, he saw how much respect Roenicke had engendered, not only from Red Sox players who had played for him the last two seasons, but also, from people around the game -- some of it unsolicited.

All of which led to Roenicke being introduced as Cora's replacement, albeit with an "interim'' tag. The Red Sox had hoped to hold off the announcement until after Major League Baseball completed its investigation of the organization's 2018 sign-stealing, but with that not yet finished and the first workout set for Wednesday, the Sox made the announcement anyway.

"We had a very lengthy process that got us to this point and I think going through this process,'' said Bloom, "made us feel very strongly that Ron is the right guy to lead our group forward. We feel very strongly about Ron's ability and how well-suited for this task.''

Bloom noted that the interim tag was "out of respect" for the ongoing investigation and that "permanency'' would be addressed once the investigation is completed.

After a winter in which the organization was roiled by the sign-stealing scandal, the loss of Cora and only 24 hours earlier, traded its best and most popular player, the Red Sox are in dire need of some stability and continuity. Roenicke is known to the players, and knows of them -- their strengths and weaknesses, their personalities and what makes them tick.

Had the Red Sox gone outside the organization for the hire, they would have been starting from scratch with a manager unfamiliar with the personnel on the field and the people who populate the organization. As the game calls for more collaboration between the dugout and the front office, there would have been an immense amount of work to do over less than seven weeks at spring training.

In Roenicke, they get a known commodity and can, starting Wednesday, hit the ground running.

When they need it most, Roenicke will deliver continuity and stability.

"It's certainly a plus,'' confirmed Bloom. "I think it's really important to evaluate people for who they are in total and look at the whole person. You really look at everything and how it all adds up to how they're going to be able to put players in a position to succeed. But there's no question that Ron, having been a part of success here and really understanding the group and being as perceptive as he is and combining that with the time he spent around this group, I think it equips him that much better to get the most out of him.''

Importantly, they also get someone who's managed before and while the success enjoyed by Cora, Aaron Boone and Rocco Baldelli - to cite three -- in the last two years is a reminder that manager can succeed without having done it before, this situation called out for a steady, experienced hand.

"There's no doubt, any time you have experience going through all the things that can happen in seasons with players, with different things outside of what happens on the field, (it's an advantage),'' said Roenicke. "You probably learn more from the trials that you go through, the challenges you go through, rather than when things are going well. I think all of that will help me, certainly, to deal with things that come up -- the players and their concerns, the coaching staff and their concerns. All that definitely helps.''

Roenicke, 63, when asked for his primary skill, identified getting the optimum performance out of players.

"That really doesn't change whether you're a coach or a manager,'' he said. "That really is your ultimate goal - what do we have to do to get whatever abilities these guys have, to perform those abilities on the field. I (just) think you have a bigger voice as a manager -- and it is a different voice.''