High Note

It must be said, and I don't know anyone who can argue this point, that the 2011 World Series was one of the best in years. It had the drama of the Texas Rangers having never won a championship, mixed with the possibility of this being Albert Pujols last ride as a St. Louis Cardinal. Not to mention, the games themselves were outstanding, especially an epic Game 6 walk-off, extra-innings bout that left the viewer drained. There were bullpen moves aplenty, an historic night for King Albert, more memorable moments by Nelson Cruz and David Freese, and it culminated in the final game that encapsulated one hell of a season.

Now that the St. Louis Cardinals are officially the 2011 World Series Champions, everyone is looking towards 2012. Some players may take time off during the winter, but many are playing ball in other leagues around the world, staying in shape, and building up value that translates to mega dollars. The front office people especially, aren't taking a break, as this is the time where deals are made and franchises are reborn. I've said it before, and I'll say it again, this is one of my favorite times of the baseball year.

It is also a time to take stock, though. Some individuals look at past achievements and either want more, or decided that enough is enough. Retirement is a tough thing. Ideally it means you are never coming back, but there are lots of guys who realized later on that they missed the game and came back for one more ride. More often than not, this doesn't end well. However, I think that Anthony La Russa has really put some time into his decision when he came out on Monday and said he was retiring from the game of baseball, thus ending one of the best careers the game has ever seen.

I don't know if this comes as a shock to you or not, but it certainly did to me. Those who are close to Mr. La Russa noticed that this postseason was different for the stoic manager, as I've heard repeatedly that he seemed to stop and appreciate the surroundings of this epic game. He appeared lighter and happier than usual as he finished off the regular season in a flurry of resurgence, and finally winning the World Series when almost no one expected they would. According to baseball insiders, this lighthearted version of La Russa was due to the fact that he had informed the Cardinals front office in August that he was retiring after the 2011 campaign.

This adds dramatic undertones to the World Series that history will certainly overindulge in. I can see the slow-motion video now of La Russa running up the dugout steps as a deep voiced commentator tells the story of how La Russa knew this was it, as the game unfolded on the grass. That is of course, overblown, but that's how history likes to remember things. Regardless of how this postseason plays out in stories down the line, La Russa will always be remembered as one of the greatest men to ever manage the game of baseball.

In case you hadn't realized, Tony was a manager for 33 years. He started with the Chicago White Sox in 1978, and stayed there for 8 years. He then moved on to the Oakland Athletics, where he stayed until 1995, and won a World Series title in 1989. In 1996 he took over the St. Louis Cardinals and won two more championships, in 2006 and again this year. In doing so, Tony became only the second manager to win a World Series in both the American and National Leagues. The first was legendary manager Sparky Anderson. Oh, and did I mention that Tony also was voted Manager of the Year in 1983, 1988, 1992, and in 2002?

Over the course of the 33 years in which he was almost never out of work, La Russa collected 2728 wins, which is third all-time. Can you fathom that? Throughout the vast history of the game of baseball, Tony was able to win more games than almost every other manager the game as ever seen. Great managers like Casey Stengel, Tommy Lasorda, and Bobby Cox were not able to achieve the same success that La Russa did. La Russa won by being a smart guy in a very complex game. That's not to say those others managers weren't smart, but La Russa brought something new to the game. He micro-managed.

You can love this style or hate it, and sometimes I do both, but La Russa went over the game with a fine-tooth comb day in and day out. He analyzed the statistics and calculated the odds of right-lefty matchups almost to an irritating stage. He helped pioneer sabermetrics in a way by refining what it meant to manage the game. No position in the game reflexed this more than the way Tony managed his bullpens. Relievers have always been a finicky bunch, but Tony gave the bullpen roles and helped create the modern closer position. When guys had a specific role, the theory goes, they would be able to focus on one job, and thus be more effective. This was evident time and time again as Tony would constantly switch in one guy over another to give his team the slightest edge in winning a game or series. He did so in the past, and again this year, as he made more bullpen moves in this postseason than any manager before.

Tony was not lovable by any stretch of the imagination. He almost got into a fistfight on-field with Buck Showalter in 1992, he was arrested for drunk driving while asleep at a red light in Florida in 2007, and he has been depicted as a curmudgeon for most of his professional career. But smart people are often despised by the outside world, because they see things differently. I certainly can't see into Tony's psyche, but I honestly believe that for the most part, he didn't care what other people thought of him. As long as he could help his club win, that was his main concern, and that's what he did consistently. It's wonderful that such an important part of baseball history gets to end his career on the highest of notes. I wish the best of congratulations to Tony La Russa and the rest of the St. Louis Cardinals. Enjoy retirement Tony.

This now begs the question of what will St. Louis do for next season. And thus the off-season begins. Who will manage the club? Will Pujols be back? Will Adam Wainwright recover from his Tommy John surgery? Who else is coming back to the roster? It's not so frequent that a team that just won the World Series would have so many questions immediately following. If the Cards resign Albert, and perhaps get somebody like Terry Francona to replace La Russa, maybe this team won't miss a step. However, if Albert leaves, and a new manager doesn't do so well, the defending champs next year could have a terrible dropoff. Then again, almost no one predicted the Cardinals would win this year, so what do we all know about anything?

The point is, everything starts anew. The city of St. Louis can take some time to celebrate its 11th Championship, but in 29 other cities people are busy buying and selling, mixing and matching, and tried to come up with that perfect recipe that will deliver them a title next year. There is plenty of talent out there that will soon find a new uniform. The everlasting question is, how will it all pan out? I hope you get excited by this stuff as much as I do. If not, well then I guess I'll see you in April. Until then, let the rumor mill start.