Joe McCarthy (baseball manager) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Joe McCarthy |
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McCarthy as Red Sox manager in 1948
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| Manager | |||
| Born: April 21, 1887 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
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| Died: January 13, 1978 (aged 90) Buffalo, New York, U.S. |
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| debut | |||
| April 13, 1926, for the Chicago Cubs | |||
| Last appearance | |||
| June 18, 1950, for the Boston Red Sox | |||
| MLB statistics | |||
| Games managed | 3,487 | ||
| Managerial record | 2,125–1,333 | ||
| Winning % | .615 | ||
| Teams | |||
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| Career highlights and awards | |||
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 Baseball Hall of Fame |
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| Induction | 1957 | ||
| Vote | Veterans Committee | ||
Joseph Vincent McCarthy (born April 21, 1887 – died January 13, 1978) was a famous American baseball manager. He is best known for leading the powerful New York Yankees team, nicknamed the "Bronx Bombers," from 1931 to 1946.
Joe McCarthy was the first manager to win league championships in both the National League and the American League. He won a total of nine league titles and seven World Series championships. Only Casey Stengel has won as many World Series as a manager. McCarthy was honored by being elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1957. He also led his teams to 100 wins or more in six different seasons. His career winning percentages in both the regular season and the World Series are the highest in baseball history.
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Joe McCarthy's Early Years
Joe McCarthy was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. His parents were immigrants from Ireland. He grew up in the Germantown area of Philadelphia. McCarthy looked up to Athletics manager Connie Mack. Interestingly, McCarthy is one of the few successful major league managers who never actually played in the major leagues himself.
He went to Niagara University in 1905 and 1906 on a baseball scholarship. After college, he spent 15 years playing in the minor leagues. He mostly played as a second baseman for teams like the Toledo Mud Hens and Buffalo Bisons. In 1916, he signed with the Brooklyn Tip-Tops. This team was part of the Federal League, which was considered a third major league. However, the league ended before he could play a game for them.
Leading Successful Teams
Joe McCarthy started his managing career with the Louisville Colonels in 1919. He led them to win the American Association titles in 1921 and 1925. After this success, the Chicago Cubs hired him to manage their team for the 1926 season. He quickly improved the Cubs, guiding them to win the National League title in 1929. However, he was let go near the end of the 1930 season.
The New York Yankees then hired McCarthy in 1931. The team's owner, Jacob Ruppert, wanted more championships. He told McCarthy he had three years to win a World Series. McCarthy delivered, winning the championship in his second year, 1932.
Yankees Domination
With the Yankees, Joe McCarthy's strict but fair managing style helped make the team a baseball powerhouse. During his time there, the Yankees won seven World Series titles. His most successful period was from 1936 to 1943. In those years, they won seven out of eight possible league titles. They won six World Series, including four in a row from 1936 to 1939. This was a first for an American League team. They were also the first team to win more than two World Series in a row.
The only time the Yankees struggled during this period was in 1940. They finished third that year. During McCarthy's time with the Yankees, the team won 100 games or more six times. The lowest they ever finished was fourth place, in his last full season in 1945.
McCarthy's time with the Yankees ended early in the 1946 season. By late May, the Yankees were behind the Boston Red Sox. After losing two games to Cleveland, McCarthy went home and resigned by telegram.
Managing the Red Sox
After taking a break in 1947, McCarthy returned to baseball in 1948. He became the manager of the Boston Red Sox. The previous manager, Joe Cronin, became the general manager. On his first day of spring training, McCarthy arrived in a casual shirt. He knew that star player Ted Williams rarely wore a tie. McCarthy said he would not force his players to wear ties. He famously said, "If I can't get along with a .400 hitter, they ought to fire me right now."
In the 1948 season, he led the Red Sox to a great record. However, they lost a special tie-breaker game to the Cleveland Indians. The next year, the Red Sox were ahead of the Yankees by one game with two games left. But the Yankees won those final two games and took the league title. This was the first of ten titles for manager Casey Stengel.
The Red Sox started the 1950 season slowly. By late June, they were eight games out of first place. On June 21, McCarthy did not show up for a game. The general manager, Cronin, felt McCarthy had lost his drive. He convinced McCarthy to resign. In his 24 seasons as a major league manager, Joe McCarthy never led a team to a losing record.
Joe McCarthy's Coaching Style
Even with his teams' amazing success, some people criticized McCarthy. They thought he was just lucky to have great players. They believed he wasn't a strong game strategist. During his best years with the Yankees, from 1936 to 1943, another manager called him a "push-button" manager. This meant they thought the team ran itself.
However, McCarthy was an excellent teacher. He was very good at helping players develop their skills. He was also skilled at managing players with strong personalities, like Babe Ruth. Ruth had hoped to become the Yankees' manager himself. He didn't like that an "outsider" like McCarthy was hired. Ruth and McCarthy's relationship was not very warm. It got worse in 1934 when Ruth openly tried to become manager. Partly because of this, Ruth was traded to the Boston Braves after that season.
While managing, McCarthy had a calm approach. He rarely went to the pitcher's mound to remove a pitcher. He also avoided arguing with umpires unless it was about a rule. He preferred to stay in his seat in the middle of the dugout. He also chose not to wear a numbered uniform with the Yankees and Red Sox.
Sportswriters gave McCarthy the nickname "Marse Joe." "Marse" is an old Southern English way of saying "master." This nickname highlighted his leadership of the Yankees. McCarthy's success was so great that in 32 years of managing, only one of his teams finished with a losing record or below fourth place.
The Sporting News named McCarthy Major League Manager of the Year in 1936. This was the first year the award was given. He won it again in 1938 and 1943.
Joe McCarthy's Legacy
In a 1969 poll, Joe McCarthy was voted the third greatest manager in baseball history. He was behind John McGraw and Casey Stengel. In a similar poll in 1997, he finished second behind Stengel for the All-Century team. On April 29, 1976, the Yankees honored McCarthy. They placed a plaque for him in their Monument Park. The plaque calls him "One of baseball's most beloved and respected leaders." In 1985, McCarthy became a founding member of the Buffalo Baseball Hall of Fame. This honored his connection to Buffalo.
Joe McCarthy passed away from pneumonia at age 90 in Buffalo, New York. He is buried in Mount Olivet Cemetery in Tonawanda, New York.
Joe McCarthy's 10 Commandments for Success
Joe McCarthy had "10 Commandments for Success in the Majors." These were his rules for players:
- Nobody ever became a ballplayer by walking after a ball.
- You will never become a .300 hitter unless you take the bat off your shoulder.
- An outfielder who throws in back of a runner is locking the barn after the horse is stolen.
- Keep your head up and you may not have to keep it down.
- When you start to slide, SLIDE. He who changes his mind may have to change a good leg for a bad one.
- Do not alibi on bad hops. Anyone can field the good ones.
- Always run them out. You never can tell.
- Do not quit.
- Try not to find too much fault with the umpires. You cannot expect them to be as perfect as you are.
- A pitcher who hasn't control hasn't anything.
These rules came from the book Baseball's Greatest Managers (1961).
Images for kids
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McCarthy as Red Sox manager in 1948
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Joe McCarthy on a 1936 baseball card.
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Joe McCarthy's plaque in Monument Park.
