The Manager is an interesting position to contemplate. At the surface, the Manager's duties are to decide the starting lineup including pitcher, handle in-game decisions such as players substitutions and calls to the bullpen, and coordinate in-game plays like the sacrifice bunt and the Hit and Run. Beyond that, the Manager has to deal with player anomalies and extenuating circumstances. When contemplating a Manager's skill, both of these elements have to be analyzed.
Many statistical analysts are under the opinion that one's value as a Manager is measured by how few runs you cost your team. Analysts like those at Baseball Prospectus tend to believe that special plays like the Sacrifice Bunt are overused and are almost always used in the wrong situation. By this measure, a good Manager is one who doesn't try to get tricky too often and just lets his players play. This philosophy is often held up by players as well, who believe the "let the players play" style allows players to feel more free and comfortable. Dusty Baker is notoriously bad at this in the statistical sphere, while Ted Williams was quite good.
The intangible aspect to Managing is the handling of players. Alfonso Soriano wants to bat leadoff, and often times he bats poorly when put out of position. The New York Yankees are constantly being stifled and second guessed by a brutal New York Media. These issues are the kind of thing that Managers have to deal with so their players won't have to. Joe Torre is supposedly very good at this.
The main reason I bring this up is Lou Piniella. Piniella at the moment has to face the aforementioned Soriano question (at least he will when Soriano returns from today's Disabled List stint.) Soriano went 0-8 in the #2 spot after two games and Piniella decided to move him into the Leadoff Spot, where Soriano has always wanted to bat. Soriano has great speed, but a career .326 On Base Percentage leaves something to be desired. Soriano is a perfect candidate for the Cleanup role, really. He has great power, and can leadoff more 2nd innings if the 1-2-3 batters go down. He wants to bat in the leadoff spot in order to try and prove he can get back to his old 40 stolen base form.
Piniella here has to juggle the competing interests here. Soriano is better suited in spots where he can get RBIs, and use his power to hit other runners in. At the same time, Piniella has to consider whether or not Soriano has a real emotional tie to the leadoff spot. If Soriano actually will bat better in the leadoff spot because he believes he can, how much does that warrant batting him in an inferior spot?
I'm curious as to what value General Managers place on the balance of these things. How much can a person rely on the intangibles while at the same time accepting one's poor statistical decisions, or vice versa? How good can a manager be at statistical decisions if his players run rampant and throw temper tantrums all the time?
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I tend to agree with you but for some odd reason, Piniella decides to hit Sori leadoff. He's better cast as a 3 or 5 hitter depending on which. He's not incredibly patient either. This, more than speed itself, is a component of a good leadoff hitter. Soriano doesn't fit that mold.
As for your comment on the Yankees, I will second guess Joe G. for not walking Ramirez in last Sat's game to load the bases. I wouldn't have been overly comfortable pitching to Youkilis with the sacks loaded and two outs either. I don't second guess him for not bunting Damon last week. no guarantee either Cano or Abreu get hits off the lefty.
I'm not really sure what we have but Girardi's in it for the long haul and I think he's shown good baseball acumen so far.
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