Gary Pettis remembers Sparky Anderson compares him to Ron Washington
The Texas Rangers took on the Detroit Tigers away from home.
Comerica Park hosted a high raised banner of Sparky Anderson to kick off their home games in the new 2011 Major League Baseball season.
The Rangers’ first base coach, Gary Pettis, still remembers the time he spent with Anderson when he was part of the Tigers’ squad in 1989.
The first base coach took the opportunity to talk about his former Hall of Fame manager, who won the Cincinnati Reds two back-to-back World Series titles.
Anderson was known for his strategy and free flowing play. Often camera shy he indulged in a healthy interaction with the press. He won the Detroit Tigers their World Series title in 1984, becoming a skipper to win the title from both the National League
and the American League.
"He let guys go out and play", Pettis said. "He trusted the fact that we knew how to play the game and put the responsibility on the player to do his job. Just like if you have to move a runner over from second base, he didn't have to tell you, you either
bunted or hit the ball to the right side”.
Pettis compared Sparky’s approach to the Rangers’ philosophy and teachings. He explained that most of the players in the squad have been in that familiar environment for the past three to four years.
The stars know what they’re expected to deliver and it’s not simply, task oriented. He elaborated that it’s all about winning the game and how one scores runs. That is the defining element of the game.
To sum it up, the first base coach sees manager Ron Washington, as someone who can be compared to Anderson, openly.
"Just in the fact that he trusts his players to go out and lets them perform", Pettis said. "He doesn't put added pressure on the players. That comes from the players knowing what's expected and knowing what to do".
The first-base coach clarified that players would not do this continuously but if a right path was chosen, there would be more chances for success in the future.
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