The Daily Recruiter

Joe Girardi won his first game as manager for the New York Yankees, edging Toronto 3-2. Seeing Girardi in the dugout occupied by Joe Torre for so many years was strange. He just wasn’t a man I ever expected to see leading the Yankees.

Girardi, a former backup catcher, was not a spectacular Yankee player. But like many catchers who have gone before him, including Torre, he was destined to lead.

Paul O’Neill, a former Yankee in the commentator’s booth, said catchers understand baseball in a way other players don’t. They work with pitchers. They see the action up close – too close for some. It takes guts to be a major-league catcher.

“Big-name players don’t go on to be managers,” my husband noted. What do they do? These days, some lay low in hopes we’ll forget about the whiff of cheat that hangs over their batting averages. Others invest in businesses, build big homes and enjoy their millions. Nothing wrong with that.

But watching Girardi, 43, made me think: if you want to lead an organization, why not find the position that is the equivalent of catcher? That position may vary depending on the company, but you want every position you hold to give you a clear, if slightly dangerous, view of the action.

Some other lessons from Girardi’s career:

He made only one All-Star appearance, and was something of a journeyman, playing for four teams. Yet in his first stint as manager for the Florida Marlins in 2006, he was named National League Manager of the Year. He was also fired. Go figure. As many successful CEOs have demonstrated, getting fired seems good for the career in the long-run. It didn’t hurt that Girardi handled his dismissal with class.

As a bench coach for the Yankees in 2005, he had one chance to manage when Torre was suspended. He led the team to a loss against the last-place Kansas City Royals. Girardi has not had a charmed career.

Over the past few years, I often saw Girardi on TV, working in broadcasting and even hosting a kids program. He developed communication skills he’ll need when dealing with the New York media. If you’re wondering what type of skill you can work on that will serve you well in the future, you can’t go wrong with figuring out how to talk to people.

I hope Girardi has a good first year as Yankee manager, but I kinda doubt it. I predict a long, rocky, tumultuous, fascinating, entertaining season.