Both local and national media members have had a field day this off-season in terms of making jokes about Ruben Amaro Jr.'s perceived fall from grace, as the former Philadelphia Phillies general manager accepted a job to become the Boston Red Sox first-base coach.
However, two hall-of-famers aren't laughing at Amaro's transition, as he attempts to become a manager.
Nick Cafardo of The Boston Globe was the first to report that Amaro wanted to become a manager this off-season. At that time, three-time World Series champion manager Tony La Russa suggested that he believed Amaro could be a very good manager.
“Ruben is a very smart baseball man. There’s no doubt in my mind he could be a very good major league manager. He’s an ex-player who understands the game.”
It is worth noting that at that time Cafardo wrote that Bob Lamonte, Amaro's agent, had a good relationship with La Russa.
The report also suggested that Lamonte was well connected to Philadelphia Phillies hall of fame front-office man Pat Gillick, who predicted in a New York Times article Saturday that his former understudy will eventually be a manager in the league.
''I think he's going to be a manager,'' said Gillick a Hall of Fame executive. ''He's a smart guy; he's bilingual. Consequently, I think he's going to get an opportunity.''
Gillick went on to note that he believes that with a few years to learn how to be a successful coach and to get back into being in the dugout, he believes that Amaro could become an attractive option for teams as a manager.
Whether the predictions of these two — who both have some sort of vested interest or connection to Amaro — turn out to be correct, remains to be seen. But in theory, the idea that a former player and executive could eventually get a chance to be a manager isn't that far-fetched.
Tim Kelly (@TimKellySports) is the Managing Editor of Philliedelphia.com, focusing on news and features.
