Jack McKeon
Jack McKeon | |
---|---|
Manager | |
Born: South Amboy, New Jersey, U.S. | November 23, 1930|
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
MLB debut | |
April 6, 1973, for the Kansas City Royals | |
Last MLB appearance | |
September 28, 2011, for the Florida Marlins | |
MLB statistics | |
Games managed | 2,042 |
Managerial record | 1,051–990 |
Winning % | .515 |
Teams | |
Career highlights and awards | |
|
Jack Aloysius McKeon[1] (/məˈkiːən/; born November 23, 1930),[2][3] nicknamed "Trader Jack," is an American former Major League Baseball manager and front-office executive.
In
He remained at the helm of the Marlins through 2005, then retired at age 74. In 2011, he took over the Marlins on June 20 for a second time as interim manager following the resignation of Edwin Rodríguez and served out the season. In so doing he became, at 80, the second oldest manager in big league history, behind only Connie Mack. He retired again at the end of the season with a career managerial record of 1,051–990–1 (.515).[5]
McKeon previously managed the Kansas City Royals (1973–1975), Oakland Athletics (parts of both 1977 and 1978), San Diego Padres (1988–1990), and Cincinnati Reds (1997–2000).
From July 7, 1980, through September 22, 1990, he served as the general manager of the Padres, assembling the team which won the 1984 National League pennant, the first in San Diego history.
Early life and education
Raised in South Amboy, New Jersey, McKeon attended St. Mary's High School, later renamed as Cardinal McCarrick High School.[6]
Career
Minor league player and manager
Born in
McKeon spent his entire early professional career (1949–64) in the
Manager of Royals and Athletics
McKeon, then 42, was promoted to manager of the Kansas City Royals for
But the
McKeon spent 1976 back in the minor leagues as skipper of the
Fired again by Finley, McKeon departed the Oakland organization to manage the
General manager of Padres
McKeon then moved from the field into the front office. He began the
He began by acquiring young catcher Terry Kennedy from Herzog's St. Louis Cardinals in an 11-player deal. Over the next four off seasons, he would also trade for Dave Dravecky, Garry Templeton, Carmelo Martínez, and Graig Nettles, draft young stars Tony Gwynn and Kevin McReynolds, and sign free agents Steve Garvey and Goose Gossage, the core of San Diego's 1984 National League champions. In June 1989, he traded his own son-in-law, pitcher Greg Booker.
He told the
Manager of Padres and Reds
McKeon stayed in the front office through the terms of four different managers. When the fourth skipper, Larry Bowa, started 1988 at 16–30, McKeon took over the managerial reins himself on May 28. He led the Padres to a 67–48 mark for the rest of 1988, and an 89–73 record in 1989. But when his 1990 Padres stalled at 37–43 at the All-Star break, McKeon turned the team over to coach Greg Riddoch. Slightly more than two months later, he was ousted from the general manager's job when the Padres' new owner, Tom Werner, hired Joe McIlvaine away from the New York Mets.
McKeon was out of baseball in 1991–92 before joining the Cincinnati Reds in 1993 as a Major League scout and then senior adviser for player personnel, working under GM
On the eve of
Called to manage the Marlins
McKeon was again named National League Manager of the Year in 2003 — the result of leading the Marlins, who were six games below .500 when he took over on May 11, to a 75–49 record the rest of the way. The Marlins proceeded to win the National League pennant, and were then victorious in the World Series, defeating the New York Yankees in six games. At age 72, McKeon became the oldest manager to win the World Series. The victory came against the team for which he rooted in his youth, having lived in South Amboy, New Jersey and attending Yankee games while a child.[2] Perhaps not surprisingly, McKeon called Game 6 his greatest thrill of his career. [14]
McKeon would lead the Marlins to the exact same record and division finish in 83-79 that was good for 3rd in the NL East in 2004 and 2005, although McKeon was the first manager to have led the Marlins to consecutive winning seasons. On September 3 of the 2005 season, McKeon won his 1,000th game as a manager, defeating the New York Mets at Dolphins Stadium 5–4. [15][16] On October 2, just after the Marlins won the last game of the 2005 season, McKeon announced that he would not be returning the following season. McKeon led the Marlins to three of the six winning seasons in franchise history, but the Marlins were undertaking a rebuilding process, exchanging for veterans for unproven youngsters, and there was a consensus within the organization that a managerial change was in order.
On June 20, 2011, after manager
McKeon retired with a record of 1,051–990–1. He is one of twelve managers to have a thousand wins as manager without having lost a thousand as well. He is also the only manager to have won at least 1,000 games in the major and minor leagues, having won 1,146 in the minors. [19]
Personal life
McKeon currently lives in
McKeon is a devout Catholic and attends daily Mass, even doing so while his team was traveling during his managerial career.[21] He attributes much of his success, especially the Marlins' win in the 2003 National League Championship Series, to the intercession of Saint Thérèse of Lisieux.[21][22]
In 1950, McKeon enlisted in the United States Air Force and played for the baseball team at Sampson Air Force Base in New York.[23]
McKeon is the author of two books, Jack of All Trades and I'm Just Getting Started.
McKeon's son, Kasey, was a minor league catcher from 1989 to 1991 before becoming a scout; as of
On May 5, 2012, McKeon was inducted into the Fulton County Baseball & Sports Hall of Fame for his achievements with the Gloversville-Johnstown Glovers, in which he played for in 1950 and 1951 in Gloversville, New York.[24] On Tuesday, May 26, 2015, McKeon was inducted into the Irish American Baseball Hall of Fame, along with former Royals slugger Mike Sweeney, broadcaster Dave O'Brien, New York Mets public relations executive Shannon Forde, and Bill Murray, the comedic actor and owner of several minor league baseball teams. In 2017, McKeon was elected into the Padres Hall of Fame.[25]
Managerial record
Team | Year | Regular season | Postseason | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Games | Won | Lost | Win % | Finish | Won | Lost | Win % | Result | ||
KC | 1973 | 162 | 74 | 88 | .457 | 2nd in AL West | – | – | – | – |
KC | 1974 | 162 | 77 | 85 | .475 | 5th in AL West | – | – | – | – |
KC | 1975 | 96 | 50 | 46 | .521 | fired | – | – | – | – |
KC total | 420 | 215 | 205 | .347 | - | - | - | |||
OAK | 1977 | 53 | 26 | 27 | .521 | fired | – | – | – | – |
OAK | 1978 | 123 | 45 | 78 | .366 | 6th in AL West | – | – | – | – |
OAK total | 176 | 71 | 105 | .403 | - | - | - | |||
SD | 1988 | 115 | 67 | 48 | .583 | 3rd in NL West | – | – | – | – |
SD | 1989 | 162 | 89 | 73 | .549 | 2nd in NL West | – | – | – | – |
SD | 1990 | 80 | 37 | 43 | .463 | fired | – | – | – | – |
SD total | 357 | 193 | 164 | .541 | - | - | - | |||
CIN | 1997 | 63 | 33 | 30 | .524 | 3rd in NL Central | – | – | – | – |
CIN | 1998 | 162 | 77 | 85 | .475 | 4th in NL Central | – | – | – | – |
CIN | 1999 | 163 | 96 | 67 | .589 | 2nd in NL Central | – | – | – | – |
CIN | 2000 | 163 | 85 | 77 | .525 | 2nd in NL Central | – | – | – | – |
CIN total | 551 | 291 | 259 | .529 | - | - | - | |||
FLA | 2003 | 124 | 75 | 49 | .605 | 2nd in NL East | 11 | 6 | .647 | Won World Series (NYY) |
FLA | 2004 | 162 | 83 | 79 | .512 | 3rd in NL East | - | - | - | - |
FLA | 2005 | 162 | 83 | 79 | .512 | 3rd in NL East | - | - | - | - |
FLA | 2011 | 90 | 40 | 50 | .444 | 5th in NL East | - | - | - | - |
FLA total | 538 | 281 | 257 | .522 | 11 | 6 | .647 | |||
Total[5] | 2,042[a] | 1,051 | 990 | .515 | 11 | 6 | .647 |
See also
- List of College of the Holy Cross alumni
- List of Major League Baseball All-Star Game managers
- List of Major League Baseball managers by wins
References
- ^ "Jack McKeon", Retrosheet
- ^ a b Bodley, Hal (October 27, 2003). "Reality of title beats McKeon's wildest dreams". USA Today. p. 4C.
McKeon grew up in Perth Amboy, N.J. As a youngster he made repeated trips to Yankee Stadium. 'I wanted to have my first World Series in Yankee Stadium,' he said. 'Win or lose, I wanted to play it in Yankee Stadium. What finer presence could I have than getting the opportunity to manage my first World Series team in Yankee Stadium.'
- Minneapolis Star Tribune.
Tom Kelly and Jack McKeon share the hometown of South Amboy, N.J.
- ^ Nobles, Charlie (May 12, 2003). "BASEBALL: McKeon Replaces Torborg". The New York Times. Retrieved 2015-06-02.
- ^ a b "Jack McKeon". Baseball Reference. Sports Reference. Retrieved October 22, 2023.
- ^ Marlins manager nurtured his faith in New Jersey parish Archived September 28, 2007, at the Wayback Machine, The Georgia Bulletin, February 9, 2004. Accessed December 21, 2023. "McKeon, who led the underdog Florida Marlins to the World Series title over the New York Yankees last November, grew up in South Amboy. He attended St. Mary Elementary School there and graduated from St. Mary High School, now called Cardinal McCarrick High School, before going on to a long and fruitful career in professional baseball."
- ISBN 0-89204-022-X.
- ^ "1964 Atlanta Crackers Statistics – Minor Leagues". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved 2012-10-13.
- ISBN 978-0-9637189-8-3.
- ^ "Royals fire McKeon, hire Herzog". Spartanburg Herald. South Carolina. Associated Press. July 25, 1975. p. D1.
- ^ "Winkles takes over as Oakland skipper; McKeon gets axe". The Gadsden Times. June 11, 1977. Retrieved 2015-05-31.
- ^ Schoenfield, David (May 6, 2014). "The strange saga of the 1978 Oakland A's". ESPN.com. Retrieved 2015-05-31.
- ^ Durso, Joseph (December 7, 1988). "BASEBALL'S LEADING MATCHMAKER: For Jack McKeon, Engineering Trades is Hardly a Big Deal". The New York Times. Retrieved 2015-05-31.
- ^ "Jack McKeon".
- ^ "New York Mets at Florida Marlins Box Score, September 3, 2005".
- ^ "Mets vs. Marlins - Game Recap - September 3, 2005 - ESPN".
- ^ "2011 Florida Marlins Schedule".
- ^ Nicholson, Ben (2011-09-26). "Jack McKeon To Retire : MLB Rumors". MLBTradeRumors.com. Retrieved 2012-10-13.
- ^ "Upstate N.Y. Sports Lore: Jack McKeon returns to his Gloversville roots". 4 September 2016.
- ^ "The Real McCoy". www.daytondailynews.com. Retrieved 2012-10-13.
- ^ a b Sandomir, Richard (3 August 2011). "A Career Sustained by Unwavering Faith". The New York Times. Retrieved 2012-10-13.
- ^ Beattie, Trent (2012-10-02). "Oldest Manager to Win World Series Still Enjoys Kid's Game | Daily News". NCRegister.com. Retrieved 2012-10-13.
- ^ McKeon, Jack and Fusco, Andy. "JACK MCKEON", Fulton County Baseball & Sports Hall of Fame website, 2016. Accessed 15 April 2018.
- ^ "Fulton County Baseball and Sports Hall of Fame". Emerydesigns.net. 1930-11-23. Archived from the original on 2013-02-21. Retrieved 2012-10-13.
- ^ Sanders, Jeff (March 29, 2017). "'Trader Jack' McKeon headed to Padres Hall of Fame". The San Diego Union-Tribune. Archived from the original on May 8, 2017.
- ^ "Milwaukee Brewers vs Cincinnati Reds Box Score: April 3, 2000".
Notes
External links
- Career statistics and player information from Baseball Reference (Minors), or Retrosheet
- Jack McKeon managerial career statistics at Baseball-Reference.com