Diorio: Jimmy Collins, Red Sox player-manager, businessman, and World Series champ
From Steph Diorio at Over the Monster on March 23, 2016:
There was once a time in baseball where it was very common to see the team manager in uniform out on the field actually playing alongside their teammates. In MLB, it hasn’t happened since Pete Rose took the field and the helm for the Reds in 1984. It was, however, quite normal in the earlier days of baseball, as it was a way to save money by paying one less person: Maybe Jeffrey Loria not only has an appreciation for art, but also for money-saving bits of history.
The very first manager of the team that would become the Boston Red Sox was one such person. His name was Jimmy Collins, and today he’s regarded as more or less the prototypical third baseman, the individual who codified the position for future generations. He also served as a player-manager for the team for several years, leading them to victory in the first-ever World Series in 1903 and the American League pennant in 1904. Collins was elected — as a player — to Cooperstown by the Old Timers Committee in 1945, cementing his legacy as a third baseman.
He was a solid hitter, with a lifetime average of .294 and a respectable 65 home runs in the Dead-ball Era. However, he’s best remembered today as a fine third baseman, establishing the position as the one to play bunts down the third base line (previously a role of the shortstop, a rather clumsy sort of thing).
Read the full article here: http://www.overthemonster.com/2016/3/23/11291020/red-sox-history-jimmy-collins-world-series
Originally published: March 23, 2016. Last Updated: March 23, 2016.