NewsSN names Tracy NL's top manager
Skipper led Rockies to playoff berth after slow start
By Thomas Harding / MLB.com
10/21/09 10:55 PM ET
DENVER -- Rockies manager Jim Tracy, who led the team to a 74-42 finish and a playoff berth after taking over for Clint Hurdle, was named Sporting News' 2009 National League Manager of the Year, the publication announced Wednesday morning.Tracy was chosen by a panel of 22 Major League managers.
"I really am flattered, but I truly feel that this is a Colorado Rockies organization honor," Tracy said from his home in Presto, Pa. "This organization has some wonderful, wonderful people, and I appreciate the opportunity to be a part of it."
Angels manager Mike Scioscia earned the American League honor.
Hired as bench coach last winter, Tracy replaced Hurdle on May 29 and led the team to the NL Wild Card. The Rockies fell to the Phillies in four games in the NL Division Series. Tracy previously managed the Dodgers and Pirates.
Tracy and Rockies general manager Dan O'Dowd are expected to sign multiyear contract extensions soon.
"When [Tracy] took over the job, we had a meeting and he told us, 'Here's what I expect, and if I don't get it, there are going to be changes, and I will find people,'" Rockies relief pitcher Huston Street told The Sporting News. "Then we lost our first three games in Houston, and he came in that next day and said, 'Guys, I want to just let you guys play the game. But if you all force me to come out here, I'm going to come out here.'
"He let us know full well what he thought and wasn't shy about naming names. But he did it in such a classy manner. It could have been a catastrophe, but the way he stuck to his word, he earned that trust and respect."
Tracy, 53, said he's already looking forward to 2010.
"It's funny," Tracy said. "Somebody asked me what I was doing, and I said, 'I'm sitting here in my office thinking about getting ready for Yovani Gallardo in Milwaukee on Opening Day.
"I really feel that with the guys we have, there's a lot out there for us to accomplish, meaning win a division championship -- more than one -- and participate and win the World Series. I really believe that the guys we have now have the ability to do that."
After O'Dowd and Tracy square away their contracts, Tracy is hoping the Rockies are in position to keep the coaching staff intact. Tracy said the response of a coaching staff assembled for Hurdle was a factor in the turnaround.
"When you have something happen like what happened on May 29, you always wonder what direction your coaching staff will take," Tracy said. "The loyalty of those men helped make it possible for us to accomplish what we did. Those are special, special people, and I want that relationship to continue going forward."
Scioscia led the Angels to a 97-65 finish and their fifth AL West title in the past six seasons.
Thomas Harding is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
