Jim Riggleman: Peter Gammons, Omar Minaya and Mike Francesa Are Wrong

Peter Gammons and Omar Minaya, the latter an "expert" who helped the New York Mets get where they are today, agreed that Jim Riggleman made a grievous error in resigning as the Washington Nationals manager.

The host of the sports talk show on which Gammons and Minaya appeared, Mike Francesa, an individual who makes John Sterling seem modest, chimed in that in his humble opinion, Riggleman quit on his team. He added that leaders look bad when they give up.

Of course, all three are wrong. Jim Riggleman didn't quit on his team. He avoided being replaced once the Washington Nationals became contenders, avoiding what he believed to an unspoken lame duck status.

Riggleman considered himself a permanent interim manager. He wanted to clear the air with general manager Mike Rizzo in order to discover the real nature of his future status.

It took great courage, confidence, and self-respect to do what Riggleman did, which Gammons, Minaya, and Francesa are unable to understand.

Speaking to the Associated Press, Riggleman explained his actions.

"It's about looking in the mirror and feeling like I've got to answer to myself. In today's world in major sports, it's not a good environment to work when the manager or head coach in football or whatever is on a short leash. Too many negatives can come out of it. You're walking on egg shells too often. You can't think out of the box as much. I thought after 10 years I'd earned the right to have a little bit longer leash."

Rizzo even released a statement saying he "was always taught that one of the cardinal rules of baseball was that no individual can put his interests before those of the team."

Who'd like a dime for every time that "cardinal rule" was broken, overtly or covertly?

Riggleman was not deserting his team. He was putting management in position to eliminate the uncertainty that he thought was a distraction.

"In today's sports, it's not a good environment to work in," Riggleman said. "Too many negatives come out of it. You have to send a message to professional ballplayers this man's the manager."

What he meant was that modern players must know that the manager, not the players, are in charge.  Certainly that has been true throughout baseball history, but the days of Hank Bauer helping Casey Stengel by straightening out players who might cost the New York Yankees World Series money have been gone for a long time.

Many "experts" in baseball and in the media correctly believe that Riggleman will never again manage in the major leagues because he deserted his team. Perhaps if conditions were different and he were treated differently, he wouldn't have "deserted" his team.

No team is likely to take a chance with an "uppity" employee who doesn't unthinkingly go along with anything the bosses decide.

Joe Lemire of Sports Illustrated made a point that reveals some of Riggleman's thinking.

"The Nationals' reluctance to extend Riggleman or negotiate a longer-term deal despite the club's short-term on-field improvement also suggests that they had designs on someone else to take the team to the next level. If true, that shows a lack of loyalty...."

Jim Riggleman stood up for what he believed was right. He had the courage to be true to his convictions.

Many believe that RIggleman paid an extremely high price for his actions, but they are wrong. Being true to one's self is much more important that working at a job that can only end in being fired or forced to resign.

References:

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=6697463

http://content.usatoday.com/communities/dailypitch/post/2011/06/jim-riggleman-quits-manager-nationals-winning-streak/1