Frankly, I DO Give A Damn

I think it's pretty obvious that I'm not Frank Robinson's biggest fan. Helluva player; Stinkpot of a manager.

While I've been highly critical of him, I don't think I've been unfair. My WTF Frank Senior moments didn't really nitpick. I tried picking out only those jaw-dropping moments that caused your eyebrows to involuntarily furrow. Sadly, there were lots of those.

But Frank has two statements in today's paper that demonstrate his unworthiness to continue as the manager of the Washington Nationals. One demonstrates his weaknesses on-the-field. The other, off-the-field. Together, they again force me to wonder what it is that Frank does do well?

First is the Washington Times. With the season hanging by a thread, and a hot young prospect eager and able to inject some life, why doesn't Frank play Ryan Zimmerman?

Robinson acknowledges that Zimmerman, 20, at times has looked impressive since his promotion from Class AA Harrisburg. But the manager also has held firm to his long-standing belief that veteran players should get priority over rookies, especially at this crucial juncture of the season.

"I think Vinny has the right to be out there if he's capable and wants to be out there," Robinson said. "I don't know what the kid gives me. I don't know what he's capable of doing. But I do know what Vinny is capable of doing. I guess you can call it loyalty. ... The kid will have his day."

Robinson added that his philosophy applies likewise to other veterans like center fielder Preston Wilson.

I'm not really going to get into the silliness of strategy of this decision. If you've read this blog before, you know what I'm thinking. You're probably thinking it too.

But think about this in terms of the bigger picture. When faced with an unknown -- even an unknown which may be superior to the known -- Frank will take the easy route out. He's not willing to play rookies if it means sitting down a veteran.

This team is likely to be younger over the next few years. Ideally, (and this situation is far from ideal) they'd be building towards the opening of the stadium in 2043, or whenever the hell the thing actually gets built.

As the team tries to work players like Ryan Zimmerman, Darrell Rasner, Mike Hinckley, Larry Broadway, Ryan Church, and others into the lineup, is Frank the right person to do lead those men, and develop them into the first great Washington Nationals team?

Frank is indicating that he prefers to work with a veteran team. That's fine. Different managers have different skill sets. Frank is, essentially, admitting publicly that this team isn't the right fit for him as a manager.

His contract is up at the end of the season. He should feel free to find a team that fits his philosophy then.

Frank's other statement indicates what he does so poorly off-the-field. He's not especially good about dealing with today's players. He's too eager to run them down in the press.

After Frank yanked John Halama from a start, in which he had given up just one run in 2/3 of an inning, Halama seemed confused. Halama explained that he couldn't figure out why he was removed so early. Frank fired back yesterday.

“I’m not going to sit there and have him go ball one and ball two, ball three, ball four. I don’t care if it was two outs,” said Robinson. “He was one hit away from disaster. And what an excuse, [when Halama said], ‘I’m nibbling to see where the umpire’s strike zone is. And [the umpire] is checking me out to see what my strike zone is going to be.’ I never heard such [stuff].

“What am I supposed to do? Let him stand out there and give up the runs and let it go? No. I don’t manage like that.”

Frank once again demonstrates that he has the soft touch when it comes to dealing with players, especially pitchers.

Think about what he's doing here. He's mocking one of his players to the press. I don't care if Halama is the worst person to wear the Nationals uniform since CJ Nitkowski, he deserves a modicum of respect.

Frank demands respect, yet he infrequently gives it to his players -- especially his pitchers.

[as an aside, isn't it interesting that Frank abhors walks from his pitchers, yet he doesn't put any pressure on his batters to draw them, letting them hack away?]

A good manager keeps things in house, and doesn't mouth off to the press with every little slight.

Why would anyone want to play for someone who's going to badmouth them if they fail? Does that create an atmosphere conducive to winning?

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It's pretty clear that I don't think that Frank's the right manager. Rather than name names, what kinds of qualities do you think our next manager should have? I think we've seen some of Frank's worst traits. What are the good ones he has?