Up Close with PSR
Pirates Manager Lloyd McClendon

Editor's Note: Lloyd McClendon was named Pirates manager Oct. 23, replacing Gene Lamont, who he had served as hitting coach for four seasons. Since his hiring, McClendon has established a certain presence and set a definite tone for the 2001 season and his tenure. At 41, he is major league baseball's youngest manager and he is the first African-American to manage the Pirates. He was part of division championship teams as a player with the Chicago Cubs (1989) and the Pirates of the early 1990s. McClendon's charge is to revive the Pirates, who have suffered eight consecutive losing seasons and to resurrect the once proud franchise. PSR Senior Writer John Sacco caught up with McClendon to discuss the Pirates, the opportunity to manage a big-league club and what it will take to make the Pirates winners again.

PSR: Since you've been named manager has anything changed about you or with you?

LM: No, not really. I really had to manage my time wisely. I guess that's the biggest thing. The hours tend to really shoot by during the day. You have to be conscious of your time. But other than that, I'm still the same person.

PSR: It seems you wanted to set a certain tone since taking over. It looks like it's been pretty effective. Do you sense that?

LM: I've tried to do that. I think it is very important we try to get rid of all the negative thoughts surrounding our ballclub. We need a winning attitude. We're even setting a strong foundation for anything we do in life. If we are going to try and be successful here we need a very strong foundation. That foundation has to be built upon attitude and talent. I think the talent is in place. We just need to change the attitude.

PSR: Is that what the initial meeting in November was about when you called in, who you perceived as the leaders of the club, together to talk about what you wanted done and how you wanted it done?

LM: I just called whom I considered our core players. I wanted them in town. I wanted to talk to them about some of the things that went wrong in the past. What changes I expected. Some of the things I am going to demand in spring training. More important than anything, I wanted to develop a team covenant, so to speak. A covenant built on shared goals, collective responsibility, accountability, trust and caring.

PSR: When you look around, there is a list of guys who have been waiting to land a managerial position in the big leagues. Willie Randolph, Chris Chambliss, Ken Macha, Grady Little and others. They haven't gotten one. Do you feel fortunate that you didn't have to wait long? You put in your time as a coach. But it's not like those guys, who have been passed over time and again.

LM: No question about it. Everything that is involved with baseball has everything to do with timing, ability and being at the right place at the right time. I am very humbled by what has happened to me. I don't take it lightly. I have broad shoulders and a strong back. I take on this challenge gladly. I've always come from very humble beginnings. I've had to fight and work hard for everything I achieved in life. This is no different. People talk about preparing yourself or paying your dues. I paid my dues. I went through the system, a little different than some people. But I still went through the process and I'm very grateful I have the opportunity to manage this team.

PSR: I don't know if you even pay attention to the NFL and the hiring practices of professional sports teams in general. But there were nine NFL head coaching openings this offseason and Marvin Lewis, Baltimore's defensive coordinator - who is considered one of the brightest minds in the game, gets interviewed for one position. In baseball, look at Willie Randolph and Chris Chambliss, who amazingly after last season was fired as the New York Yankees batting coach. What is the problem with the hiring practices in these professional leagues and why is it so difficult for African-Americans and other minorities to get hired?

LM: I was a little disturbed about the Marvin Lewis situation. I was very disturbed by that. I thought that was very discouraging. I don't have my hands on the pulse of the NFL. I don't understand it about Chris Chambliss. It's very discouraging and disheartening. I am not one to say you should be hired because you are Black. Certainly, you should be hired because of your qualifications. But if you have a combination of a young man being a minority and he is very qualified on top of that, then he should shoot to the top of everybody's list. Given the situation as it is now, and the perception we are trying to overcome, all organizations should have that responsibility to do everything they can to make the playing field equal.

PSR: You've had an offseason in which many of your players have expressed a lot of optimism and excitement about this coming year. It seems like you have some hungry players right now. Do you think that's the case?

LM: I would say so. I see a lot of indicators that our kids are ready to reclaim their dignity. Put the pride back in this organization. I told our players in the meeting. I don't ever want them to forget the hard times, bad times we have gone through. That will enable them to enjoy the good times even more. I believe when you lose, if you get the proper things out of your losses, it actually sets a solid foundation for winning. I think our players have done that.

PSR: What about John Vander Wal? He expressed much discontent that the club signed Derek Bell as a free agent because he feels it's going to cost him playing time and at bats. He has asked to be traded. What do you make of all this?

LM: I don't have a problem with a guy coming out and saying he wants to play more. I want all my kids to have that kind of attitude. I don't want anybody on my team who does not have a desire to compete, get in there as often as they can and to help the organization win. Having said that, I'm still the boss. And I make out the lineup. It's my job to do what's best for the organization, not what is best for one individual. It's my responsibility to protect my players and I don't want one of my players being perceived to be selfish and not a team player. I think if this continues to boil, that is what is going to happen. I don't want to see (Vander Wal) get burned.

PSR: In the early 1990s, the Pirates had an outstanding team and there were a lot of great individual players and some big egos. But never on the field did it seem like any of it interfered with winning baseball games. Is that how it was?

LM: We had a lot of big egos and everybody wanted to compete. But when we stepped between the lines it was all about team and all about winning. That's what all our players have to understand. We are trying to develop a team concept with collective responsibilities. Not I. Not me. Not one individual.

PSR: Defense has been a problem for a prolonged period with this team. I have to think a lot of that is just focus and a sincere commitment to being better at it. What can you do to make it better?

LM: The physical errors are going to happen. The part that we can't accept or cannot tolerate is the mental part, not preparing yourself for possible plays that could happen. To get to this level, you have to be good. To stay at this level, mentally you have to be better than your opponent. Over the last couple years, mentally we haven't been in the game the way we should have. The only way we're going to get better at that is to go out and be repetitive on the field day in and day out. People ask me how many wins are you going to have or how successful is the team going to be? To me, that's putting the cart before the horse. I have to lay that foundation. That foundation starts with going out everyday and raising that bar of excellence higher so we can put ourselves in a position to compete daily. And put ourselves in a position to be successful daily.

PSR: You played for managers who have been very successful. And been teammates with some of the greats of the game. Were you watching those guys, paying attention to what they did, thinking ahead to this opportunity?

LM: No question. I had the opportunity to play for Pete Rose, Don Zimmer, Jim Leyland, and work closely with Gene Lamont. I played with some of the greatest players who have ever played this game. Tony Perez, Dave Concepcion, Dave Parker, George Bell, Ryne Sandberg, Andre Dawson. You name it. You have a tendency to watch these guys and you see how they become successful. They all have one common denominator and that is hard work and dedication. There are no shortcuts. I'm not trying to reinvent any wheel. I'm just trying to get back to basics and have our kids understand, if we are going to be successful then we have to put the work in. We have to dedicate ourselves. It's not going to happen by going out there for an hour-and-a-half and saying, 'yeah I put my time in I'm done.' That's not the way it's going to happen. You have to leave a little sweat and a little blood out there. And a little bit of your heart. When you walk off that field, you can look in the mirror and know you did the best you could that day.

PSR: A year ago, did you have a plan or timetable as far as becoming a major league manager?

LM: It's really uncanny. When I took the job as hitting coordinator in 1996, I said I was going to give this four years and see where I was. If I wasn't in position to be a manager at the major league level, then I was going to have to get on with my life's work. It's kind of uncanny that everything fell into place and happened as it did. Jim Leyland has been a close friend of mine for a long time. I don't know how to put it, but everything he's ever told me has always come true. I just think about it and I just smile.