Williams Resigns Himself to Obvious, Quits as Padre Manager : After Near Ouster in November, He Found He Wasn’t Wanted in San Diego

Dick Williams became major league baseball’s first ever AWOL manager Monday when he missed the Padres’ 9:30 a.m. workout here. Players kept peeking into his empty office. Finally, Williams did show up at a morning press conference in San Diego, where he announced he was resigning as manager.

He began: “For the past few weeks, I have been asking myself, ‘Do I really want to manage the Padres another year?’ My honest answer, finally, was ‘No.’ ”

Padre owner Joan Kroc, who backed Williams after an apparent front-office schism this winter, concluded: “His (Williams’) leadership gave San Diego its first National League pennant. He taught us championship baseball, and he gave us the thrill of winning . . . . Dick, I’ll never forget that season we dedicated to Ray Kroc, the wonderful summer of 1984 . . .”

She paused to kiss Williams on the lips.

But kiss hello a new era in Padre baseball. As Williams said goodby at his press conference, pitchers and catchers were jogging around the training complex here, already ridding themselves of their complex with Williams.

“I guess a lot of guys around here were uptight around the guy,” third baseman Graig Nettles said. “I don’t know who the new manager will be, but most of the guys are happy.”

And still as of Monday evening, nobody knew who would replace Williams, although sources close to the situation said former A’s Manager Steve Boros is the leading candidate for the job and will likely interview with Kroc sometime today. Boros, who is the Padre coordinator of minor league instruction, left Yuma Monday afternoon, as did general manager Jack McKeon.

McKeon refused comment, saying only that no one would be named until team president Ballard Smith returned from a business trip in Australia. Smith is due back today. Boros, who could not be reached for comment, is a longtime friend of McKeon’s and coached in Kansas City when McKeon managed there in the 1970s. When the Pittsburgh Pirates had job openings last fall, general manager Syd Thrift asked San Diego for permission to interview Boros.

McKeon said no, if the Pirates planned to hire him only as a coach, but yes if they planned to hire him as manager.

Boros interviewed for the managerial job, but didn’t get it.

Although Boros is the leading candidate, he is not the only one. Others include:

- Jack Krol--Currently the Padre first base coach, he said Monday: “Anyone would be interested in managing this club because it’s such a good club.”

Krol was a finalist for the St. Louis job in 1978, but lost out to the late Ken Boyer.

- Harry Dunlop--He was last year’s Padre bullpen coach before Williams asked that his contract not be renewed. Dunlop has managing experience at the Triple-A level.

- Joe Torre--The former Atlanta manager, an announcer last year with the Angels, said Monday he has not been contacted, but hopes to be.

“It (managing) is not out of my blood. I enjoy what I’m doing, but I need a little more activity. Once you’ve been on the field, you like to stay there until you accomplish what you’ve set out to do. . . . I’d like to think they (the Padres) would be interested in talking to me. I’d be interested in talking to them.”

- Jim Fregosi--Currently St. Louis’ Triple-A manager in Louisville, he interviewed for the last San Diego managerial opening after the 1981 season. He could not be reached for comment Monday.

The Padres, sources said, likely will hire their manager by Wednesday, when the entire roster is scheduled to report here.

Meanwhile, Williams, now the first man to be an ex-manager in all four divisions, will report only to his wife Norma. She apparently has been after him to quit, but since Williams would not answer any questions Monday, it is impossible to pinpoint exactly his reasons for resignation.

One source close to Williams did say, however: “The players are why. The players got what they wanted.”

And Ozzie Virgil, Williams’ friend and third base coach who also resigned Monday, said: “He doesn’t give into players. He feels they should perform, and if they can’t cope or take criticism, that’s wrong. . . . I think that’s why he left. Because some of the players went hard on him.”

Yes, some players have been hard on him. Pitcher Andy Hawkins said Monday: “We had a perfect relationship last year--we didn’t talk. We were cordial to each other, but that was it. There’s always been (tension between Williams and the team). He always held a whip over us.”

Still, Williams’ decision not to show up Monday is almost unheard of. This is the earliest a manager has ever resigned in a season. The Phillies’ Eddie Sawyer held the previous record, quitting the day after opening day in 1960. Gene Mauch replaced him.

Williams apparently called Kroc this weekend to tell her the news. Kroc told Smith, who then called McKeon at approximately 2 a.m. Monday.

It was sudden. Williams had appeared at the premier of the Padre highlight film about three weeks ago, and everything had appeared normal. Originally, he had told McKeon he would arrive in Yuma by last Friday, and traveling secretary John (Doc) Mattei said Williams visited Yuma two weeks ago just to make his hotel arrangements.

But Williams got to thinking, which explains some things:

- It was agreed that he would meet privately with outfielder Kevin McReynolds to fix their strained relationship, but they never got together. Williams tried calling McReynolds once, but McReynolds wasn’t home. And Williams never tried back.

- Williams was supposed to participate in a Padre luncheon in Vista last Thursday, but canceled at the last minute unexplained.

- He kept criticizing his team. One day, he told a Padre front office person: “I’ve got five seventh-place hitters.”

Why he picked Monday to resign is peculiar. In November, he had strongly hinted to Smith and McKeon that he was ready to quit, and Smith told him to get back to them on it. Meanwhile, Williams’ right-hand man, Virgil, was let go by McKeon, since it was assumed Williams would not be back. But no one told Kroc about this, and she was incensed about being kept in the dark. And she supported Williams.

Then, Kroc, Smith, Williams and McKeon all met at Kroc’s home in La Jolla, and Smith later said at a press conference that Williams would indeed be coming back.

For some reason, Williams changed his mind.

A source close to the situation explained: “It’s like the guy who really doesn’t want to get married, but says: ‘All right, honey, let’s get married.’ And then the invitations are out and the cake is on the table of the country club, and he doesn’t show up.”

Had he not had cold feet, it could have been an explosive spring here. For one thing, the players were upset with the way Dunlop was let go. Williams, at that meeting in La Jolla, requested that Virgil return with him and that Dunlop leave. He said to the group: “Dunlop’s not one of my men.” And his request was accommodated.

Dunlop, one of the most popular coaches, certainly is closer to McKeon than Williams. But at the winter baseball meetings, Dunlop approached Williams and told him: “I didn’t know I was anybody’s man.” Williams turned away.

Meanwhile, Virgil hadn’t been happy with the way he’d been treated when McKeon released him back in November, and he was determined not to speak with McKeon this spring. McKeon, sources say, was just as determined not to speak with Virgil.

Also, the Padres recently conducted a survey of 1985 season ticket holders who did not renew. Dan Peoples, vice president of the advertising agency that arranged the survey, said one question was: “In terms of the manager and the coaching staff, would you say the Padres have an advantage or disadvantage over other teams?”

Peoples said a majority answered “advantage”, but the fact that the Padres were curios is mysterious.

DICK WILLIAMS’ PADRE CAREER

Nov. 18, 1981--Padres hire Williams to replace Frank Howard as manager.

September 1982--Padres finish fourth in the NL Western Division with a 81-81 mark, eight games out of first.

September 1983--Once again, Padres finish fourth with a 81-81 mark, 10 games out of first.

March 1983--Padres give Williams a two-year contract extension through 1986.

May 1983--Within 24 hours after Padre pitcher Chris Welch defied Williams’ orders, the nameplate on Welch’s locker stall was removed. Very shortly thereafter, Welch was sold to Montreal.

Aug. 12, 1984--After Atlanta Braves pitcher Pascual Perez hits Alan Wiggins with the first pitch of the game, Williams orders three pitchers to throw fastballs at Perez in retaliation. In Perez’s fourth at-bat, in the eighth inning, Craig Lefferts hits Perez. Bench-clearing brawls erupt in the eighth and ninth innings.

Aug. 16, 1984--Williams receives a 10-day suspension and $10,000 fine by NL President Chub Feeney for his involvement in the beanball brawl against the Braves.

September 1984--When outfielder Carmelo Martinez was in a severe hitting slump late in his rookie season, Williams berated him in a hotel bar in Houston. An embarrassed Martinez stomped out of the bar.

Sept. 20, 1984--Padres defeat the Giants, 5-4, in the afternoon and Dodgers beat Houston that night to give the Padres their first division title.

Sept. 30, 1984--Padres conclude their most successful season with a 92-70 mark.

Oct. 7, 1984--Padres defeat Chicago Cubs, 6-3, in the fifth and deciding game of the NL Championship Series to win their first pennant.

Oct. 14, 1984--Tigers defeat Padres, 8-4, in Detroit to win the World Series, four games to one.

Aug. 13, 1985--Williams so upset the normally quiet Kevin McReynolds that the young outfielder told The Times: “ . . . It’s a little game, I guess. He’ll (Williams) play the power game to show who’s boss . . . Am I mad? That’d be too satisfying to him. He’s tried to play Mr. Macho before . . . If you’ve ever heard the word ‘front-runner,’ that’s where he sits.”

October 1985--Padres finish in third place with a 83-79 record.

Dec. 3, 1985--Angry that important personnel decisions had been made without her approval, Padre owner Joan Kroc attempts to rehire recently fired coach Ozzie Virgil and says that Williams will not be forced out as manager.

Dec. 6, 1985--Williams meets with Padre general manager Jack McKeon, team president Ballard Smith and Kroc in a morning seaside summit at Kroc’s La Jolla home. That afternoon, the team holds a press conference to announce that Williams will be back to manage the Padres.

Feb. 24, 1986--Williams announces his resignation on the opening day of spring training.

PADRE PLAYER REACTIONS

Here’s what the Padre players were saying Monday about Dick Williams’ resignation:

KEVIN McREYNOLDS: “To tell you the truth, I don’t even want to say anything in print. Let me think about a good response.”

TONY GWYNN: “When I first heard, I was shocked. But in a way, I feel badly for him. He did a super job. He molded a winner, and he was one of the first managers here to put together consistently good teams. But for this to happen on the first day of spring training? Now, none of the players know what their roles are. There will be quite a lot for this new manager to put together between now and April.

“We’ve got guys who probably didn’t think they had a realistic chance of making the team. Now, it’s wide open. Nobody’s job is set.

“As far as Dick, I didn’t notice anything wrong in 1984. It was perfect. But I’m Mr. Naive, I guess. I never think anything’s going on.”

TERRY KENNEDY: “I’m just gonna make one statement. Dick and I had problems in the past, but I wish him luck. I’ve burned enough bridges . . . “

LaMARR HOYT: “The guy made a dream come true for me. He named me starter of last year’s All-Star Game. What can I say bad about him? There are lots of other pitchers he could’ve picked. It’s just sad to see this happen so close to the season. No one knows who the manager’s gonna be. I mean, who’s our boss?”

ANDY HAWKINS: “He just had no concept of communication. Will we play better without him? We’re professionals, and we all try to do our best, but there are certain intangibles. If you don’t want to bust your butt for a guy, it makes a difference. Subconsciously, you’re not doing what you should. I will say we should find out who the new manager is soon. I would think in a day or two. He’s got to have all the time he can to evaluate the club. It’s important that he get here and get established.”

ERIC SHOW: “I’m sure Dick was a positive person, but he just never showed it.”

MARK THURMOND: “I wish him the best. I don’t hate him or anything.”