Robinson, 1st Black Manager in 4 Years, Gets Oriole Job

The number of minority managers in baseball doubled Tuesday--to two--when the Baltimore Orioles fired Cal Ripken Sr. and replaced him with Frank Robinson, who had been serving as an assistant to Roland Hemond, the club’s vice president and general manager.

A Hall of Fame outfielder, Robinson, 52, was baseball’s first black manager when he was hired by the Cleveland Indians in 1975. He becomes the first black manager in the majors since his own firing as manager of the San Francisco Giants during the 1984 season.

Larry Doby, who managed the Chicago White Sox in 1978, and Maury Wills, who managed the Seattle Mariners in 1980 and part of ‘81, are the only other blacks who have managed in the major leagues.

The Angels’ Cookie Rojas, who was born in Havana, Cuba, is the only other minority manager among the 26 clubs. Rojas was appointed during the next-to-last week of spring training when Gene Mauch decided to retire.

Robinson became the choice of Hemond and Oriole owner Edward Bennett Williams when they met Monday night and decided that a change was necessary in the wake of an 0-6 start, the Orioles’ worst in 33 years.

Reached at his New York office, Commissioner Peter Ueberroth said of the minority appointment: “I talked with Edward Bennett Williams yesterday, so I was not surprised. I’m very pleased. It fits our standard--fairness in hiring combined with the hiring of a person the club believes in. This is not tokenism. Frank Robinson is a quality guy.

“We’ve now had two managerial changes and both have been filled by a minority. That’s a good sign.”

A dominant team in the 1970s and early ‘80s, the Orioles lost 95 games last year, their first under Ripken, a longtime coach with the club, and were 9-19 in spring training this year. They were unable to shake the pattern through the first week of the new season, when they were outscored, 43-7, and played erratically in the field.

Ripken has spent all of his 32 professional seasons in the Oriole organization and will remain with the club as an adviser. His sons, Billy and Cal Jr., form the Orioles’ double-play combination as the second baseman and shortstop, respectively.

Cal Jr. was asked if his father got a fair shake.

“As a son, I have no comment,” he said. “As a player, it’s not my job to decide that. The hard-core reality of the baseball business is that no one’s job is secure. This can happen at any time.”

Even before learning of the Orioles’ decision, Tuesday was a tough day for the senior Ripken. He appeared in Baltimore County District Court and pleaded guilty to a charge of driving while intoxicated Feb. 3. He was sentenced to three years probation before judgment, fined $750 and ordered to perform 100 hours of community service. He was also ordered to abstain from alcohol for three years and to continue treatments for alcohol abuse.

Probation before judgment means that Ripken’s record will be erased if he satisfies the judge’s orders.

“Mr. Ripken has experienced a problem with alcohol in the past and has come to grips with that,” Ripken’s attorney, Paul Mark Sandler, said after the court decision.

Hemond said that the drunk-driving incident had nothing to do with the decision to replace Ripken, that it was simply decided that Robinson could provide a transfusion before the season completely got away from the Orioles. Hemond said that if Robinson had elected to remain in the front office, Ripken would have remained as manager.

Ripken, in fact, was in uniform and sitting at his desk, filling out a lineup card for Tuesday night’s game with the Kansas City Royals, when Hemond called and asked him to come to his office.

“I had no indication it was coming, and I’m definitely disappointed,” he said of his firing. “I hate to lose, more than anyone, but I still feel this was a better club than we had at the start of last season and would have come together. We had a lot of new faces. It takes time and patience.”

Could Ripken’s firing have a negative impact on his two sons?

“They’ve played for other managers besides me,” Ripken said. “They are professional players. They’ll go out and bust their rear ends like they always have.”

Robinson, whose first act as manager was to meet with Cal Jr. and Billy Ripken to assure them that he had not sabotaged their father, said he will demand that all the Orioles bust their rear ends, too. He cited a need for more aggressiveness and better execution.

He said he is confident that the Orioles can reach .500 and take off from there. He also said that he was pleased with his front-office duties, that Hemond allowed him to help make decisions, but that his first love has always been working on the field.

“Nevertheless, I have mixed emotions right now because a person that I have been very close to, that I have confidence in as a friend and baseball man, had to lose his job for me to get this job,” Robinson said, referring to Ripken.

Robinson returns to the field with a 450-466 record as manager of the Indians and Giants. He returned to the field Tuesday night having managed 916 of the 1,085 major league games managed by blacks.

“I’m aware of the pressure that comes with the position, but I don’t think I’ve ever felt any pressure from being a black manager,” Robinson said. “I haven’t gone through life putting that kind of pressure on myself. Also, I’m not the only minority manager now.”

He added that he was pleased with the progress in minority hiring since Al Campanis, then vice president of the Dodgers, made his appearance on the television show “Nightline” last April 6. He also said, however: “I can’t be satisfied in the truest sense until individuals are hired with no mention of their color or origin.”

RIPKEN’S MANAGERIAL RECORD

Year Team W-L Pct. 1985 Baltimore Orioles 1-0 1.000 1987 Baltimore Orioles 67-95 .414 1988 Baltimore Orioles 0-6 .000 Totals 3 years 68-101 .402

ROBINSON’S MANAGERIAL RECORD

Year Team W-L Pct. 1975 Cleveland Indians 79-80 .497 1976 Cleveland Indians 81-78 .509 1977 Cleveland Indians 26-31 .456 1981 San Francisco Giants 56-55 .505 1982 San Francisco Giants 87-75 .537 1983 San Francisco Giants 79-83 .488 1984 San Francisco Giants 42-64 .396 Totals 7 years 450-466 .491