RetroSimba

(Updated April 12, 2025)

Ted Simmons was a key to Joe Torre being able to return to big-league managing in 1990 after a six-year hiatus. Without help from Simmons, Torre might never have gotten the chance to revive his career.

On Dec. 9, 2013, three managers, Tony La Russa, Bobby Cox and Torre, were elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame by the Expansion Era committee. A candidate needed 12 of the votes from the 16-member committee to earn election. Hall of Fame manager Whitey Herzog was one of those voters.

It was Herzog who triggered the chain of events that led to Torre becoming manager of the Cardinals.

Support for Simmons

On July 6, 1990, Herzog, the Cardinals’ manager since 1980, abruptly resigned.

Cardinals coach Red Schoendienst was named interim manager while general manager Dal Maxvill launched a search for Herzog’s replacement.

There was media speculation and popular sentiment for Simmons to get the job. The former St. Louis catcher was the Cardinals’ director of player development, overseeing the minor-league system.

Five days after Herzog quit, St. Louis Post-Dispatch columnist Bernie Miklasz opined that Simmons should be the manager.

“Simmons makes sense for a lot of reasons,” Miklasz wrote. “The manager must be a motivator, someone who can communicate with the millionaires in the dugout. Simmons … has fresh perspective on what makes today’s players click. And he’s wired. His high energy level is bound to be contagious. Maxvill said the new man must be intelligent … Simmons would beat Tony La Russa at ‘Jeopardy.’ ”

Two days later, in an interview with Vahe Gregorian of the Post-Dispatch, Simmons ended the speculation. “It’s flattering to have people asking me every five minutes if I’m going to be the next manager,” Simmons said. “But, however flattering, it’s not my objective. It’s safe and fair to say I won’t be the next manager. I don’t have any interest.”

After that, attention turned to Torre.

Friends in high places

Fired by the Braves in 1984, Torre became an Angels broadcaster. Six years later, he admitted he largely had abandoned hope of managing again.

Herzog’s surprise resignation provided the opportunity; Maxvill and Simmons provided the support.

Torre and Maxvill were friends and former teammates. They had played together for the Cardinals from 1969-72. Maxvill was on his coaching staffs when Torre managed the Mets and Braves.

Simmons was a Cardinals rookie when St. Louis acquired Torre from the Braves in March 1969. Torre, a five-time all-star catcher before converting to first baseman, became a mentor to Simmons, who was being groomed to replace Tim McCarver as the everyday catcher. Torre and Simmons were Cardinals teammates from 1969-74 and often batted back-to-back in the St. Louis order.

In late July 1990, Torre told the Los Angeles Times he would enjoy working with Maxvill and Simmons. “It would be the first time I’d be working with somebody instead of for somebody,” Torre said. “That can only be ideal.”

Maxvill told the Post-Dispatch he had seven candidates: Torre, big-league coaches Don Baylor, Hal Lanier, Pat Corrales and Gene Tenace, Class AAA Louisville manager Gaylen Pitts and Cardinals minor-league hitting instructor Mike Jorgensen. Torre, though, was the leading candidate all along.

When Torre was named Cardinals manager on Aug. 1, 1990, Herzog told Rick Hummel of the Post-Dispatch, “I don’t know why they didn’t do it on July 7 (the day after Herzog’s resignation). He was going to be the guy.”

Tips from Ted

With eight Cardinals eligible for free agency after the 1990 season, Herzog also said Torre would have to rely on Simmons for advice on which prospects were ready to contribute at the big-league level.

Torre agreed, telling the Post-Dispatch, “I’m going to pretty much take the rest of this season to work with Dal and Ted Simmons and make sure that when we go out there in 1991 we’re going in the right direction.

“I’m looking to Ted Simmons to see where it’s coming from.”

Wrote Miklasz: “Simmons will develop the prospects for Maxvill. Maxvill will pass them … along to Torre. Torre will manage. Presenting: The Three Amigos. United, they stand.”

Said Torre: “It’s going to be very comfortable working with people that I know so well. We were teammates. We were taught the game the same way. We played together and now we’re working together.”

Maxvill elaborated to the Post-Dispatch about the relationship between Torre and Simmons. “When Ted came up, Joe was his mentor,” Maxvill said. “Joe told him about the league, about opposing pitchers, about what to expect in situations, told him how to handle our pitching staff. I knew they had a good relationship and that their baseball philosophy was pretty much the same.

“That’s helpful. If we go through our minor-league system, we don’t like to have eight or 10 different opinions about the way cutoffs or rundowns or relays should be done. With all of us being pretty much brought up on the Cardinal Way _ through George Kissell, all of us _ I think we’ll be able to pull the wagon in the same direction from that standpoint.”

The Three Amigos, however, didn’t stay together long.

Simmons left the Cardinals in 1992 to become general manager of the Pirates. Maxvill was fired in 1994 and, a year after that, Torre was fired by Maxvill’s successor, Walt Jocketty (who selected La Russa to manage the Cardinals).

Maxvill and Simmons brought Torre back into managing and, in so doing, opened a path to his Hall of Fame election. After leaving the Cardinals, Torre was hired by the Yankees. He managed them to four World Series titles and six American League pennants in his first eight years in New York.

“Basically, I’m not in the Hall of Fame if Dal Maxvill doesn’t make that call,” Torre told Cardinals Yearbook in 2014. “Because once you’re out of the game, people don’t know you’re around. He got me back in the game.”

In 29 years managing the Mets, Braves, Cardinals, Yankees and Dodgers, Torre compiled 2,326 wins, ranking fifth all-time.

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(Updated April 14, 2025)

Cardinals coach George Kissell was the most influential mentor in Joe Torre’s transformation from all-star player to manager.

Torre, who won four World Series titles and six American League pennants as Yankees manager, earned election to the National Baseball Hall of Fame on Dec. 9, 2013.

The path toward that achievement began when Torre, then a catcher and first baseman, was traded by the Braves to the Cardinals in March 1969 and connected with Kissell.

In his book “Chasing the Dream,” Torre credited Kissell with creating the foundation for his managing career and teaching him a style that helped Torre earn a World Series championship in his first season (1996) with the Yankees.

Torre also said he learned from Red Schoendienst, who managed the Cardinals during Torre’s playing tenure with St. Louis (1969-74).

Successful skippers

Torre, who managed the Mets, Braves, Cardinals, Yankees and Dodgers, joined another former Cardinals manager, Tony La Russa, and fellow manager Bobby Cox in being elected by the Expansion Era committee. La Russa (second at 2,821), Cox (fourth at 2,504) and Torre (fifth at 2,326) rank in the top five in career wins for managers. Connie Mack (3,731) is first and John McGraw (2,763) is third.

A candidate needed 12 of the votes from the 16-member committee. Hall of Fame managers Whitey Herzog and Tom Lasorda were on the committee.

According to Hall of Fame rules, a candidate must have been a big-league manager for 10 or more years and have been retired for at least five years before he is eligible for election. However, if the retired manager is 65 or older, he becomes eligible just six months after retiring.

Cardinals classics

Torre was 20 when he debuted in the majors with the Braves in 1960. “Warren Spahn and Lew Burdette took me under their wings,” Torre recalled to Cardinals Yearbook in 2014. “They were like big brothers to me. They took me to the movies the first time we came to St. Louis.”

A five-time all-star with the Braves, Torre was traded to the Cardinals for first baseman Orlando Cepeda on March 17, 1969.

Kissell was a coach on Schoendienst’s staff during Torre’s six seasons as a Cardinals player. He converted Torre into a third baseman with St. Louis.

When Tim McCarver, the catcher for three pennant-winning Cardinals clubs in the 1960s, returned to St. Louis to play in 1973 and 1974, he, Torre and Kissell spent much time together.

In his book, Torre said, “Timmy and I were almost always the first ones at the ballpark … Kissell always was there early, too. The three of us would spend hours talking about baseball. Looking back on it, that’s when I started to get the foundation for my managing career.”

Torre said he and McCarver “talked a lot about managing in those days” and discussed the possibility of operating as co-managers of a team.

“I learned more baseball from George Kissell than from anyone else in my life,” Torre said. “He used to have a great saying: The most important word in the baseball dictionary is why. And that’s pretty much what Timmy, George and I would do. We’d constantly ask ourselves why things had happened in games. Sometimes (Bob Gibson) and (Dal Maxvill) would sit in, too. They were very stimulating and enlightening sessions.”

McCarver, in his book “Few and Chosen,” said of Torre, “I came to know Joe as a man of intelligence, grace and compassion. His knowledge of baseball and his unique people skills made him a good bet to succeed as a manager.”

Lessons learned

Torre cited specific examples of how he was helped by Kissell.

“George showed me how to create runs by stealing bases and moving runners,” Torre related. “He taught me that while running to first base you should run through the bag and not to it. He taught me that outfielders should reposition themselves according to the count on the hitter and not just plant themselves in the same spot.

“And he taught me an unorthodox defense with a runner on third when it’s time to bring the infield in: With a right-handed hitter, and with the count in his favor, you leave your third baseman back at normal depth. That puts pressure on the runner and third-base coach in whether to decide to break for home on a ground ball.”

In an interview with Stan McNeal of Cardinals Magazine, Torre said Kissell “put in the most time with me and I learned the most baseball from him. There were a lot of things I never thought to think about until I associated with Kissell.”

Schoendienst, Torre’s only manager in St. Louis, was “perfect” for the Cardinals, Torre said. Schoendienst’s style helped Torre in his first season with the Yankees.

“As a manager, sometimes you assume a lot _ that your players know what they are supposed to do and that they understand your moves,” Torre said in his book. “Red was able to take that approach because he had such a smart, seasoned bunch. Luckily so did I with the (1996) Yankees. It was the first year that kind of approach worked for me. The Yankees’ professionalism really made me think back to those classy Cardinal teams.”

Schoendienst “was definitely an influence for me,” Torre told Cardinals Magazine.

In his 2014 interview with Cardinals Yearbook, Torre said Schoendienst “basically trusted the players. He knew what he wanted from them, and it was only to go out and do the best you can and not beat yourself. I took a great many things from his philosophy going forward. I was a little different from other managers. I didn’t try to micromanage everything. i trusted my players to go out there and hopefully be in a position to want the same things I wanted.”

When Torre managed the Cardinals from 1990-95, Kissell was a Cardinals instructor and Torre had him coordinate the team’s spring training.

“He questioned everything,” Torre said. “He had a favorite line: ‘Joe, who wrote the book?’ And I’d say, ‘Nobody, George. Nobody wrote the book.’ That was George’s way of reminding me that I could make any move I wanted as a manager as long as I had the right reasons for it _ whether it was unpopular or unorthodox. That style helped me in the 1996 World Series. I surprised some people with moves like benching Wade Boggs against a right-handed pitcher, letting my pitcher bat in the ninth inning and putting the potential winning run on base intentionally.”

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