SARASOTA, Fla. — They sat for hours, discussing the mutual acquaintances they've made over many years in the game, their philosophies on building a roster and what had become of the once-proud Orioles franchise.
In a secluded cabin situated on a golf course about 45 minutes from where the floundering Orioles were playing a road game against the Texas Rangers last July, Andy MacPhail and Buck Showalter, polar opposites on the surface, found common ground.
MacPhail, the Orioles' president of baseball operations whose rebuilding project was bursting at the seams, wanted a manager with a big persona and a lot of swagger, somebody to get the attention of a youthful and underachieving roster and inspire a defeated fan base. Showalter, an old and steady hand at engineering turnarounds, loved the challenge of resurrecting a team in the toughest division in the sport and was itching to return to the dugout after nearly four years away.
"To me, he became the only choice," MacPhail said. "That's just the way it was."
Officially hired to manage the Orioles on Aug. 2, Showalter guided his new club to a 34-23 record, winning more games in two months than his two predecessors — Dave Trembley and Juan Samuel — did in the first four. Showalter's next challenge, which begins Friday night as the Orioles open the 2011 season against the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field, is to sustain that momentum and make the Orioles competitive again in the American League East.
They have a beefed-up lineup and a revamped bullpen, and a manager who has captured the attention of his players and a city desperate for a baseball team to feel good about.
"I know when the doors are closed, I have a job description, and I want to deliver for the fans, for [owner Peter Angelos], for Andy and for the players," Showalter said. "But I'm really uncomfortable with the focus on me. I think we're going to be a better team, but as we get started, one thing that I really look forward to is the focus being back on the players."
For the Oriole players, who got to know their high-profile manager over the final two months of last season or, for some, just through the past six weeks of spring training, Showalter has largely been a revelation. They had all heard the horror stories of his well-documented obsession with detail. They understood that he could be controlling and demanding. They knew — and not just from his time as an ESPN baseball analyst — that Showalter didn't mince words.
Veteran second baseman Brian Roberts, the longest-tenured Oriole who has played for six managers over parts of 10 big league seasons, heard all of those things and says now: "I can't think of a better players' manager that I've had. Buck battles for you. I think he's very positive."
For MacPhail, Showalter has done exactly what the two discussed on the day the Orioles' top executive flew into Texas and they had the private meeting to discuss the organization's managerial job, then occupied by Samuel on an interim basis. Showalter picked up MacPhail at the Dallas-Fort Worth airport, and the two drove to a remote location so they could talk without interruption. The conversation started in the morning and didn't end until long after dark.
"There were two departing flights back from Dallas that day, 4:30 [p.m.], and the other left around 8 or 9 at night," MacPhail said. "I booked the second flight, but all along, I'm thinking, 'I'm getting on that 4:30,' because how long can you talk after all? Making the 9-something flight was touch and go.
"Buck's reputation for preparedness showed itself because he was asking very specific questions about our system and our philosophies. I think he picked us as much as we picked him. I think he very much liked the idea that he had somewhat of a young, moldable roster that wasn't filled with veterans on long-term deals, that he had an opportunity to stamp his impression on this team. I could tell you this: He was not the least bit concerned about the division that we play in and the competition that we face."
To some baseball pundits, the MacPhail-Showalter arrangement was an unusual one because of the strong personalities involved. There was even speculation that MacPhail preferred the less dynamic Eric Wedge, who became the Seattle Mariners' manager this offseason, but Angelos pushed for Showalter. MacPhail, who acknowledged that he was impressed by Wedge, vehemently denied that was the case.
MacPhail couldn't — and wouldn't — dispute that their personalities are significantly different. MacPhail, 57, is buttoned-up, deliberate, cautious and upbeat. His least favorite part of the job is dealing with the media, and he enjoys being the center of attention about as much as watching his team blow a ninth-inning lead.
