Right on the heals of the Dave Roberts press conference we are getting word that the Dodgers have made another addition to the teams coaching staff. Via Ken Rosenthal on twitter and seemingly confirmed everywhere, the Dodgers have hired Bob Geren to be the bench coach.
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) December 2, 2015
As you may recall, Geren was one of nine candidates interviewed by the front office for the manager position. He had previously managed in the minors for the Red Sox and A's. Then transitioned to a bench coach position with Oakland in 2003. In 2007 he became the A's manager until his firing during the 2011 season. That following year he joined the Mets organization as their bench coach until this past season. It is notable that he worked with current Dodger GM Farhan Zaidi while with the A's.As for style and tendencies, he is apparently strong in sabermetrics. Via Beth Harris at the Washington Times:
“He has been invaluable for me,” Mets manager Terry Collins said. “Statistically, he’s off the charts. … I think Bob would be a great candidate. I hope he gets it.”Based on the above, I suppose he'll be tasked with passing along relevant numbers and analysis to Dave Roberts. On the other hand, he might be lacking in other skills. Via John Shea at the SF Gate, regarding his time as the Oakland A's manager:
Fuentes had cited Geren's "unorthodox managing" and said he was handled "pretty poorly," thanks to "zero" communication. Former A's reliever Huston Street took it a step further Tuesday by calling Geren the "least favorite person I have ever encountered in sports."BTW, A's owner Lew Wolff had a different opinion, via John Shea at the SF Gate:
“I personally love the way he deals with everybody,” Wolff said. “It’s a long season. He’s had some long seasons. I love the guy. He’s a good teacher. I love everything about him. He’s a very solid person, and I like the way he deals with everything all year long. This is a hard job.”I would suggest that the anecdotal stuff above should be taken with a grain of salt. Bob Geren is capable and smart. He has the ear of the Dodgers front office and has a background in statistical analysis that is clearly coveted. Geren might be the perfect "yin" to the "yang" that Dave Roberts brings to the table.
In celebration of his hiring I made the above two fantasy cards of him. On the left, the photograph was taken by Howard Simmons/New York Daily News and I used the 1971 Topps Baseball card design. On the right, the photograph was taken by the AP and I used the 1982 Topps Baseball card design.
Below are his career statistics as a player and a manager, via Baseball-Reference:
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