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All Things Joe: Springsteen, 'Godfather,' Convertibles
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Published: October 2, 2008
Updated: 10/02/2008 12:35 am
The day he was hired, this was written about Joe Maddon:
"The fourth manager in Devil Rays history is a book you can't put down. A concert you rock to, a story that begins in a mining town and ends in a baseball dugout, sometimes cruising with the girlfriend to an L.A. beach, Springsteen blasting from the convertible, for a glass of red wine at sunset. Something for everyone."
Now that something for everyone is one of the most improbable success stories in baseball history. One reason is the man in the Rays dugout, the man behind the designer glasses, who has guided this team to 97 wins and the playoffs. Joe Maddon, Hazelton, P-A - manager of the year, wine lover, car lover, book lover, people lover, life lover.
We're just getting started.
Us: Who's your favorite underdog?
Maddon: I'd say the old Jets, the Super Bowl over the Colts. Joe Willie Namath. I identified with him. I wore white shoes for Namath. He was Western P-A. White Riddell shoes. I wore No. 12 for him, wore the bigger cage facemask because Namath did.
Us: Your iPod please.
Maddon: The Boss, the Stones, Molly Hatchet, some Motown.
Us: Do you have a favorite movie?
Maddon: The Godfather, no question. I come from an Italian family, an Italian background. The wedding scene, I've been to that wedding, a lot.
Us: Do you have a favorite character?
Maddon: Yeah, Luca Brasi, when he tells the Godfather thank you for inviting me to your daughter's wedding, on the day of your daughter's wedding. I use that all the time.
Us: And I hope their first child be a masculine child.
Maddon: Exactly.
(Note: Maddon's first child is named Sarah).
Us: Should everyone own a convertible before they die?
Maddon: Absolutely. It's the best. I had the '69 Impala. That's the one I sold to Angels owner Artie Moreno. It was so cool going up the Pacific Coast Highway, with the top down, arm outside the door, one hand on the wheel, fiancee sitting next to me with the stereo blasting. And low humidity.
Us: What do you think of Gov. Sarah Palin's glasses?
Maddon: I don't like them. No frames. Those are non-glasses. I'm not into those.
Us: Dinner, your place, three guests. Who's coming?
Maddon: Mark Twain, James Michener and Branch Rickey.
Us: Why Twain?
Maddon: He's amazing. There's one quote from Mark Twain that absolutely is brilliant. "Dance like no one is watching. Sing like no one is listening. Love like you've never been hurt and live like it's heaven on Earth." That's about it, wouldn't you say?
Us: And Michener?
Maddon: The first significant book I read was Michener's "Centennial." My Uncle Chuck told me I needed to read it. It got me into heavy reading. There was stuff about plate tectonics, the separation of the continents, about Colorado. He wrote about how the Indians would get the lead buffalo running toward a cliff and the other buffalo followed, and they'd be at the bottom, just carving them up. That's a principle I use. In any good administrator, you always want to latch onto the lead buffalo and get him running the right direction, because everybody else will follow.
Us: Over a cliff?
Maddon: Scratch the cliff.
Us: What's the greatest lesson your father taught you?
Maddon: Always treat women with respect.
Us: Your mom, Beanie, what about her lessons?
Maddon: She'd grab your arm before you went into a house and she'd say "You don't touch what's not ours." She was about respect, and honesty.
Us: Almost forgot - why Branch Rickey?
Maddon: He was way ahead of his time. College-educated, Ohio Wesleyan. Major-league manager, player, became a general manager. He always looked for a better way of doing something. He was not afraid to challenge.
Us: Wait, you proposed to your fiancee, Jaye, in a liquor store parking lot?
Maddon: Boulder, Colorado. In 1975, I played for the Boulder Collegians. When we were playing the Rockies a few years ago, she came out and we drove to Boulder. I looked for the old baseball field, Scotty Carpenter Field. I couldn't remember where it was at night. I took her to the Dark Horse, which was our hangout - real smelly beer bar, loud music. We had burgers, fries and a couple of beers. Then we went to the Base Line Liquor Store, right near Bauldie Moschetti's old office, I used to work there. Bauldie's no longer with us, but he gave me my biggest break. Bauldie owned the baseball team. I proposed to her on one knee in the liquor store parking lot because I knew Bauldie would have appreciated it. He and I would sit up to 3 in the morning eating pizza, drinking, talking baseball.
Us: If God came down, and there were runners on first and second and no one out, would you ask him to bunt them over?
Maddon: Depends who's on deck.
Us: Thank you, Joseph.
Maddon: Pleasure.
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