Damn Yankees by Edward Drobinski - HTML preview

Damn Yankees

Page 287

with Billy when he managed the Twins, came to the 1975 Rangers spring training in Pompano Beach and stayed a week. So too did entire squadrons of automobile dealers, tavern owners, backslappers, hucksters, and hustlers, all wanting to say hello to the Little Dago. A district judge from New Orleans who must have had known Martin from God could only guess where arrived at Billy's springtime cavalcade of thrills, claiming that he was in town "looking for a little keister for Easter."

Texas Rangers owner Bob Short was a person Martin knew and trusted from the time in the 1960s when Short was an executive

with the Twins. After Martin was dismissed by the Tigers, Short told his manager, Whitey Herzog, that he would fire his own grandmother to have a chance to hire Martin. Short, days later, fired Herzog and hired Martin, provoking Herzog's comment; "I'm fired, I'm the grandmother."

Martin faced a serious challenge in trying to rebuild a team that was 47–81 and would lose 105 games that season. No pitcher on the staff won more than nine games that year, and the team had the worst fan attendance in baseball. But Martin felt Short understood him, and he was given a five year contract that not only made him field manager, but gave him the powers of general

manager as well. He would have complete authority over the 25 man roster, and would also be responsible for the farm system.