Braves reverse field, make right call firing Larry Parrish
Larry Parrish
(UPDATED: 5 p.m.)
Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez had said Thursday that his entire coaching staff would be back, including hitting coach Larry Parrish. Either he changed his mind or somebody changed it for him.
The Braves announced Friday that Parrish will not be back after one horrible season. Who ever made the decision — Gonzalez or general manager Frank Wren — it was the correct one.
Fredi Gonzalez
Wren’s name, but not Gonzalez’, is on the news release, which was emailed at 3:40 p.m.
According to our David O’Brien, Wren met with Parrish Thursday afternoon and made the decision to fire him after no being satisfied with Parrish’s answers.
Parrish’s biography was immediately removed from the team’s website.
Somebody needed to be held accountable for the Braves’ going 10-20 down the stretch of the season and missing the playoffs.
There was no excuse for the Braves’ offensive woes for much of this season. It can be debated just how much blame or credit a hitting coach should get for a player’s fortunes. But the team’s collective shortcomings were so glaring this season that a change seemed unavoidable, which is why many were surprised when Gonzalez quickly stated that Parrish would be back.
The news release was brief:
ATLANTA, Ga. – Atlanta Braves Executive Vice President and General Manager Frank Wren announced today that hitting coach Larry Parrish will not return for the 2012 season. A search for a new hitting coach will begin immediately.
The remainder of the Braves staff, including bench coach Carlos Tosca, pitching coach Roger McDowell, first-base coach Terry Pendleton, third-base coach Brian Snitker and bullpen coach Eddie Perez, will all return for 2012.
As O’Brien reported in his blog, the Braves ranked 26th in the majors in batting average (.243) and on-base percentage (.308) after finishing fourth in on-base percentage (.339) under former hitting coach Terry Pendleton. They also hit only .205 in the final 12 games (3-9) and .195 with runners in scoring position in September.
When he originally announced Parrish would be retained, Gonzalez said: “I think if you hire people, let them do their job. … It’s easy to fire somebody and throw somebody to the wolves. That’s not the way I work.”
By Jeff Schultz
•
Follow me on Twitter @JeffSchultzAJC; friend me at Facebook.com/JeffSchultzAJC
Tell us what you think about the site
Customer Care »
Vacation stops, manage subscriptions and more
AJC Services
Sections
Other Editions
Visitor Agreement | Privacy Statement
© 2013 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
324 comments Add your comment
01HAWK
September 30th, 2011
5:06 pm
This the guy to get……………………….He helped FRENCHIE with his turnaround.
Rudy Jaramillo has been credited for the development of players as Jeff Bagwell, Juan González, Adrian Gonzalez, Iván Rodríguez, Mark Teixeira and Michael Young, among others.
When the New York Mets were in search of a new major league manager in 2004, General Manager Omar Minaya interviewed Jaramillo as a possible managerial candidate. Jaramillo was among the final two candidates for the position, but Willie Randolph was ultimately selected as manager.[citation needed]
Following the 2009 season, Jaramillo announced that he would not remain with the Rangers, opting to seek out other opportunities.[1] He officially signed with the Cubs on October 21, 2009 as their major league hitting coach.
Stinger2
September 30th, 2011
5:07 pm
Larry G. Your statement that Bobby Cox could not get the Braves more than once is simply wrong. Without any research, I know the Braves went to th WS at least 4 times.
C'mon Man
September 30th, 2011
5:07 pm
Don Baylor feeling light-headedness and lying on a stretcher would still make a better hitting coach than Larry Parrish.
John Adcox
September 30th, 2011
5:08 pm
Clarence Jones, there’s a Mr. Wren from Atlanta holding for you on line one….
Ed Glennon
September 30th, 2011
5:08 pm
Even Chipper’s mom would be better.
Mitchell
September 30th, 2011
5:09 pm
ernisTbass
September 30th, 2011
4:59 pm
the Braves had a hitting coach????????
Ha! lol
Octavius
September 30th, 2011
5:09 pm
I was not apparent to me that the Braves had any coaches.
roge
September 30th, 2011
5:09 pm
You don’t need a hitting coach. These guys as myself grew up with one coach and you hit what is thrown at you. Just a waste of money.
John
September 30th, 2011
5:11 pm
Well, well ,well….the Braves make a smart move! So does Fredi G stay or is he let go? My guess he’s safe for now.
USAF Retired
September 30th, 2011
5:11 pm
With that logic…why have any coaches?
GBR
September 30th, 2011
5:12 pm
I guess Freddie had not seen the team batting average. In this venue I asked several times who the Braves hitting coach was and getting no response, thought we didn’t have one , and assumed Terry Pendleton was doing a poor job coaching our guys to first base. Maybe we’ll get one now! Please excuse the run on sentence.
USAF Retired
September 30th, 2011
5:12 pm
No coach or manager should ever feel their job is safe….in fact no one in any job should take it for granted.
Jeff Schultz
September 30th, 2011
5:13 pm
Foultip — I tend to doubt Braves/Wren will give the job back to Pendleton.
Felix
September 30th, 2011
5:13 pm
Hey where did my post go? What the h___?
Bobby Cox
September 30th, 2011
5:13 pm
Making Larry Parrish the scapegoat for the September debacle is really poor sportsmanship from Frank Wren. To diminish the character of a truly great athlete like L.P.’s is absurd and unjust, this is simply a sidestep by management for making moronic trades they made in August, hiring broken down players to come in and actually think they could make a contribution. Hey!! here are some pink slips. Jon Schulerholtz, Frank Wren, Fredi (the goofy look on your face) Gonzales, Rodger (hates kids) McDowell, Chipper Jones, Derek Lowe, Brian (the Squint) McCann, Alex (the can’t hit) Gonzalez.
Jeff Schultz
September 30th, 2011
5:14 pm
Steve — Fredi’s not being fired, unless he makes this a major issue and takes a stand or something.
Larry
September 30th, 2011
5:14 pm
As for the “collapse,” this is less of an issue with me than all the stupid, bizarre, and downright goofy season long decisions by Fruity. I mean, one could say the Phillies “collapsed” when they lost 8 straight games after clinching. However, effective managing from April in is why they’re in the playoffs and the Braves cleaned out their lockers.
Francona is a sharp cookie. Comparing his intellect and pedigree to Fruity is like comparing an earthworm to a computer!
Get Francona and the phones start ringing off the hook at the Braves ticket office…including mine!
St. Richt
September 30th, 2011
5:15 pm
How about Chipper’s dad? He’s available..
Bobby Cox
September 30th, 2011
5:15 pm
Making Larry Parrish the scapegoat for the September debacle is really poor sportsmanship from Frank Wren. To diminish the character of a truly great athlete like L.P.’s is absurd and unjust, this is simply a sidestep by management for making moronic trades they made in August, hiring broken down players to come in and actually think they could make a contribution. Hey!! here are some pink slips. Jon Schulerholtz, Frank Wren, Fredi (the goofy look on your face) Gonzales, Rodger (hates kids) McDowell, Chipper Jones, Derek Lowe, Brian (the Squint) McCann, Alex (the can’t hit) Gonzalez. Jason Heywood.
braves bobblehead 3
September 30th, 2011
5:16 pm
That was the correct move. JHey, Alex Gonzalaz, McCann down the stretch, all stunk and Chipper even said JHey needs at least 5 swings to be competitive in the major league. I believe when Chipper retires he needs to be the batting coach because of his hard work at his craft.
drew
September 30th, 2011
5:17 pm
How about holding the players accountable. They are professional baseball players. Professional meaning they have mastered what it takes to make it to that level. They should have a clear understanding of what it takes to get out of it. Parrish can’t go up there and hit for them.
USAF Retired
September 30th, 2011
5:18 pm
Chipper for player/coach. Reduce his playing time to save his health, and devote more time to helping players with their hitting. It’s a thought…
Steve
September 30th, 2011
5:19 pm
With Wren making the decisions on Parrish, Lowe, and Heyward, what does it say about Fredi Gonzalez?
Peter
September 30th, 2011
5:19 pm
Hire Larry Jones, Sr.
Tim D
September 30th, 2011
5:19 pm
Great first step. We definitely need someone with big league experience to fill the role. Mark Grace, Tony Gywn, Jeff Bagwell are great examples.
Big Ten Champs Nebraska
September 30th, 2011
5:19 pm
Still doesn’t account for the questionable managerial decisions this past season.
P Rose
September 30th, 2011
5:22 pm
Great. Chipper probably just needs some coaching. Maybe next year he won’t go 0 for 5 with 3 strikeouts in an elimination game.
Marshall Kerlin
September 30th, 2011
5:22 pm
Let Chipper have the dual role as player/hitting coach. If he does indeed play next year, logically he shud sit out/rest at least one third of the time/ so he’ll have more time to give to hitting instruction. No matter what anyone thinks of Chip, the guy Knows Hitting. Heck, bring his Dad in on it too. Might be a little impetus in 5-6 years for Chipper to be full-time hitting coach, once he’s had a few years at home with the teenagers. Next year’s pitching staff = Incredible It will be a fun year.
USAF Retired
September 30th, 2011
5:23 pm
Maybe next year he will be in better health down the stretch.
ray
September 30th, 2011
5:23 pm
one down, 3 to go. we still need a new owner, a new GM and a new manager. this isn’t nearly enough. the GM and manager are not involved in this debacle ? are they innocent bystanders ?
this is just a token PR firing to try to appease fans. it is made by someone who shouldn’t even be there to fire Parrish. he hired him so it’s another example of Wren’s incompetence.
this is just the tip of the iceberg. lets get to the root of this unacceptbale situation.
USAF Retired
September 30th, 2011
5:24 pm
Oh yeah…and bring back Leo as pitching coach too.
Tim D
September 30th, 2011
5:25 pm
Everyone needs to realize that this decision wasn’t made just because of the September struggles. The team did not hit all year long. Most of their hitters had career low numbers. The lack of hitting caused Fredi G to overuse the bullpen since almost all of our wins were close. We were first in baseball for last AB wins for a reason……because we didn’t win games going away. IF everyone hasn’t noticed, non of the top five teams on that list made the playoffs. That’s not how you want to win ballgames!!
jayvee
September 30th, 2011
5:26 pm
The question I have is how much influence the hitting coach has on plate discipline. I’m assuming the hitting coach is responsible for making recommendations for approaches versus various pitchers, in addition to the obvious responsibility for working on a player’s stance and swing. I thought the Braves approach at the plate looked clueless for most of the season. I’ve said several times in comments that I’ve never seen a team that won so many games yet hit so few line drives. The Braves gave away copious at bats, and games, this year due to impatience and downright idiocy at the plate. Uggla and Gonzales couldn’t hit a breaking ball away all year, yet they kept swinging at them (Uggla definitely chased them less frequently when he went on his streak, yet he was still vulnerable and struck out on breaking balls away in the final game.) Heyward’s swing needs a complete retrofit. Break him down and teach him all over again, stressing on hiitting the ball up the middle and to the left-center gap. His power numbers would decline for a while, but when it comes back, he’ll be wicked to all fields, and he’ll hit .300. Poor Prado didn’t seem to know what to do with Bourne on base ahead of him, which was a surprise. And I like the guy but I have never really understood the Braves’ fetish for Matt Diaz. Ugliest swing in baseball, poor fielder.
Bob the Blogger
September 30th, 2011
5:26 pm
A good hitting coach is essential to the success of a MLB team. The Braves need to get the absolute best one available. The difference in the amount of money needed to acquire the best vs. a mediocre one is nothing compared to the collective salaries of all of the position players. As many have said, hitting a baseball is the most difficult feat in professional sports, so we need the best hitting coach we can get – period.
Scottirock
September 30th, 2011
5:27 pm
Step one accomplished. now comes Sherrill and Linebrink.
Scottirock
September 30th, 2011
5:28 pm
And Lowe
Nola62
September 30th, 2011
5:30 pm
The Braves had a Hitting Coach? Who knew??
garcia
September 30th, 2011
5:30 pm
How ’bout hiring Ichiro’s hitting coach. It is time to change the hitting philosophy of the entire team.
kerryb
September 30th, 2011
5:30 pm
They waited too long to make this move.
General Patton
September 30th, 2011
5:30 pm
The Greatest description of the Braves:
“There Ain’t No “We” in Chokeville”
“Worst choke in baseball history, even worse than the Braves this year, the Braves who used to play in Boston, which as someone said yesterday proves that you can take the Braves out of Boston, but you can’t take the Boston out of the Braves.” Howie Carr – Boston Herald
http://www.bostonherald.com/news/columnists/view/2011_0930there_aint_no_we_in_chokeville/
Janney
September 30th, 2011
5:32 pm
Good to hear
Vain Jangling
September 30th, 2011
5:33 pm
What about Chico Escuela? Beisbol been bery, bery good to him.
Banned Poster
September 30th, 2011
5:33 pm
I don’t think hitting coaches are end all, be all, but they do help make a difference. Chipper and Andruw always credited Don Baylor with their success in 1999 and 2000. You heard Frency credit his current coaches in NY and KC as helping him rebound. Coaches are good, but most of the time it is certain players they help the most and not the entire team. The best thing a hitting coach can do is preach situational hitting – such as when you have runners at 2nd and 3rd and one out, you should put the ball in play in the OF or hit it to the right side of the IF to get that runner home. Or how about hitting the opposite fields with 2 strikes and the pitching giving you nothing but outside breaking pitches.
This is nothing but a Frank Wren move and it makes Fredi look weak. It is now obvious that Fredo is on the hot seat and has been served notice that another performance like this Sept will not be tolerated by Wren. Good for him. It is great to see someone in the front office has the balz to do something to correct issues with the team. I also like Wrens comments about Lowe and Heyward. It shows someone is in control and this last months performance will not be tolerated.
As for Francona, don’t put the onus on him for the Red Sox issues. Unlike Fredi, he actually made lineup changes and looked to motivate his players out of their funk. That team just simply has no chemistry and his top players let him down. Ortiz, AGon, and Crawford couldn’t hit nor could Beckett, Lester, or Lackey pitch. The man won 2 World Series rings with a team that could never get past the Yankees in the AL East or ALCS. I would take Francona over Fredo in a heart beat and this team would respond with great success IMHO. His numbers with Philly were not all that great, but remember that Philly team he had in the late 1990s. There were no Jimmy Rollins, Shane Victorinos, Ryan Howards, or Chase Utleys. Despite that, his teams were still respectable, though his last team in 2000 was riddled with injuries and Rico Brogna.
Charles Van Doren
September 30th, 2011
5:34 pm
No doubt Parrish needed to go, but all this was done to throw the pissed off fans a bone,, so that we all go “yay ,,problem solved” ,, when Fredi is the real problem. The Fredi problem will unfortunately have to prove out at the expense of at least one more if not two seasons, before enough proof is gathered,, however much there is now.
Coach (2011 Fredi G. FAILED)
September 30th, 2011
5:34 pm
Fredo got his pee pee spanked by his own boss. How hilarious.
Frank Wren
September 30th, 2011
5:35 pm
I can’t believe that J.S. bought the story Fredi and I gave him that it was all Larry Parrish’s fault.
The way I figure it is, even though both Fredi and I haven’t a clue what we’re doing, firing Parrish might buy us another year.
poolcue
September 30th, 2011
5:36 pm
NOT ENOUGH!!!! FG HAS TO GO TO GO ALSO!!!!!!!
Tim D
September 30th, 2011
5:37 pm
According to ESPN Frank Wren also said this about Lowe and Heyward:
Braves general manager Frank Wren also says there’s no guarantee that Derek Lowe will have a spot in the rotation next season, even though the team still owes him $15 million on the final year of his contract. He lost 17 games with a 5.05 ERA.
On another issue, Wren says right fielder Jason Heyward will have to right to keep his job in spring training after a miserable season.
I think Heyward will have a bounce back year next in 2012 but Lowe needs to get traded for anything we can get and we will probably have to eat about $9 to $10 Mill of the contract.
JD
September 30th, 2011
5:37 pm
BRING BACK DON BAYLOR!
Sonny B. Layne
September 30th, 2011
5:37 pm
What about Leo Mazzone for Hitting Coach? He might not know much about hitting, but he could nudge FG when the Pitching Coach needed to go out to the mound and settle the Pitcher down before disaster struck or who not to start. If he had had that job this year, we would be in the Playoffs. The Team would not have hit any worse. In fact everyone might have hit a few points higher.