Terry Collins

Terry Collins
File:The manager who won the word series in 2011 </gallery>
New York Mets – No. 10
Manager
Born: (1949-05-27) May 27, 1949 Midland, Michigan
Bats: Right Throws: Right
debut
April 4, 1994, for the Houston Astros
Career statistics
Games	878
Win-Loss record	444–434
Winning %	.506
Teams
As manager Houston Astros (1994–1996) Anaheim Angels (1997–1999) New York Mets (2011–present) As coach Tampa Bay Devil Rays (2001)

Terry Lee Collins (born May 27, 1949, at Midland, Michigan) is the manager for the New York Mets of Major League Baseball. Collins was a professional baseball player, playing shortstop in the minor leagues. After his playing career, Collins managed the Albuquerque Dukes of the Pacific Coast League, the Buffalo Bisons of the International League, and the Duluth Huskies of the summer collegiate Northwoods League, and the Houston Astros and Anaheim Angels of Major League Baseball. Collins is known as a "feisty and intense manager."

College career

Collins attended college at Eastern Michigan University from 1968-1971, where he played shortstop. In each of the four years he attended Eastern Michigan, Collins led the team in steals. He was on the Eastern Michigan team that won the NAIA national championship in 1971, at which he won the honor of Outstanding Defensive Player of the Tournament. Collins was inducted into the Eastern Michigan University Athletic Hall of Fame in 1994.

Playing career

In 1971, Collins was drafted by the Pittsburgh Pirates. During a 10-year playing career, he played from 1971–1978 and in 1980 and 1984 in the Pittsburgh Pirates and Los Angeles Dodgers organizations. However, he never broke into the big leagues. Collins batted and threw right-handed and stood 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) tall. He compiled a batting average of .255 in 671 games played.

Managing career

1981-1992

In 1981, Collins began his managing career as pilot of the Dodgers' Class-A Lodi affiliate in the California League. In 1983, he managed the Albuquerque Dukes, the Dodgers' AAA affiliate, where in 1987, he won the PCL championship. He managed three years in Buffalo, the Pirates' AAA affiliate before being promoted to bullpen coach in 1992, where he coached until the end of the 1993 season.

1993-96, Houston Astros

After the 1993 season, the Houston Astros fired manager Art Howe because the owner did not favor Howe's "deliberate style." Astros General Manager Bob Watson replaced him with Collins, who never had a losing season in his three years there. The Astros finished second all three years. He was dismissed at the of the 1996 season, after the Astros suffered a late-season collapse.

Baseball analyst Joe Morgan suggests that Collins was partly to blame for the Astros failure to make the playoffs. Writing in 1999, Morgan says:

Adversity is part of baseball; if a manager can't cope with is his team will suffer. Terry Collins, the skipper of the Anaheim Angels learned this lesson when he was with Houston. The Astros were a talented team when Collins was there (1994-96). They finished second three times, but failed to make the playoffs because their manager exerted too much pressure on them. He was so uptight, his players thought each pitch was life-or-death. It wasn't anything Terry said; it was his demeanor. Collins was edgy in the dugout during games, always looking like someone who was just waiting for disaster to strike. At the moment anything actually went wrong you could smell the panic in him. Players picked up on that. To alleviate the tension the manger was bringing to the clubhouse, they put added pressure on themselves to perform well, which invariably choked off their natural abilities so that they can't play their best. Its no coincidence that the Astors became a post-season participant once Houston replaced Collins with Larry Dierker. I dont know if Larry knows more about baseball then Collins, but he does have a laid-back attitude that immediately puts his players at ease. Dierker kept the pressure off the team by reminding them that while the goal of winning is serious, the game is still essentially supposed to be fun. (By the way, I have been watching Collins since he joined the Angels and he's a much more laid-back skipper. When I complimented him on this change, he said former Angel infielder-outfielder Tony Phillips had spoken to him about relaxing more and that it has really made an impression.)

1997-98, Anaheim Angels

Less then a month after being dismissed by the Astros, Collins was hired as manager of the Anaheim Angels for the 1997 season. His first two years with the Angels also produced winning records and second-place finishes. In 1999, the Angels were hampered by injuries and Collins resigned with 29 games left in the season. He apparently received a vote of confidence from the front office, but the players had petitioned GM Bill Bavasi to fire him.

2006-2009

At the end of the 2006 season, Collins signed a two-year deal to manage the Orix Buffaloes of the Pacific League in Japan. Terry resigned as manager of the Buffaloes on May 21, 2008 after a 7-3 inter-league loss to the Hanshin Tigers. Orix were in 5th place in the Pacific League with a 21-28 record, despite investments in players such as Alex Cabrera in the prior off-season. Injuries to the Buffaloes pitching staff certainly didn't help Collins' situation. However, the Buffaloes bounced back and finished second by the end of the season.

Collins became the manager of the China national baseball team at the end of the year, in time for the 2009 World Baseball Classic.

On July 20, 2009, the Duluth Huskies of the Northwoods League announced that Collins would manage the team for the rest of the season after firing their field manager a few days prior.

2010-present, New York Mets

Collins spent the 2010 season as the minor-league field coordinator for the New York Mets organization. Collins was introduced as Mets manager on November 23, 2010.

External links

• Career statistics and player information from Baseball Reference (Minors)
• Terry Collins managerial career statistics at Baseball-Reference.com