Skipper: Why Baseball Managers Matter and Always Will

About the Book

Award-winning baseball writer and coauthor of Ninety Percent Mental Scott Miller offers an unprecedented look at the job of Major League Baseball managers-showing how they shape the game...and how the ever-changing game shapes them.

Skipper takes on an ambitious Moneyball-esque premise: a deep dive into the ongoing struggle for control that often takes place behind the scenes between MLB managers and the ownership groups, and now, their data analysts. In a culture still attempting to come to terms with the Digital Age, there's a bigger story behind the evolution of authority of managing inside the major leagues.

Packed with baseball history, interviews with dozens of MLB's current stars and veterans, and an exclusive, inside look at the day-to-day life of a manager competing for the World Series, the LA Dodgers' Dave Roberts, Skipper is a fascinating look into the highs, the lows, and the inner workings of the changing world of professional baseball.

About the Author :
Scott miller is an award-winning veteran national MLB writer who has been a contributor to the New York Times baseball coverage in 2021 and 2022 following long-term stints as the national baseball columnist at Bleacher Report and CBSSports.com. He co-authored Ninety Percent Mental with former MLB All-Star pitcher and mental skills coach Bob Tewksbury in 2018 and is an analyst for MLB Network Radio on Sirius XM. Well-connected throughout the baseball industry, Miller has been honored several times as one of the top baseball writers in the nation by the Associated Press Sports Editors and was included in the book 2019 Best American Sportswriting. Before Bleacher Report and CBSSports.com, he covered baseball for the Los Angeles Times and St. Paul (Minn.) Pioneer Press.

Review :
"Seasoned baseball reporter Miller takes readers inside front offices, locker rooms, dugouts, and the living rooms of living legends in this intimate and definitive look at where managers now fit in a game transformed. Miller... often lets skippers speak seemingly unfiltered for paragraphs at a time. The result is plainspoken, colorful, and deeply insightful--much like this book.
Essential reading for students of the game and aspiring leaders."
--Kirkus Reviews "There are certainties in baseball. 60-feet 6-inches from the pitcher's mound to the plate. 90 feet from one base to the next. And Scott Miller at the ballpark, several hours before game time in the dugout waiting for a one-on-one conversation with the manager. And if the manager isn't in the dugout, then certainly they meet in the manager's office. What Miller brings to the page is the insight of the manager, about the players he manages and oversees. The game isn't just numbers, and lineups, it is the people who play it, and how they play it under the guidance of the Skipper. The managers and their personalities. Each manager has his own view of his and opposing players and how the game can and should be played. That is the essence of the game. Its heart and its soul. Why baseball managers matter (and always will). Scott Miller is the Skipper of this game."--"Charlie Steiner, radio play-by-play, Los Angeles Dodgers "Skipper addresses an important but sometimes overlooked topic--the impact of technology on the evolution of the baseball manager. Scott Miller makes a powerful case for why managers remain vital, but in different ways than before. Former Yankees manager Joe Torre once told GM Brian Cashman, 'Don't forget that this game has a heartbeat.' Skipper is a lively and richly detailed reminder, superbly crafted by Miller."--Ken Rosenthal, senior baseball writer, The Athletic "Skipper is filled with anecdote after anecdote around the most notable in-game decisions over the last half-century, with the managers telling the readers about all the complications that framed their choices. The excellent and comprehensive work is not surprising to me, after watching Scott Miller extract details from big-league All-Stars over his remarkable career. In this era when narrative-bending is exchanged for access, Scott is an outlier: He seeks the truth in every situation."--Buster Olney, author of The Last Night of the Yankee Dynasty "Skipper is one of the best baseball books in years, but it's really much more--a lively look at leadership in a public pressure cooker. Scott Miller, one of baseball's most gifted and trusted reporters, goes far beyond the press conference to reveal the humanity in a job that everyone thinks they can handle, but few truly understand."--Tyler Kepner, author of K and The Grandest Stage "Baseball Gold from a Baseball Guy. From Billy Martin and Earl Weaver to Alex Cora and Kevin Cash, Scott Miller takes you into the dugout and clubhouse. I read Skipper from cover to cover in one sitting and when I finally put it down, I expected to see sunflower seeds on the floor of my den."--Dan Shaughnessy, author of Francona and The Curse of the Bambino "Scott Miller has always been one of the best and most insightful baseball writers in America. But this might be his finest work, because Skipper is the definitive book on the complicated, new-age world of modern managing. Reading it, I felt just the way I did when I read Moneyball. We were all pretty sure we knew what baseball and baseball managers have always looked like. And this isn't it! Once you've read Skipper, you'll understand exactly why."--Jayson Stark, senior baseball writer, The Athletic "Simply, this is the ultimate and definitive book of MLB managers. It's a must-read with Scott Miller brilliantly capturing an unprecedented behind-the-scenes look with today's managers and their predecessors. He takes you into the living room of the Bob Boone house where he is watching his son, Aaron, managing the Yankees. He takes you into the day-to-day grind with Dave Roberts as he leads the Los Angeles Dodgers to the World Series championship. And he takes you into the pain Art Howe endured watching Moneyball. Every chapter is absolutely riveting, giving you an exclusive perspective into the complicated world of baseball managers."--Bob Nightengale, baseball columnist, USA Today "This captivating narrative takes readers behind the scenes, revealing the heart and soul of the sport we all love. Whether you're a die-hard fan or a casual observer, this book invites you to discover how the spirit of the game endures through the ages."--Torii Hunter, five-time All-Star, nine-time Gold Glove winner