PYTHAGORAS, LASORDA,TOMMY, AND ME - ON EVALUATING BASEBALL MANAGERS

This paper uses the Pythagorean theorem of baseball as the basis for e valuating major league baseball managers. Eighteen current and recent managers with at least ten full seasons of experience are evaluated. T he principal conclusion is that there are quantifiable differences in managerial ability and that, the cynics notwithstanding, even the wors t of these managers does a credible job.