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In baseball, the field manager (commonly referred to as the manager) is an individual who is responsible for matters of team strategy on the field and team leadership. Managers are typically assisted by between one and six assistant coaches, whose responsibilities are specialized. A manager is essentially equivalent to the head coach in other North American professional sports leagues.

Duties[edit]

The manager chooses the batting order and starting pitcher before each game, and makes substitutions throughout the game – among the most significant being those decisions regarding when to bring in a relief pitcher. How much control a manager takes in a game's strategy varies from manager to manager and from game to game. Some managers control pitch selection, defensive positioning, decisions to bunt, steal, pitch out, etc., while others designate an assistant coach or a player (often the catcher) to make some or all of these decisions.

Some managers choose to act as their team's first base or third base coach while their team is batting in order to more closely communicate with baserunners, but most managers delegate this responsibility to an assistant. Managers are typically assisted by two or more coaches.

In professional baseball[edit]

Typically, the title of "manager" is only used in professional baseball, with the title "head coach" used at other levels of play.

In many cases, a manager is a former professional, semi-professional or college player.

The manager's responsibilities normally are limited to in-game decisions, with off-the-field and roster management decisions falling to the team's general manager. The term manager used without qualification almost always refers to the field manager, while the general manager is often called the GM.

Major League Baseball managers differ from the head coaches of most other professional sports in that they dress in the same uniform as the players and are assigned a jersey number. The wearing of a matching uniform is frequently practiced at other levels of play, as well.

See also[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Baseball managers

• List of Major League Baseball managers
• List of Major League Baseball managers by wins
• List of Major League Baseball player–managers
• Manager of the Year
• The Sporting News Manager of the Year Award
• This Year in Baseball Awards (including manager)
• Sporting News Manager of the Decade (2009)
• Honor Rolls of Baseball
• American Baseball Coaches Association

v t e Baseball positions Pitchers by role Ace pitcher Starting pitcher Relief pitcher Middle relief pitcher Long reliever Setup pitcher Closer Left-handed specialist by style Power pitcher Control pitcher Groundball pitcher Flyball pitcher Switch pitcher Defensive players by number Pitcher (1 / P) Catcher (2 / C) First baseman (3 / 1B) Second baseman (4 / 2B) Third baseman (5 / 3B) Shortstop (6 / SS) Left fielder (7 / LF) Center fielder (8 / CF) Right fielder (9 / RF) Designated hitter (DH) by type Infielder Outfielder Utility player Utility infielder Position player Battery Fourth outfielder Corner outfielder Offensive players by role Batter Runner Batting order (1–9) Designated hitter Pinch hitter Pinch runner Lead off Leadoff hitter Cleanup hitter by style Clutch hitter Contact hitter Switch hitter Non-players Official scorer Umpire Manager Coaches General manager Related Disabled list Phantom ballplayer