For Buck Showalter, a stoic approach in return to Baltimore
Mets manager Buck Showalter looks on during batting practice prior to a game against the Orioles at Oriole Park at Camden Yards on Friday in Baltimore. Credit: Getty Images/Mitchell Layton
BALTIMORE — Buck Showalter knew this day was looming, knew the significance of it, maybe even knew he’d get a pregame tribute video and lengthy round of applause. But he wasn’t much interested in talking about any of it, at least publicly.
Friday marked Showalter’s return to Camden Yards. The Mets’ series opener represented his first time back since the Orioles, whom he managed for nine seasons, let him go when his contract expired after the 2018 campaign.
Showalter, who has managed five major-league teams, was here more than twice as long as he has been anywhere else. With his 669-684 record, Showalter is the second-winningest manager in Orioles history behind Earl Weaver (1,480-1,060). His only playoff series victory in 22 seasons of managing in the majors came with the O’s in the 2014 ALDS.
After the video and applause before first pitch, a stone-faced Showalter tipped his cap.
Nobody in his family, a frequent presence at whatever ballpark the Mets are playing in, came for the weekend set. “It’s not painful for them,” he insisted. “It was just such a great time in their lives.”
Whatever feelings and memories popped up as a result of coming back, Showalter didn’t want to divulge them. A nearly 20-minute pregame media session, attended by more than a dozen Baltimore media members, bordered on performance art, even more than his usual. He dodged, ducked, dipped, dived and dodged all sorts of questions related to his Orioles tenure.
How did he feel about the occasion?
“Oh, we got a lot going on,” Showalter said. “It’s about the game. It’s about the players. It doesn’t matter what I think.”
What emotions did it stir up?
“Spending that much time somewhere, you have a lot of memories,” he said after changing the subject to new entertainment options in the area.
What do the Orioles mean to his career?
“Right now, it’s about the Mets,” he said. “Believe me, I have the same feelings for the Mets and Queens that I did for Baltimore. We’ve always committed to every community we’ve had the honor of being in. We buy a house, we move in, donkeys, dogs, the whole thing. My wife’s done a great job with resales over the years.”
Mets first-base coach Wayne Kirby, who was on Showalter’s Baltimore staff for eight years, said: “He’s probably feeling the same way I am. This place was great to us. Before we got here, everybody was talking about where were the fans? Where were the fans? And I still remember him saying, we’ll get them back in. Play better.”
The Orioles hired Showalter on July 29, 2010. They made the playoffs in 2012 (for the first time in 15 years), 2014 (they won the AL East title) and 2016 (when he infamously didn’t use closer Zack Britton in the AL wild-card game). It was the closest thing Baltimore baseball has had to a heyday since at least the mid-1990s, maybe longer.
A 115-loss season in 2018, which Showalter said “does have some similarities” to the Mets this year, brought change. The Orioles dumped Showalter and baseball operations leader Dan Duquette, replacing them with the men still in those roles: general manager Mike Elias and manager Brandon Hyde.
After that, the Orioles embarked on a deep rebuild. Now they lead the AL East. Only two players who were on Showalter’s Orioles remain on the roster: Austin Hays and Anthony Santander.
“I know how much people care, the fans, and that’s what it’s about,” Showalter said. “I’m glad that fans of the Orioles, who are as good as it gets, are getting some return for their support. Just like we hope to do with our fans in Queens.”
Tim Healey is the Mets beat writer for Newsday. Born on Long Island and raised in Connecticut, Tim has previously worked for the South Florida Sun Sentinel, the Boston Globe and MLB.com. He is also the author of “Hometown Hardball,” a book about minor league baseball in the northeast.
