Preston Gómez
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Preston Gómez (born April 20, 1923 in Central Preston, Cuba as Pedro W. Gómez Martínez) is a former longtime coach and front-office official in Major League Baseball who also managed three major league clubs: the San Diego Padres (1969-72), Houston Astros (1974-75) and Chicago Cubs (1980).
A righthanded batter and thrower, Gómez played eight major league games as a shortstop and second baseman for the 1944 Washington Senators, hitting .286 in seven at bats with two runs batted in. He spent the next two decades in minor league baseball, playing and then, from the mid-1950s onward, managing in the farm systems of the Cincinnati Reds, Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Yankees.
In 1965, Gómez became third-base coach of the Dodgers, serving through 1968 and two National League pennants and one World Series title. When Dodger vice president Buzzie Bavasi became president and part-owner of the expansion Padres, he named Gómez the first skipper in the team's major league history. But, like most expansion teams, the Padres struggled, losing 110 games in 1969, 99 in 1970 and 100 more in 1971 - finishing last in the NL West Division each season. After 11 games and seven more defeats in 1972, Gómez was fired and replaced by Don Zimmer.
He returned to baseball the following season as a coach under Leo Durocher in Houston, and succeeded to the manager's post in 1974. That season, the Astros posted an 81-81 record - Gómez' only .500 or better season as a big league manager. But when they plunged into the basement of the NL West in 1975 after 127 games, Gómez was released in favor of Bill Virdon. Once again, Gómez took to the coaching lines, for the St. Louis Cardinals and then back to the Dodgers, where he assisted Tommy Lasorda and coached in two more World Series - 1977 and 1978.
The exposure led to one last major league managing job, with the 1980 Cubs - but again Gómez met with frustration. The last-place Cubbies dropped 52 of their first 90 games, and Gómez was fired again, to be replaced by Joey Amalfitano. His career managing record, over seven years, was 346 wins, 529 losses (.395) and four last-place finishes.
However, the highly respected Gómez remained in baseball through 2005 as a coach, special assignments scout and assistant to the general manager of the Angels.
[edit] Trivia
On two occasions, Gómez pinch-hit for pitchers who were on the verge of throwing no-hitters. He did this in 1970 with the Padres' Clay Kirby and in 1974 with the Astros' Don Wilson. Both pitchers were losing their respective games at the time they were pulled. Both no-hitters were subsequently lost in the 9th inning by their replacements on the mound.
[edit] External links
- Baseball-Reference.com - managing record
| Preceded by First Manager |
San Diego Padres Managers 1969-1972 |
Succeeded by Don Zimmer |
| Preceded by Leo Durocher |
Houston Astros Manager 1974-1975 |
Succeeded by Bill Virdon |
| Preceded by Herman Franks |
Chicago Cubs Manager 1980 |
Succeeded by Joey Amalfitano |
