The View from the Dugout

Baseball players as a rule aren't known for documenting their experiences on the diamond. During his time as manager of the Detroit Tigers from 1949 to 1951, Red Rolfe, however, recorded daily accounts of each game, including candid observations about his team's performance, and the strengths, weaknesses, and tendencies of opposing players and managers, and he used these observations to coach his players and to gain an advantage. Rolfe's journals carry added value considering his own career as an All-Star Yankee third baseman on numerous world champion teams, where he was a teammate of Lou Gehrig and Joe DiMaggio. Today, in the era of televised broadcasts, networks often wire a manager so viewers can listen to his spontaneous comments throughout the game. Red Rolfe's journals offer an opportunity to find out what a manager is thinking when no one is around to hear.