While Arizona acknowledges that injuries have contributed to their current position of vying for last place in the National League West with the Rockies, the Diamondbacks chose to fire Manager Bob Brenly yesterday. Arizona believes that the transition from a heavily veteran roster to more youthful personnel will be aided by a change in management. The Diamondbacks named Third Base Coach Al Pedrique interim manager, hoping that he will take advantage of this opportunity to win a more permanent contract. Provided Arizona is happy with Pedrique's performance over the remainder of the season, the club does not seem intent on holding open auditions in the off-season.

I expect Bob Brenly to return to broadcasting for the remainder of the season. However, he likely will be among those interviewed for positions this winter and probably will find another job before long. While I generally prefer to see new talent given open managerial opportunities, Brenly's effective management of the Diamondbacks leaves me amenable to the idea of him receiving another command. Outside of his rookie managerial season when Arizona made the playoffs and won the World Series despite playing four games under their Pythagorean record, Brenly's Diamondbacks either exceeded or matched the win totals that the Pythagorean Wins Formula suggests were appropriate given Arizona's runs scored and runs allowed. His record in one-run games is less flattering but was not strikingly bad before this season. Nevertheless, I agree with the Diamondbacks that he does not appear to be the right manager to lead a roster of young players. His failure to distinguish between arms in need of protection and those able to handle a hefty workload likely contributed to the injuries sustained by several of Arizona's young pitchers. Brenly also tended to default to his more veteran players when there was a question of playing time. Any organization considering hiring him should plan on handing him an experienced team.

I also fully support the decision to transition from Brenly to Pedrique at this juncture rather than after the season. Pedrique has established his credentials and now needs to demonstrate his abilities in the majors. By taking command during the season when the Diamondbacks are no longer considered in competition for a playoff berth, Pedrique can develop good habits while not pressured to win every game. Meanwhile, Arizona will be able to see if his experience translates into wise decisions at the major league level.

Pedrique's baseball career began when the Mets signed him as a nondrafted free agent out of Venezuela in 1978. However, the infielder did not make his major league debut until the spring of 1987 and only played in the majors for three seasons, spending time with the Pirates and Tigers after New York. Kansas City gave him his first managerial opportunity in 1995, hiring him to supervise their Short-Season Northwest League team at Spokane. He then managed the Royals' Gulf Coast League affiliate for two seasons before taking a position as the hitting coach for Houston's AAA Pacific Coast League affiliate at New Orleans in 1998. Returning to managing in 1999, Pedrique took a position with Michigan, Houston's affiliate in the Midwest League, where he remained through 2000.

He began his relationship with the Diamondbacks in 2001, signing on to manage AA El Paso in the Texas League. The following season he advanced to AAA Tucson in the Pacific Coast League, where he remained as skipper through 2003. Between the 2002 and 2003 seasons, Pedrique served as the manager for Scottsdale in the Arizona Fall League. His last career move prior to his appointment as interim manager was to join Arizona's major league coaching staff as third base coach this year. In addition to these jobs, Pedrique has also managed several seasons of winter league ball. Having spent three seasons managing in the Diamondbacks' upper minors, Pedrique should be familiar with many of their young players. Likewise, his own playing career, winter league managerial positions, and half-season as Arizona's third base coach should allow him to relate to the veterans of the team as well.

In terms of his managerial philosophies, the 43-year-old favors strong defense and runs aggressively. We attended a symposium at which Pedrique spoke while he was managing in the AFL in 2002. During the Q&A, he did not seem particularly attuned to concepts such as emphasizing on-base skills in order to maximize run production. Although the setting certainly did not allow for a comprehensive exploration of his views, he's repeatedly referred to himself as "old-school", which tends to support a reliance on scouting and first hand observation rather than statistics. On the other hand, he indicated an interest in continuing to learn new ways to be a better manager. Pedrique also mentioned the Diamondbacks' practice of monitoring the pitch counts of their minor league players, so he is aware of the need to protect young arms. At his press conference, the only change Pedrique specifically commented upon was his intent to restore Alex Cintron to the position of starting shortstop. Overall, while I possess some reservations regarding Pedrique's approach to the game, I firmly believe he has earned this opportunity and look forward to observing his job performance.

Pedrique's promotion obviously left the Diamondbacks with an open coaching position at third base, but Arizona's coaching staff underwent several other changes as well. Bench Coach Robin Yount, who was another popular candidate to replace Brenly, resigned out of loyalty to his skipper. Triple-A hitting Coach Lorenzo Bundy will replace Yount as bench coach. Arizona also fired Pitching Coach Chuck Kniffin. Bullpen Coach Mark Davis will replace Kniffin, and Organizational Pitching Coordinator Dennis Lewallyn will take over as bullpen coach. Meanwhile, First Base Coach Glenn Sherlock will take over as third base coach, while Director of Player Development Tommy Jones joins the staff as the first base coach.