The New York Post’s Phil Mushnick and Andrew Marchand took copious notes while The Sweater spoke with an unemployed know-it-all.
The plea often copped by managers – they don’t or didn’t know when their players are/were using performance enhancing drugs – took a beating Monday from Whitey Herzog, who managed in the majors for nearly 20 years.
Speaking with Ch. 9 sports anchor Russ Salzberg, Herzog (above) said that when he managed throughout the 1970s and ’80s, cocaine was a bigger problem than steroids and HGH.
“I don’t know how many games I lost as a manager because of drugs,” Herzog said. “By the same token, I don’t know how many games managers have won because of enhancement drugs.”
Beyond radical changes in a player’s physicality, added Herzog, a manager can’t miss other changes.
“Being with players, today, from spring training to October, and you’re around them every day, you know the personality changes, you know the ups and downs,” Herzog said. “You can just about tell what’s going on.