In The Dugout
John Russell

On November 5, 2007, John Russell was hired as the 38th manager in Pittsburgh Pirates history. Russell played in 448 big league games with the Phillies (1984-88), Atlanta (1988) and Texas (1990-93). He spent two years as the Triple-A manager in the Philadelphia organization and was named International League Manager of the Year after guiding Scranton/Wilkes-Barre to the Northern Division title in 2006. The 46-year old Russell, who served as manager at the 2007 International League All-Star Game, begins his second tour of duty with the Pirates, as he served as the club's third base coach and major league catching instructor for three seasons (2003-05). PSR's George Von Benko sat in the dugout with Russell.

PSR: Are you excited about this opportunity?

JR: Absolutely. It's a dream come true for me. I'm very proud to be the manager of the Pittsburgh Pirates. There is great tradition, it's a great sports city and now I think we are moving in the right direction with the ownership starting there and then following down through Frank Coonelly and Neal Huntington. A change of culture for the whole organization, more of a sense of passion to compete and to win and my job obviously is to take that down to the clubhouse.

PSR: Can you bring these fans a winner?

JR: When I played with the Phillies, we'd come into Pittsburgh with the Willie Stargells and the John Candelarias and all the great names that I saw…and the list goes on. What a great tradition and these fans deserve a winner. So that's where we're headed - we're going to bring that back and we're going to do what ever we have to do to make sure it does. Winning is the most important key of what I'm about and I talk about accountability and I talk about attention to detail. That's part of it. The winning is my ultimate goal. When I come to the ballpark at noon or 12:30 pm I start to prepare to win that night and that's my main focus when I come to the ballpark.

PSR: Is the organization going to make it possible for you to change things?

JR: Their passion and energy was the one thing that struck me through the interview process. The energy and passion they had for doing it right and getting the right people and that's what I'm about, taking that down to the clubhouse and out on the field. Taking it to the players and getting them to be accountable for what they're doing. Paying attention to detail and doing it right. Our staff is going to be important in that process, but Neal Huntington and Frank Coonelly set the tone.

PSR: The term small market tag has been applied to the Pirates for many years. Other franchises have won under similar constraints. Can that happen in Pittsburgh?

JR: Money cannot be used as a crutch. We have good players in our system and we feel like we can compete right now. The key is that we need to keep adding influx of young talent from top to bottom with the development of our minor league players. The top to bottom from the major leagues all the way down through our minor league system, we need that influx of players to continue. Money, no. You spend your money wisely and it's not a crutch. I'll never use it as a crutch. Just go buy more players and we'd be better? No, you need to make sure the players that we have are better and we need to draft better and that's where we're headed and it can work.

PSR: Development is a big key and teaching is one of the reasons you were brought in. Do you plan to stress the teaching element?

JR: Teaching, in my opinion-I don't care what ball club you're on, in any organization-teaching is a big key. There's got to be teaching at the major league level. Some players require more than others, but there has to be teaching and there has to be that progression from spring training through the end of the year and into the winter program. But that's part of the accountability; it's easy to point out the problem. The teaching, the accountability, the attention to detail - that's where we're going to take the bold step. We're going to make sure this gets done so people don't perceive it as a problem.

PSR: With what you have returning, do you feel you have a good nucleus here?

JR: I think there is a good nucleus of young talent and I think we've got some young talent coming and we've got some guys that have proven themselves at the major league level all ready. Yes we have a team that I really believe can compete and win. Again the ultimate goal is to continue to bring that type of talent to the major leagues to continue to get better.

PSR: What is your message to the fans?

JR: I'm just proud to be back in a city that I truly believe has a lot of history and a lot of sports history. It's great to be a part of that and I'm looking forward to the season.