The Last Manager

How Earl Weaver Tricked, Tormented, and Reinvented Baseball

De: John W. Miller

Narrado por: Johnny Heller

“Baseball books don’t get any better than this...Earl Weaver has at last been given his due.”—George F. Will

The first major biography of legendary Baltimore Orioles manager Earl Weaver—who has been described as “the Copernicus of baseball” and “the grandfather of the modern game”—The Last Manager is a wild, thrilling, and hilarious ride with baseball’s most underappreciated genius, and one of its greatest characters.

Long before the Moneyball Era, the Earl of Baltimore reigned over baseball. History’s feistiest and most colorful manager, Earl Weaver transformed the sport by collecting and analyzing data in visionary ways, ultimately winning more games than anybody else during his time running the Orioles from 1968 to 1982.

When Weaver was hired by the Orioles, managers were still seen as coaches and inspirational leaders, more teachers of the game than strategists. Weaver invented new ways of building baseball teams, prioritizing on-base average, elite defense, and strike throwing. Weaver was the first manager to use a modern radar gun, and he pioneered the use of analytical data. By moving six-foot four-inch Cal Ripken Jr. to shortstop, Weaver paved the way for a generation of plus-sized superstar shortstops, such as Alex Rodriguez and Derek Jeter. He foreshadowed almost everything that Bill James, Billy Beane, Theo Epstein, and hundreds of other big-brain baseball types would later present as innovations.

Beyond being a great baseball mind, Weaver was a rare baseball character. Major League Baseball is show business, and Weaver understood how much of his job was entertainment. Weaver’s legendary outbursts offered players cathartic relief from their own frustration, signaled his concern for the team, and fired up fans. In his frequent arguments with umpires, he hammed it up for the crowds, faked heart attacks, ripped bases out of the ground, and pretended to toss umpires out of the game. Weaver also fought with his players, especially Jim Palmer, but that creative tension contributed to stunning success and a hilarious clubhouse. During his tenure as major-league manager, the Orioles won the American League pennant in 1969, 1970, 1971, and 1979, each time winning more than 100 games.

The Last Manager uncovers the story of Weaver’s St. Louis childhood with a mobster uncle, his years of minor-league heartbreak, and his unlikely road to becoming a big-league manager, while tracing the evolution of the game from the old-time baseball of cross-country trains and “desk contracts” to the modern era of free agency, video analysis, and powerful player agents. Weaver’s career is a critical juncture in baseball history. He was the only manager to hold a job during the five years leading up to and the five years after free agency upended the sport in 1976.

Weaver was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1996. “No manager belongs there more,” wrote Tom Boswell. “Weaver encapsulates the fire, the humor, the brains, the childishness, the wisdom and the goofy fun of baseball.” The Last Manager tells the story of one man—belligerent, genius, infamous—who left his mark on the game for generations.

©2025 John W. Miller (P)2025 Simon & Schuster Audio

THE EARL OF BALTIMORE... ALWAYS A TREAT!

I enjoyed Earl Weaver's story, and I enjoyed watching him manage his Orioles. The book did a fine job of capturing his emotions, his arguments with Palmer AND, of course, the Umpires.

The story was a treat... Because it picked up on a wonderful life, a Legend. Fine narration and story of an outstanding MLB Manager - Baseball Hall Of Fame, all the way!

Wonderful tribute to a Great Man!

GRADE: A

The Earl of Baltimore

I am not an Orioles fan (4th generation Red Sox fan) and I came into watching baseball as a seven-year old in 1982, so most of this book is new information to me. I had no idea EW brought the radar gun into MLB or that he was so obsessed with statistics. This is a phenomenal look back on a man who absolutely changed the game… for the better.

The raw, honest story

Great book! Thanks! Bye bye! Go orioles! Yes! Yes! Yes! Enough! Enough! Words words words. Go, go, go! Goodbye Goodbye.

Another great baseball biography.

I had his video game, and baseball card, but I never really knew who Earl really was to baseball. I love this book. If only managers were allowed to be more like Earl, baseball would have a bigger audience then it does. All those people in the front office who calculate stats, Thank Earl for putting you there.

A delight from start to finish

I laughed out loud and fought back tears learning Earl Weaver's story. The narrator matched the tone perfectly. The organization of the chapters was perfect for my commute, almost like there was a story within a story each time I listened. The cumulative story was like a heroic opera, with a flawed yet lovable protagonist, that I was rooting for all the way. I loved it!

His path to the majors was a long one.

As an Oriole fan from 1968 on, stories of Earl Weavers methods and antics were not new to me. What was new was his minor league career. He was actually a better player statistically than most of us knew in the ‘70s. Had he been five inches taller, he’d still be short for a major leaguer, but probably would have had a journeyman’s career as a second baseman and would not have had the opportunity to hone his craft of being one of the best managers of the era.