Wake Forest Athletics
Phillies Manager Joe Girardi Reignites Wake Forest Connection
2/11/2020 12:04:00 PM | Baseball, Les Johns
Girardi was on campus on Friday for Wake Forest's First Pitch Banquet.
The accolades for current Philadelphia Phillies manager Joe Girardi are seemingly endless. He's a three-time World Series champion as a player while earning All-Star status in 2000.
Girardi won National League Manager of the Year in 2006 with the Florida Marlins, then took his New York Yankees to a World Series championship in 2009.
It all really got started when he was recruited to Northwestern in the early 80s by former Wake Forest athletic director Ron Wellman.
"When he came, he took over the team," Wellman said about Girardi. "We needed someone like that. As a freshman, and it wasn't because of anything he said. It was just his work ethic and determination, and his belief in himself. All of a sudden, the team started following him and we became a very good team because of his leadership. He's special."
The future world champion hit .351 during his time with Wellman at Northwestern, clobbering 24 home runs and driving in 156 runs. He ended up going in the fifth found of the 1986 MLB Draft to the Chicago Cubs.
Wellman and Girardi have stayed connected through the years. Wellman was in Girardi's wedding, and the MLB skipper has visited Wake Forest now a couple times in recent years.
Girardi was at Wake Forest last week, where he toured the facilities and spoke at the Wake Forest Baseball First Pitch Banquet.
"It's just awesome," Wake Forest baseball coach Tom Walter said. "Joe spoke to the team earlier today, and his message was exactly what you'd want to hear and expect. It was all about trust, love and brotherhood — all the things that we have been preaching. It was just great to hear somebody with his accomplishments reiterate those same messages. I thought he was fantastic."
Wellman picked Girardi up at the airport, then toured the new Wake Forest baseball facilities, including the pitching lab in the Chris Hurd Player Development Center.
"He's been blown away," Walter said. "Sitting in my office is pretty impressive, quite honestly. He's been wide-eyed since he got here, so that's been pretty cool to see."
Girardi jokingly asked Walter if his expansive office was a team meeting room.
"I watched from his office as they scrimmaged," Girardi said. "What a seat. You'd pay big bucks at a major league park for that spot. I'm just really impressed by the overall facility. You look at the field, and it's gorgeous. You go to the clubhouse and it's beautiful. It's just conducive to being successful, and that's what you want."
The pitching lab concept fascinated Girardi, who sent five Phillies administrators to Winston-Salem two weeks ago to learn more.
"It's amazing to see these huge major league clubs, and sometimes we don't have the facilities that college teams do," he said. "Colleges put all the money back into the sports, where we're a business. So it's a little bit different. Teams are taking notice of things they have like here at Wake Forest with the pitching lab. They are thinking about putting them in, because it teaches what athletes are capable of doing.
"I think it helps with injury prevention. If you're able to save one player a year from going down, the average major league salary is $4 million a year. That lab is paid for like that. It's amazing what you do with something like a pitching lab to prevent injuries."
Wake Forest Baseball raised more than $25,000 at the banquet featuring Girardi, who feels like his experience playing at Northwestern is similar to that of Wake Forest baseball players.
"It comes down to discipline and time management," he said. "To be great in life, you have to be willing to give certain things up. If you want to be great in school and on the baseball field, there's certain things they have to give up. You can't spread yourself too thin. I feel like I can relate. We still had fun. We still enjoyed campus life, though probably less than others, because we had different priorities."
He stressed the importance of a team-first mentality and the enjoyment that comes from playing college baseball.
"How much fun we had and how close we were as a team," Girardi said he told the Deacons. "There were bonds that formed at college that are still really strong today. That's part of my message, that you really need to invest in this time, because it might be the best four years of your career. It could be the last for some of them. But there's just something about playing college baseball that is special."
And the trip to Winston-Salem for Girardi gave him a wonderful chance to catch up with Wellman, who along with Walter has put a tremendous stamp on the Wake Forest baseball program. Girardi called Wellman both a coach and a mentor.
"I'm not surprised at what he's been able to do and accomplish here," Girardi said. "You see the new football facility and the new basketball facility. The people who have gone to Wake Forest and are part of this community have been very generous, for this to all have worked. They take pride.
"But they're giving kids here every opportunity to be successful in life. I think Ron takes great pride in that."
Girardi won National League Manager of the Year in 2006 with the Florida Marlins, then took his New York Yankees to a World Series championship in 2009.
It all really got started when he was recruited to Northwestern in the early 80s by former Wake Forest athletic director Ron Wellman.
"When he came, he took over the team," Wellman said about Girardi. "We needed someone like that. As a freshman, and it wasn't because of anything he said. It was just his work ethic and determination, and his belief in himself. All of a sudden, the team started following him and we became a very good team because of his leadership. He's special."
The future world champion hit .351 during his time with Wellman at Northwestern, clobbering 24 home runs and driving in 156 runs. He ended up going in the fifth found of the 1986 MLB Draft to the Chicago Cubs.
Wellman and Girardi have stayed connected through the years. Wellman was in Girardi's wedding, and the MLB skipper has visited Wake Forest now a couple times in recent years.
Girardi was at Wake Forest last week, where he toured the facilities and spoke at the Wake Forest Baseball First Pitch Banquet.
"It's just awesome," Wake Forest baseball coach Tom Walter said. "Joe spoke to the team earlier today, and his message was exactly what you'd want to hear and expect. It was all about trust, love and brotherhood — all the things that we have been preaching. It was just great to hear somebody with his accomplishments reiterate those same messages. I thought he was fantastic."
Wellman picked Girardi up at the airport, then toured the new Wake Forest baseball facilities, including the pitching lab in the Chris Hurd Player Development Center.
"He's been blown away," Walter said. "Sitting in my office is pretty impressive, quite honestly. He's been wide-eyed since he got here, so that's been pretty cool to see."
Girardi jokingly asked Walter if his expansive office was a team meeting room.
"I watched from his office as they scrimmaged," Girardi said. "What a seat. You'd pay big bucks at a major league park for that spot. I'm just really impressed by the overall facility. You look at the field, and it's gorgeous. You go to the clubhouse and it's beautiful. It's just conducive to being successful, and that's what you want."
The pitching lab concept fascinated Girardi, who sent five Phillies administrators to Winston-Salem two weeks ago to learn more.
"It's amazing to see these huge major league clubs, and sometimes we don't have the facilities that college teams do," he said. "Colleges put all the money back into the sports, where we're a business. So it's a little bit different. Teams are taking notice of things they have like here at Wake Forest with the pitching lab. They are thinking about putting them in, because it teaches what athletes are capable of doing.
"I think it helps with injury prevention. If you're able to save one player a year from going down, the average major league salary is $4 million a year. That lab is paid for like that. It's amazing what you do with something like a pitching lab to prevent injuries."
Wake Forest Baseball raised more than $25,000 at the banquet featuring Girardi, who feels like his experience playing at Northwestern is similar to that of Wake Forest baseball players.
"It comes down to discipline and time management," he said. "To be great in life, you have to be willing to give certain things up. If you want to be great in school and on the baseball field, there's certain things they have to give up. You can't spread yourself too thin. I feel like I can relate. We still had fun. We still enjoyed campus life, though probably less than others, because we had different priorities."
He stressed the importance of a team-first mentality and the enjoyment that comes from playing college baseball.
"How much fun we had and how close we were as a team," Girardi said he told the Deacons. "There were bonds that formed at college that are still really strong today. That's part of my message, that you really need to invest in this time, because it might be the best four years of your career. It could be the last for some of them. But there's just something about playing college baseball that is special."
And the trip to Winston-Salem for Girardi gave him a wonderful chance to catch up with Wellman, who along with Walter has put a tremendous stamp on the Wake Forest baseball program. Girardi called Wellman both a coach and a mentor.
"I'm not surprised at what he's been able to do and accomplish here," Girardi said. "You see the new football facility and the new basketball facility. The people who have gone to Wake Forest and are part of this community have been very generous, for this to all have worked. They take pride.
"But they're giving kids here every opportunity to be successful in life. I think Ron takes great pride in that."
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