| Terry Ryan | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Philadelphia Phillies | |
| Special Assistant To TheGeneral Manager | |
| Born: (1953-10-26)October 26, 1953 (age 72) Janesville, Wisconsin, U.S. | |
Terry W. Ryan (born October 26, 1953)[1] is an Americanprofessional baseball executive and formergeneral manager for theMinnesota Twins ofMajor League Baseball. Ryan was known for using a low payroll and building up theminor league system to put up contending teams. He resigned as general manager of the Twins on October 1, 2007, but returned to his former post on November 7, 2011, until being relieved of his duties on July 18, 2016.[2] Ryan was hired as a special assignment scout by thePhiladelphia Phillies on November 30, 2016.[3]
Ryan attendedGeorge S. Parker High School in Janesville, and was drafted in the 35th round by theMinnesota Twins in 1972.[4]
Ryan pitched briefly in the Twins organization in the mid-70s. His playing career started with promise: Ryan posted a 10–0 record and 1.70 ERA in 43 games at Class A Wisconsin Rapids in 1973. However, he subsequently battled injuries and was released by the Twins' AA team in June 1976.
After graduating from theUniversity of Wisconsin–Madison in 1979, with a degree inphysical education,[4] Ryan quickly earned respect as an evaluator of talent in baseball. In 1980, theNew York Mets hired him as a scout. He spent six seasons as a scout for the Mets before the Twins again showed interest in him. The team hired him as scouting director, a position he held for six years. He was then promoted to vice president and player personnel director under general managerAndy MacPhail. When MacPhail left for theChicago Cubs in 1994, Ryan was chosen to replace him.
Ryan's organization relies heavily on constant scouting and analysis of every player in major and minor league baseball. As a result, the team made some startling and at the time questioned acquisitions of players who turned out to be drastically underrated and who became star players in the Twins organization.
Ryan had the unenviable task of succeeding MacPhail, architect of the Twins'1987 and1991 world champion teams. Ryan would endure losing seasons until 2001, but his trades turned out to have the future in mind. In 2002, the Twins began a sequence of winning their division.
His early years as GM had several lowlights. For example, during the1995 season, he was forced to unload several high-priced veterans when the team was not contending. The unloaded veterans includedRick Aguilera,Scott Erickson,Mark Guthrie, andKevin Tapani. To make matters worse, the prospects he received in these trades did not pan out. In particular,Scott Klingenbeck andFrank Rodriguez were expected to be solid major league players. Instead, they were busts who did not last in the majors.
In1996, Ryan botched the signing of first basemanTravis Lee during the amateur draft. Lee exploited a never-before used clause that allows a draft pick to become a free agent if a team does not make an offer within 15 days of the draft. After the Twins failed to do this, Lee left for theArizona Diamondbacks, who gave him a $10 million signing bonus.
Things started looking up for Ryan only a couple of months later, when he traded veteranDave Hollins to theSeattle Mariners for a player to be named later. On September 30, the Mariners sentDavid Ortiz to the Twins to complete the trade. Unfortunately for the Twins, Ortiz would not show MVP-caliber numbers until he left the Twins a few years later. Similarly, in August 1997, Ryan unloaded another aging veteran for a future All-Star. This time it wasRoberto Kelly forJoe Mays. In 1998, he sent the disgruntledChuck Knoblauch to theNew York Yankees for four players, including two future All-Stars: shortstopCristian Guzman and pitcherEric Milton. In 1999, he again unloadedRick Aguilera and received future starterKyle Lohse. At the end of the year, he traded for futureCy Young Award winnerJohan Santana, who was picked up in theRule 5 Draft by theFlorida Marlins from theHouston Astros. In July 2001, the Twins traded outfielderMatt Lawton to theNew York Mets for pitcherRick Reed.
Ryan continued making strong trades that enable the team to remain competitive. For example, in July 2002, he traded little-used outfielderBrian Buchanan (also acquired in the Knoblauch trade) to theSan Diego Padres forJason Bartlett.[5] That year, the team made the postseason for the first time since the1991 World Champion team and defeated the heavily favoredOakland Athletics in the2002 American League Division Series. After the2002 season, the Twins organization was named Organization of the Year byBaseball America andSportsTicker, while Ryan was named Executive of the Year byThe Sporting News.[6]
In 2003, Ryan swapped outfielderBobby Kielty for accomplished veteran leadoff hitterShannon Stewart. This move was credited[citation needed] with jump-starting the team and enabling them to repeat as division champions. In November 2003, Ryan sent popular catcherA. J. Pierzynski to the San Francisco Giants, gaining closerJoe Nathan, and starting pitchersFrancisco Liriano andBoof Bonser. Another strong trade occurred a month later, when Ryan sent starterEric Milton to thePhiladelphia Phillies for starterCarlos Silva and infielderNick Punto. His most recent trades affecting the current team were in December 2005, when he received second basemanLuis Castillo from theFlorida Marlins for two minor leaguers. He also traded pitcherJ.C. Romero to theLos Angeles Angels of Anaheim forAlexi Casilla.
On September 13, 2007, it was announced that Ryan would be stepping down as general manager for the Twins after 12 seasons.[7] He was replaced by assistant general managerBill Smith, but remained in the Twins organization as a senior adviser.[7]
On November 7, 2011, Twins ownerJim Pohlad fired Smith after a 99-loss season - the first time that the Twins had fired a general manager since relocating fromWashington, D.C. Ryan, who had remained with the team in a consultant role since stepping down as GM after the2007 season, returned to the job, officially on an interim basis. On October 6, 2012, Ryan announced that he had removed the "interim" from his title and would return as Minnesota's long-term general manager for the 2013 season.[8] On Monday, February 10, 2014, Ryan revealed that he had been diagnosed with and is being treated for carcinoma, and would miss spring training.[9]
Ryan was relieved of his general manager duties July 18, 2016. Assistant GM Rob Antony took over as interim general manager. In joining the Phillies as a scout in November 2016, Ryan was reunited with Andy MacPhail, the Phillies' president/baseball operations since October 2015.
After he retired as general manager in 2007, Play Ball! Minnesota—sponsored by the Minnesota Twins Community Fund—renamed its highest honor, the "Play Ball! Minnesota Award", as the "Terry Ryan Award".[10]
July 12, 2002: Traded by the San Diego Padres to the Minnesota Twins for Brian Buchanan
| Preceded by | Minnesota Twins General Manager 1994–2007 2011–2016 | Succeeded by Bill Smith Rob Anthony (interim) |