Since I began writing about the Asheville Tourists for Ashvegas, I’ve been asked frequently about former manager Joe Mikulik and what he’s up to these days.
For those who don’t know, Mikulik took a job with the Texas Rangers organization after he was fired by the Colorado Rockies (the Tourists’ parent organization) following the 2012 season — and 13 seasons in the Asheville dugout. He worked as a roving minor-league instructor for a year before becoming the manager of the Rangers’ Advanced Class A affiliate (one level above the Tourists) in Myrtle Beach this season.
Keith Jarrett wrote a feature on Mikulik for the Citizen-Times back in May when the skipper earned his 1,000th victory.
Locally, Mikulik is known for managing the Tourists from 2000 through 2012 and leading the team to a South Atlantic League championship in his final season. However, the skipper is best known nationally for the meltdowns he’s occasionally had on the field in disputes with umpires.
There was the blow-up in 2006 when he threw second base into the outfield and covered home plate with dirt. And in 2012, Mikulik took the third base bag and handed it to a fan in the stands.
If anyone was wondering, he’s still got it. What Mikulik views as a bad call can still trigger an explosive on-field temper, as he demonstrated on Sunday in the Pelicans’ game versus the Salem Red Sox.
Disputing one of his players being called out at home plate resulted in another classic Mikulik tantrum. He kicked dirt, slid into home and even did a hop. And this time, there was the shedding of clothing. Off went the shoes, off went his jersey as you can see in the following video.
Atta boy, Joe. Don’t let those umpires give you any… well, you know the right word for that.
With all due respect to the great job Fred Ocasio has done the past two years — and especially this season — Mikulik is missed and still viewed with affection here. And not just because you never know what kind of show he might put on for the fans as he blows up at umpires.
3 Comments
That’s our Joe!
HAHA!
Oh yeah! Love it. Obviously that ref made a bad call, hahahaha