Bob Boone is not one to lack confidence. That's why he'll manage the Reds in 2002 much like he did in 2001.

Reds manager Bob Boone. (Ernest Coleman photo) | ZOOM |

        Ninety-six losses in his first year as Reds manager didn't leave Boone questioning his style. When Reds pitchers and catchers report to spring training Saturday in Sarasota, Fla., they'll fall into the same routine as last year.

        “I don't anticipate any changes,” said Boone. “You run the game with what you have that day. You look at what you have daily and adjust accordingly.”

        Last year — because of injuries — the adjustments were constant. If the team is healthy, that will change. What won't change is the way Boone manages the game. He likes to play the percentages. He won't hesitate to pull a right-hander in favor of a left-hander in the middle of an inning to get the matchup he wants. Boone's style is like Tony LaRussa's — the intellectual approach to the game.

        That wears on fans at times. But whenever Boone's moves were questioned last year, he always had a reason.

        He admitted he overdid it at times. Case in point: When he had Bill Selby and Juan Castro switch positions during one inning depending on whether a right-hander or left-hander was hitting.

        “That was going a little too far,” Boone said.

SPRING TRAINING 2002

• Positional breakdowns • Pitchers set to battle for last spots on team • What might have been • Reds Q&A • Reds 2002 Spring Training Schedule • Reds 2001 stats • AL teams at the start of spring • NL teams at the start of spring • Spring training team capsules • For baseball teams, spring has almost sprung

        But that was one of the few times Boone second-guessed himself. There's that self-confidence.

        Though a 96-defeat season is never considered a success, Boone did manage one particularly difficult achievement: He kept the respect of the players.

        “There's no doubt about that,” said first baseman Sean Casey. “Boonie played so many years that he can relate to players. He's been through seasons like last year, and he's been through seasons when he's won the World Series. Last year was a challenge. But he never got negative. He never bashed us.”

        Boone's boss agreed. “He did a very good job through all the adversity we faced,” Reds general manager Jim Bowden said. “He had the support of the players all year.”

        Boone contends that with a healthy club and continued development of the young pitching, the team will flourish under his managerial style.

        Jim Lefebvre is the Reds' new hitting instructor. He and Ray Knight have been added to Boone's coaching staff. They replace Ron Oester and Billy Doran.

        With Lefebvre and Knight aboard, three of the six Reds coaches are Boone hires. When he got the Reds job in November 2000, he was allowed to hire only one coach. He picked Tim Foli, a good friend of his. Boone inherited Oester, Doran, Ken Griffey Sr., Don Gullett and Tom Hume.

        Oester was offered the manager job himself. Boone got the job only when a misunderstanding between Oester and Reds management ended badly. Oester was awaiting a counteroffer when he heard Boone was about to be named. Oester ripped Bowden, saying among other things, “He ruined my life.”

        Oester was retained as a coach, anyway. The episode was still fresh when the Reds opened camp last year.

        That cloud is gone now.

        “From Day 1 when he walks into that coaches' room, (Boone) knows he has the 100 percent support of the staff. That's something he didn't have in the past,” Bowden said.

        Boone's choices for coaches show he can be unconventional. It was widely assumed he would hire his friend, Greg Luzinski, as hitting coach. Instead, he hired Lefebvre because he was so impressed by a discussion they had about hitting at the Arizona Fall League.

        Knight, the former Reds manager fired in 1997, was an even more unorthodox pick.

        “I thought of the baggage that goes along with that,” Boone said, “the fact that he was here and had some problems. But I coached with him in '94 (with the Reds), and he's a great baseball man.”

        Lefebvre is also a former manager, so Boone has two potential replacements on staff should things sour.

        “They've sat in the same chair I'm in. That should help us,” he said.

        Again, there's that self-confidence.

        Boone does plan to change one thing this season. He says he will be less involved.

        “I'm going let my coaches do the instructing,” he said.

        That's a byproduct of having his own staff — or at least three members of his own staff.

        Given the 96 losses, the Reds clubhouse was fairly tranquil. Boone had a few disagreements with catcher Jason LaRue. Reliever Chris Nichting was ticked off at Boone and Bowden after being released.

        Otherwise, there were few conflicts.

        “That's his personality,” said Reds third baseman Aaron Boone, Bob's son. “He's really easy to play for. He's upfront with everybody, and he treats everyone with a level of respect. I don't ever see him having a lot of run-ins with players.”

        Part of that is the elder Boone's ability to put the last game behind him quickly. He was asked countless times last year if he was frustrated. His answer was always no.

        “I just don't like the adjective frustration,” he said. “We had more than our share of injuries last year. But that's part of the game. In a perfect world, you run your best lineup out there everyday and get in a routine.”

        That didn't happen. He used 132 different lineups in 2001.

        “It got a little disheartening,” Boone said. “Some nights, I'd look at the lineup I put on the field and say, "Let's see, we're paying them $6 million. We're playing the Houston Astros, who pay their lineup $60 million.' Over 162 games, that doesn't put you in a position to win.

        “But you might win that night. That keeps you going.”

        That, and a lot of self-confidence.

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