During an interview for a job he was then seeking as a
minor league manager in the Oakland organization, Bob Boone was asked to speak
about the reputation he had as a catcher who so effectively “handled” pitchers.
Boone, now having managed in the major league for a number of years, responded
at that time, “I didn’t handle pitchers, I established relationships with
them.” His point was that he intended to do the same as a manager.
Good relationships are established through effective
communication. Boone’s use of the term made a distinction between manipulation
and arbitrariness on the part of the message sender and the mutual respect and
understanding between the sender and the receiver of whatever is being
communicated.
