Tony La Russa praises Cardinals GM John Mozeliak at St. Louis Baseball Writers Dinner

The Post-Dispatch‘s Tom Timmerman has highlights from Sunday night’s St. Louis Baseball Writers Dinner. I didn’t have a chance to be at the event, which honored current and former players of the St. Louis Cardinals, but it sounds like it was a blast.
June 11, 2013; Kansas City, MO, USA; Detroit Tigers manager Jim Leyland (right) talks with former Major League Baseball manager Tony La Russa (left) in the dugout before a game against Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium. Image Credit: Peter G. Aiken-USA TODAY Sports
Retired Cardinals manager Tony LaRussa, elected into the Baseball Hall of Fame, praised general manager John Mozeliak for hiring former catcher Mike Matheny.

"La Russa reminded fans to remember the contributions of former Cardinal Albert Pujols, evoked the memory of pitcher Darryl Kile — the annual award in the deceased player’s memory voted on by the players was given to reliever Jason Motte — and told John Mozeliak that of all the moves he’d made as general manager, his best would always be to hire Mike Matheny as manager to replace him. He praised the fortitude of retiring pitcher Chris Carpenter and the presence at the plate of outfielder-first baseman Allen Craig. “No one in the majors takes a tougher at-bat than Allen Craig,” he said. “Unless his name is Matt Holliday or Matt Carpenter.”"

Not many baseball teams are able to say that LaRussa was their manager. This honor belongs to three organizations: the Chicago White Sox, Oakland Athletics, and the St. Louis Cardinals. LaRussa would wind up third all-time in managerial wins with 3 World Series championships before his retirement after the 2011 World Series.