As a manager, he had a mixed major league resume prior to 1914: a poor record with the Phillies (1897–98), then mild successes in the
American League with the
Detroit Tigers (1901) and
New York Highlanders (1909–10). In the minor leagues, he managed the
Nashville Seraphs to win the
Southern League pennant; he also played an infield position on the team. He also managed Detroit before it became a major league team in part of 1896 and from the end of 1898 through its becoming a charter member of the
American League. He was also part-owner of the Tigers during their first season as a major league team. Named manager of the last-place Braves after the 1912 season, Stallings raised Boston to fifth place in the NL in his first season, 1913, but the Braves were sunk at the bottom of the eight-team league and games from the frontrunning
New York Giants on July 15, 1914, when they began their meteoric rise. With Stallings expertly handling a roster of light hitters (Boston hit only .251 as a team) and relying on pitchers
Dick Rudolph and
Bill James (who each won 26 games), the Braves won 52 of their final 66 contests to overtake the other seven National League teams and finish games in front of the second-place Giants. They then defeated the heavily favored
Philadelphia Athletics in four straight games to earn the nickname "Miracle Braves." Stallings is credited with being the first manager to use
platooning to good effect. It was not strictly left/right hand platooning (there were then relatively few southpaw pitchers), but he did change his lineup significantly when the Braves played a team starting a left-handed pitcher.
Bill James credits him with being the first major league manager to use platooning as a weapon, rather than to cover a hitter's weaknesses. The
1914 championship was the only World Series title earned by the Braves during their tenure in
Boston, which lasted through March 1953. It also was Stallings’ first and only big league championship. He managed the Braves through 1920, but posted no winning season after 1916. His career major league managing record was 879 wins, 898 losses (.495) over 13 years. Stallings was responsible for bringing professional baseball back to the city of
Montreal, Quebec. In 1928, his partnership with Montreal lawyer and politician
Athanase David and businessman
Ernest Savard resurrected the
Montreal Royals as part of the
International League. They built the modern new
Delorimier Stadium in downtown Montreal. Stallings was famous for his superstitions, and for his nervousness on the bench. He has been described as both "distinguished" and salty-tongued. He died in
Haddock, Georgia at age 61 of
heart disease. According to legend, when asked by his physician why he had a bad heart, Stallings replied, "
Bases on balls, doc ... those damned bases on balls." He was buried in
Riverside Cemetery in
Macon, Georgia.
Managerial record ==See also==