The Game that Pushed Hargrove Over the Edge

Mike Hargrove got a little bit more specific about his decision to leave the M's in an interview with the Southwest Daily Times of Liberal, Kansas.

We had just went 15 and five. And it wasn't 15 minutes after a win that I was already thinking about the next game, and who we were going to face, and if we could steal on the catcher, and what the match-ups would be. I used to be able to enjoy a win for a few hours before I started thinking about the next one. When it got to that point, I knew it was time to let go.

The one place I can find the M's at 15-5 during Hargrove's reign was this win at Cleveland on June 11th, when the M's blew a 7-0 lead but got an 8-7 win. That would be enough to drive anyone into retirement.

Hargrove was in Liberal to get the key to the city--he played semi-pro ball there in the early 70s. He also once again dismissed notions that he was forced out. "It was nothing like that. I just knew that when I couldn't give back to my players all the things I was expecting of them, it was time."