Rangers' Washington leads with his heart

ARLINGTON, Texas -- In one dugout, there is Tony La Russa, the stoic Cardinals manager whose demeanor rarely changes from pitch to pitch. La Russa usually stands at the base of the steps, almost in the runway leading to the clubhouse, as he calmly surveys the game's events.

With Ron Washington, however, there often is as much action in the dugout as there is on the field. When the Rangers are running the bases, Washington can be seen sprinting in place, as if he's on some invisible treadmill.

Washington was happy to see Mitch Moreland and Adrian Beltre hit solo homers as Game 5 went into the bottom of the eighth with the score tied at 2 Monday night. Then he got really excited as Mike Napoli's bases-loaded double gave Texas a 4-2 lead and Neftali Feliz retired the Cardinals in the ninth, giving the Rangers a three-games-to-two World Series lead.

Some managers believe in maintaining a cool detachment. Washington is not one of them. It's fair to say he shows more emotion than many players.

"He gets into the game," Derek Holland said. "He's like a track superstar in the dugout."

Much of the talk leading into this World Series was about the scouting report involving the head-to-head matchup between Washington and La Russa. But Washington dismissed it from the start, saying before Game 1 that this was not about beating La Russa in a chess match or matching wits with him. "I don't think I can ever live up to matching a wit with Tony La Russa," he said at the time.

Before Game 5, he was asked about taking risks and not managing by the book. "I'm not as dumb as people think I am," Washington said, laughing. "I'm doing things according to the personnel I have on my team. I don't think there's anybody in this room that knows my team better than me. I come from a very aggressive background, and I'm going to be aggressive. That aggressiveness got us to where we are. We went from the bottom to the top on the style of baseball that I've learned to play since I've been in the game."

To Washington, it's about more than writing lineups and manipulating a bullpen. The personal connections he's made with his players seem to be an integral part of Texas' success.

The most recent example was Sunday night's Game 4, when Washington had a face-to-face pep talk with Holland in the dugout before he took the mound. He responded with the longest scoreless-innings outing by an American Leaguer in a World Series since 1996, when Andy Pettitte also put up zeroes for 81/3 in Game 5 against the Braves.

"My philosophy is I let you do your thing," Washington said. "And when they make mistakes that I think need to be corrected, I correct it at the time. I don't let it fester. I don't ever want them looking over their shoulders. If something is bothering them, I always want them to share it so we can all handle the burden."

In Holland's case, Washington wanted him to channel his emotion Sunday, not let it overwhelm him. That was the purpose of grabbing Holland by the shoulders and giving him a gentle slap before releasing him.

When Washington visited the mound to retrieve Holland with one out in the ninth, the manager made it clear during the lengthy chat that the lefthander would not be continuing. Afterward, Washington joked about his "begging to stay," and Holland returned fire by doing a good imitation of his manager.

Washington may be the authority figure in the dugout and clubhouse, but that doesn't mean he can't join in the fun. Often, he's the life of the party.

"When people look at his exuberance, I think they know it's who he is," Rangers CEO Nolan Ryan said. "It's true. It's pure. It's not a show. He gets so wrapped up into the game and is so in tune to what's happening, that's just him and his personality reacting to the situation."

Even so, Washington is more than a sideshow. After winning 75 games during his debut season in 2007, the Rangers have won at least 90 the past two years, with a pair of AL West titles and two trips to the World Series.

"I'm nothing special," Washington said. "I'm a baseball lifer. I love the game. I have a passion for it. And I want my players to feel that way also."