Los Angeles Angeles manager Mike Scioscia doesn't believe things were that bad.
Hours after Jerry Dipoto resigned as general manager Wednesday due to a reported rift between himself and Scioscia - with Bill Stoneman named interim GM - the skipper admitted that he didn't believe their relationship had reached a tipping point.
"To be honest, I thought it was normal," Scioscia told reporters. "I thought it was healthy."
Dipoto's resignation capped off a whirlwind 72 hours that reportedly began with a heated meeting between the two parties in the Angels' clubhouse and ended with the 47-year-old executive packing up his office and quitting the position he held for three-and-a-half years.
"It was not appropriate for me to go forward in the position I was in," Dipoto said. "Just felt this was the right thing to do for my own state of mind, my family. I wasn't able to help the club the way I wanted to.
"I'm not leaving as a disgruntled employee. I love the group."
It was illustrated by Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports on Monday that Dipoto and Scioscia did not see eye to eye on a number of issues. Among them, the front office did not believe the 56-year-old Scioscia made proper use of new data handed down to him and there was a perception that the coaching staff acted more on feel than data. Scioscia refuted the claim that he didn't adapt his style throughout 16 years of managing.
"I kind of laugh because there's no way in the world you can stay in this position without evolving," Scioscia said. "And I guarantee you that from even three-to-four years ago, (the) way we prepped guys and got information, to know, is light years in comparison. 16 years ago, there was a process.
"Myself, on a personal level, to think I haven't evolved is just really naive. There are analytics that go into every decision we make, whether it's a lineup, a pitching change, a defensive positioning, and in the last four years, Jerry brought a lot of this to the party and it's been very successful. We've applied everything that's come our way that will make us better."
The pair had butted heads in the past, most notably in 2012 when Dipoto fired the team's hitting coach Mickey Hatcher, a close friend to Scioscia. The pair remained with the team at the urging of owner Arte Moreno, and Scioscia said that he perceived their relationship had been amicable since.
"I felt very comfortable dealing with Jerry," Scioscia said
"I can only speak for myself. There's never been a power struggle. I understand what the role of a manager is in the organization. I'm hard-headed, I have opinions, I give my opinions much like I did whether it was Bill or Tony or Jerry, to John, Arte, whatever my opinions are. I understand that a manager gets the word "no" more than he gets "yes." I understand that, and it happens here. There was no ego, no power struggle."
Several members of the Angels, including Albert Pujols, were angered that the confrontation between the GM and manager was leaked to the media and Scioscia reiterated that it's been a trying few days for all parties involved.
"It's been a tough week for us," Scioscia said. "Tough week internally."
