Reds fire Perez after 44 baseball games - Cincinnati Reds fire manager Tony Perez - Brief Article

Jet, June 14, 1993

The Cincinnati Reds fired manager Tony Perez just 44 games into the baseball season because the Reds were 20-24 at the time.

Perez, who played on the championship Reds teams of the 1976s, was in his rookie season as manager of the team. He is the fifth-quickest manager to be fired in major league history.

"I don't think it's fair. Was I cheated? I don't know. But I don't think it's fair. I think I did a good job," the Cuban-born Perez said, discussing his dismissal.

Reds general manager Jim Bowden, who's running the team while controlling partner Marge Schott serves a one-year suspension, immediately promoted former New York Mets manager Davey Johnson to replace Perez in the dugout. Johnson was previously a team consultant in Cincinnati.