New guy on top of the wave

This was out last week, but there was something new to add. The Whitecaps have a new manager.

The West Michigan Whitecaps, in conjunction with the Detroit Tigers, announced today that Joe DePastino will be the Whitecaps manager for the 2008 season. Tom Brookens, who was originally scheduled to return for another season, was promoted to Double-A Erie following the loss of Matt Walbeck to the Texas Rangers organization.

DePastino, a Philadelphia, Pa., native, will be the eighth manager in Whitecaps history after enjoying a 13-year career in the minor leagues, including seven seasons at the Triple-A level. The right-handed catcher was drafted in the seventh round of the 1992 draft by the Boston Red Sox and had a .265 batting average with 87 home runs, 468 RBIs, 401 runs scored in 944 games throughout his career. The minor league veteran reached the Major Leagues in 2003, appearing in two games with the New York Mets. Looking to stay involved in the game, DePastino coached high school baseball in Sarasota, Fla. while pursuing opportunities with organizations.

How did he pursue the job with the Tiger organization? TigsTown has a Q & A with DePastino.

TT: Had you been speaking with the Tigers for long about joining the organization, or did things really start to ramp up after Matt Walbeck took the job with the Rangers?

JD: Actually, I want to say about two weeks ago. Andy Barkett, the Florida State League Manager, he called me up – because I’ve played against him forever, and we’re pretty good friends – he called me up and asked me if I was interested in getting back into pro ball; if I would be interested in managing. I said ‘Definitely!’ A little over two years ago I had back surgery, so I wanted to make sure that I was good to go, ready to go before I even started to look into coaching. Andy and I talk frequently, so he called me up and I said ‘Yeah, definitely, I’d love to get into managing.’ He had me send my resume in, and I want to say probably three days later they called me back for an interview. I went over for the interview and had probably a two-hour long interview, and basically they hired me on the spot

Ever had a job interview like that? Yeah, me neither.