Backman Fired by D-Backs: Wally Backman lasted only four days as the manager of the Diamondbacks and was fired on Friday for a number of legal indiscretions in his past. The team only became aware of Backman's legal troubles, which included a domestic disturbance charge, a DUI and numerous tax liens, after they were mentioned in the New York Times following the hiring.



I am not sure what I think about this. The team has every right not to hire someone based on their legal past, but the way in which this took place has damaged Backman, perhaps irreparably. The two-time Minor League Manager of the Year may now have trouble getting any job as a manager, much less in the big leagues. And the team should not blame Backman. Yes, they asked him if there was anything in his past that was relevant, but he had been a manager in the organization for 4 years. Was it not proper for him to assume that these legal troubles were not relevant, as they had not been for the previous four years? But in the end, Backman is at fault, because the legal troubles are his own.



What is the lesson in all of this? In today's world, it is impossible to outrun your past. Even if your employer does not know of legal troubles, there are a wealth of journalists and bloggers that have Google and a number of other tools that they can use to check your past. Perhaps if Backman had come clean from the beginning, the organization could have put some spin on this and justified the hiring. Or, at the least, he would not have been hired but could have stayed on as a minor league manager. But, at least for a public figure, failing to disclose past legal troubles appears to no longer be a viable option.

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