September 26, 2019

Former New York Mets manager to visit SVSU in October

A retired Major League Baseball manager and Midland native will return to the region next month to talk about his passion for leadership during a presentation at Saginaw Valley State University.

Audiences can meet Terry Collins — who led the New York Mets to the World Series in 2015 — during his presentation Monday, Oct. 7, at 7 p.m. in SVSU’s Malcolm Field Theatre for Performing Arts. The event will be moderated by Paul Barbeau, former president and general manager of the Great Lakes Loons. Admission is free and open to the public.

Collins will be looking back at his lengthy baseball career while discussing the leadership skills and determination that helped him perform at the highest levels of athletics.

After growing up in Midland, where he attended Midland High School before graduating in 1967, Collins spent his collegiate playing days at Eastern Michigan University. There, he was a star on the school’s baseball team, playing shortstop and second baseman. He later was drafted by the Pittsburgh Pirates and spent 10 years in the Minor Leagues with the Pirates and Los Angeles Dodgers.

After his professional playing career was finished, he transitioned to coaching teams. His first manager job in Major League Baseball came in 1993 when he was hired by the Houston Astros. He also was manager of the Anaheim Angels from 1997-99 before spending times overseas, leading teams in Japan and China.

He returned to the MLB in 2010, and was hired as the New York Mets manager that November. In 2015, during a 90-win season, he led the team to the World Series before falling to the Kansas City Royals. Two years later, he retired from the position, leaving as the longest-tenured manager in Mets history. He remains with the franchise today as a senior advisor for player personnel.

Collins’ appearance at SVSU is sponsored by SVSU's Foundation office.