Randy Knorr Interview

WASHINGTON (CBSDC) – The Washington Nationals are now 1-0 under new manager Matt Williams.

When Williams was merely a contender for the job, one of his competitors was current Nats bench coach Randy Knorr, a favorite among long-term mainstays within the clubhouse, many of whom fully endorsed Knorr for the manager position in the offseason.

After losing out to Williams, Knorr decided to remain with the organization, partially because he felt so appreciated by so many veterans — like Ryan Zimmerman and Drew Storen — lobbying for him to get the job.

How did Knorr respond to the news when he heard he’d lost out to Williams?

He got drunk.

From Knorr’s interview with the Junkies on Tuesday:

“That day it happened, it came out on a Friday,” Knorr said. “I thought I had a good shot at it, and that Friday, it was about like nine o’clock in the morning and I started getting calls from the media, ‘Hey Randy, what do you think about Matt getting the job and you not getting the job?’ And I haven’t heard from Mike [Rizzo] yet. “So at about 11 o’clock or so, I got about five phone calls there, so I called a couple buddies of mine and said, ‘Hey, meet me at the golf course. We’re gonna get drunk! “So we went out there, we started drinking and just having a good time, so I pretty much got it out of my system that day.” Asked how long it took him to decide he’d stay on as the Nationals bench coach: “When I got back from golfing, I was pretty ripped. Mike called me, and to this day, I still don’t know what he told me. All I know, at the end of the call he said ‘Matt’s gonna call you.’ I heard that part.”

“Like I said, I got back, I didn’t even know what Mike said,” Knorr said. “All I could hear him say was ‘Matt’s gonna call you in an hour.’ So an hour later, Matt called me, I’m feeling a little bit better. I can understand people by then. So Matt called me, and Matt was great, man. He said, ‘Hey, listen, I know we were both up for the job.”

[story cut short because Knorr cursed]’

Listen to the full interview in the audio clip above.