Feb. 8 -- SUNDAY CONVERSATION: RUBEN AMARO JR.

BY SCOTT LAUBER

The first thing you notice are the rosters.

Really, they're impossible to miss. They cover the wall to the left of Ruben Amaro Jr.'s desk, and your eye is drawn to them as you walk into the corner office on the executive level of Citizens Bank Park. All 30 teams are there, and the names of more than 750 players are listed. It's a veritable Baseball Encyclopedia, right there on the wall, and Amaro inherited it from Pat Gillick nearly 100 days ago when he was named the Phillies' new general manager.

A few days ago, I sat down with Amaro for a wide-ranging interview, most of which is published in your Sunday News Journal. Among other things, we talked about Amaro's busy offseason and the pressures of inheriting a world champion. But my favorite moment, I think, came when Amaro discussed the change he has noticed in the city since the Phillies won the World Series.

"I believe in karma. I believe in luck," said Amaro, who grew up in Northeast Philly and was the Phils' batboy from 1980-83. "And I think the city has done kind of a 180 because I think the mentality here and within the organization is not like, when is this going to collapse? Now, it's like, when are we going to turn it on? I just don't want to screw it up. I just kind of want to stay out of the way and make sure we continue that trend."

Here's more of the interview.

A few outtakes: Amaro said his father, former Phillies shortstop/coach Ruben Sr., won't be working for the organization. But he will serve as a sounding board and confidante. Amaro also has been burning up the phone lines with Gillick, who has remained with the Phillies as an advisor. "Pat finally took a vacation for a short period of time, but he's right back at it," Amaro said. "I don't know if he's ever had a vacation. He's been a great resource. I'm real fortunate to have Pat and Dallas [Green] in what you'd call the 'inner circle,' I guess, of people that are helping us make decisions. To have those people at my disposal, I couldn't ask for a better situation."

Also, Amaro is baseball's second Latino GM, and he has nothing but praise for the first, Mets GM Omar Minaya. "I have to give Omar a lot of kudos," Amaro said. "Omar has been a real big supporter of mine. I've actually called him on many occasions, and it's a little ironic, I think, that we're battling against each other now. But I have a great amount of respect for Omar as a person and as an executive, clearly. He used to call from time to time to offer advice and let me know he was always there to answer any questions. I probably should've taken him up on that more than I did. But he's been real nice and supportive, and I really respect him for that."

Some other facts about Amaro that you may not have known:

-After high school, he declined an offer to play pro soccer in Germany.
-He graduated from Stanford with a biology degree in 1987.
-His grandfather, Santos, was a home-run-hitting star in the Mexican League.
-He replaced Hall of Famer Dave Winfield on the Indians' World Series roster in 1995.