Bobby Cox Says Goodbye
Atlanta's Bobby Cox managed his last game last night. His Braves lost, 3-2, to the SF Giants in the NLDS.
I have often wondered whom I would have liked to play for if I were a professional baseball player. (That's different, of course, than whom I would have liked to interview. Cox wasn't going to give you much if you were a New York sports reporter, I'll tell you that much. But as a manager? I think I would have liked it.)
Here's Tom Glavine on Cox:
It’s very simple what he expects out of you. Show up on time, play the game right, wear your uniform the right way …Because things were so simple and so easy to follow, it lent itself to there not being a lot of drama.
... Back in the day ... you better not wear your sunglasses on the bill of your hat. You better not even wear sunglasses; you better have the flip-downs. You better not go out there and not have the right T-shirt on underneath ...
I’ve seen him after a game in Pittsburgh, there might have been a ball that was dropped because nobody called it and he came in after the game and everybody is getting undressed and getting ready to go eat and he comes out of his office and just tips the table over with all the food on it, like ‘All right, none of you guys are even trying.’ Stuff like that the used to do. He wasn’t one of those guys that did stuff on a whim and tried to get a reaction out of people. When he would do stuff like that, it went a long way and people took notice. You better pay attention to whatever is bugging him.
Cox is retiring after 29 years as a manager -- 25 of those years were spent managing the Braves.
Chipper Jones, who played for Cox his entire professional career, said of last night:
There wasn’t a dry eye in the place. I don’t think I’ve cried in uniform since I was about 8. You spend as much time with Bobby as I have, it’s hard. He’s been a father figure to me, he’s been my only manager. It’s hard to swallow that this is going to be the last time.
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Comments :
Aug '10
Re: Bobby Cox Says Goodbye
Cox has been with the Braves for most of my life. It was a great pleasure to see the Braves with Glavine, Smoltz, and Maddux. I only wish I had taken in more afternoon games while I was in law school and could have walked to the old Atlanta stadium. I knew he had the 4th most regular season wins but he also has the most regular season ejections.
I only wish the Murph had been able to be part of the 90s resurgence.
Re: Bobby Cox Says Goodbye
Yes, that's why I loved that photo so much!
May '10
Re: Bobby Cox Says Goodbye
Jim Bouton reflected on the end of his playing days by writing, "You see, you spend a good piece of your life gripping a baseball and in the end it turns out that it was the other way around all the time."
It is such a hard, hard thing to do, to just walk away from the game. My favorite picture of myself (and believe me, there ain't too many of those) is when I was 8-years-old, in uniform, standing next to my father. Oh, that uni! In 1968 those were flannels, oppressively hot in July, and with four buttons on the fly. Thank god for sweating it out because it took forever just to get the pants opened and closed.
Bobby has lived the dream, though. And he did it with his mind and his baseball savvy. With bad knees and a propensity to hit only 2 bucks and a quarter he knew it wasn't going to be as a player.
Sep '10
Re: Bobby Cox Says Goodbye
A constant backdrop to my childhood was the Braves, broadcast on TBS, playing in the background as my Dad cheered them on in the early nineties.
In some way it's bittersweet for me, as every time I would see a Braves game on TV, with some of the same announcers voices and Cox still managing, it would bring me back to those childhood days. No more, although I still have the memories.
May '10
Re: Bobby Cox Says Goodbye
And a h/t to the Giants who were also a class act staying on the field to pay tribute to Cox as well:
http://www.sportsgrid.com/mlb/braves-giants-bobby-cox-tribute-video/
Re: Bobby Cox Says Goodbye
I agree, Trace. And Cox said this, according to the Atlanta-Constitution blog:
May '10
Re: Bobby Cox Says Goodbye
Ursula Hennessey:
Oct 12 at 12:16pm
They are two peas in a pod -- though I don't think Bruce gets thrown out of quite so many games...
Jun '10
Re: Bobby Cox Says Goodbye
Back when the Braves were terrible, my dad used to pull me out of school for afternoon games. $10, two tickets, and Bobby would talk the game with the fans before the game got up and running. He was great for Atlanta, and I hope he knows how much he's appreciated.
Now bring on Terry Pendleton!
Aug '10
Re: Bobby Cox Says Goodbye
Aug '10
Re: Bobby Cox Says Goodbye
Cox's record of 14 straight division titles is one of the most impressive in sports--underrated I think. Similarly underappreciated and unbelievable is Roger Federer's streak of 23 straight grand slam semifinals. I wonder if either will ever be broken--I'd bet against both.
May '10
Re: Bobby Cox Says Goodbye
Good bye Bobby! Braves fan for years. I remember going to Fulton County Stadium as a family, sitting anywhere to watch the Braves lose again. They made a joke on Star Trek just before the great run few years later. It was great to see my home town team win so much.