Cox made baseball -- and everyone around him -- better
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This story was excerpted from Mark Bowman’s Braves Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.
LOS ANGELES -- Bobby Cox said, “even if you win the World Series, the next day is sad because there are no games to be played.”
There is a sadness at the end of every season, with some conclusions being sadder than others. I have been blessed to bid adieu to 25 seasons in this role. None were sadder to say goodbye to than the 2010 season.
Along with saying goodbye to one of the most fun-loving and comical rosters I’ve encountered, I, like you, was facing the reality that Cox’s incredible tenure as Atlanta’s manager was over. We were saying goodbye to a man who made the Braves and all of those around him better.
This is my 26th season covering the Braves. Would I be in this position if I hadn’t had the honor of dealing with Cox on a daily basis for the first 10 seasons in this role? I gained my masters while dealing with Chipper Jones, John Smoltz, Tom Glavine, Andruw Jones and Greg Maddux. The daily interactions with Cox netted me my doctorate in human relations.
Yeah, I learned an incredible amount about baseball from the Hall of Fame manager. But he taught me a lot more about life and how to treat others. He knew how to make everyone feel like they were either his ace or cleanup hitter (that role meant more back in the day).
Chris Hammond hadn’t pitched at the MLB level since 1998. But when he came to Turner Field to throw in January 2002, Cox greeted him like he was a four-time Cy Young Award winner. Hammond later said, “I know he didn’t know me, but he made me feel like a million bucks.” The lefty actually earned millions of bucks after he posted a 0.95 ERA in 65 appearances for Atlanta that season.
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A few years later, Dewayne Wise approached as Cox was talking to longtime Braves beat writer David O’Brien and I in the middle of the clubhouse at the start of Spring Training. The skipper shook the outfielder’s hand and said, “I’ve been watching videos of your swing and can’t wait to see you out there.” As Wise walked away, Cox looked at us and said, “Who was that?”
Cox’s rosters were blessed with the Hall of Fame talents possessed by Maddux, Glavine, Smoltz, Fred McGriff and the Jones boys. But his incredible support helped get the most out of guys like Mark Lemke and Eddie Perez, whose presence on the current Atlanta staff can be attributed to his strong bond with Cox.
“He was a great person and everybody wanted to play hard for him,” Perez said.
Nobody wants to disappoint their grandfather and that’s what Cox was to so many, including those of us in the media. He was stern when he needed to be. But for the most part, he was a fun-loving man who loved to smoke a cigar while talking about the day’s events with the beat writers.
Nowadays, most interactions with managers are formal and stiff because cameras are involved. During Cox’s reign, his office was always open. But most of our informal conversations before games took place in the weather room located below the home dugout at Turner Field.
We’d talk about the Braves. Without cameras present, he could say something and raise his eyebrows to indicate that’s not how he really felt about something. But we also talked about the world’s events, NASCAR and what was going on in the baseball world. This is also back when scouts were in stadiums every day. He wanted to hear what those scouts were saying or what they might be in town to see.
It should be noted Cox had an incredible eye for talent. He was the first person to tell me about this Ronald Acuña Jr. kid he saw in instructional league. I also remember him raving about young prospects like Cole Hamels or George Springer, who homered while Cox was watching a back-field game at the Astros’ complex in Kissimmee, Fla.
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Cox never tried to steer us wrong or guide us down the wrong path. But that doesn’t mean he didn’t use us when he needed to protect his players. Chipper Jones and Smoltz had a brief spat in 2007 when Smoltz indicated Jones needed to play through pain. Jones heard the clip on the radio during his drive home and wasn’t happy.
How did Cox handle it? He said something like the media had misinterpreted what Smoltz was trying to say. No big deal. He did what he always did, which was protect his players and the team.
At the same time, we shared a lot of laughs. When reliever Dan Kolb struggled after being acquired in 2005, Cox looked at me and said, “Do you guys also boo me when I bring Kolb out of the bullpen?” I said, “No, we just start re-writing our stories.”
I wish we would have never had to write about Cox having his stroke in 2019 or the ones published after he passed away on Saturday. But I’m forever thankful that every story I will ever write will have been enriched by the opportunity to have known this great man and leader.