Cox won’t commit to returning for another season
Could this be Bobby Cox's final season as manager? (Curtis Compton/ccompton@ajc.com)
The Braves released their 2010 schedule Tuesday. But that is the extent of guarantees we’re going to get from the organization right now — and I’m including the return of Bobby Cox.
When asked if he would come back for a 25th season as the Braves’ manager next year, Cox would not commit one way or the other.
“We’ll see,” he said. Anticipating a follow-up question, he repeated, “We’ll see, OK?”
He is 68 years old. The Braves are likely to miss the playoffs for the fourth straight season. Cox has come under more criticism than at any time in the past, primarily from a frustrated segment of the fan base (and I’ll get back to that in a little bit).
But he says the age isn’t an issue, the competition still fuels him and the criticism — well, that’s a new one on him.
“I have no clue what you’re talking about,” he said. “That’s why I don’t read them.”
But there is uncertainty about next season. He repeated the, “We’ll see,” response two other times when I asked about managing in 2010. It’s not a subject he enjoys discussing. Cox never likes being the subject of an interview, but especially when it involves a topic that might be perceived as rubber-stamping the end of this season.
“I just don’t know right now,” he said. “I’m not thinking about it. I’m still trying to get us in the playoffs somehow.”
He allowed only that it’s the same decision-making process he goes through every year, saying, “It starts in spring training almost. But you always feel good then. I guess I’ll be sitting down with [management] after the season.”
Let me caution: We’ve been down this road before.
In spring training 2007, Cox made his most emphatic statement ever on retirement, saying 2008 would be his final season. “This year and next year and that’s it,” he said that day at Lake Buena Vista, and I remember being stunned by the lack of hesitation in his voice. “I still love it. I feel great. I want to do this year and next year and then probably hang it up. … I haven’t really told anybody this. But it’s what I’m thinking.”
We’re now one year past that plan.
He knows he is missing out on non-baseball things. He has eight children and 14 grandchildren. But he’s having a hard time dragging himself away from the dugout.
“The game is still amazingly fun,” he said. “To be able to participate in a game every day is every kid’s dream. That’s never changed. I still love it. It’s the competition. Whether it’s a so-so team or a great team, it’s still competition. It’s what you thrive on.”
And difficult to find a substitute for?
“Yeah — there really won’t be one,” he said. “But I think [after retirement] I’ll still be around a little bit. As long as you’re connected a little bit, I think you’re OK. I’d still like to go to spring training and things like that.”
It has been a difficult season. There were high expectations — probably too high. But when Jeff Francoeur, Jordan Schafer and Kelly Johnson all tanked early, and we half-wondered if Brian McCann was going blind, and the Braves were still a .500 team at the end of June — well, it forced this team to grind to get back in the race.
But there’s something about this team that Cox’s critics still don’t grasp: The Braves are only good, not great. With Chipper Jones slumping, they’re closer to average. They have very good starting pitching but sporadic hitting.
If and when the Braves miss the playoffs again, it won’t be because of Bobby Cox, it will be because of the personnel. But it’s the easy answer, isn’t it? Michael Vick breaks a leg, fire Dan Reeves. And where are Joe Paterno’s critics now?
There’s talk he has overworked the bullpen. Yeah. It’s really hurt Mike Gonzalez and Peter Moylan, hasn’t it? There’s talk he tried to depend too much on Jones and McCann. I’m sorry, but is there some deep bench that I’m missing? There’s talk he keeps sending the lost Greg Norton to the plate. OK, that he’s guilty of.
Maybe this is the end. But it was game day again and Cox wasn’t feeling his age.
“Too old is when you don’t like it any more,” he said.
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308 comments Add your comment
Disbot 3000
September 16th, 2009
8:56 am
Everyone on here who is calling for Bobby’s resignation is a fool. Without him, this team wouldn’t even be playing .500 ball. Jimmy Dykes reportedly once remarked of Ernie Banks that, “Without him, the Cubs would finish in Albuquerque!” Well, that’s where the Braves would be without Bobby.
Facts Please
September 16th, 2009
8:56 am
Ned Yost or Freddy Gonzalez. Proven managers who are team managers and not player managers. Being good to players is one thing but hurting the team while you are letting a player go through a 4 month slag hurts the team. Its contagious. Game after game I have watched at Cox has sat and let a struggling player take the team down. I thought thats why we had utility players. Chipper is always hurt but yet he plays like hes the king of the team. This year I blame two people for the teams disasterous season. One is Cox who doesnt know how to handle players anymore. The other is Chipper who wants to hang around after his time is up and use up the payroll. Chipper has done nothing but hurt this lineup. Its time for both to retire and lets start over with a manager whos not afraid to sit a player or play the best player out there regardless of his starting status.
A player who hits home runs and gets sent down for a utility bench setter who has a average of 085 is a joke. Its been that way for two years. A pitcher who is not fading should not be taken out in the 6th inning he should be allowed to pitch. So he put two on, your pen will let the runs score, you starter will work out of it.
Cox management days are over. Hes forgotten the plays and how to run a team. Move on, get someone who remembers what its like to be on a team and not make the players look and feel good.
jsmuga
September 16th, 2009
8:56 am
Time for a change…. Need younger manager ……
Don
September 16th, 2009
8:58 am
Sad thing is, you assume that this is his decision to make (which is probably correct) – that there is not chance that the Braves will terminate him even if he wants to come back. — SAD, SAD, SAD. Bobby Cox has never been a good manager. He is great as far as keeping a team on an even keel and making players like him – and was fortunate enough to be the manager of a team that had All Star Pitching so great and so far superior to all other teams that it made it overcame his weakness as a manager and made it almost impossible to lose during the long 162 game regular season- especially in a fairly weak division. But even with this tremendous advantage, he usually just barely won the Division and won only 1 WS in 14 opportunities. This season we have had very pitching talent; but he has made so many blunders – it has been an absolute joke. Aside from all his other weaknesses and blunders, his main problem has always been a failure to understand the absolue necssity for teaching/ emphisizing/ demanding working the count, being selective, making the opposing pitcher throw a lot of pitches – which guarantees that run production will not be consistant. This obviously has multiple advantages. In many respects, he is one of the worst managers in recent baseball history.
Wilbur
September 16th, 2009
9:00 am
I am in the Cox needs to go camp and take TP with him! I do agree that the Braves are a good or slightly above average team and that is all they are going to be. The ownership is a media company and most all media companies are in the tank right now. They are not going to spend any more money than they have to.
George
September 16th, 2009
9:03 am
When Bobby Cox makes his decision to retire he will leave much more than his on field successes. He will be remembered by the men who worked under him as a great leader and manager. Andrew Jones will always be thankful for Bobby pulling him from the field and setting his attitude straight. Escobar; while a work in progress; must appreciate the patience Bobby has shown him and the list goes on and on. For those Braves fans who feel that winning is the only thing…I feel sad for you. For those who believe the measure of a man is not only his success in business or on the field of play… “For when that one great scorer comes to mark againist your name he will write not that you won or lost but how you played the game”..Grantland Rice. So Bobby stay or go you will always be regarded as a great manager and a fine man by those who truly appreciate leadership and character.
Ralph
September 16th, 2009
9:03 am
Your out of your mind, the braves will miss the playoffs and it will be precisely the fault of Bobby Cox, the talent was all there and Cox refused to use it properly.
Tom
September 16th, 2009
9:03 am
the hanson thing, you know if he had been sent back out for the 9th and gave up the lead and they lose, you people would be criticizing bobby for sending him back out there.
bugman
September 16th, 2009
9:06 am
While dropping the kids off at the pool this morning (there’s my inspiration),it all became clear:
Bobby Cox is Mark Richt is Bobby Cox.
Nuff said.
Out of Town
September 16th, 2009
9:07 am
Do you hire Yost or do you get a Guillen-like guy that’s going to fire everyone up a little bit? My bet is the front office wants to start fresh (if he is in fact retiring) and we’ll have someone unexpected….a non-Cox guy.
Pace
September 16th, 2009
9:11 am
If Frank Wren can make-wholesale decisions such as Glavine and Smoltz -then why not Cox ?
Cox has a -legacy without equal—but time marches on for all of us……even Chipper knows it….
obomaisaclown
September 16th, 2009
9:11 am
I THOUGHT COX WAS A 5 TH YEAR SENIOR .
GSU Eagle 91
September 16th, 2009
9:16 am
Douglas O said it already…The disaster last week with the Astros helped me decide that it is time to make a change…We would be 3 back instead of 5 back in the wild card race…
No doubt Hudson’s return has the starters on top of their game right now…
GO HAWKS
September 16th, 2009
9:20 am
PLEASE don’t name TP as the manager! Hire Freddy Gonzalez!
Joey
September 16th, 2009
9:20 am
Oh no Bugman, Richt has years of practice ahead of him before he can pick a bugger like Hall of Famer Bobby Cox. Not even close yet…
Joey
September 16th, 2009
9:21 am
Greg Maddux for manager!
Smooth
September 16th, 2009
9:22 am
Hey Greg who needs you! I think we all need to pay Bobby the respect he has earned, and please remember the respect that the players have for him. there are a lot of players who would not have come to Atlanta if it was not for Bobby. If Bobby does decide to go, let’s get our old coach back from the Marlins.
randy addis
September 16th, 2009
9:24 am
greg, who cares if you never watch a braves game. bobby cox is the man, by the way how many game’s have you won?
Greg
September 16th, 2009
9:26 am
If you are satisfied with the past and 3rd or 4th place finishes in the future, rehire Bobby Cox.
curtis jones
September 16th, 2009
9:33 am
“Walk around the stadium and people say how much they love him….”
Yeah, but the empty blue seats don’t have much to say, during this crucial mid-September NL East pennant race series against the NY Mets.
Chazs
September 16th, 2009
9:34 am
Curtis Jones comments are well reasoned.
Even if he is off by 50%, the Braves would be better by 7.5 games. Where would that put the Braves right now?
David
September 16th, 2009
9:35 am
Bobby should of retired after he lose the 1996 World Series, I mean fired.
bvillebaron
September 16th, 2009
9:36 am
Gee Jeff, we now have you and Mark worshipping Cox. It’s one of the easiest cop outs in the world to defend a manager by saying there aren’t enough good players and/or they didn’t perform. If you take that argument to its logical conclusion, no manager would ever get fired, they would all simply retire when they feel like it and/or become too old.
I also acknowledge that this team probably wasn’t good enough to make the playoffs and has issues to address for next year. My problem with Cox is that he is and remains one of the most overrated and poorest strategical managers I have seen in my almost 50 years of being a diehard Braves’ fan.
A manager’s job is to put the players in the best position to win and succeed, not play favorites and show blind loyalty to some (e.g. Norton) and get rid of others who he doesn’t like for some reason (e.g. Jason Marquis). I could write a book on his ridiculous decisions during the 14 year playoff run (which I complained about while, not after, the moves were being made–ask my wife). However, the best confirmation of his strategical deficiencies in key games is the fact that the Braves won 1 World Series in 14 tries despite managing teams that HAD players more than good enough to win. I for one feel Cox should have been fired a long time ago.
monty
September 16th, 2009
9:38 am
JS
If you think FW sent Brooks Conrad down without consulting BC and getting his input, then I’m not sure what to think about you!
beekay
September 16th, 2009
9:40 am
Quit with the pulling Hanson nonsense…he was at 100 pitches and we were 8 games out, the last thing you want to do is get your future ace for ther next ten years hurt by overextending him. Sori gets paid to close games and he didn’t do his job. Blame Sori for that one not Cox!
TBraveFan
September 16th, 2009
9:41 am
Just keep Glenn Hubbard and I’ll be back in the seats. That guy could turn me into a quality 2nd baseman… (p.s. and I’m a female)
Herschel Talker
September 16th, 2009
9:43 am
CURTIS JONES – keep up the great work. You are saying everything that needs to be said.
Big Cox Fan
September 16th, 2009
9:44 am
Any one here that bashes Bobby Cox doesn’t remember how close we came to getting Phil Niekro (Silver Bullets legand-lol) instead. Nor do they remember what a farce the Atlanta Braves were 20 years ago (30 for that matter).
I for one will support him as long as he lives. He is a prince of a guy and coach and is heading to Cooperstown along with Smoltz, Glavine, Maddox and Chipper! He has forgotten more baseball than every poster on this board combined will ever come close to understanding!
He doesn’t deserve to get roasted in public by internet tough guys who post in private.
Joshhh...
September 16th, 2009
9:45 am
Jeeze Schultz you’re a downer especially at the end there…
MACMARINE
September 16th, 2009
9:48 am
Please go BC, you have cost the Braves lots of games with your decisions this year as in the past years. Of course Jeff and all the other AJC writers will defend Cox and all other Braves so as not to hinder their prospect of interviews etc. Bobby don’t play but he makes decisions of who does and you cant keep using (Norton) based on what he did years past!I have been a Brave fan since 1954 while Braves were in Milwaukee and I will continue to be a Brave fan but I would sure love to see another manager in dugout next year.
Tucker
September 16th, 2009
9:59 am
Some managers and coaches in all realms of sport earn the right to retire when they want to. Unfortunately the corporate sport world does not grasp that concept, nor does a considerable portion of the fan base. I believe Bobby Cox is one of those managers.
Donny Corleone
September 16th, 2009
10:01 am
Big Cox Fan, I hope you’re a woman.
KPH
September 16th, 2009
10:03 am
Bobby Cox is one of the best managers in baseball history. Look at the payroll caps he has been given over the years and how well he produced with a lot of sub par talent. I think that a manager that can give you 14 straight division titles should be applauded not criticized. No other manager ever has been able to accomplish that and no manager in the future will be able to. We are blessed to have Bobby and I hope he stays as long as he wants. By the way I am 53 years old and attended the very first Atlanta Braves game as well as hundreds of others. I know the good from the bad and Bobby is without a doubt the GOOD!
KC
September 16th, 2009
10:04 am
Jeff Schultz is wrong. The Braves aren’t good, aren’t great, but closer to average (in terms of talent/ability)??
The Braves are a different team than they were through the fist 2-3 months of the season. And Bobby Cox has a LOT to work with here.
In addition to the best rotation in baseball, the Braves, since the all-star break, are 4th in the NL in runs, 3rd in HR’s, and 3rd in team AVG.
And they’re only 2 runs behind the Rockies in 2nd half runs scored, despite the fact that the Rockies play at Coors Field, and have played 2 more second half games than Atlanta.
So the Braves have been one of the top 3 teams in the league offensively in the 2nd half. To go with all that pitching. Tell me again, Jeff, about the “average” team Bobby has to work with here.
Harry Campbell
September 16th, 2009
10:06 am
Braves fans are so spoiled. A manager is like a jockey. He’s got to ride the horse he’s hired to ride (unless he’s Calvin Borel). His job is coax the most that can be gotten out of his charge(s) and to keep disruptions from distracting the horse (players). Is he always going to make the right move? The answer to that is always elusive and open to second guessing. It’s measured primarily by the results. Fourteen years of good results on good horses followed by a few mediocre years on mediocre horses. It’s the horses (players), not the jockey (manager)! Yo’all ought to be Cub fans! Most of you would have committed hari kari by now!
Greg Norton
September 16th, 2009
10:07 am
This is very bad news….didn’t you see the headling in yesterdays paper about this current recession being a “he-cession?”….I was really counting on that paycheck next year.
DamnGoodDawg
September 16th, 2009
10:14 am
Time for the Braves ownership to come off the buck or sell out. We’ve got 2 or 3 position players that are worth a flip. The rest are just so so.
Joe Fan
September 16th, 2009
10:24 am
I predict that Bobby will be given the chance to step down a take a position in team management possibly player selection and development. It seems he did a very good job of that when he was GM. That said, I sense that Wren will put Bobby out to pasture if he doesn’t go of his own accord and his coaches with him. A new manager , possibly Gonzales or Yost (both with Atlanta ties) will replace him, certainly not TP. The fan base will have him on a very short string, to much second guessing him.
KT
September 16th, 2009
10:27 am
Time to say goodbye to Bobby.
Roy
September 16th, 2009
10:32 am
If you don’t like Bobby you have to be a loon, he’s the best thing that has ever happened to Atlanta. The rebuilding process is almost over i think we will win it all next year.
curtis jones
September 16th, 2009
10:36 am
More from Cox lovers: “he’s the all time greatest, he deserves to go out on his own terms, he should stay as long as he wants…”
Excellent, folks. Pull up a chair and get real comfortable in the world of 3rd place. And the Packers should dig up Vince Lombardi: a proven winner.
Chuck Uga
September 16th, 2009
10:37 am
I’m not a giant Bobby Cox fan, but he has managed to make quite a name for himself. As far as his return, he has to look at whether or not Liberty Media gives a damn about a winning team. Sure they do to a certain extent, but not like Ted Turner did. If I were him, I would retire. The Braves aren’t going to get any better than they are under current management, and only a matter of time until the GM trades away most of the good talent (or they leave for more money). The Braves are done as far as winning any more division titles. That could change if Arthur Blank or someone else buys the team.
John
September 16th, 2009
10:37 am
Ahh……the FIRE COX now crowd is a great bunch. They mean well but just dont quite get it. Yes Bobby has done some bone headed things this year. But that is baseball….it is always so easy to say shoulda coulda woulda.
I remember a few years back when Penn State football SUCKED…..i mean REALLY sucked. Joe Paterno really looked his age and his teams looked over matched. The fire JoPa chants came from all corners. But the school gave him the respect that he deserved. He gave his LIFE to Penn State football. And……look at him now. He has been leading a great team out onto that field with great personnel and the mind set of “we are going to win today”. And this is coming from a non Penn State fan.
We dont need a new manager. We have a HALL OF FAME manager now. What we need is a new attitude and a little better personnel. We have upgraded our pitching stafff which was one part and now we must upgrade our offense. I have full trust in our front office that we can do this and we will. We are just a few moves away from being a VERY scary team. So give Bobby some slack people. He deserves some RESPECT for the years and years of winning that he and his teams have given us! Let the man retire on his OWN terms because that is what he deserves. And this is coming from a lifelong Braves fan.
We are a society of “what have you done for me lately” and im tired of that. Lets have some respect for our elders
Uncle Dude
September 16th, 2009
10:38 am
Make a big fuss over him and let him retire and go immediately (asap) to the hall of fame and then get on your knees and beg Greg Maddux to come home to the Braves as a Manager or pitching coach or demi-god – just get him back and make sure he is happy for a long time. Thinking of Maddux working with Hanson boggles the mind
Bushwacker
September 16th, 2009
10:39 am
I think Bobby is frustrated like the fans.
2 weeks ago we were 2 games out of the wild card, then his best player and team leader takes himself out of the lineup and 10 days later we go from 2 games out to 9 games out.
Chipper quit on Bobby, his teamates and the fans right in the middle of a playoff race.
I know he will say he did it for the team becuase he’s not hitting.
It does not matter, he quit, then the team quit and we drop 7 games in the standings and now the season is over.
I can’t imagine Jeter taking himself out of the Yankees lineup.
I’ve lost all respect for Chipper, his batting average is more important to him than making the playoffs.
d fowler
September 16th, 2009
10:44 am
Bobby should have gone 10 years ago. He is paid to get his team up for the big game and has failed at that for now since the mid 90’s! I would bring in one of the many sucessful managers that has come up in the organization and clear the bases and start clean next year cleaning out the entire coaching staff. More incentive pay(based on performance)for new contracts and less salary. No more paying big money for old men and use the strong farm club for position players.
KC
September 16th, 2009
10:45 am
DamnGoodDawg: “Time for the Braves ownership to come off the buck or sell out. We’ve got 2 or 3 position players that are worth a flip. The rest are just so so.”
Well, let’s see… Nate McClouth was an all-star last year, and has been very good aside from when he was hobbling with they bad hammy. That’s one player who is certainly “worth a flip”. Then you have McCann, Escobar, and… I’d say LaRoche is woth a flip too, especially when you factor in his defense.
That’s 4 very good players. And M.Prado was playing far better than “just so so” before running into some recent health problems. And the Braves will almost certainly add the top prospect in all of baseball, Jason Heyward, to the lineup next year.
Also, I’m content with Diaz, Church, and possibly Schafer for the left field position next season, especially given that LF will likely hit 8th in the order. And while there’s a chance that Chipper’s season was the first sign of decline, there’s also a chance he just had a poor season. In either case, I don’t think anyone is worried about third base next year.
I don’t see how this lineup is as impotent as you claim it is. They’ve been one of the top 3 offenses in the NL since the end of June.
And as for the ownership… they’ve been great. They’ve permitted a significant increase in payroll since taking ownership of the team, while NOT interfering with the operation of the team.
curtis jones
September 16th, 2009
10:48 am
“Yes Bobby has done some bone headed things this year. But that is baseball”
Translation: “3rd place is all we really want here in Atlanta. Long live the HOF manager!”
David
September 16th, 2009
10:49 am
You have an icon that deserves every bit of respect, but there comes a day when it’s time for them to move on so the franchise can move forward to a new era. It already happened with Glavine and Smoltz, it’s about to happen with Chipper and Bobby. If you let these guys leave when they want to, they’ll inevitably stay a few years longer than they should and more than likely hurt the team in the process. Always a tough situation. I don’t think there’s a right or wrong answer. But I think it’s time for a new manager and a new thirdbasemen. Not because the one’s we have are bad, but just because it’s time for that new era.
Doug
September 16th, 2009
10:50 am
Bobby Cox is one of the great managers. However, he has lost touch with how to take a team to higher levels. There is enough talent on the present Braves team to make a challenge for the playoffs at least. Cox hasn’t shown this year, or last for that matter that he can trigger winning attitudes with players. While a manager can’t be blamed for loses or wins, his presence and ability to enable players to play at high levels is imperative. Bobby Cox doesn’t know how to do that anymore. And if he does, he is not showing any consistent evidence that he really wants to.
Bobby Cox should only stay if he willing to get in touch with returning to be a master motivator. I don’t see that has shown that willingness that past few seasons.
A team wins on purpose. The manager has to lead the way.