Bobby Cox a bad tactician? Because of Puckett? Come on
It’s unfortunate the long and meritorious career of a Hall of Fame manager can, at least in the minds of many locals, be boiled down to one at-bat on Oct. 26, 1991. It’s unfortunate because the move that has come to be seen as wrong-headed was made for sound reasons.
Bobby Cox brought Charlie Leibrandt, a left-handed pitcher who’d been a starter all his career, in to face the righthander Kirby Puckett with the Braves and Twins tied in the bottom of the 11th inning of Game 6 of the World Series. Puckett hit a home run. The Braves would lose the Series the next night, also in extra innings. Those looking to justify the oft-voiced claim — “Cox has always been a bad tactician” — start there.
But look close: Leibrandt had faced Puckett twice in that World Series, striking him out both times. In 1991, Leibrandt had retired righthanders at a higher rate than lefties. (Righties hit .237 off Leibrandt in 1991; lefties hit .274.) And when you’re tied as a visitor in extra innings, you know you have to get six outs to win, not just three. Why not summon a starting pitcher, a veteran of postseasons past who’d won 15 games that season, as opposed to a 21-year-old Mark Wohlers?
Because, you’re saying, it didn’t work. But wouldn’t that, on one side at least, invalidate every move made in every baseball game ever played? Was Tony La Russa wrong for letting Dennis Eckersley pitch to Kirk Gibson in 1988? Was Sparky Anderson wrong for having Pat Darcy work to Carlton Fisk in 1975?
The inconvenient truth is that most managers, given the same personnel, would make the same moves most of the time. As Greg Maddux would say, it then comes down to a pitcher making pitches and the hitter trying to trump him.
Can Cox be maddening in his seeming overuse of the bullpen (to say nothing of Greg Norton)? Sure. But even in a season that hasn’t seemed the esteemed manager’s finest, his team entered the final 10 days with a realistic chance to make the playoffs. And that body of work is a better measure of Cox than one swing by the Hall of Famer Puckett.
The hallmark of Cox’s teams is that they keep playing. They don’t implode from internal strife. That’s why his teams have finished first more times than any other manager’s in the history of the sport. (Cox has 15 first-place finishes; Joe Torre has 12; Casey Stengel had 10.) Cox’s men keep playing because they like playing for him. If they thought their manager was an in-game dunce, we’d have known it by now. We’d have known because they’d have quit on him.
It’s intriguing that Cox’s critics focus on the post season, which owing to the addition of the Division Series has been rendered almost a coin flip, and not the six-month regular season, which is the truer test of a manager and his team. It’s also fascinating that Cox is never given credit for any October move that worked. He began to use John Smoltz as a closer in the 1999 postseason, and he even used Maddux to finish Game 5 of the 1998 NLCS in San Diego. And the one Series his teams won turned on, of all things, a Cox choice.
Oct. 25, 1995: Wohlers had been touched for a home run and a double to begin the ninth. Cox summoned the lefthander Pedro Borbon Jr., who hadn’t pitched in nearly three weeks, to face Jim Thome, Sandy Alomar and Kenny Lofton. Borbon retired all three. The Braves took a 3-1 Series lead and would win the title three nights later. Should fairness not dictate that we hear as much about Borbon as Leibrandt?
Here’s hoping that, as Bobby Cox’s valedictory tour begins, we see him for what he truly has been. (And having Cox work one final more is Solomonic: It affords him a final go-around without leaving matters open-ended.) Even above John Schuerholz and Tom Glavine and Terry Pendleton and Smoltz and Chipper Jones, this manager is the reason the Braves became and remained the Braves.
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173 comments Add your comment
Big Booty Judy.
September 26th, 2009
8:29 pm
I dont think any one who has that many dogs would have time to play football. I think Vick should give some of his dog away or turn them in to the human society. Then if he want to play for Georgia bulldogs im for it.
Im not racist
September 26th, 2009
8:38 pm
I dont feel that white people have done anything to blacks. They could have went back to africa after slavery, but they stuck around here looking for a hand-out. Now they want us to give michael vick a job. Well, I dont think so. We have a white Quarterback and thats whats important. This aint africa. He should try to quarterback a team in africa. No offense, I aint racist or nothing but, this is a white country. Good luck to him.
wawel78
September 26th, 2009
11:47 pm
Tom B – my point was that MB was picking and choosing stats, which is unfortunate since Kirby owned Leibrandt up to that AB. I don’t hold that as Bobby’s defining moment but defending it is a little silly.
stew
September 27th, 2009
1:37 am
Another brilliant move in a crucial World Series game….. Bringing in Slo ball specialist Greg McMichael to lose that one that cost us the series!
Surfer Joe
September 27th, 2009
2:14 am
Absolutely correct, Mark- and also, we’ll never see how Puckett would have done with Wohlers or anybody else.
The easiest thing for the armchair loudmouth to do is sit there, wait and see what doesn’t work out, and then yell “I’d have done the other thing!” The right decision doesn’t always work.
Kevin
September 27th, 2009
7:50 am
No worrys if we tied rockies for a One game playoff decide the wild card winner Bobby cox would figure out how to lose it….like havin Greg norton playin 1st base n Kelly(no Hit) Johnson in lineup…so be aware of Bad ideas from a nose picker mananger and his friends TP!
EPF
September 27th, 2009
7:57 am
Enter your comments here
NC Braves Fan,
John Smoltz was not out pitched in Game 7 of the 91 series. When he was taken out of the game the score was 0-0, and the bullpen and Lonnie Smith blew that game.
But to address the topic of the thread, Bobby was a great regular season manager, postseason, not so much.
Nativebird
September 27th, 2009
8:48 am
And just a few weeks later, both Leibrandt and John Smoltz hits their drives into our foursome standing in the fairway, drives their cart directly through our group, hit’s their second shots as we stand there in disbelief, and Smoltz utters “sorry guys” as they jump in their cart and take off to the next green, so fast they couldn’t hear the litany of F$%^&-you’s from us four mere peasant’s from the great unwashed of society. Thus illustrates the true regard with which our great Braves hold their loyal fans.
Skeezix
September 27th, 2009
8:59 am
Mark: Great article! Thanks for taking time to try and ingrain some sense of perspective to those fans with have lived a perfect life where every decision/move they ever made worked out perfectly, who have selective memory, who love to second guess after the fact, probably also are back seat drivers, and constant kibitzers. Any knowledgeable baseball fan who is fair minded has got to conclude, without hesitation, that over his entire remarkable career, Bobby Cox has been one of the best ever. How he has pulled this team together in the last month (especially after being embarrassed by the Reds and Chipper’s extended slump) has been another example of this man’s amazing ability to stay positive and develop/motivate a team. Without Bobby Cox there is NO way this team is only two games back in the wild card race this morning,
Michael
September 27th, 2009
9:18 am
It looks sooooooooooooooooooo easy from the couch, doesn’t it guys?
Born2Buzz
September 27th, 2009
10:01 am
I’ve often said that Bobby is a dichotomy, the best regular season manager and the worst post season manager. But you have to be the first to have a chance to be the second.
wawel78
September 27th, 2009
11:59 am
So Skeezitz, Bobby gets credit for keeping the team alive in the last week of the season. Does he not get any blame for the reds sweep or is he just so awesome in spite of that?
Bobby has nothing to do with a Vazquez 3 hit outing just as he has nothing to do with Chipper’s big slump. Where he does come into play is who he puts in the game and at what point he does. Yes, it is easy to sit at home in my rocker and second guess afterwards, but bottom line, he has made several decisions that just do not make sense.
Again, he’s a great manager but he’s also made quite a few bonehead moves over the years. No shame in that.
Braves Mom
September 27th, 2009
7:34 pm
Why do you even waste your time debating this with some people?
He is respected and praised all over MLB, and by national sportswriters, annoucers, former players, etc.
Why bother arguing with people who just aren’t very knowledgable baseball fans?
sal governale
September 27th, 2009
8:57 pm
Bobby Cox a bad tactician? Because of Norton? Absolutely.
See, Bradley, I can cherry pick examples to build an argument too. Try a little harder next time.
NewYorkBrave
September 27th, 2009
9:34 pm
For us to be in such a critical point of this season, there sure is a lot of negativity surrounding this organization, all of which can be attributed to the fan base. Yes, all YOU, you Bobby Cox haters. We took a lot of flak this off season during that Griffey fiasco because we were such terrible fans. We sure are proving them correct right now. Why don’t you put your hating behind you and root on your team, won’t you??? Idiots… I might as well start rooting for the Mets… At least they will defend their team.
wawel78
September 27th, 2009
10:22 pm
wow, Sal Governale on the ajc!
sorry as a fan i’m pissed right now b/c the braves are even in this position of catch-up. The game against the rockies before the all-star break, taking out Hanson a few weeks back, losing series to the padres, reds, nats, etc., and the handling of terribly slumping hitters and the OF. Diaz has the highest avg. on the team and he’s hitting 8th in a lot of games.
Unfortunately games in april – july count just as much as august and september and Bobby wet the bed quite a few times during that period.
braves70
September 28th, 2009
12:22 am
Bobby Cox has often been compared to Earl Weaver. Both men lived and died with the 3 run homer and great pitching. Like Cox, Weaver too had much regular season success yet won the championship only 1 time in 6 post season appearances. The pitching of the 90s Braves and 70s Orioles was as solid as you could get. I think waiting for the 3 run homer is not a winning hand in postseason. Add Cox and Weaver together and you 2 championships in 21 tries. That seems to be an indictment of the big inning strategy. I hope for a new manager who will emphasize the running game and speed, which never slumps.
Also remember how Cox got burned on the LH/RH platoon in the 1985 ALCS with Toronto. Games 6 & 7 of that series, Dick Howser played on Cox’s use of platoons. Howser started RH pitchers which meant that Cox went with his LH platoon guys. After about 3-4 innings, Howser would pull the starter and bring in a lefty. Cox then would take out all of his LH hitters for the RH ones. Howser would then go to his RH reliever, Dan Quisenberry, and there was no one left for Cox to pinch hit with. Besides, most of his best hitters were the LH he took out early in the game anyway.
Finally, Bobby’s idol was his own manager Ralph Houk. Despite all the talent that he had with the Yankees and later the Tigers and Red Sox, Houk won just 2 world championships.
dub
September 28th, 2009
8:24 am
If you want to know the truth,Bobby Cox suck like this year started out with a rookie in cf a non playing second baseman in Kelly Johnson a no hitless first baseman in Kotchman jeff having his problem in right and his favor pitch hitter North WOW. NOW IF HE HAD STARTED THE LINEUP THAT HE GOT NOW Braves wouldn’t be fighting for a playoff spot case close.
JB Wright
September 28th, 2009
10:32 am
Enter your comments here
Why in the hell would anyone want to watch another Bobby Cox post season? I’m glad that the Braves are gonna miss out… I don’t need the agravation.
Oh yeah, I have lived in several states since leaving GA in the early 90s, and Cox is a HUGE JOKE everywhere. He gets no “National respect”.
So quit believing it’s just an “Atlanta thing”. He has gooten nothing but dis-respect on every media location I’ve been around.
Ahhhh.. but the way he buries that thunb knuckle-deep in his nostril, dis-lodging a nose fruit to flick in the dugout… that is sublime.
Joe N
September 28th, 2009
3:40 pm
If everyone must know on here, I am the Sonny Clusters. This is my real name but I do the Sonny Clusters routine.
the real Andy
September 29th, 2009
5:02 am
i do agree that Bobby’s steady hand keeps teams playing hard. but we can’t ignore his deficiency in in-game situations.
for instance, his decision on Sunday
tied at 3 in the 7th inning, go ahead run on third with one out, pitcher’s spot up
the Following hitters available – Infante .290 avg, .731 OPS, David Ross .264 .866, .272 .721, Gorecki, Kelly, and Brooks Conrad .200 to .220 hitters. And Norton.
Norton, hitting .102 and slugging .118 from the left side. Let me reiterate – slugging .118!!! Bobby inexplicably picked Norton, who failed.
Because of Moylan’s Houdini impression saved Bobby from looking too terrible.
But that was a big run that we left out there, and it can’t be denied that it was because of Bobby’s foolish decision to keep running an overmatched, pitiful Norton out there.
i love bobby, but his in-game decisions are often terrible.
DC Bravesfan
September 29th, 2009
4:58 pm
There seems to be 2 contingents here – one say, Cox makes good decisions, go with Cox; others say, Cox makes bad decisions, fire Cox. I say, Cox makes bad decisions, go with Cox.
Because, who are you going to get? A guy like Ozzie Guillen? Lou Pinella? How about Manny Acta? Cecil Cooper?
You have to think, if we didn’t have Cox, we wouldn’t have had any of the 14 straight, NOR the ‘95 series. No Smoltz, no Glavine, no Chipper, no McCann, no Diaz, no Prado. I think people really take for granted how amazing it was to KNOW that you were going to play baseball in October.
Yea, I’m defending the guy, he’s not perfect, lord knows some of his decisions killed me, but my question is, who are you going to get?
Kirby Puckett
October 4th, 2009
8:56 pm
[...] by Kirby Puckett during game 6 of the 1991 World Series. While fans are sad to see the end … Bobby Cox a bad tactician? Because of Puckett? Come onBobby Cox brought Charlie Leibrandt, a left-handed pitcher who'd been a starter all his career, [...]