This weekend is Baseball Hall Of Fame Weekend in Cooperstown New York, with the actual induction being Sunday afternoon. I realize that many of you couldnt possibly care less, but it is a big deal... and this year its a tremendously big deal if youre an Atlanta Braves fan. And its a big year in Cooperstown for the state of Georgia. We may not ever see three inductees who are all from the same team again... with five of the main six inductees having been affiliated with one team... The Atlanta Braves. The other player of those main six was never affiliated with the Braves, but hes a native Georgian... Frank Thomas from Columbus. Even a casual baseball fan of the past twenty years probably doesnt have to be told of the significance of the careers of Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine and Bobby Cox... and of their time together in Atlanta. Its pretty doubtful that well ever see dominance like those three helped bring to the Braves from 1991 thru 2005... very impressive to say the least. Bobby Cox was the manager that every player wanted to play for. To put it simply... they knew that Bobby had their backs. Joe Torre played with the Braves for many years... in fact, he was with the team when they made their move from Milwaukee to Atlanta... he was the Braves catcher. It was a sad day for me, as a small child, when Joe Torre was traded to the Cardinals... he was my favorite Braves player. He later managed the Braves, replacing Bobby Cox after his first tenure with the team. Of course, Joe Torres claim to fame and his HOF call came due to his many successful years as manager for George Steinbrenners New York Yankees. Joe Torre proved that pleasing The Boss and winning with the Yankees could be done... and done with class. Many have mentioned Joe Torres name when talk about the next commissioner of MLB is being done. He would be a good one, and would bring much class to the position. Maybe he could right some other wrongs as well. Tony LaRussa has never been one of my favorite managers, but nobody can argue his success on the field. Also, many may not realize it, but he also has time within the Braves organization as a player. Another little known fact about Tony LaRussa is that he is a bona fide, card carrying, shingle over the door attorney. Unless he has changed it recently, he was a full partner at a law firm in Tampa Florida. This HOF Induction is so unusual that the Braves have pushed back their usual Sunday afternoon game start time to 5:00PM, so that Braves fans can watch the ceremonies before the game begins. And if you have a ticket to see the game at Turner Field, you can get in at noon and watch the ceremony on the big screen. The photo below of Bobby Cox was taken back a few weeks ago when he sat right in front of us at Turner Field. He was helping host some physically challenged children that night, and it was a pleasure to watch him with those children. Though I would have loved to have had a couple of autographs for my collection... especially a couple of weeks before his HOF induction... we didnt bother him while he was with those kids. We did congratulate him and shake hands with him as he was leaving. He seemed to appreciate that we allowed him some space that night. Hes a genuinely nice guy. Tomorrow is a big day for these men... and for the Atlanta Braves... and for the state of Georgia. There were a lot of lean years for Braves fans, going back a long time. I was proud to be a Braves fan when there were very few wins at the end of the season. Im rootin tootin proud to have been one since 1991... pardon me please if we seem to be gloating a little bit right now!
Posted on: Sun, 27 Jul 2014 04:06:43 +0000
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