Two legends in Atlanta Braves history have passed away within days of each other.
Ted Turner, the irascible former owner of the team from 1976-2007, died May 6 at the age of 87. In addition to owning the team, Turner founded CNN and started the superstation TBS. (A personal note: when I was in grad school at Brooklyn College for TV/Radio arts, CNN was just starting to hire people. I could have gotten in on the ground floor, but at the time that meant moving to Atlanta which I was not in a position to do. I could have been Wolf Kaplan!)
Turner was a big player in the free agent market; he had pitcher Andy Messersmith wear a uniform that read “Channel” with the numeral 17 to “advertise his TV station but that was quashed by the president of the NL. Turner also tried to manage the team. He lasted one game, stepping in for Dave Bristol who had to that point — May 11, 1977 — had “led” the Braves to a record of 8-21, which included a 16-game losing streak. But because MLB rules prohibit anyone who owns stock in the team from serving as a field manager, Turner’s career ended with the 2-1 loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Here’s his obituary from The New York Times.
Bobby Cox, who led the team to NL dominance for more than a decade, died today (May 9) at the age of 84. Here’s his obit from The Athletic.
The Braves struggled mightily until he assumed the managerial reins in 1991, taking the Braves from worst to first, losing to the Minnesota Twins in what is considered one of the most exciting World Series. Under Cox’s guidance, the Braves appeared in the post-season every year (except for the strike year of 1994) until 2006. After four years out of the running, the Braves returned to the playoffs one more time before Cox stepped down following the 2010 campaign.
It was actually Cox’s second go-around with the Braves: he piloted the team from 1978-81 with little success before moving on to the Toronto Blue Jays from 1982-85, leading them to a first-place finished in his final term. The Jays lost to the KC Royals in the ALCS that year.
He finished his career with a record of 2,504-2,001, fourth on the all-time list behind Connie Mack, Tony LaRussa, and John McGraw. Cox was elected to the Hall of Fame by the Expansion Era committee in 2014. He had played briefly for the NY Yankees in 1968-69, batting .225 in 220 games.
Turner published his memoir, Call Me Ted, written with Bill Burke in 2009. Lang Whitaker released In the Time of Bobby Cox: The Atlanta Braves, Their Manager, My Couch, Two Decades, and Me in 2011.
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Rooting for clothes?
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