I was going to wait and put this in next week's TheFletch, but I couldn't wait. Yesterday as I drove home from the gym, Mike Bell on 790 The Zone was railing on and on about Bobby Cox, saying it wasn't his fault, but then saying that in New York, he wouldn't have had 20 years, and a change would have been made a LONG time ago.
Bell at one point said that in New York or Boston or Philly, he'd have been shown the door 10 or 15 years ago.
REALLY? I doubt it.
Let's look at a calendar, shall we? 15 years ago was 1995. AKA the year the Braves won the World Series. You'd have fired him after he won you a World Series? Then he went to the series the next season (and likely should have won, but his bullpen blew that game when Mark Wohlers hung the slider). And if you fire him after 1997 when the Marlins win the NLCS, then Cox doesn't take you to the World Series in 1999. Do you think you get there that year?
OK, so if you'd have fired him 10 years ago, you are saying you'd have fired him ONE YEAR after he went to the World Series? Wow. That is cold-blooded.
I will give you perhaps wanting to make a change after the 2003 season, for example, when the team had YET ANOTHER early exit from the postseason. Or I'll give you after the 2007 season when the team missed the playoffs for the second straight year.
But we're talking three more seasons, one of which he went to the playoffs. I am not disagreeing that a change couldn't have been made LOOKING BACK when hindsight is 20/20, but to say 10 or 15 years ago is just ridiculous. 7 years ago...6 years ago... 4 years ago...3, 2, perhaps. Next time look at the date before you just throw out a number.
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