Chipper, Glavine, others comment on Bobby Cox decision

From staff reports

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Current and former Braves

Chipper Jones: “I’ll believe it when I see it. Bobby’s as much of Atlanta Braves baseball as Skip Caray or Pete Van Wieren, more so, because he’s been the one constant through the entire run that we’ve had over the last 20 years. It’ll be a sad day when he leaves. … It’ll be a little bit of added incentive [next season], to send him out on a good note. … Bobby might be my only manager. We’ll see. If I have a good year, I will consider continuing to play, depending on who the manager is. [That’s] very important. … Obviously the way things are done around here may change. That could be good, could be bad. Guys around here are used to the way Bobby runs a camp, the way he runs a clubhouse, and the way he runs a game. And something different could be culture shock. … Just got to wait and see who the lucky soul is.”

Tom Glavine: "It'll be strange, no question about it, to look in the dugout and not see him in there. If there ever is such a thing as an end of an era, I think that would be the epitome of it. He's been such a constant and such a steadying force throughout the organization, really, from his position on the bench. Good luck to the guy who has to follow in his footsteps. It'll be tough for whoever steps in there. That's one of the great things this organization and this city had an opportunity to have. You don't typically get that kind of continuity very often and certainly not somebody of that caliber. The Atlanta Braves fans and the people in Atlanta should really come to appreciate what he's meant."

Brian McCann: “Having him back is great for us. The team we’ve got going into next season is a team that has a chance to really do some good things, and all of us in the clubhouse want him to be the guy who calls the shots. I think if next year is going to be his last year, we definitely want to send him out on a good note.”

Derek Lowe: “First of all, a guy like that, it’s like Joe Paterno — you let him leave when he wants to leave. But I also think, to go out and have a final year is good, to get whatever [appreciation that's going to come for him], and I also think it gives the organization a year to think about who they want to have take his spot. It’s not like, all of a sudden, ‘I’m retiring,’ and spring training’s in two months and it’s this mad scramble to hire his replacement.”

Peter Moylan: “He’s the only manager I’ve ever had, and from what I’ve heard, everybody around the league wants to play for him. … I wouldn’t have a career if it wasn’t for him, to be honest. He gave me the opportunity in ’06 to come up and prove that I could pitch at this level, after a mediocre year in Triple-A. And the faith that he showed in me in ’07 and then again this year, coming back from surgery — that’s something that you want to be able to pay back to him, but I don’t know how to do it except to go out there and try and pitch as best as I possibly can.”

Jair Jurrjens: “I think that maybe some guys are going to take a little more pride to give him at least one more run to the playoffs and maybe give him a chance to win a ring again. ... It’s going to be like [John] Smoltz and [Tom] Glavine, when Glavine left the first time and Smoltz left. It’s not the same clubhouse without them in there, because you’ve seen them for a lot of years. It’s strange. It’s strange.”

Martin Prado: “I’m glad that he’s coming back. He’s one of those guys who always supported me, supported my work.”

Nate McLouth: “He’s great to play for and it’s good to know I’ll be playing for him next year. …  He’s been the face of Braves baseball for a long time. When that changes, it’s going to certainly be weird.”

Brian Jordan: "The bottom line is, it's what Bobby wants to do, and I don't think anybody in the front office wanted to rush him out. They wanted him to make that decision. It's three years in a row not making it to the playoffs. I’m quite sure that put a little pressure on Bobby to make the right decision to him, to give it one more shot and hopefully go out on top. He knows he has the pitching staff in place now, a couple more adjustments this offseason and he sees himself possibly returning to the playoffs in his final year. He's going to give himself the best opportunity to go out on top as he can."

Javier Lopez: "Hands down the best manager I ever played for, a guy that really deserved respect from everybody. He earned that reputation as a great person with the players. There are a lot of managers out there who can be very arrogant with players, and yes players will play good, and yes they can manage a team very well, but if you ask the player ‘Do you like your manager?' they'll say, ‘I hate him.' That's not the case with Bobby. They love him. They enjoy playing for him. You don't want to let him down. He gives you all the freedom, all the chances to do what you want to do. And you want to repay that with playing hard and winning for him."

Leo Mazzone: "I think it's wonderful to keep him involved like that [as a consultant]. And he ain't going to like it, but he's going to get a farewell tour. I can hear him now saying ‘Aw, c'mon guys.' I can't even imagine him not being the manager of the Braves to be honest with you. I thought he would manage the Braves until he was 100. What a great ambassador for not only the Atlanta Braves but the game of baseball itself. He taught us all the right way to do it. Not just the strategy of it, but how to deal with people, your attitude at the ballpark every day, going about your business, doing your work, trusting your coaches, and everything was based on common sense. It was the perfect scenario for a lot of us, being with him for all those years. It doesn't get any better than that, and it never will."

Braves fans weigh in on AJC.com

“Bad move. Another mediocre season in 2010 is coming. Bank on it.” Commenter: RD

“Cox is one of the greatest managers to coach a baseball team, and I get sick of all the experts out there who love to second guess every move he makes. I would put his gut instincts for baseball up against any other manager in baseball. We’ll miss you Bobby!” Commenter: Ed from Woodstock

“Class move by the Braves for a manager who deserves to the chance to “retire” on his terms. Cox is truly respected throughout baseball by players, managers, owners, etc. Atlanta is fortunate to have him.” Commenter: Anne

“Bobby Cox is a great manager and a great human. He respects his players and coaches, probably too much, which is his only failing as a manager.” Commenter: UGA75

“I can guarantee that the Braves will spend 10 to 15 years before they find a replacement for Cox. You can count the really good managers on the fingers of one hand.” Commenter: Jerry

“There are 28 team owners who wish they would have had the success of the Braves under Bobby. And Bobby didn’t have Steinbrenner's unlimited pockets to work with.” Commenter: Marc

David O'Brien, Carroll Rogers