His was not the only paunch among the fraternity of retired Braves who gathered at Turner Field for this past weekend's annual alumni reunion.
But still, the middle-aged man claiming to be former player John Sullivan "definitely did not look like he ever played the game," said Craig Skok, a reliever for the Braves from 1978-79. "He was very much out of shape."
Sullivan's bona fides were further challenged during Saturday's alumni softball game. Watching him warm up, Andy Ashby, a starting pitcher for the Braves in 2000, remarked, "Dude, you've really gone downhill fast."
"We figured he must've had some health problems," said former Braves reliever Jose Alvarez ('81-'82, ‘88-'89), who estimated Sullivan's bat speed at "no more than 30 mph."
It turns out Sullivan, wearing uniform No. 8, was never a Brave. The organization declined comment, but those present at alumni weekend told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution it appears the man received an invitation intended for former Braves bullpen coach John Sullivan, who spent two years in Atlanta before following Bobby Cox to Toronto in 1982.
"I knew he wasn't coming," said the longtime Braves manager of his former coach.
Cox, who, according to Alvarez, never forgets those who played under him, said he was embarrassed he didn't know the mystery man.
Finally, he asked Greg McMichael, the retired Braves reliever who now serves as the team's liaison to alumni, "Who is this guy?" McMichael told him it was John Sullivan. "I said, ‘That's not John Sullivan. I think you've been had,'" Cox told the AJC.
McMichael could not be reached for comment.
The faux Sullivan arrived in Atlanta on Friday, flying on the team's dime. Food and board were also gratis. Alvarez said the impostor attended that afternoon's luncheon honoring John Smoltz, whose number was being retired. Alvarez said Sullivan even signed autographs for fans after the ceremony.
The ex-Braves hurler said he initially gave the impostor the benefit of the doubt because he had seen him last August when Cox's No. 6 was retired.
"I knew he wasn't John Sullivan the coach because I played when he was here," Alvarez said. "I figured maybe he was John Sullivan's son."
Nope, said the impostor, he was a former player. When asked when he played, Alvarez said the man, who appeared to be in his mid-50s, responded, "1986 or 1987, I'm not sure."
"Now I didn't have a long career and I can tell you I remember every day I played in the big leagues," said Alvarez, who pitched for the Braves' minor league affiliates in Greenville and Richmond in 1986-'87. "And when you're in the minors, you know who's ahead of you."
Sullivan's story continued to unravel. He said he played in the minors in Greensboro, but the Braves never had an affiliate there.
That night, Sullivan went out for drinks with some of the real ex-Braves.
Confronted by Ashby, Alvarez said Sullivan finally came clean. "He was real worried," said the former reliever.
By Sunday morning, the impostor was gone, but he didn't leave empty handed.
"He got most of our cell phone numbers," said Alvarez, who now resides in Greenville, S.C. "He invited me to appear in a golf tournament."
Atlanta police said the Braves did not contact them about charging the impostor, whose identity remains a mystery.
One thing's for certain: He never played baseball.
"He kept us laughing the whole time," Skok said. "You've got to hand it to him. He almost pulled it off."
Meanwhile, the real John Sullivan is alive and well and living in Dansville, N.Y. The 71-year-old former catcher, a coach for the Blue Jays until retiring 1993, was informed Monday by a reporter about the impostor.
"That's pretty funny," Sullivan said. "My wife will get a kick out of that."
--Staff writer Carroll Rogers contributed to this article.
