What Does The Fox Say? The Debut of Homegrown Coach Bob Passell (2063-01)

[woods]

Bob Passell's BBA career was very unremarkable. You're forgiven if you don't know who he is, and I'd honestly be more concerned if you do know who he is.

He played one full season as Rockville's backup catcher, and portions of two other seasons as the backup to the backup catcher.

But in an era of Rockville baseball that is best left forgotten, Passell brought valuable leadership. He spent a lot of time on the bench, so he learned to use the power of observation. From his corner in the dugout, he would watch opponents, pick up their tendencies, and see if he could give his team an edge.

One game, he noticed Edmonton's third baseman, Ray Hoskins, coming up short running out a grounder. He gathered the hitters due up next inning for the Pikemen and told them, "Hoskins isn't moving around too well. Let's hit him while it's fresh, hammer him with some bunts down the line." They did, and it led to a run-scoring rally.

Another time, Passell noticed pitchers taking advantage of then-rookie Octávio Martínez's propensity to swing at literally anything. They would always start him off with a breaking ball in the dirt, trying to coax a first pitch swing-and-miss. Passell showed Martínez some video, and worked with him in the cage to recognize those pitches. Before long, Martínez had become more patient, and was getting ahead in the count a lot more often. Now he's a Silk candidate, sporting a .944 OPS, and a big part of that is due to Passell's guidance.

Teammates would always joke to Passell, why not become a coach already? After all, he was already doing that job, seemingly more often than he played catcher. When the organization released him in 2060, they offered him a role as a Special Advisor, but Passell wanted to take some time to see if he wanted to continue his baseball career.

Passell phoned around, but couldn't land another job as a player. Luckily, Cape Fear kept his parking space reserved for him. As of 2063, the team has announced, Passell will be the manager of the Rookie League Aurora Bullfrogs.

"I believe managing has always been my calling," Passell said. "I was never the best player, but I've picked up a lot of things, and I'm ready to help guide the next generation."

[BaseClogger]

This is a way to get a young coach and I like it!