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| Baseballers of Lesser Note: Alex Cole | |
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| Tweet Topic Started: Oct 27 2010, 10:12 AM (775 Views) | |
| Erick Von Erich | Oct 27 2010, 10:12 AM Post #1 |
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I'm Big E and I tell it like it is
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Hallo there, and welcome to the sixth installment of (Professional) Baseballers of Lesser Note. In which we spotlight some of the distinguished gentlemen who have partaken in the professional gentleman's sport of baseball throughout the various eras encompassing the aforementioned sport. This week we look at Alex Cole. Posted Image What'd He Do? Career Stat Totals: 7 Seasons/ .280 BA/5 HR/ 117 RBI/ 286 Runs/ 148 SB What Can You Tell Us About Him? Most notable for his funky MC Hammer-ish glasses, Alex Cole was originally a prospect in the St. Louis Cardinals organization in the 80's. In 1990, the Cardinals traded him to the Padres. After a few games at Triple A Las Vegas, the Padres sent him to the Cleveland Indians in a trade for catcher Tom Lampkin. It looked like a steal for the eternally re-building Indians. Cole had an exciting 1990 MLB debut campaign, evoking comparisons to Willie Mays-Hayes. Batting at the top of the order he hit an even .300, swiped 40 bases, displayed great range in center field and finished 9th in Rookie of the Year balloting (coincidentally won by teammate Sandy Alomar, Jr). Cole's impressive range in center field led the Indians organization to move the outfield walls of Cleveland Stadium BACK a few feet for 1991. While he was a lefthanded hitter, he looked like the protypical CF/leadoff man. What Happened to Him? Cole still performed at a decent level, but the Indians acquired Kenny Lofton at the start of the 1991 season. Cole basically became expendable. The Pittsburgh Pirates were making thier 3rd straight NL East Pennant Run in 1992 and came calling in their eternal search for a leadoff man (an ongoing search that's been going on in the Burgh since Omar Moreno left town--- but THAT is another story). That year the Pirates had tried Kirk Gibson, Gary Redus and Cecil Espy as leadoff men; all with less than desirable results. So on July 4, the Pirates sent prospect Tony Mitchell to the Indians to acquire Cole. Cole had an immediate impact with the Pirates. In one of his first games (I believe it was against the Reds), Cole was at second base during a pick-off attempt. Cole scampered back to second, but the Reds misplayed the ball and it bounced into center field. The play was backed up, but Cole had already made it to homeplate and easily scored, without a throw. Manager Jim Leyland was still big on his platoon/situtational hitters gimmick and the left-handed hitting Cole was usually benched when the Pirates faced a leftie. Indeed, facing left handers was the biggest flaw in Cole. In 1990 he batted .250 against them, but that average dropped every year. Leyland's situational use of Cole continued in the playoffs as the Pirates once again drew the Atlanta Braves and their leftie combo of Steve Avery and Tom Glavine. However, Cole was once again the leadoff man in Game 7 of the NLCS against rightie John Smoltz and even scored the first run of the game. But the less said about that game, the better. It was Cole's final game with the Pirates, as they left him unprotected in the November '92 Expansion Draft and he was scooped up the newborn Colorado Rockies. With his defensive range, Cole was an important part of the Rockies' plans to play in cavernous Mile High Stadium. He was still a top-of-the-order guy, but found himself batting 2nd behind Eric Young. He also showed those flashes of speed. In one game, he was caught in a pickle between 1st and 2nd. Cole successfully baited the fielder in close with a slow jog, to within 6 inches. Then Cole kicked it into gear, quickly separated from the fielder and made it safely to second base. Cole set a career high in Runs Scored with 68 that year, but batted only .143 against left handers. The Rockies had no real long-term use for him, so he was left to leave as a free agent at the end of the season. There were also rumors (mostly among the Denver press) that Cole would get offended whenever someone asked about his goofy looking glasses. They WERE odd...so why he wore those crazy specs; not Chris Sabo googles or contacts; still remains a mystery. Cole signed with the Twins for 1994, but still couldn't hit lefties. Unless you count .104 a success. He finished out his MLB career in 1996 with a cup of coffee for the Red Sox. He faced a lefthander only 7 times that year....all without a hit. Aging and with the proven knock of "Can't Hit Lefties", Cole drew no interest from MLB teams after 1996. He continued on in the independent leagues until 2001. Splits aren't available for those games, but it's safe to say he still couldn't hit lefties. If Cole had been able to hit lefthanders, it's entirely possible that he would've stayed in Cleveland and taken Kenny Lofton's place in the Indians teams of the 90's. Baseball's full of more "what ifs" than Marvel Comics, but Alex Cole and his wacky glasses were a colorful one. Look for (Professional) Baseballers of Lesser Note on Tuesdays/Wednesdays! |
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5:32 PM Jul 10