Nobody Wears Red

I was the third base coach for the Dodgers from 1973-76.  In 1975 we lost to the Cincinnati Reds by 20 games, and in ’76 we lost to the Reds by 10 games.  In 1977 I became Manager of the Dodgers, and during that offseason I went all around the country telling everybody that the Reds would never beat the Dodgers again.

When I got back to LA, AL Campanis called me in to his office and told me that I can’t talk that way because the Reds are a great ballclub and their team is stacked with future Hall of Famers.

I said, “Al, I said it because I believe it, and I want my players to believe it.”

When I was coaching it frosted me to see our guys lose to the Reds like that.  I believed we had a better ball club.  For Spring Training in ’77 I made a few new rules:

1. Nobody wears the color red in our clubhouse

2. I hate the Reds and so do you

3. You’ve go tot believe that you are a better ballclub

We went on the win the National League pennant, and in doing so beat the Reds by 10 games for a 20-game swing.

Tonight we start a three-game series against the Reds in Cincinnati, and I hope the tradition we set in the late 70′s continues today.