AllFreeNovel
Share Us
8
Donald "Skip" Parsons stared blankly at the plaque on the wall of his office bearing his name. He spit a stream of tobacco juice into a water bottle that was empty with the exception of a tissue wadded up at the bottom to absorb a steady stream of nervous energy.
When he would gaze at the 1994 Minor League Manager of the Year Award he sometimes would chuckle to himself that the name on the plaque, Donald S. Parsons, was never used when addressing him that entire season.
Donald Parsons was only known as 'Skip' in the ballpark. Baseball managers were often referred to as "Skip” or “Skipper” because their job was much like that as a boat captain. A good skipper knew how to train his crew and motivate them to perform as a team. Skip Parsons was one of the most underrated the game had ever seen for the better part of two decades.
Skip was in his twelfth year as manager of the Chicago Cubs. After spending 18 seasons as a minor league coach in the system that drafted him in 1973, he was finally given the chance to be a major leaguer, something he had never done as a player.
They say that catchers often make the best managers, and Skip Parsons knew shortly after his arrival in the minor leagues that his only chance of ever being a big leaguer was as a coach. He bounced around between A and AA ball for five seasons before being cut loose. The only reason he had made it five years in the minors, to begin with, was the fact that he knew how to call a great game behind the plate, and the pitchers loved him.
A career .189 hitter in the minors, Skip knew when he was called in to speak to management during spring training of 1978 that his playing days were over. He figured he'd try to catch on with a high school team somewhere as a coach and make ends meet.
Management, however, was about to offer Skip Parsons a job that would change his life forever.
When he walked out of that meeting into the hot Florida sun Skip had a mix of emotions that he had never felt before. He was still sad over the fact that his playing days were over, but was giddy at the same time over the fact that the Chicago Cubs had thought enough of him to offer him a job as a catching instructor for their Rookie league team.
Known as a player’s coach who could also run a tight ship, the Cubs held on to him year after year, eventually making him a minor league manager in 1986. After managing the AAA Iowa Cubs to the championship in 1994, Skip got the nod to finally move up to the big leagues.
In his first season, the Cubs were atrocious. Skip almost considered quitting because he wasn't used to dealing with spoiled players who were usually more concerned about their next contract than winning ball games.
That winter he told management that he wanted to have more control over personnel moves so he could build a winner with his guys. Not wanting to lose another manager, the Cubs brass decided to grant his wish on one condition: Win or you're gone. They gave him a three-year timetable to build a winner.
