[SelzShoes]

William Cox was the happiest man in America. Three years prior he had outbid John Kelly Jr to acquire the Philadelphia Philles, and now they were finally coming together as a club. As lead investor, he called the shots and answered to no one. He was 35 and living the American Dream.

Players had been filing into the sleepy Hialeah complex for the past few days. Cox had moved training to this area because of the proximity of the Horse and Dog tracks. The racing season would not be in full swing until June, but there would still be plenty of action to be had on and off the tracks.

Howard Bruce, the club’s director of Physical Fitness and Cox’s high school track coach, approached his former pupil. “Looking good in that uniform, Billy.” Even though he was in Cox’s employ, the coach still couldn’t help but be informal.

To the untrained observer, Cox appeared every inch the athlete in his Phillie jersey. “Fit and young, it is the only way to be.” The owner did a quick mock calestinic routine to show he was ready for spring. “When is the morning workout scheduled?”

”Well, Billy, hasn’t the manager posted the schedule or anything like that?”

“Oh s—t! I haven’t hired one yet.” Turning to his personal secretary Dorothy Massey, he asked, “Has Chuck Klein reported yet?” Miss Massey flipped through the pages of her notebook to affirm what she thought she knew.

”Yes, he is in bungalow A-10.” Chuck Klein, once a feared slugger was not expected to make the club. Like many veterans who saw the war take away the end of their career, Klein received a courtesy invitation to Spring Training. A chance to spend a few days in camp, remind fans of the good old days, and then bow out respectfully on ‘their’ terms.

“Well, that’s taken care of then,” Cox triumphantly crowed.

Massey and Bruce gave each other a double take. “Shouldn’t you ask him to be sure he wants the job?” Mr. Bruce finally asked.

Cox half-suppressed a giggle, “What player doesn’t want to manage? Dorothy, write a quick release for the press. The fans back in Philly will love this move.”