Cecil Cooper facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Cecil Cooper
Cooper with the Boston Red Sox in 1976
First baseman / Manager
Born: (1949-12-20) December 20, 1949 (age 75) Brenham, Texas, U.S.
Batted: Left Threw: Left
debut
September 8, 1971, for the Boston Red Sox
Last appearance
July 12, 1987, for the Milwaukee Brewers
MLB statistics
Batting average	.298
Hits	2,192
Home runs	241
Runs batted in	1,125
Managerial record	171–170
Winning %	.501
Teams
As player Boston Red Sox (1971–1976) Milwaukee Brewers (1977–1987) As manager Houston Astros (2007–2009) As coach Milwaukee Brewers (2002) Houston Astros (2005–2007)
Career highlights and awards
5× All-Star (1979, 1980, 1982, 1983, 1985) 2× Gold Glove Award (1979, 1980) 3× Silver Slugger Award (1980–1982) Roberto Clemente Award (1983) 2× AL RBI leader (1980, 1983) Milwaukee Brewers Wall of Honor American Family Field Walk of Fame

Cecil Celester Cooper (born December 20, 1949) is a former American professional baseball player, coach, and manager. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a first baseman from 1971 to 1987. He played for the Boston Red Sox and the Milwaukee Brewers.

Cooper was part of the Red Sox team that won the 1975 American League pennant. He became very well known as a member of the Brewers. With the Brewers, he was chosen as an All-Star player five times. He also led the American League in RBIs (Runs Batted In) twice.

During his playing career, Cooper was a left-handed hitter. He had a .298 batting average. He also won three Silver Slugger Awards and two Gold Glove Awards. He played in the World Series in 1975 with the Red Sox and in 1982 with the Brewers. However, his teams did not win the championship in either year. In 1983, Cooper received the special Roberto Clemente Award.

After he stopped playing, Cooper worked as a sports agent. Later, he returned to baseball to work for the Brewers as a coach. He also managed a minor league team. From 2007 to 2009, he was the manager for the Houston Astros. Cooper was honored by the Brewers in 2002 and 2014.

Cecil Cooper's Playing Career

Cecil Cooper was born in Brenham, Texas. He went to Brenham High School and then to Prairie View A&M University. The Boston Red Sox chose him in the 1968 Major League Baseball draft. He made his first appearance in the major leagues with the Red Sox in 1972 when he was 21 years old.

On December 6, 1976, the Red Sox traded Cooper to the Milwaukee Brewers. In return, the Red Sox received George Scott and Bernie Carbo.

How Cooper Improved His Batting

After joining the Brewers, Cooper changed how he stood when he batted. He made his stance look like that of another famous player, Rod Carew. Cooper leaned far back on his left foot and kept his arms partly stretched out. This new way of standing helped him hit pitches on the outside part of the plate to the opposite field. He could still hit inside pitches with power. This change worked very well for him. Cooper's batting average with the Brewers was .302, which was better than his .283 average with Boston.

All-Star Seasons and Awards

Cooper was chosen as an All-Star five times. He batted .300 or more every year from 1977 to 1983. His best season was in 1980. That year, he hit a career-high .352. He finished second in the American League for batting average. He also led the league in RBIs with 122 and in total bases with 335.

In 1983, Cooper hit .307 with 30 home runs. He also led the league with a career-high 126 RBIs. He had three seasons where he got more than 200 hits (in 1980, 1982, and 1983). He finished fifth in the American League MVP vote. He was also named the Brewers' team MVP in 1980, 1982, and 1983.

Cooper was also a great defensive first baseman. He won the Gold Glove Award twice (in 1979 and 1980). He also won the Silver Slugger Award for three years in a row (1980–1982). Only one other Brewer, Ryan Braun, has done that.

Milwaukee Brewers Records

Cecil Cooper played 11 seasons with the Brewers. This included playing in the 1982 World Series. Cooper holds the Milwaukee franchise record for hits in a season, with 219 in 1980. He also held the team record for RBIs in a season with 126. This record was broken by Prince Fielder in 2009. At that time, Cooper was managing the Houston Astros.

By 2011, Cooper was one of only three Brewers players to have four seasons with 100 or more RBIs. The other two were Prince Fielder and Ryan Braun. In 1983, he received the Roberto Clemente Award. In 2002, he was added to the Brewers Walk of Fame.

The Brewers released Cooper in the middle of the 1987 season. In his 17-season career, Cooper had a .298 batting average. He had 2192 hits, 1012 runs, 415 doubles, 241 home runs, and 1125 runs batted in. He played in 1896 games.

Cecil Cooper's Post-Playing Career

After his playing days, Cooper started working for his sports agent. He eventually began to represent his own clients. These included famous players like Randy Johnson, Wade Boggs, and Joe Girardi. After working as an agent for several years, he was asked to return to the Brewers. He became the Director of Player Development, also known as the "farm director," for three years.

In 2002, he became the bench coach for Milwaukee. He also managed the Triple-A team, the Indianapolis Indians, in 2003 and 2004. He returned to coaching in the Major Leagues in 2005. He was the bench coach for the Houston Astros.

Managing the Houston Astros

Cooper as coach for the Houston Astros in 2007

On August 27, 2007, Cecil Cooper was named the temporary manager of the Astros. This happened after the previous manager, Phil Garner, was fired. Cooper became the first African American field manager in the history of the Astros. When Cooper took over, the Astros had a record of 58 wins and 73 losses. Cooper had managed at the Triple-A level before. He led the Astros to 15 wins and 16 losses for the rest of the year. Their total record for 2007 was 73 wins and 89 losses. On September 28, 2007, Cooper officially became the Astros' 16th manager.

The 2008 season had its ups and downs for the team. A key player, Carlos Lee, broke his pinky finger in August and missed the rest of the season. The Astros were 44 wins and 51 losses at the All-Star Break. However, they played much better in the second half. By August 19, they had won 20 of 31 games. They had two different winning streaks of eight games in August.

In September 2008, Hurricane Ike caused problems for the team. Games that were supposed to be played in Houston were moved to Milwaukee. The Astros lost a game where Carlos Zambrano pitched a no-hitter against them. The Astros finished the 2008 season with 86 wins and 75 losses. They were four games behind the Milwaukee Brewers for a playoff spot. Cooper later said that the hurricane affected the team a lot.

At the start of the 2009 season, Cooper's contract was extended for 2010. However, he was fired on September 21, 2009. This happened with 13 games left in the season. The team was on a seven-game losing streak and had a record of 70 wins and 79 losses. The team had some issues and star players like Lance Berkman and Roy Oswalt did not play as well as expected. The Astros finished with a losing record for the second time in three years. Cooper's overall record as manager was 171 wins and 170 losses.

Personal Life

Cecil Cooper was elected to the Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame in 2007. He lives in Katy, Texas, with his wife, Octavia. He has three adult daughters named Kelly, Brittany, and Tori.

Managerial Record

See Also