Lee Elia Passes Away: His Rant Will Last Forever

The baseball world lost Lee Elia today. Elia, a former player, coach, manager, and executive, died at the age of 87. He is best known for his ties to Philadelphia, both as a native son and for his time on their coaching staff as a coach and manager. The Phillies announced his passing this afternoon but gave no additional details. Elia’s major league playing career was brief. He is better known for his post-playing career as a coach and manager. He is best known for his all-time rant as the manager of the Chicago Cubs, a tirade that will live on beyond him, cementing Elia’s legacy in the baseball world forever.

Lee Elia Leaves Profanity-Laden Legacy

Lee Elia passed away this afternoon at the age of 87. The sad announcement came from the Philadelphia Phillies, the team with which he was most synonymous, and in the city where he was from. Elia spent 15 seasons in the Phillies organization. Seven of them as players, six as coaches, and two as managers. While Philadelphia and the Phillies claim Elia, his most famous work came with the Chicago Cubs.

Elia spent a little more than two seasons with the Chicago Cubs as a player, breaking through to the big leagues for the 1968 season. He then came back to the organization as a manager for nearly two seasons in 1982 and 1983, and was fired midway through the ’83 season. Elia’s total record with the Chicago Cubs was 127-158. As the team struggled, tensions rose, and Elia wasn’t afraid to let off some steam.

The Rant Heard Round the World

The fiery manager unleashed a tirade following a loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers on April 29, 1983. In response to fans throwing trash at Keith Moreland and Larry Bowa as they left the field, Lee Elia went off to a small group of reporters postgame. Not knowing that one had a microphone, Lee Elia belted:

“I’ll tell you one f***** thing—I hope we get f***** hotter than s*** just to stuff it up them three thousand f***** people that show up every f***** day. Because if they’re the real Chicago f***** fans, they can kiss my f***** a**, right downtown, and print it! ‘They’re really, really behind you around here.’ My f***** ass!”

“What … what the f*** am I supposed to do? Go out there and let my f***** players get destroyed every day, and be quiet about it? For the f***** nickel and dime people that show up? The m************ don’t even work! That’s why they’re out at the f***** game! They ought to get a f***** job and find out what it’s like to go out and earn a f***** living. Eighty-five percent of the f***** world is working. The other fifteen come out here.”

“A f***** playground for the c**********. Rip them m************! Rip those country c**********, like the f***** players! We’ve got guys bustin’ their f***** asses and those f***** people boo … and that’s the Cubs? My f***** ass! They talk about the great f***** support that the players get around here, I haven’t seen it this f***** year!”

This all-time rant from Lee Elia was observed by just four reporters. Robert Marcus, Joel Behrig, Don Friske, and the man with the sole microphone in the room, Les Grobstein. Thanks to Grobstein, this rant can live on beyond Elia. His legacy in Philadelphia is as a great baseball man who loved ‘The City of Brotherly Love’, but his legacy in ‘The Windy City’ and around the baseball community will forever be tied to this historical tirade.

Final Thoughts

Years later, at a charity event, Elia said of the rant, “At the moment, it was very, very difficult. But you sit here and you’re 70 years old and you look at it and say to yourself, ‘You know, yea, it was unfortunate,’ but for crying out loud we’re human beings and you make mistakes sometimes.”

Lee Elia, a baseball lifer, Philadelphia icon, and orator of one of the greatest rants of all-tim,e is dead at 87. May he rest in peace.