Bobby 'Mr. Baseball' Bragan dies at 92

FORT WORTH, Texas - Bobby Bragan, nicknamed "Mr. Baseball," died Thursday night. He was 92.

Bragan became a part of Fort Worth baseball in the 1940s when he joined the Fort Worth Cats as a player/manager, and his outgoing personality, positive outlook on life and deep passion for baseball kept him in the city's spotlight.

David Hatchett witnessed baseball fans' appreciation for Bragan through Hatchett's 15 years hosting sports talk shows on WBAP and eight years working for the Cats. Hatchett said Bragan's popularity played a significant role in the return of the Cats in 2001.

"It's a sad day for baseball fans and sports fans in the area," Hatchett said. "He meant so much to the sport of baseball and Cats fans. I always loved being around him.

"He was a great storyteller. He told great baseball stories and jokes. I saw that first hand doing talk shows on WBAP. People just loved calling up talking baseball with him."

Robert Randall Bragan was born in Birmingham, Ala., on Oct. 30, 1917. He played parts of seven seasons from 1940-48 for the Philadelphia Phillies and the Brooklyn Dodgers, playing mostly shortstop and catcher and batting .240 for his career. He missed the 1945 and '46 seasons to serve in the U.S. military.

In 1947, he made his only plate appearance in a World Series game, delivering a pinch-hit double for the Dodgers.

During that season, he had been critical of Dodgers front office executive Branch Rickey's decision to have Jackie Robinson break baseball's color barrier. But Bragan changed course after one road trip with Robinson, telling Rickey that he considered it an honor to be Robinson's teammate.

Rickey maintained a special interest in Bragan and in 1948 offered Bragan the opportunity to be a player/manager for the Cats, the Dodgers' Class AA team. Bragan remained with the team through 1952.

The Cats twice won Texas League regular-season championships under Bragan.

Bragan would go to manage seven seasons in the major leagues with the Pittsburgh Pirates, Cleveland Indians and Milwaukee/Atlanta Braves, compiling a 443-478 record.

Along the way, he managed future Hall of Fame players such as Hank Aaron, Roberto Clemente, Bill Mazeroski, Warren Spahn and Eddie Mathews.

Fort Worth had become Bragan's home. He invested in the area through his Bobby Bragan Youth Foundation, which was established in 1991 and annually awards first-year college tuition scholarships to local eighth-graders as a way to encourage them to continue their education.

"It's an absolute, tremendous loss for the entire Dallas/Fort Worth community. I refer to him as the Dallas/Fort Worth ambassador. He was a friend to everybody," said Chuck Morgan, the Texas Rangers public address announcer and longtime friend. "We were good friends."