William B. Cox
Encyclopedia
William D. Cox was an American
businessman and sports executive.
alumnus and wealthy lumber broker, Cox first entered the sports world when he headed a group that bought the New York Yankees
of the third American Football League
in 1941. After changing the team's name to the New York Americans
, Cox's first major splash was signing Heisman Trophy
winner Tom Harmon
and complete a backfield tandem with John Kimbrough
. Soon afterward, Cox was named league president as well. He had ambitious plans for the Yankees, but the outbreak of World War II
forced the league to shut down. As it turned out, it never returned. He also supplied the pilings used to reinforce the Panama Canal
during the war.
of Major League Baseball
's National League
. Financially strapped owner Gerald Nugent
had been forced to sell the franchise back to the league after needing an advance from the league just to go to spring training in . The league then sold the franchise to Cox. At only 33 years, he was the youngest owner in baseball.
Rumors have long abounded that Bill Veeck
was ready to buy the Phillies from Nugent, but Baseball Commissioner
Kenesaw Mountain Landis
and National League President Ford Frick
derailed those plans when they heard Veeck wanted to stock the Phillies with stars from the Negro Leagues. According to this story, Landis and Frick forced Nugent to give up control of the franchise to the National League, which then sold it to Cox. However, this account is arguably false based on evidence of the time; notably, Philadelphia's black press never mentioned anything about a sale to Veeck.
At the time Cox took over, the Phillies had been the dregs of the National League for a quarter century; they had finished above .500 only once since . This was at least in part because the team's owners had been unwilling or unable to spend the money necessary to build a winner. Cox, however, was not afraid to spend what it took to get the Phillies out of the cellar. He significantly increased the team's payroll, and devoted significant resources to player development (including the farm system) for the first time in the history of the franchise. He also hired Bucky Harris
, who had won two pennants and one World Series
with the Washington Senators
, as manager.
However, Cox was a very hands-on owner. He'd played baseball at Yale, and still thought of himself as a star athlete. Believing the team needed to be better conditioned, he hired his high school track coach, Harold Bruce, as team trainer. Cox even suited up for workouts, and frequently showed up at the clubhouse before and after games. All of this grated on Harris, and when he protested against Cox's interference, Cox fired him on July 27 at a press conference--without bothering to tell Harris first. The players threatened to go on strike in protest, but Harris urged them to drop those plans. However, the next day, Harris dropped a bombshell at his hotel room in Philadelphia--he had evidence that Cox was betting on his own team. When Commissioner
Kenesaw Mountain Landis
got wind of Harris' charges, he launched an immediate investigation. Despite this, the Phillies showed signs of respectability for the first time in years. They finished 64-90--a healthy 22-game improvement from 1942--and got out of the cellar for the first time in five years. The long-beleaguered Phillies fans appreciated what Cox was trying to do; the Phillies had their best attendance since . At the time of Harris' firing, the Phillies had already won 38 games--just four fewer than they had won all of the previous season.
Initially, Cox denied any wrongdoing, but conceded that some of his business associates bet on the Phillies. As the investigation progressed, Cox changed his story and admitted making some "sentimental" bets on the Phillies. He claimed, however, that he didn't know it was against the rules. This made no difference to Landis, who suspended Cox indefinitely on November 23. Cox immediately resigned as team president, but appealed Landis' ruling two weeks later. At a December 4 hearing, Harris testified that he'd heard Cox's secretary asking about the odds for a game between the Phillies and Brooklyn Dodgers
. When Harris asked, "Do you mean to tell me Mr. Cox is betting on baseball?" the secretary replied that it was common knowledge in the Phillies office. On the basis of this and other evidence, Landis made the suspension permanent--thus making Cox the first non-player to be banned from baseball by Landis.
Cox retired to other business interests and died in Mount Kisco, New York
in 1989.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
businessman and sports executive.
New York Yankees (AFL III)
A Yale UniversityYale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
alumnus and wealthy lumber broker, Cox first entered the sports world when he headed a group that bought the New York Yankees
New York Yankees (1940 AFL)
The New York Yankees of the third American Football League was the third professional American football team competing under that name. It is unrelated to the Yankees of the first AFL , the Yankees of the second AFL, and the Yankees of the All America Football Conference...
of the third American Football League
American Football League (1940)
American Football League, also known as the AFL III to distinguish it from earlier organizations of that name, was a major professional American football league that operated from 1940-1941...
in 1941. After changing the team's name to the New York Americans
New York Americans
The New York Americans were a professional ice hockey team based in New York, New York from 1925 to 1942. They were the third expansion team in the history of the National Hockey League and the second to play in the United States. The team never won the Stanley Cup, but reached the semifinals...
, Cox's first major splash was signing Heisman Trophy
Heisman Trophy
The Heisman Memorial Trophy Award , is awarded annually to the player deemed the most outstanding player in collegiate football. It was created in 1935 as the Downtown Athletic Club trophy and renamed in 1936 following the death of the Club's athletic director, John Heisman The Heisman Memorial...
winner Tom Harmon
Tom Harmon
Thomas Dudley Harmon was a star player in American college football, a sports broadcaster, and patriarch of a family of American actors...
and complete a backfield tandem with John Kimbrough
John Kimbrough
John Kimbrough was a college athlete, a member of the Texas Legislature, the star of two western movies and a rancher. His older brother Frank Kimbrough served as head football coach at Baylor and West Texas A&M.-Football:...
. Soon afterward, Cox was named league president as well. He had ambitious plans for the Yankees, but the outbreak of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
forced the league to shut down. As it turned out, it never returned. He also supplied the pilings used to reinforce the Panama Canal
Panama Canal
The Panama Canal is a ship canal in Panama that joins the Atlantic Ocean and the Pacific Ocean and is a key conduit for international maritime trade. Built from 1904 to 1914, the canal has seen annual traffic rise from about 1,000 ships early on to 14,702 vessels measuring a total of 309.6...
during the war.
Philadelphia Phillies
In , Cox bought the Philadelphia PhilliesPhiladelphia Phillies
The Philadelphia Phillies are a Major League Baseball team. They are the oldest continuous, one-name, one-city franchise in all of professional American sports, dating to 1883. The Phillies are a member of the Eastern Division of Major League Baseball's National League...
of Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
's National League
National League
The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League , is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball, and the world's oldest extant professional team sports league. Founded on February 2, 1876, to replace the National Association of Professional...
. Financially strapped owner Gerald Nugent
Gerald Nugent
Gerald Nugent was the owner of the Philadelphia Phillies baseball team of the National League from through .A leather goods and shoe merchant, Nugent married longtime Phillies secretary Mae Mallen in 1925. Longtime Phillies owner William Baker died in 1930, leaving half of his estate to Mallen...
had been forced to sell the franchise back to the league after needing an advance from the league just to go to spring training in . The league then sold the franchise to Cox. At only 33 years, he was the youngest owner in baseball.
Rumors have long abounded that Bill Veeck
Bill Veeck
William Louis Veeck, Jr. , also known as "Sport Shirt Bill", was a native of Chicago, Illinois, and a franchise owner and promoter in Major League Baseball. He was best known for his publicity stunts to raise attendance. Veeck was at various times the owner of the Cleveland Indians, St. Louis...
was ready to buy the Phillies from Nugent, but Baseball Commissioner
Baseball Commissioner
The Commissioner of Baseball is the chief executive of Major League Baseball and its associated minor leagues. Under the direction of the Commissioner, the Office of the Commissioner of Baseball hires and maintains the sport's umpiring crews, and negotiates marketing, labor, and television contracts...
Kenesaw Mountain Landis
Kenesaw Mountain Landis
Kenesaw Mountain Landis was an American jurist who served as a federal judge from 1905 to 1922 and as the first Commissioner of Baseball from 1920 until his death...
and National League President Ford Frick
Ford Frick
Ford Christopher Frick was an American sportswriter and executive who served as president of the National League from to and as the third Commissioner of Major League Baseball from 1951 to . He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1970...
derailed those plans when they heard Veeck wanted to stock the Phillies with stars from the Negro Leagues. According to this story, Landis and Frick forced Nugent to give up control of the franchise to the National League, which then sold it to Cox. However, this account is arguably false based on evidence of the time; notably, Philadelphia's black press never mentioned anything about a sale to Veeck.
At the time Cox took over, the Phillies had been the dregs of the National League for a quarter century; they had finished above .500 only once since . This was at least in part because the team's owners had been unwilling or unable to spend the money necessary to build a winner. Cox, however, was not afraid to spend what it took to get the Phillies out of the cellar. He significantly increased the team's payroll, and devoted significant resources to player development (including the farm system) for the first time in the history of the franchise. He also hired Bucky Harris
Bucky Harris
Stanley Raymond "Bucky" Harris was a Major League Baseball player, manager and executive. In 1975, the Veterans Committee elected Harris, as a manager, to the Baseball Hall of Fame.-Biography:...
, who had won two pennants and one World Series
World Series
The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball, played between the American League and National League champions since 1903. The winner of the World Series championship is determined through a best-of-seven playoff and awarded the Commissioner's Trophy...
with the Washington Senators
Minnesota Twins
The Minnesota Twins are a professional baseball team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. They play in the Central Division of Major League Baseball's American League. The team is named after the Twin Cities area of Minneapolis and St. Paul. They played in Metropolitan Stadium from 1961 to 1981 and the...
, as manager.
However, Cox was a very hands-on owner. He'd played baseball at Yale, and still thought of himself as a star athlete. Believing the team needed to be better conditioned, he hired his high school track coach, Harold Bruce, as team trainer. Cox even suited up for workouts, and frequently showed up at the clubhouse before and after games. All of this grated on Harris, and when he protested against Cox's interference, Cox fired him on July 27 at a press conference--without bothering to tell Harris first. The players threatened to go on strike in protest, but Harris urged them to drop those plans. However, the next day, Harris dropped a bombshell at his hotel room in Philadelphia--he had evidence that Cox was betting on his own team. When Commissioner
Commissioner of Baseball
The Commissioner of Baseball is the chief executive of Major League Baseball and its associated minor leagues. Under the direction of the Commissioner, the Office of the Commissioner of Baseball hires and maintains the sport's umpiring crews, and negotiates marketing, labor, and television contracts...
Kenesaw Mountain Landis
Kenesaw Mountain Landis
Kenesaw Mountain Landis was an American jurist who served as a federal judge from 1905 to 1922 and as the first Commissioner of Baseball from 1920 until his death...
got wind of Harris' charges, he launched an immediate investigation. Despite this, the Phillies showed signs of respectability for the first time in years. They finished 64-90--a healthy 22-game improvement from 1942--and got out of the cellar for the first time in five years. The long-beleaguered Phillies fans appreciated what Cox was trying to do; the Phillies had their best attendance since . At the time of Harris' firing, the Phillies had already won 38 games--just four fewer than they had won all of the previous season.
Initially, Cox denied any wrongdoing, but conceded that some of his business associates bet on the Phillies. As the investigation progressed, Cox changed his story and admitted making some "sentimental" bets on the Phillies. He claimed, however, that he didn't know it was against the rules. This made no difference to Landis, who suspended Cox indefinitely on November 23. Cox immediately resigned as team president, but appealed Landis' ruling two weeks later. At a December 4 hearing, Harris testified that he'd heard Cox's secretary asking about the odds for a game between the Phillies and Brooklyn Dodgers
Los Angeles Dodgers
The Los Angeles Dodgers are a professional baseball team based in Los Angeles, California. The Dodgers are members of Major League Baseball's National League West Division. Established in 1883, the team originated in Brooklyn, New York, where it was known by a number of nicknames before becoming...
. When Harris asked, "Do you mean to tell me Mr. Cox is betting on baseball?" the secretary replied that it was common knowledge in the Phillies office. On the basis of this and other evidence, Landis made the suspension permanent--thus making Cox the first non-player to be banned from baseball by Landis.
Cox retired to other business interests and died in Mount Kisco, New York
Mount Kisco, New York
Mount Kisco is a community that is both a village and a town in Westchester County, New York, United States. The Town of Mount Kisco is coterminous with the village. The population was 10,877 at the 2010 census.- History :...
in 1989.