Lee Elia

LEE ELIA SPENT 47 years in baseball. He played in the minor leagues and in the major leagues. He coached and managed in the minors. He coached and managed in the majors. While his volatile temper often got the better of him, he cared about his players, and he taught and utilized his knowledge and experience to develop players. He worked for 10 different organizations, primarily because his teaching skills had a significant impact on those who played for him. His work influenced many future stars, such as Ryne Sandberg, Mike Schmidt, Don Mattingly, Steve Bedrosian, Carlos Delgado, and Alex Rodríguez.

That embodies Elias’ character , although many would think he is defined by his postgame comments on April 29, 1983, the day known to Cubs fans as “The Rant.”

Lee Constantine Elia was born in Philadelphia on July 16, 1937, to Constantine and Florence (née Soulas) Elia. Constantine was born in Albania in 1907 and emigrated to the United States with his family in 1920. He moved to Philadelphia in 1946 and worked in food service from 1947 until he retired in 1977.1 Florence kept house and raised Lee and Lee’s sister, Diane, who was seven years younger than Lee.

Although prominent in his local church, Constantine didn’t miss an opening game if his son was playing, coaching, or managing. “He considered baseball an unbeatable game for the development of skills and character,” Lee Elia said. “That’s one thing Dad always said.”2

Elia’s sister, Diane Lescas, said she and her brother learned humility and devotion to family, along with some of the leadership skills Elia used as a manager, from their father. “Constantine Elia was a big handsome guy who was able to make everyone in the room feel they were the most important in the room,” she said. “Lee has some of that same magnetism … and I think we both sometimes make decisions by thinking ‘What would Dad have done?’”3

The Elias family lived in the Logan neighborhood of Philadelphia. “All the neighbors had kids about the same age,” recalled Ruth Frumer, a 42-year resident of the neighborhood. “We didn’t have the kind of teenage problems you have now. Lee was utterly devoted to his family. Not a namby-pamby kind of devotion. He was always respectful.”4

At a time when organized sports, like Little League, were not available, sports were tailored to the area by the neighborhood kids. Games like wireball, which involved throwing a ball at overhead wires and assigning points for accuracy, or stepball, the object of which was to hit a point on a step, were examples of local neighborhood sports that made use of the urban environment.

Elia took his athletic ability to Olney High School, where he was a multi-sport star. He was an honorable mention All-State football player at Olney High School in 1954. The following year, he was selected All-Public in football, basketball, and baseball and All-City in football, baseball, and second team in basketball. Elia’s boyhood friend Jack Turner, who led Germantown Academy football for 23 seasons and worked under Elia with the Phillies in 1988, recalled Lee’s athletic skills. “Without a doubt, he was the finest athlete I ever saw,” said Turner. “He was one of the best players in the city in football, baseball and basketball. His quickness was so tremendous, and he had great determination. He definitely could have been a professional football player …”5 Elia was inducted as a three-sport athlete into the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame in 2003.6

In 1956, in an effort to boost his grades, Elia attended the Bordentown Military Institute. He played football and baseball there, earning recognition as a third baseman on the Newark Star-Ledger’s All-State Baseball first team. Despite Lee’s interest in professional baseball, his father wanted him to try college first, as he thought, in the long run, that college and business were more important priorities. “He thought maybe Lee should be interested in something like the restaurant business,” said Lee’s mother, Florence, in a 1987 interview. “Our type of people, more ethnic-type people, are more into business than sports.”7

Lee received more than 50 college football scholarship offers and selected the University of Delaware. In the fall of 1956, Elia was the leading rusher and scorer for an undefeated freshman team.

The following spring, Elia joined friends to visit the National Cherry Blossom Festival in Washington, DC. During the excursion, as he attempted to jump a creek, he dislocated his left hip, causing him to miss the next football season.8 He recovered in time to play in his sophomore baseball season, then played summer baseball in Nova Scotia. That fall, the Phillies called and offered him a contract.

“Back then I never dreamed I’d be in baseball,” Elia told the Seattle Times in 1997. “I loved football. I loved the thrill of breaking a tackle and breaking a play open, going sixty-seven yards for a TD. I was consumed with playing football. But when I broke my hip and I couldn’t play for a year, fate took me to Nova Scotia and I played baseball and signed a contract [with the Phillies].”9

“Mr. [Phillies president Robert] Carpenter offered me a $10,000 bonus and $200 a month,” Elia recalled. “I told him that I knew some guys who had signed pro contracts, and that I thought I could do better. My dad whispered to me in Albanian, ‘What, are you crazy? That’s a whole year’s pay.’ But we eventually settled on $21,000 and $300 a month, plus a $6,000 contingency if I made the 40-man roster within a certain period of time.”10

Elia began his professional baseball career in 1959 in Elmira of the Class-D New York-Penn League, then the lowest minor-league classification. He responded by hitting .297, slugging eight home runs, and driving in 66. He showed patience at the plate as his walks raised his on-base percentage to .443. The next spring, Phillies manager Eddie Sawyer named Elia “surprise player of the spring,” and there was a consensus that he would only need one or two years of seasoning in the minors.11 For the 1960 season, the Phillies sent Elia to Williamsport of the Eastern League, at the time classified as Single A. That summer, he sustained a knee injury, which, over the years, ultimately cut short his playing career.

Despite the injury, he was promoted in 1961 to Chattanooga of the Double-A Southern Association. He followed that with three seasons at Triple A in the Phillies’ organization (in Buffalo for one season, then for the Arkansas Travelers for two years). He continued to show good power, his average hovered just above .260, and he continued to display an ability to get on base, whether by hit or walk.

On December 1, 1964, the Phillies sent outfielder Elia and Danny Cater to the Chicago White Sox for pitcher Ray Herbert and first baseman/outfielder Jeoff Long. 12 Elia was fine with leaving the Phillies organization, as he believed that manager Gene Mauch didn’t want him in the majors. “‘He wanted [Bobby] Wine and [Ruben] Amaro [Sr.],’ Elia explained in July 1965. ‘Well, the Phillies paid me a good salary and treated me very fine. I was satisfied. But then I was traded to the White Sox last year and I was really happy.’”13

The White Sox sent Elia to their Triple-A team in Indianapolis, where he had his best offensive season, hitting .261 and leading the team with 29 home runs and 75 RBIs. Due to injuries, the White Sox called up several players from Indianapolis in 1965 but didn’t select Elia despite his career year. There were some reports that he couldn’t hit breaking pitches, which he denied. “Someone must have been sending in something wrong on me,” Elia said. “[Scout] Les Moss was here and saw me having trouble with sliders and maybe he told them I couldn’t hit breaking stuff … [Of] my 22 homers, at least half of them have been on breaking pitches. I must be able to hit ’em pretty good.”14

Elia finally made his initial major-league appearance in 1966. Called up in April, he made his first appearance as a pinch-runner on April 23, then had his first major-league at-bat on April 27, striking out against Guido Grilli. His first major-league hit came against New York Yankees left-hander Fritz Peterson in the second inning on May 28, and Elia, who started at shortstop that day, later scored his first run after reaching on an error in the fourth. The game, which ended in a 2–2 tie, was suspended after five innings due to rain. That season, he ultimately played in 80 games, splitting time at shortstop with Jerry Adair. He hit .205, hitting three home runs and driving in 22. He did not show the power or on-base capability that he had shown in the minor leagues.

Elia started the 1967 season in Indianapolis. In late May, he was purchased by Chicago Cubs, who immediately optioned him to their Triple-A affiliate in Tacoma, where he finished the season.15

By 1968, Elia had earned a call-up to the major leagues and spent most of the season on the Cubs. He played sporadically, appearing in only 15 games that season. His season highlight came against the Cardinals on August 4, when he connected on a pinch-hit, two-out single that brought in the go-ahead run in the top of the 13th inning. The Cubs held on to win, 6–5. “From a spectator’s point of view,” said Elia, who had been little more than a spectator all season, “this was the most memorable game I’ve ever seen, even as a fan. That was true whether we won or lost or whether or not I had anything to do with it.”16

Elia started 1969 in Tacoma but was soon dealt to the Yankees for Nate Oliver in a minor-league trade, after which the Yankees sent him to Syracuse, their triple-A ballclub. His season was cut short due to injury, which resulted in a knee operation and a three-year hiatus from professional baseball. During this period, he lived in Philadelphia, sold life insurance during the day, and played semipro baseball at night in the Penn-Del league.

In 1973, Elia was hired by the Phillies as a player-coach for the Triple-A Eugene Emeralds of the Pacific Coast League, where he worked under manager Jim Bunning. Now a 35-year-old veteran, he was pressed to play in 16 games that season, as injuries reduced the number of available players. He continued to work under Bunning with the Toledo Mud Hens in 1974.

In 1975, the Phillies asked Elia to become the manager of their Spartanburg, South Carolina, Class-A Western Carolinas League team. He led them to the league championship and was selected as the league’s Manager of the Year. He continued as manager in Spartanburg through the 1976 season, after which he was promoted by the Phillies to manage the Reading Phillies of the Class-AA Eastern League.17 In his second season in Reading, his team lost in the finals, but he was named Eastern League Manager of the Year.

As he progressed as a coach and teacher of players, he was once again promoted in 1979, this time to the triple-A Oklahoma City 89ers of the American Association. He had had his eyes on this promotion for some time. “I had felt last year when the job was available, I was looking forward to it, but they felt I was better for Reading.”18

The 89ers won their first American Association West title with Elia at the helm in 1979. He exclaimed, “I couldn’t be happier with anything than I am with this championship at this moment. I’ve won two championships in four years of managing. You always remember the first one, but the others are just as good.”19 In the championship series between East and West, they lost to Jim Leyland’s Evansville Triplets.

At the conclusion of the season, Phillies skipper Dallas Green, who had been named interim manager late in the 1979 season, offered Elia a position as third-base coach of the major-league club. Green felt that Elia would bring an aggressive approach towards waving runners around third, which fit Green’s running focus.20 Green also wanted his staff to be full of “baseball men.” Elia, who had managed for five years in the Phillies’ minor-league system and for whom many of the current players on the Phillies’ roster had played, met Green’s expectations.21 The 1980 Phillies team, known as the “Cardiac Kids” for their ability to play close games, went on to defeat the Kansas City Royals in the World Series, the Phillies’ first championship.

On October 15, 1981, the Chicago Cubs, under their new ownership, the Tribune, announced that they had hired Green as their general manager. He quickly replaced manager Joey Amalfitano with Elia, signing him to a three-year contract. Green hired Elia because he felt he understood what Green wanted in a manager. “Lee was brought up the Phillie way,” Green said. “We hope to do a lot of the things that were successful in Philadelphia.”22

Green described Elia as a “player’s manager” but noted the Philadelphia native would be tough with players when the situation warranted. “We’ve got to get back to fundamental baseball,” Elia said. “The pitching needs to be stronger and we need to emphasize defense.” He further suggested that he would emphasize conditioning in spring training to offset the effects of playing exclusively day games at Wrigley Field in the summer. He said he hoped to turn the ballpark into an advantage for his club.23

After a season in which they finished 16 games below .500, the Cubs started the 1983 season slowly, losing their first six games. Chicago was 5–13 going into a game April 29 at Wrigley against the Dodgers. That day, the Dodgers defeated the Cubs, 4–3, scoring their winning run on a wild pitch thrown by Lee Smith.

A crowd of 9,391 paid to see the game that day, and some of the few who hung around afterward started heckling Cubs players as they trudged across left field toward the clubhouse, which was located in the left-field corner. (It would be moved behind the dugout the following year.) In the Chicago Tribune recap of the game, Robert Markus wrote that [Keith] Moreland had to be restrained from climbing onto the dugout roof to get at three fans who were taunting the Cubs as they walked off the field. “I saw it,” said Green. “They were drunk. There were three guys with their hands full of beer, and Keith tried to get over the dugout.”24

At the postgame news conference in front of reporters, Elia, who was angry at the treatment of his players by these fans, went into a four-minute rant against the fans and media. Repeatedly cursing Chicago baseball fans, he claimed, “If these are the real Cub fans, then we are in trouble.”25 His outburst contained 50 profanities, 33 of which were F-bombs. As he attempted to defend his players, he unleashed on the fans. “We’ve got guys bustin’ their f***in’ asses and those f****in’ people boo … and that’s the Cubs?” he ranted. “My f***in’ ass! They talk about the great f***in’ support that the players get around here, I haven’t seen it this f****in’ year.”26 He continued his rail against the fans. “About 85% of the world is working. The other 15% come out here.”27

Those four minutes would follow him for the rest of his life.

One of the reporters, Les Grobstein from WLS, the Chicago ABC affiliate, had his microphone turned on. Thus, Elia’s tirade became forever preserved for all the world to hear. And hear they did. The legend grew over the years, and a Wrigleyville dive bar, Nisei Lounge, holds a “Lee Elia Day” every year on or around the anniversary of the incident.28

Elia survived the tirade, at least for the moment, thanks in part to his friendship with Green. “He’s still under the gun, he’s a manager,” Green said after the incident. “He’s a manager of a big league team who made an error in judgment, and his team is struggling. Unfortunately, Lee has put himself in a position where if he does not change it around, then his way of doing things is not working.”29

About two hours after being called into Green’s office and forced to listen to the tape, Elia explained that he had just laid into his players with the same biting remarks. “I get frustrated,” Elia said after he had calmed down, “because a lot of positive things have transpired around here in the last year and a half and that doesn’t show on the record.” He added that he was aware of the frustration of the fans and added his concerns that the team hadn’t executed or hit like he believed they could. “My frustrations just peaked. It’s obvious the frustrations and I was out of line.”30

The Cubs actually got to within two games of first place about five weeks later, but then they faded. Elia was only able to last until August, when a Braves call-up named Gerald Perry helped beat the Cubs. “I never heard of this guy Gerald Perry,” Elia said after the August 19 game in which Perry went 3-for-5 with a homer and three RBIs. “Our coaches don’t scout the International League. He came out of nowhere.”31 Green was not pleased that his coaches neglected to read the team’s scouting reports. “The information on Perry was right here on my desk. It’s still here,” the general manager said. “It’s a copout on Lee’s part, the coaching staff’s part and the bullpen part to say they don’t know anything about him.”32 Elia was fired on August 21.

Elia claimed to be “unhappy, but not bitter” about his firing. At a press conference soon after his firing, he insisted that “deep down, I’m a Cub,” and added, “I’m a field man and hope to return to baseball in that capacity.”33 Although Green hoped he would remain with the organization in a different role, Elia indicated that he would not. “I haven’t talked to Dallas about it,” said Elia, “but I’m mentally drained from everything that has happened this past week. I want to go home and rest. Go home and collect my thoughts with my wife and daughter.”34

In 1984, the season following Elia’s departure, the Cubs’ fortunes turned, and they had their first winning season in 12 years and made the postseason for the first time since 1945. Over the previous two seasons, Elia had made several important decisions that made a decisively positive impact on this turnaround, including sticking with a struggling 23-year-old Ryne Sandberg, turning Lee Smith into a closer, and giving Jody Davis the starting catching job.

Elia returned to the Phillies organization in 1984, when he was named manager of the Portland (Oregon) Beavers, the Phillies’ triple-A affiliate. After a ninth-place finish that season, the Phillies brought him back to the majors by naming him bench coach for newly named manager John Felske. Elia remained in the role into the 1987 season. When the Phillies started 29–32, Felske was fired and the team selected Elia as its interim manager. “I didn’t come back to coaching as a stepping stone in managing. I’ve been on both ends of this,” said Elia. “This is very emotional. I had a strong relationship with Felske. This is never an easy situation.”35 Ironically, the announcement came in Chicago at the Wrigley Field stadium club.

With Elia at the helm, the Phillies rebounded and moved to within 6 1/2 games of the NL East-leading Mets by late August. Despite a mid-September slump, Elia was named permanent manager and given a one-year contract. While he looked to improve his pitching, he also wanted to strengthen his reserves and team depth. “We need flexibility in late game situations and still be able to maintain our level of strength,” Elia admitted. He had been concerned about the listless play in early September, as he charged his players with giving less that a major-league performance. “We are a dead club,” he snapped. “But we have all winter to clean out the garbage.”36

Elia, candid as ever, realized his words had landed too sharply and tried to soften their impact. “That was a bad statement,” he said. “I had just come off the field of battle and I was a little hot. Maybe I should have stayed in my office five minutes longer.”37

In July 1988, despite the Phillies being in last place in the NL East with a 35–44 record, Elia was awarded a one-year contract extension. Lee Thomas, who became general manager in June of that year, remarked, “I think he’s the guy to get this club going again.”38 Unfortunately, the Phillies regressed, and when their record fell to 60–92–1, last in the NL East, Elia was fired and replaced by John Vukovich.

For the 1989 season, Dallas Green was hired by the New York Yankees as their new manager, replacing Lou Piniella. Green hired Elia as one of his coaches. In mid-August of that season, Green clashed with Yankees owner George Steinbrenner, who fired Green along with four of his coaches, including Elia. Once again, Elia returned to his Philadelphia roots.

In the fall of 1989, Elia once again found himself with the Phillies organization, as he was named manager of the Class-A Florida State League Clearwater Phillies. Although he was courted by other teams, he had a desire to return to the Phillies, and he also lived in Clearwater. His capability in player development was appealing to the Phillies. “I know Lee [Elia] well,” said Del Unser, Phillies director of player development and hitting instructor under Elia in 1987–88. “He’s a good development guy. He has a bank of knowledge that’s necessary for this job, and I know he can manage.”39

Elia remained in Clearwater for two seasons, then was promoted in 1992 to manage the Phillies’ triple-A affiliate, the Scranton-Wilkes Barre Red Barons of the International League. He led them to the International League finals and was named Manager of the Year.40

Elia’s work in the Phillies’ organization rekindled his desire to return to the major leagues. That winter, he was overlooked by the Phillies as they selected their coaching staff. Piniella, newly hired to helm the Mariners, brought him to Seattle to serve as his bench coach and hitting coach. Elia recalled joining the team: “When I came over here two years ago, I didn’t know a soul on this ballclub, not a soul,” said Elia. “I mean, you’d think there would be one guy I knew. But really, the only guy I knew at all was Lou.”41

Of all his years in Seattle, Elia always remembered the 1995 season. The team, and the city, came together as the Mariners caught the Angels after trailing them in the standings by 13 games in early August. Elia recalled, “We get hot, [the Angels] get cold, and all of a sudden, we cut the gap pretty good. I can remember walking out when the other team was taking BP, and I came back into the coaches’ room and said, ‘Is this a special night, bat night or something?’ They said, ‘Why?’ I said, ‘There’s 35,000 people out there.’ The juice the people brought to the park, that kicked us. That got us going.”42

Elia had a front-row seat to one of the greatest moments in Seattle sports history that season. In the bottom of the 11th inning of the decisive Game Five of the ALDS, Edgar Martínez walked off the Yankees with a two-run double, scoring Ken Griffey Jr. and Joey Cora for a comeback win. “I remember it like it was yesterday,” Elia recalled. “I never cried so much in my life, from joy.”43

Over the years, Elia worked to improve the hitting approach of many players. He especially brought his magic to Dan Wilson, Mariners catcher, whom Elia transformed from a .216 hitter in 1994 to an All-Star in 1996. “His approach to hitting and the way he presents it has been instrumental for me,” Wilson said. “Without him, I don’t know where I’d be.”44

In May 1997, Elia was diagnosed with prostate cancer. The news was particularly frightening because his father had died from the disease. “I can’t tell you how hard that was, to see my father who was always a big, strong, healthy man go through that,” Elia said. “By the time the prostate cancer was done, it was awful; he was weak, emaciated. No one should have to die that way. It just breaks your heart.”45

By September, Elia had completed treatment and was cancer-free. Understanding the importance of early testing, he took that message to the Mariners’ managers and players and convinced them to join him in the prostate cancer awareness campaign. Players such as Randy Johnson, Jay Buhner, Griffey, Rodríguez, Martínez, Cora, and Wilson volunteered their time. They appeared with Lee on camera with the message “Get Tested! Stay In The Game!” out of admiration and affection for “Uncle Lee.”46

By the end of the season, Elia’s priorities had changed, and he chose to leave the Mariners. “It was a tough call,” Elia said of his decision. “I’ll be leaving a great bunch of guys and my five years with Lou have been special. And the people of Seattle have been special, too. I have tried to be part of the community because I love this community.” He added, “I want to spend time with my family.”47

Elia’s hiatus from baseball lasted one season. In 1999, he once again joined the Phillies’ organization when he was named director of minor-league instruction. This was followed by two seasons in Toronto as bench coach, working with manager Jim Fregosi. In 2001, at the urging of Piniella, Elia returned to the Mariners as a consultant, also assisting as a part-time bench coach and hitting coach. In this capacity, he would spend part of the month with the team, then the rest back in Florida with his family. He reflected, “Thank God, I have an opportunity to satisfy two things this year, my relationship with my family and still be able to help a coach or player. That’s really the best of both worlds.”48Once again, he helped Wilson restore his swing, as his batting average improved 21 points in 2001 and another 30 points in 2002. Elia continued his long-term relationship with Piniella by consistently supporting the manager and providing ongoing assistance to the players as they went through their special 116-win season.

After the 2002 season, Piniella left the Mariners to become the manager of the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. His first coaching hire was Elia, whom he named hitting coach. Elia worked for the Devil Rays for three seasons, leaving after Piniella retired. He served one year as the bench coach for the Baltimore Orioles, then stayed in baseball as a consultant and scout. This included a stint with the Mariners in 2008 as a consultant, supporting manager John McLaren.

Over the years, Elia understood that “The Rant” was part of his legacy. “I know it will never change,” he said. “I know I’ll always be one of those guys remembered for the tirade. But I hope it’s a little softened now. I hope there’s some warmness over it now. I hope they understand.”49

In 2016, while working for the Atlanta Braves, Elia said, “I’ve been a blessed guy. I think the older I get, the more I realize how fortunate I’ve been. I just wish I was fortunate one more time when that guy with that bad day I had. I mean, a lot of great things have happened. You know, it hasn’t decimated me in any way. But it would be better if I was remembered for something else. But what are you going to do?”50

Lee Elia passed away on July 9, 2025, one week before his 88th birthday. Dan Wilson summed up his feelings about Elia: “He really taught me how to play in the big leagues, how to hit in the big leagues. He was like a father to me in the game. He will be dearly missed. He treated everybody with so much love. When you are called Uncle Lee, you make a lot of impressions with people. That’s what he was known to us. We are going to miss him dearly.”51

Elia is survived by his wife, Priscilla, and daughters, Tana and Ashley. Tana worried that Lee’s life would be defined by “The Rant,” but it is clear that baseball recognizes his contributions and regards him in a different light..

SOURCES

In addition to the Notes, the author utilized Baseball-Reference.com.

NOTES

1 “Constantine Dimitri Elia, father of Phillies coach,” Philadelphia Inquirer, March 1, 1987: 17-D.

2 “Constantine Dimitri Elia.”

3 Les Bowen, “Logan’s Finest,” Philadelphia Daily News, September 2, 1987: 80.

4 Bowen, “Logan’s Finest,” 80.

5 Bowen, “Logan’s Finest,” 80.

6 “Inductees,” The Pennsylvania Hall of Fame. Accessed December 30, 2025. https://www.pasportshof.org/inductees.

7 Bowen, “Logan’s Finest,” 81.

8 Bowen, “Logan’s Finest,” 81.

9 Steve Kelley, “Best Part of Lee Elia’s Baseball Career is Last,” Seattle Times, October 1, 1997: C1.

10 Bowen, “Logan’s Finest,” 81.

11 Bowen, “Logan’s Finest,” 81.

12 Sam Gazdziak, “Obituary: Lee Elia (1937-2025),” RIP Baseball, August 4, 2025. Accessed December 30, 2025, https://ripbaseball.com/2025/08/04/obituary-lee-elia-1937-2025/.

13 Gazdziak, “Obituary.”

14 Gazdziak, “Obituary.”

15 Associated Press, “Cubs Peddle Jim Stewart to Chisox,” Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, May 24, 1967: 27.

16 John J. Archibald, “Cubs Bear Up in Heat,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, August 5, 1968: 31.

17 Hank Inman, “Phils Name Emery to Manage 89ers,” Daily Oklahoman, November 3, 1976: 50.

18 Todd Gurley, “Elia had Eye on 89er Job Earlier,’ New Manager was Willing to Wait,” Daily Oklahoman, November 10, 1978: 28.

19 Pat Patree, “89ers Capture West Division Crown,” Daily Oklahoman, August 28, 1979: 13.

20 Bill Conlin, “No Surprise, It’s Green,” Philadelphia Daily News, October 19, 1979: 100.

21 Matt Breen, “Former Phillies Manager known for Rant as Cubs Skipper” Philadelphia Inquirer, July 11, 2025: 31.

22 Randy Minkoff, “Dallas Green did not want to risk hiring someone…,” United Press International, October 23, 1981. Accessed December 30, 2025, https://www.upi.com/Archives/1981/10/23/Dallas-Green-did-not-want-to-risk-hiring-someone/9625372657600/.

23 Minkoff, “Dallas Green.”

24 Al Yellon, “Today in Cub history: Lee Elia’s famous postgame rant,” SB Nation, April 29, 2023. Accessed December 30, 2025, https://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/2023/4/29/23702218/today-cubs-history-lee-elia-famous-postgame-rant.

25 Minkoff, “Dallas Green.”

26 Rich Cohen, “Lessons From Lee Elia’s Rant,” Chicago Magazine, August 6, 2025. Accessed December 30, 2025, https://www.chicagomag.com/city-life/lessons-from-lee-elias-rant/.

27 Robert Markus, “Elia Swings for the Seats,” Chicago Tribune, April 30, 1983: 17.

28 Paul Sullivan, “Former manager’s memorable harangue lives on in team lore,” Chicago Tribune, July 11, 2025: 3: 1.

29 Sullivan, “Former manager’s memorable harangue lives on in team lore.”

30 Markus, “Elia Swings.”

31 Marc Carig, “On Lee Elia: 40 thoughts on the 40th effin’ anniversary of baseball’s best rant,” Athletic, April 27, 2023. Accessed December 30, 2025, https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/4411204/2023/04/27/lee-elia-tirade-cubs-anniversary/.

32 Fred Mitchell, “Green, Loose lips sink Elia,” Chicago Tribune, August 23, 1983: 29.

33 Associated Press, “Lee Elia: Cubs Will Win in 80’s,” Grand Rapids Press, August 24, 1983: 25.

34 “Lee Elia: Cubs Will Win.”

35 Paul Hagen, “Phillies Fire John Felske,” Philadelphia Daily News, June 18, 1987: 99.

36 Wire reports, “Slumping Phillies sign Elia to one-year pact,” Knoxville News-Sentinel, September 15, 1987: C3.

37 “Slumping Phillies.”

38 Ralph Bernstein, “New contract vote of confidence for Elia,” Pottsville (Pennsylvania) Republican, July 6, 1988: 13.

39 Paul Hagen, “Elia Returns to his Roots,” Philadelphia Inquirer, November 10, 1989: 100.

40 Bill Savage, “Red Baron hero Lee Elia to sit on Seattle bench,” Seattle Times, November 28, 1992: 5C.

41 Bill Savege, “Searching for Memories He Knew with the Baron,” Times Leader (Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania), May 24, 1994: 1B.

42 Seattle Times Staff, “Refuse to Lose, the Magical 1995 Season,” Seattle Times, March 31, 2005: F10.

43 “Refuse to Lose.”

44 Phil Rogers, “Elia’s tirade becomes part of Cubs’ lore,” ESPN, April 29, 2025. Accessed December 30, 2025, https://www.espn.com/mlb/columns/rogers_phil/1546310.html.

45 Susie Hedrick Beerman, “Seattle Blue Hens unite for good cause,” UD Messenger, University of Delaware, Volume 7, Number 1, 1997. https://www1.udel.edu/PR/Messenger/98/1/seattle.html

46 Beerman, “Seattle Blue Hens.”

47 Ken Wheeler, “Elia ends 39-year career in baseball,” Portland Oregonian, September 30, 1997: E5.

48 Larry Henry, “Elia – the comeback kid,” Kitsap (Bremerton, Washington) Sun, March 28, 2001: C1.

49 Jack Baer, “Former Cubs, Phillies manager Lee Elia, responsible for one of baseball’s most famous rants, dies at 87,” Yahoo Sports, July 10, 2025. Accessed December 30, 2025, https://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/breaking-news/article/former-cubs-phillies-manager-lee-elia-responsible-for-one-of-baseballs-most-famous-rants-dies-at-87-221238496.html.

50 Paul Hagen, “Former Skipper Elia feels at home in Philly,” MLB.com, July 26, 2016. Accessed December 30, 2025, https://www.mlb.com/news/lee-elia-managed-hometown-phillies-c191799516.

51 Tim Booth, “Mariners remember former hitting coach Lee Elia, who died Wednesday at 81,” Seattle Times, July 10, 2025: B3.