Never Judge a Book by Its Cover

On this day in 1983, Chicago Cubs manager Lee Elia delivered one of baseball's most legendary meltdowns.

Fast-forward 27 years—my family and I unexpectedly sat next to him at a Florida spring training game where he was scouting. His Mariners ALCS ring was clearly noticeable, my then-wife chatted him up and. After learning he was a major league scout, told him to remember my sons' names, then Little League players from Wilmette, IL.

His perfect response: “Lady, you speak the words of a true mother!”

I cringed upon hearing her utter that statement, as I was the only one in my family familiar with his decades-old outburst. After his reply, I expected the worst, but we all experienced his best.

Elia momentarily set aside his speed gun and scorecard to ask our boys questions like, “What makes baseball fun?” and “What’s your favorite field position?” He then removed his championship ring and had them try it on. He was terrific, took photos with the kids, and signed an autograph for each boy.

Wow! Not what I expected. At all.

The man behind baseball's most famous tirade was actually a super cool dude, proving the cliché to never judge a book by its cover.