TRIBUTE TO  BOBBY KENNEDY

 

 

The following article and photo are credited from Kirk Kenney, Contact Reporter at The San Diego Tribune:

Two years ago I was sitting in the dugout at Tony Gwynn Stadium as the players prepared for practice.

I pointed to the wall above right field, where the names of Aztecs greats were listed. I singled out one name in particular, Bob Kennedy, who played in 1941-42 and 1947-48.

“Why do you think he took a break?” I asked.

Bob Kennedy is a member of the Greatest Generation. And he remains one of our greatest resources.

The San Diego Section does a great job of keeping former coaches involved with its championship events and Kennedy is one of those coaches.

“It keeps me alive,” Kennedy, 92, said at Petco Park over the weekend as he helped with staging of the prep baseball games played there. “Things like this I look forward to so much.”

Kennedy guided the Chula Vista High baseball team for 26 years — from 1957-82 — and compiled a 329-266 career record. His teams won six Metro League championships and 19 playoff appearances. In 1999, he was among the inaugural class of San Diego County High School Coaching Legends at the Hall of Champions.

But the high regard for Kennedy is as much for the man as the coach.

“Being around him has made me a better coach and a better teacher because you see what you want to aspire to,” said current Chula Vista baseball coach Jim Westlund. “He still connects with the kids we have now. He still comes around and sits next to me and I bounce ideas off him because he’s seen it all.”

Kennedy has accumulated a few stories during a life well lived.

One of his favorites is the time he met Honus Wagner in the late 1930s when Kennedy was a teenager riding his bike to the fields in San Bernardino where the Pirates were holding spring training.

There are stories of playing shortstop for the Aztecs after the war and two years in the minor leagues with the Philadelphia Athletics.

There are stories of playing on championship senior softball teams into his eighties. Kennedy played until he was 89, hitting a game-winning three-run homer in his final at-bat.

“That really happened,” Kennedy said, as if someone would doubt him.

“He’s such a sincere man and cares about people,” San Diego Section Commissioner Jerry Schniepp said. “Everybody knows about his legendary status as a coach. He’s famous for the squeeze play. His teams often didn’t hit very much and he loved the squeeze.”

Former Hilltop coach John Baumgarten’s career overlapped with Kennedy’s for a decade. In fact, Baumgarten’s first game for the Lancers in 1972 was against Kennedy’s Spartans.

“Good man,” Baumgarten said. “Chula Vista pretty much dominated the Metro Conference at that time in the ’60s and ’70s. They had some great ballplayers. Every time you went there if you could knock them off it was like you’d finally arrived.

“He was never out of line on the ballfield. Very courteous to every player, every umpire and every other coach. That’s why people respect him, because he had such an excellent demeanor on and off the field.”

What advice does Kennedy have for coaches today?

“All I can say is run a clean program,” Kennedy said. “Coach for the kids. Don’t coach just for winning. You want to win, but help the kids all you can. I’ve noticed since I retired that a lot of coaches will do anything to win instead of getting close to their kids. Don’t get all over them for making a mistake. Talk it out. Things like that.”

One of Bob’s daughters got him to take some time last year to put his life story down on paper. It came out to 42 pages.

I’m glad there are still more pages to be added.

 

OBITUARY

Bobby Lee Kennedy September 29, 1922 – November 18, 2016 Chula Vista

Beloved father, grandfather, great-grandfather, & coach Bobby Lee Kennedy passed away peacefully in his sleep November 18th. Bobby attended SDSU on a full-ride scholarship to play basketball & baseball. His time was interrupted by WWII during which he served in the Coast Guard. After his service, Bobby finished school. SDSU retired his number, inducting him to their hall of fame.After graduating, Bobby played for the Philadelphia Athletics, then faithfully returned to San Diego. Teaching at CVHS, he also refereed basketball, served as Athletic Director, & most notably was head coach of Varsity baseball for 26 years. In 1993 CVHS named their baseball field after him. Bobby played softball until he was 89 years old, winning 21 national championships. He was an active member of the SD Hall of Champions & was inducted into the national senior slow-pitch Hall of Fame in 2002. Above all, Bobby was dedicated to family. He is preceded in death by his loving bride June, & is survived by daughters Julee Reilly & Jan Snyder; son Larry; grandchildren Amy, Scott, Bethany, Melissa, Matt, Conner, & Cassidy; great-grandsons Tyler & Greyson. A funeral mass will be held Friday, December 2nd at 11am at St. Rose of Lima Church, 293 H Street, Chula Vista. Details to follow for Celebration of Life reception. Bobby greeted everyone with a smile, a kind heart, & an open ear. He is missed by his family & the countless lives he touched.