BALTIMORE — The announced attendance for Sunday's game between the Red Sox and Baltimore Orioles at Camden Yards was 32,511.
Most were Orioles fans. Some were Red Sox fans who made the pilgrimage from New England. But it's a safe bet that no one in the seats was more proud than Jim Tracy.
Tracy, who managed in the big leagues for 11 seasons with the Dodgers , Pirates and Rockies , was in attendance to witness his son, Chad, in his first game managing the Red Sox.
"There were several (special) moments today," said Jim Tracy, outside the Red Sox clubhouse following a 5-3 Boston win over Baltimore that also marked Chad Tracy's 500th career managerial win. "I've followed a lot of Worcester Red Sox baseball the last few years, and I've watched so many of those guys that were playing out there today, who played for him in Worcester. There's a lot of good young talent here."
The senior Tracy has, of course, closely followed his son's career path, but never worried much about whether Chad would follow him by reaching the big leagues.
"I never spent a whole lot of time worrying about it," said Jim. "I just told him to do his homework, so if, in fact, the opportunity presented itself, he'd be ready. He's managed in the minor leagues and he's been a field coordinator (with the Angels organization). And what I watched today, I didn't see at any time that he was overwhelmed by what was going on. Preparing goes a long way."
Jim Tracy was attending a reunion of his college baseball team Saturday in Ohio. Tracy was watching his alma mater play a game and was set to have dinner with former teammates when his wife called.
"She said 'You have to come home,'" said Tracy. "I asked, 'Why?' She said, 'You might want to watch your son manage the Boston Red Sox.' That was some kind of moment. I was driving, and the guy I was riding with me grabbed be my the arm and said, 'Pull the car over, Trace, before we have a problem.' It was emotional."
Still, Jim Tracy couldn't help but feel a bit conflicted. In his first managerial job with the Dodgers, he managed the man his son had just replaced: Alex Cora.
"It's a wonderful day," said Jim Tracy, "but in some respects, it's bittersweet. I'm proud of (my son), but the Tracy family loves and respects Alex Cora. You have to go back with some special years I had in Los Angeles and Alex was very much a part of that. Bittersweet is the right word because Alex was so good to my son and took such good care of him. But it was reciprocated.
"In all my conversations I had with my son, I told him, 'You do everything that you can possibly do whenever and whatever that man asks.' And I can honestly say that he did that as diligently as you could do it."
Jim Tracy remembers his managerial debut with the Dodgers from a quarter century ago clearly but Sunday, all of his focus was on being present and enjoying as his son joined the major league managerial fraternity.
"I was watching every move that kid made," said Jim Tracy, "and watching how those players responded to him. Now, I'm going home with a big smile on my face."
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