Page 219 - 1975 BoSox

212 ’75—THE RED SOX TEAM THAT SAVED BASEBALL
After a successful stint playing winter ball in Venezuela, where he was among the leading batters with a .322 average, Bryant reported to the Cubs at Scottsdale, Arizona, in 1967 as one of ve catchers on the roster, including Dick Bertell, who was a sentimental favorite to make a comeback with the Cubs. Bryant was sub- sequently traded to the San Francisco Giants to complete the deal for Bertell. He was optioned to Phoenix of the Paci c Coast League, where he had an all-star season, hitting .292 with 7 home runs, 7 triples, and 57 RBIs in 442 at-bats, winning the team’s most-valuable-player award and a place on the Giants’ 40-man roster.
In 1968, after another solid season in the Venezuelan winter league, Bryant was optimistic going into spring training, but he was reassigned to the minor-league camp. Illness and injury took its toll in a lost 1968 season; after playing in only 46 games he was lost for the season after breaking a bone in his hand. Yet again Bryant played winter ball in Venezuela with hopes of making the Giants in 1969, but the Houston Astros, in need of a backup catcher, drafted him at the winter meetings. Mel McGaha, Houston’s rst-base coach, was, not coincidentally, Don’s manager in Venezuela.
On May 1, 1969, after seeing little playing time with the Astros, Bryant was inserted into the starting lineup because primary catcher John Edwards was in a terrible slump. Don Wilson pitched a no-hitter that day with Bryant credited with calling a great game. Bryant added to the drama during the game by dropping a foul ball o the bat of Pete Rose late in the game. “ e best hitter in the National League and I’d given him another chance to break up the no-hitter,”Bryant said after the game.6 Wilson rewarded his catcher with a watch to commemorate the no-hitter. e Astros followed the no-hit game with 3-1 and 4-3 victories, with Bryant contributing a home run in the latter game. Astros pitcher Larry Dierker quipped, “If he keeps this up, I’ll go better than a watch.”7
For the second time in two years, Bryant was selected in the major-league draft during the o season — this time by the Seattle Pilots, but he was later returned to Houston. Respected for his game-calling skill and
ability to judge talent, he was asked to go to the Astros’ Double-A a liate in Columbus (Southern League) to work with pitching prospects, including future major leaguers Ken Forsch and Larry Yount. He was recalled by Houston in May but played only sparingly until he was sent to Oklahoma City in August. He nished the year with a .208 average in 15 games with Houston.
In the o season Bryant was purchased by the Red Sox and assigned to Louisville, where he began a friendship and professional association with manager Darrell Johnson. He joined past and future Red Sox favorites such as Jim Lonborg, Dwight Evans, Carlton Fisk, Cecil Cooper, and others over the next two years before assuming an additional role as a player-coach when the Triple-A team relocated from Louisville to Pawtucket. When Johnson asked him to coach, Bryant said he still wanted to play. Johnson bluntly told him that his playing days were numbered, but Johnson said that if he landed a big-league manager’s job he would have a coaching job for Don on his sta .8
Johnson valued Bryant’s opinion on young players, which no doubt contributed to the invitation to join his coaching sta . In 1971 Bryant was asked about Carlton Fisk. e plan was for Fisk to go back to Double-A after spring training, but Bryant thought that he was a solid receiver with a good arm and a strong bat. Johnson called Boston and asked to keep Fisk in Triple-A.9 Bryant also managed the Pawtucket Red Sox to a 6-2 record in 1973 after Johnson left following the death of his father, a season in which the Pawtucket Red Sox won the Junior World Series.
As a player, Bryant was used sparingly in Louisville and Pawtucket, appearing in 111 games over three seasons with a combined .227 batting average in 291 at-bats. Overall, his minor-league career spanned 13 seasons, and included 871 games, 3,008 plate appear- ances, and a .250 batting average.
In 1974 Darrell Johnson was promoted to manager of the Boston Red Sox and, true to his word, he invited Bryant to follow as bullpen coach. Aside from the job’s usual duties, Bryant often pitched batting practice.