Kris Bryant has nothing on former Las Vegas speedster Alex Cole

By RON KANTOWSKI LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL

10 years ago

The back of Alex Cole’s baseball card says the mayor of Cleveland issued a proclamation recognizing the excitement he brought to the city. But sometimes Cole’s excitement in running the bases got him thrown out on them, especially when he played for the Las Vegas Stars.

Did you see Las Vegan Kris Bryant circle the bases on that “Little League home run” for the Cubs against the Pirates on Monday night?

It sort of reminded me of Alex Cole, the former fleet of foot outfielder who briefly played in Las Vegas en route to a major league career that must have lasted six or seven seasons.

Cole used to run the bases the way Bryant ran them against the Pirates last night — the way Little Leaguers sometimes do. He would hit the ball, and then he would just keep running until A) he scored or B) the other team tagged him out.

I was at Cashman Field one day when the speedy Cole must have got tagged out at every base. And that’s the way I choose to remember him, even if he hit .280 as a big leaguer, and even if his fleetness of foot was the reason why they moved the fences back at Cleveland’s Municipal Stadium one year.

Las Vegas Review-Journal sports columnist Ron Kantowski can be reached at rkantowski@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0352. Follow him on Twitter: @ronkantowski.