Dave Bristol

Lore & Background

Bristol attended high school at the Baylor School in Chattanooga, Tennessee. He went on to University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Western Carolina University. Bristol worked as an assistant football coach at Murphy High School in Cherokee County, North Carolina. A right-handed hitting and throwing infielder, he never played in the Major Leagues.

Bristol became a playing manager in the Cincinnati farm system at the age of 24 with the Hornell Redlegs of the Class D New York–Penn League in 1957. By 1964, he was managing the Reds' top farm team, the San Diego Padres of the Pacific Coast League, where, at age 31, he won a pennant and playoff title—the fifth league championship of his eight-year career to date. In nine seasons (1957–65) as a minor league pilot, his teams won 652 games and lost 562 (.537).

In 1966, Bristol was named to the Reds' coaching staff, and when the team performed badly under rookie skipper Don Heffner, Bristol took over the club as manager on July 13. Bristol guided the Reds through three winning seasons, but he was dismissed following the campaign. Sparky Anderson, who took over, would go into the Baseball Hall of Fame as the leader of the 'Big Red Machine'. Cincinnati (298–265, .529) represented the high-water mark of Bristol's managing career.

He never managed another winning club. Not long after being fired by the Reds, Bristol was hired by the Seattle Pilots as the second manager in their history. He walked into a very difficult situation; the Pilots were on the verge of bankruptcy, and went to spring training not knowing whether they would play in Seattle or Milwaukee in. Just six days before Opening Day, the Pilots got word they would be moving to Milwaukee as the Brewers.

The Brewers under Bristol were never able to put together a winning team; he was fired 30 games into the 1972 season. In 1976, Bristol was hired as manager of the Atlanta Braves. Midway through the season, with the Braves mired in a 16-game losing streak, owner Ted Turner sent Bristol on a 10-day 'scouting trip' and took over as his own manager on an interim basis. This only lasted for one game (a 2–1 loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates) before National League president Chub Feeney ordered Turner to give up the reins, citing major league rules which forbid managers or players from owning stock in a team.

Did You Know?

• Bristol managed the Reds to a 298–265 record (.529), the best of his MLB managerial career.
• He was inducted into the Young Harris College Athletics Hall of Fame in 2021.