Robert Klein of Wilbraham played basketball in his hometown of Stamford, Conn. with Valentine.
Robert Klein of Wilbraham was a classmate in high school with new Red Sox manager Bobby Valentine. By GARRY BROWN
WILBRAHAM – Long before Robert Klein of Wilbraham became a professor at Western New England University, he played basketball with the most celebrated athlete in his hometown of Stamford, Conn.
“Bobby was the point guard and I was the shooting guard,” Klein recalled.
The “Bobby” that Prof. Klein knew so well is none other than Bobby Valentine, new manager of the Boston Red Sox.
Sources have said that two months after opening their search for a new manager, the Red Sox have chosen Valentine, who is expected to be introduced at Fenway Park on Thursday.
The Valentine-Klein backcourt tandem played in the winter of 1967-68 for St. Leo’s, a Catholic Youth Organization team that lost its league championship by one point in overtime.
“Bobby was a superstar in football and baseball at our high school (Rippowam of Stamford), but he would take the winter off from varsity sports to do lifting and workouts to get ready for baseball. However, he liked basketball, so he played with our CYO team,” Klein said.
Valentine made All-State three times in football and four times in baseball. That kind of recognition made him a town celebrity of the first rank, but Klein recalls that he never acted that way with his basketball teammates.
“Bobby could have gone around in a world of his own, an elite athlete. But the thing I loved about him was that he took an interest in all of his teammates. He went out of his way to help the younger players. He encouraged them, he motivated them, and they reacted by elevating their play,” Klein said.
What the professor saw in Valentine as a teen-ager has served him well in his professional baseball career. He played in the big leagues for 10 years, then gained further notoriety as manager of the Texas Rangers and New York Mets in the majors, and the Chiba Lotte Marines in Japanese baseball.
New Boston Red Sox manager Bobby Valentine, second from right, visits with Western New England baseball players (from left) Sean Cribbin, Chris Newell, and Justin Walz prior to his lecture Jan. 20, 2009 as part of the school's Center for International Sport Business Speakers Series.Klein and Valentine graduated together in Rippowam’s Class of 1968.
While Klein went on to Colgate University, Bobby V went right into professional baseball as the No. 5 pick of the Los Angeles Dodgers in the first-round of the player draft.
Valentine excelled in the minors, and reached the majors in 1972. However, his career as a fleet outfielder underwent a drastic change when he suffered a severe leg injury in 1973.
“Speed was a big part of Bobby’s game, but he lost a lot of that after the injury,” Klein said. “To his credit, he knew how to focus on what was best for him. He made the transition from star to journeyman role player, and because he was able to handle that, he stayed in the majors for 10 years.”
As for Klein, he went on to earn a doctorate in education at Harvard University. He taught at Wheaton College of Norton, Mass., then at Springfield College. He has been on the Western New England faculty for 17 years.
He teaches courses in leadership and team skills, educational psychology, adult development and administrative skills.
This Nov. 21, 2011 file photo shows ESPN analyst Bobby Valentine smiling as he answers questions from reporters following his interview for the vacant Boston Red Sox manager position, at Fenway Park in Boston. A person familiar with the decision says the Boston Red Sox have chosen Bobby Valentine to be their next manager and were working to complete a contract. The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity Tuesday Nov. 29, 2011 because no announcement had been made.“We had a little Stamford reunion before he spoke, and I gave Bobby an autographed copy of a book I did on leadership and team skills. I think he was taken aback that I signed it, because he’s usually the guy doing the signing,” Klein said.
In a question-answer session after Valentine’s talk, Klein asked him about the sports theory which says, “Money doesn’t buy chemistry.”
“I asked him, because it was just after the Yankees had signed pitcher CC Sabathia to a huge contract,” Klein said.
“Bobby answered that chemistry involves getting players to have the same vision, be unified, and buy into the strategy professed by management. When you think about it, those are exactly the issues he’ll be facing as manager of the Red Sox,” Klein said.
Valentine has traveled all across the baseball map, but Klein said he never forgets his hometown.
For instance, a few years ago, Valentine and some of his high school football teammates started a scholarship fund in memory of their late coach, Mickey Leone.
“Bobby has been involved with the Leone fund for many years,” Klein said.
The professor had been a Yankee fan as a kid, but while he was studying at Harvard, he began going to games at Fenway Park and soon was transformed into a Red Sox fan.
“I fell in love with Fenway,” he said. “I get a lot of noise about that when I go back to Stamford, but I’ve been in Massachusetts for 25 years, and the Sox are my team. I wear a “B” cap wherever I go.”
And now, Klein has another good reason for root for the Red Sox - his old backcourt mate is coming to Fenway.