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Lee Elia
Lee Constantine Elia (/ˈiːliə/; July 16, 1937 – July 9, 2025) was an American professional baseball infielder, manager, and coach in Major League Baseball (MLB). After being drafted by his hometown Philadelphia Phillies, Elia spent seven years in the minor leagues, playing a mixture of shortstop and third base, before reaching the majors with the Chicago White Sox in 1966 and the Chicago Cubs in 1968. His playing career was cut short by knee injuries.
Elia moved into coaching and management after his playing career concluded. After initially working alongside manager Jim Bunning, Elia moved into management himself, working his way up the Phillies' minor league system. He was named third base coach for the Phillies, and was part of the coaching staff that won the 1980 World Series. He took his first major league managerial role with the Cubs in 1982 as they looked to rebuild. His time in Chicago is particularly remembered for a profanity-laden tirade attacking the team's fans and local media in his second year at the helm; he lost his job later that season.
After returning to the Phillies organization in a variety of coaching roles, he was named manager of their major league team in 1987. He was fired after a losing season the following year. He returned to coaching roles thereafter, serving on the staffs of the Phillies, New York Yankees, Toronto Blue Jays, Tampa Bay Devil Rays, Baltimore Orioles, and Seattle Mariners. Later in life, Elia was a special assistant with the Los Angeles Dodgers and Atlanta Braves.
Elia was born on July 16, 1937 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to Constantine and Florence (née Soulas) Elia. His father Connie Elia was born in Albania and emigrated to the United States in 1920, working as a supervisor for a food-service company for 30 years. Elia also had a younger sister, Diane.
As a youth, Elia played multiple sports. While attending Olney High School, he played quarterback and was named all-city for the football team, was the starting shortstop on the baseball team and played for the basketball team. He also played guard for a summer-league basketball team that included future NBA players Wilt Chamberlain and Ray Scott and future Philadelphia 76ers announcer Sonny Hill.
Offered football scholarships by more than 50 schools, Elia selected the University of Delaware. In his freshman year, he was the team's leading rusher and points scorer while playing halfback. He suffered a dislocated hip in the offseason and was unable to play in his sophomore year. That injury healed in time for the Fightin' Blue Hens' baseball season, and after spending the summer playing baseball in Nova Scotia, Elia settled on baseball as his future.
Elia's college and summer-league baseball performance attracted the attention of his hometown Phillies, and he signed with them for a $21,000 signing bonus. He was assigned to the Elmira Pioneers of the Class D New York–Penn League for the 1959 season. Playing mostly as a shortstop, he batted .309 with an OPS of .858 across 98 games and earned an invitation to the Phillies' spring training, where he was praised by Phillies manager Eddie Sawyer as the "surprise player of spring". Elia was promoted to the Phillies' Single-A affiliate Williamsport Grays but suffered a knee injury. He playing in 124 games, mostly at third base, but his batting average dropped to .233, with 59 runs batted in.
Elia played for the Double-A Chattanooga Lookouts in 1961, with whom his batting average improved to .266, but he hit only four home runs. He was promoted to Triple-A for 1962, where he would spend the next three years with the Buffalo Bisons and Arkansas Travelers. By 1964, his OPS had improved to .800, but he was not promoted to the major leagues by the Phillies. In the following offseason, Elia was traded to the Chicago White Sox along with Danny Cater in exchange for Ray Herbert and Jeoff Long. Elia was stunned by the trade as he had enjoyed a good relationship with the Phillies, although he later admitted that he had been "stagnant" in the organization. He was assigned to the Indianapolis Indians, Chicago's Triple-A affiliate, and hit a career-high 29 home runs and accumulated 75 RBIs. After starting 1966 with the Indians, he was promoted to the major leagues for the first time. He appeared in 80 games for the White Sox that year, mostly as a shortstop, hitting .205 with three home runs and 22 RBIs.
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Lee Elia
Lee Constantine Elia (/ˈiːliə/; July 16, 1937 – July 9, 2025) was an American professional baseball infielder, manager, and coach in Major League Baseball (MLB). After being drafted by his hometown Philadelphia Phillies, Elia spent seven years in the minor leagues, playing a mixture of shortstop and third base, before reaching the majors with the Chicago White Sox in 1966 and the Chicago Cubs in 1968. His playing career was cut short by knee injuries.
Elia moved into coaching and management after his playing career concluded. After initially working alongside manager Jim Bunning, Elia moved into management himself, working his way up the Phillies' minor league system. He was named third base coach for the Phillies, and was part of the coaching staff that won the 1980 World Series. He took his first major league managerial role with the Cubs in 1982 as they looked to rebuild. His time in Chicago is particularly remembered for a profanity-laden tirade attacking the team's fans and local media in his second year at the helm; he lost his job later that season.
After returning to the Phillies organization in a variety of coaching roles, he was named manager of their major league team in 1987. He was fired after a losing season the following year. He returned to coaching roles thereafter, serving on the staffs of the Phillies, New York Yankees, Toronto Blue Jays, Tampa Bay Devil Rays, Baltimore Orioles, and Seattle Mariners. Later in life, Elia was a special assistant with the Los Angeles Dodgers and Atlanta Braves.
Elia was born on July 16, 1937 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to Constantine and Florence (née Soulas) Elia. His father Connie Elia was born in Albania and emigrated to the United States in 1920, working as a supervisor for a food-service company for 30 years. Elia also had a younger sister, Diane.
As a youth, Elia played multiple sports. While attending Olney High School, he played quarterback and was named all-city for the football team, was the starting shortstop on the baseball team and played for the basketball team. He also played guard for a summer-league basketball team that included future NBA players Wilt Chamberlain and Ray Scott and future Philadelphia 76ers announcer Sonny Hill.
Offered football scholarships by more than 50 schools, Elia selected the University of Delaware. In his freshman year, he was the team's leading rusher and points scorer while playing halfback. He suffered a dislocated hip in the offseason and was unable to play in his sophomore year. That injury healed in time for the Fightin' Blue Hens' baseball season, and after spending the summer playing baseball in Nova Scotia, Elia settled on baseball as his future.
Elia's college and summer-league baseball performance attracted the attention of his hometown Phillies, and he signed with them for a $21,000 signing bonus. He was assigned to the Elmira Pioneers of the Class D New York–Penn League for the 1959 season. Playing mostly as a shortstop, he batted .309 with an OPS of .858 across 98 games and earned an invitation to the Phillies' spring training, where he was praised by Phillies manager Eddie Sawyer as the "surprise player of spring". Elia was promoted to the Phillies' Single-A affiliate Williamsport Grays but suffered a knee injury. He playing in 124 games, mostly at third base, but his batting average dropped to .233, with 59 runs batted in.
Elia played for the Double-A Chattanooga Lookouts in 1961, with whom his batting average improved to .266, but he hit only four home runs. He was promoted to Triple-A for 1962, where he would spend the next three years with the Buffalo Bisons and Arkansas Travelers. By 1964, his OPS had improved to .800, but he was not promoted to the major leagues by the Phillies. In the following offseason, Elia was traded to the Chicago White Sox along with Danny Cater in exchange for Ray Herbert and Jeoff Long. Elia was stunned by the trade as he had enjoyed a good relationship with the Phillies, although he later admitted that he had been "stagnant" in the organization. He was assigned to the Indianapolis Indians, Chicago's Triple-A affiliate, and hit a career-high 29 home runs and accumulated 75 RBIs. After starting 1966 with the Indians, he was promoted to the major leagues for the first time. He appeared in 80 games for the White Sox that year, mostly as a shortstop, hitting .205 with three home runs and 22 RBIs.