A Hero Moves On: A Tribute To Chris Coste

He was a survivor. They kept him in the minors for more than thirteen years; he survived. They sent him to Triple-A after he hit nearly .500 in Spring Training; he survived. They signed Rod Barajas to take his job; he proved to be better. They signed Ronnie Paulino to take his place; he won the job. They signed Paul Bako; he finally lost. Although you might have seen this coming (after all, the front office has been trying to get rid of him for years), "shocking" seems to be a fitting word to describe yesterday’s decision to place Phillies’ backup backstop Chris Coste on waivers. A man who’s journey to the majors was, quite literally, a book, left the city yesterday for Houston, after the Phils' front office decided that the newly acquired Paul Bako was a better fit. He was a man who won every Philadelphian’s heart. He was, in every sense of the word, a Philadelphia hero. It never came easy to Coste, who was 33 when he made his ma...