Former Braves catcher Bruce Benedict talks about being a basketball referee
Bruce Benedict spent five seasons as Atlanta's starting catcher and then spent five seasons as Atlanta’s backup catcher. He retired following the 1989 season.
Along with his career as a baseball minor league manager, major league coach and scout, Benedict is also known for his days as a college basketball referee. He started in high school and has now spent several decades as a successful division-one referee.
As a coach, Benedict joined Atlanta’s player development system. He was a catching instructor for a few seasons, and then in 1993 he managed the Danville Braves. Benedict then managed in Double-A Greenville for two seasons and moved to Triple-A with the Mets in 1996.
Bobby Valentine made Benedict a coach with the New York Mets in the late-1990s. After those seasons, Benedict became a scout, and he’s spent time with the St. Louis Cardinals and is now with the Chicago White Sox.
The Braves need Benedict back in their organization. He’s a great baseball man, and his heart will always be in Atlanta. Those are the kinds of good baseball people who need to always be in the Atlanta organization.
Benedict often hears his nicknames while he's refereeing. Among other things refs are called, you can probably imagine how Benedict is called "EGGS" or "BRUUUUUCE" while he's on the court.
Benedict talks about how he got into refereeing with Bill Shanks.
Listen to The Bill Shanks Show weekdays at 3:00 p.m. ET on Middle Georgia’s ESPN. You can listen online at TheSuperStations.com. Follow Bill on Twitter at @billshanks and you can email him at thebillshanksshow@yahoo.com.