MESA, Ariz. -- This is all you need to about the kind of mensch Bob Melvin is: In honor of his friend Bob Welch, the A's manager decided to conduct media interviews this spring on a bench dedicated to the late right-hander's memory.
The green wood-slat bench reads "In memory of Bob Welch; A's pitcher and coach; Cy Young Winner 1990."
When Melvin spied the bench after the A's opened camp this spring at Fitch Park, he decided to sit on it during his daily talks with the assembled media. At his suggestion, it has since been moved to the right corner of the A's dugout at HoHoKam Stadium.