Remembering one of Chelsea’s true youth sports superstars
James “Jimmy” Cole Sr. passes away at 75
By Cary Shuman
As Thomas “Bucky” Cole scanned the old copies of the Chelsea Record on the microfilm machine inside the Chelsea Public Library, there was alternatively moments of joy and sadness.
The joy came from the confirmations in the newspapers of 60 years ago that his older brother and Little League baseball teammate, James “Jimmy” Cole was truly in a class by himself as a tremendous pitcher and an All-Star quarterback at Shurtleff School.
While Bucky was the budding home run king, his 12-year-old brother Jimmy was the unhittable hurler and prolific batsman who led their Dodgers team to the Chelsea Little League championship. For two seasons (1963-64) of junior high school football at Shurtleff, Jimmy dominated the field against older, more experienced players as early as seventh grade for head coach “Doc” John Mahoney’s team, assisted by Arnold Goodman. If there were Pop Warner football at that point in Chelsea’s history, Cole would have likely been an All-American.
James “Jimmy” Cole, a terrific all-around athlete, wonderful father and grandfather, dear brother and uncle, passed away on July 9, 2025 at his home in Tewksbury. He was 75.
“I really looked up to Jimmy big time – he was my hero,” said Bucky Cole, who is one year younger than his sibling. “When he played ball, he was just so great.”
Bucky’s most vivid memories are from the Dodgers’ championship season when Jimmy was 12 years-old and Bucky was 11 years-old.
“He pitched no-hitters and had base hits galore at the plate,” said Bucky. “So many people like Johnny Cronin, Kenny Lava, and Bobby Halas will tell you today how tremendous a player my brother, Jimmy, was.”
Inspired by his brother’s exploits, Bucky would lead the Dodgers to a back-to-back championship the very next season.
Bucky also related what a great father Jimmy was to his children, Dawn, Jimmy Jr., and Krista, “a superlative uncle” and a fine husband to his wife, Denise.
What was also greatly admired by family and friends of James Cole Sr. was his ability to bring a smile to people’s faces.
“My brother made everybody laugh,” said Bucky. “He was just a happy-go-lucky guy.”
A son inherits his father’s athletic gifts
James Cole Jr. inherited his father’s athletic prowess. Like his dad, young Jimmy was a standout in multiple sports. “Little Jimmy was a phenomenal athlete himself in four sports, baseball, basketball, football, and hockey,” said Bucky. “I remember in an exchange game in Canada, Jimmy had a hat trick in both games. He was just great in every sport. He was the quarterback in Pop Warner and at Northeast Regional and just excellent in everything he did.”
And in an interesting occurrence, Jimmy Cole Jr. and Thomas Cole Jr. – the sons of Jimmy Cole Sr. and Thomas “Bucky” Cole Sr. respectively – were Phillies’ teammates in the Chelsea Little League, just as their fathers had been Dodgers’ teammates in the 1960s.
And when it came time to give the speech of his life, James Cole Jr. delivered words that resonated with the assemblage at the Mass at Our Lady of Grace Church.
“My nephew Jimmy’s eulogy was fantastic,” said a proud Bucky Cole. “He captured exactly the essence of my brother’s character and his life. His grandkids were his life.”
Followed is a revised version of James Cole Jr.’s eloquent and candid tribute to his father:
Thank you, everyone, for being here today and sharing in the life of Big Jim.
My father had three siblings: Eddie, Bucky, and Patsy. The Cole boys were known for causing a little bit of trouble and were thick as thieves. I don’t know how Nana Cole did it—God rest her soul. My father loved his family.
At a young age, it was clear my father was a talented athlete. He was a star pitcher for the baseball team and the starting quarterback for the football team. You would always find his name in the local newspaper, highlighting his success. I think that’s where I take after my father most—I became a pretty good athlete myself.
My father lived life hard, but he always persevered. Sobriety, and helping others achieve it, was very important to him. He took pride in chairing his AA meetings and mentoring newcomers. He would always spot a new face in the crowd, go up and introduce himself, and tell them, “just keep coming.” He completely turned his life around and loved helping those in need.
Speaking of love, my father loved a lot of things—like feeding stray animals. He would feed anything from pigeons, cats, and dogs to possums and skunks. But his favorite was Alvin the chipmunk, who would come when he and the kids called, “Alvin!” He especially loved birds like blue jays and hawks. Keep your eye out for the hawks—he always said he was coming back to life as one. So if you see a hawk, it may be a visit from Big Jim.
Another thing my father loved was cooking and feeding people. His specialty was his gravy and meatballs—“the best in the whole wide world,” he would say. I’ve never seen any human being get more excited about food than my dad. My sister Dawn is a close second—she gets her love of cooking from him. One of his favorite stories to tell was when he made 100 meatballs for the Chelsea Pop Warner concession stand when I was playing football, and they sold out within the first half. It was one of his proudest moments.
He also loved being a U.S. Army veteran. He proudly displayed it in many ways. And in true Big Jim fashion, he loved telling the kids his war stories—like the time he killed a whole village of bad men with a toothpick, or the time he swallowed a grenade to save all the woman and children. He even had an extra bulging rib, which was clear proof that the grenade was still lodged inside him. But don’t touch it—it could explode.
My father loved his children, and that was obvious. He loved bragging about us to strangers or whoever would listen. He was always there for his kids and grandkids. His grandkids were the most special of all: Kyle, Kayla, James, Jordyn, Joseph, Juliana, Sophia—you were Papa’s whole heart! The relationship and bond he had with each kid was unique. From the lion hunts, to letting the kids dye his hair purple, to telling them inappropriate jokes—he was always making them laugh. I think all of the boys are taking after him with the sick sense of humor. The girls were his angels—his “favorite girls.” They truly were the apple of his eye. He was the proudest Papa on the planet. They were what kept him going every day.
One of my father’s longtime loves was gambling. And before I get into that—speaking of longtime loves—my father married my mother Denise on October 19, 1974. Although their marriage did not last, they remained friends up until the day he passed—and he never stopped driving her crazy.
Okay, back to the gambling. He loved going to Foxwoods on the bus trips with Nana Cole and playing bingo. As soon as we all turned 18, we all joined in the fun. He even won a Mercedes-Benz as the door prize. As we got older, the Foxwoods trips with Big Jim were legendary—from the VIP check-in, with him holding an Igloo cooler full of Bud Light and a bag of chicken cutlet sandwiches wrapped in tinfoil (well, the ones that made it there, because most of them were eaten on the car ride down).
He would often enter slot tournaments and once grabbed the microphone and asked Kerry to stand up and flex for the crowd. He loved doing crazy things, and my sister Krista loved getting it on video—she also has his sense of humor. Flexing and sunbathing was something my father was known for, and of course, checking out the pretty girls at the gym. He may have even trained his grandkids to say, “Hey sugar.”
It wasn’t just gambling at Foxwoods he loved. He loved playing the lottery and buying scratch tickets. He seemed to win a lot—especially on the grandkids’ birthdays—but remember, they only tell you when they win.
My father’s last call alive was at 3:01 AM on July 9th, and it was to the lottery to check the number. He passed away peacefully in his sleep that morning.
Dad, sorry you didn’t hit the number that night. But we will continue to play your numbers, tell your dirty jokes, make your gravy and meatballs, enjoy the sun, take trips to Foxwoods, and love our kids with all our hearts—just as you did.
We will never forget you.
Following is passage from a 1961 edition of the Chelsea Record:
“Wells, Cole Star In Impressive Opening Win”
Chelsea Nationals Come From Behind to Edge East Boston, 3-2
“Manager Frank Dawicki brought in Jimmy Cole from Chelsea in a relief role, and the Chelsea ace came through magnificently under extreme pressure, getting the first two batters by strikeouts, and forcing the third to pop up.”
The Little League All-Star game ended with Jimmy Cole earning a clutch save to finalize Chelsea’s 3-2 victory over the East Boston Nationals.