High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! Cecil Celester Cooper (born December 20, 1949), nicknamed "Coop," is a former first baseman in Major League Baseball and the former manager of the Houston Astros. From 1971 through 1987, Cooper played for the Boston Red Sox (1971–76) and Milwaukee Brewers (1977–87). He batted and threw left-handed, and attended Prairie View A&M University in Prairie View, Texas.