Hall of Fame Baseball Manager Sparky Anderson Dies at Age 76
Sparky Anderson was signed as a free agent player by the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1953. He was traded to the Philadelphia Phillies after the 1958 season. Anderson's only season as a player in the big leagues came in 1959 with Philadelphia. A second baseman, he batted just .218 with no homers and 34 RBIs in 152 games that year for the Phillies.
Anderson was named manager of the Cincinnati Reds in 1970, the youngest manager in the majors at that time at age 36. The Reds finished with a record of 102-60, swept the Pittsburgh Pirates in the National League Championship series, but lost to the Baltimore Orioles in the World Series. The Reds won the National League Pennant again in 1972, losing to the Oakland Athletics that year in the World Series. In 1975, Anderson's Reds won the National League Pennant and defeated the Boston Red Sox in the seven game 1975 World Series. The Reds won the pennant again in 1976, and then beat the New York Yankees in the World Series four games to none.
Following consecutive second place finishes in 1977 and 1978, Sparky Anderson was fired by the Reds after nine seasons. He took over the Detroit Tigers in 1979. In 1984, the Tigers led the American League East from Opening Day onward, finishing with a record of 104-58. The Tigers beat the San Diego Padres in the World Series and Anderson became the first manager to win the World Series with teams from both leagues. Anderson's Tigers won the American League East in 1987, but lost to the Minnesota Twins in the American League Championship Series. The Tigers went into a decline after that, finishing no higher than second place, and Anderson retired in 1995, after 17 seasons with the Tigers.
Sources
Hall of Fame Manager Sparky Anderson Dies ESPN.com
Baseball-Reference.com
Published by Mark Hudziak - Featured Contributor in Sports
Mark is a Featured Contributor in Sports for the Yahoo! Contributor Network. He also blogs about the Civil War at Iron Brigader.com. He is an analytical chemist for a public health laboratory in his other... View profile
- Baseball's Ten Winningest Managers of All TimeOf the ten winningest baseball managers ever, only one did not play the game as a pro. This article counts them down, from Casey Stengal to Connie Mack.
- Which Current Baseball Managers Are Hall of Fame Worthy?LaRussa, Cox, and Torre are shoo-ins, with Piniella a good possibiltiy down the road.
The Social Impact of Japanese BaseballThis institution that is Japanese baseball goes much further than a box score, a pennant race, or the corporate ties that all Japanese professional baseball franchise are attach...- Michael Jordan's Hall of Fame Speech: Raw and UncutMost consider him the greatest basketball player of all time but after his Basketball Hall of Fame speech, the former NBA great is under scrutiny for not being the best speech writer.
Ron Santo Denied 2008 Baseball Hall of Fame; Joe Gordon InductedDid Ron Santo deserve to be included in the 2008 Baseball Hall of Fame?
- 2007 National League Central Preview
- Why the American League is Better Than the National League
- Great Moments in National League Division Series History
- MLB 2008 Preview: National League West
- Mets Still Team to Beat in National League
- Ten Memorable Sparky Anderson Quotes
- A Basic History of the Detroit Tigers Baseball Team
2 Comments
Post a Commenti always liked him great job
Fine report although sad news. My son was telling me about it this morning.