Sparky Anderson
George Lee "Sparky" Anderson (February 22, 1934 – November 4, 2010) was an American Major League Baseball (MLB) player, coach, and manager. He managed the National League's Cincinnati Reds to the 1975 and 1976 championships, then added a third title in 1984 with the Detroit Tigers of the American League. Anderson was the first manager to win the World Series in both leagues. His 2,194 career wins are the sixth-most for a manager in Major League history. Anderson was named American League Manager of the Year in 1984 and 1987. He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2000.
Sparky Anderson
Early life[edit]
Anderson was born in Bridgewater, South Dakota, on February 22, 1934. He moved to Los Angeles, California, at the age of eight.[1] He was a batboy for the USC Trojans.[1] He attended Susan Miller Dorsey High School in Los Angeles.[2] Upon graduating, he was signed by the Brooklyn Dodgers as an amateur free agent in 1953.[3]
Anderson's American Legion team won the 1951 national championship, which was played in Briggs Stadium (Tiger Stadium) in Detroit.
Anderson married Carol Valle on October 3, 1953. They had first met when each was in the fifth grade.[4]
Playing career[edit]
Anderson began his playing career with the Santa Barbara Dodgers of the Class-C California League, where he was primarily used as a shortstop.[5] In 1954, he was moved up to the class-A Pueblo Dodgers of the Western League and was moved to second base, where he played the rest of his career.[5]
In 1955, Anderson was moved another step up the minor league ladder, playing for the Double-A Fort Worth Cats of the Texas League. A radio announcer gave him the nickname "Sparky" in 1955 for his feisty play.[6] In 1956, he moved up once more, this time to the Triple-A Montreal Royals of the International League. In 1957, he was assigned to the Los Angeles Angels of the open-classification Pacific Coast League. The next season, after the Dodgers' move to Los Angeles, he returned to Montreal.[5]
After five minor league seasons without appearing in a Dodger uniform at the MLB level, he was traded to the Philadelphia Phillies on December 23, 1958, for three players, including outfielder Rip Repulski.[3] The Phillies gave Anderson their starting second base job, and he spent what would be his one full season in the major leagues in 1959. However, he batted only .218 in 152 games, with no home runs and 34 runs batted in, and returned to the minor leagues for the remainder of his playing career.
He played the next four seasons with the Triple-A Toronto Maple Leafs in the International League.[5] After watching several practices, Leafs owner Jack Kent Cooke observed Anderson's leadership qualities and ability to teach younger players from all backgrounds. Cooke immediately encouraged him to pursue a career in managing, offering Anderson the post for the Leafs.
Managerial career[edit]
Minor leagues[edit]
In 1964, at the age of 30, Anderson accepted Cooke's offer to manage the Leafs. He later handled minor league clubs at the Class-A and Double-A levels, including a season (1968) in the Reds' minor league system.
During this period, he managed four pennant winners in four consecutive seasons: 1965 with the Rock Hill Cardinals of the Western Carolinas League, 1966 with the St. Petersburg Cardinals of the Florida State League, 1967 with the Modesto Reds of the California League, and 1968 with the Asheville Tourists of the Double-A Southern League. It was during the 1966 season that Anderson's club lost to Miami 4–3 in 29 innings, which remains the longest pro game played (by innings) without interruption.[7]
He made his way back to the majors in 1969 as the third-base coach of the San Diego Padres during their maiden season in the National League.
Cincinnati Reds[edit]
Just after the 1969 season ended, California Angels manager Lefty Phillips, who as a Dodger scout had signed the teenager Anderson to his first professional contract,[8] named Anderson to his 1970 coaching staff.
Death and legacy[edit]
Anderson was the first manager to win a World Series for both a National League and American League team. Either manager in the 1984 Series would have been the first to win in both leagues, since San Diego Padres (NL) manager Dick Williams had won the series with the Oakland Athletics (AL) in 1972 and 1973. Williams' 1972 club had defeated Anderson's Reds club.
Anderson's accomplishment was equaled in the 2006 World Series, when St. Louis Cardinals manager Tony La Russa – who had previously won the World Series with the Oakland Athletics in 1989, and who considers Anderson his mentor – led his team to the title over the Detroit Tigers. Coincidentally, having won a championship while managing the Florida Marlins in 1997, Tigers manager Jim Leyland could have achieved this same feat had the Tigers defeated La Russa's Cardinals in the 2006 World Series. During that series, Anderson threw out the ceremonial first pitch of Game 2 at Comerica Park, the Tigers' home park.
In 2006, construction was completed on the "Sparky Anderson Baseball Field" at California Lutheran University's new athletic complex.[25] Anderson had used his influence to attract notable players to the university baseball team,[26] and he was also awarded the Laundry Medal by the university for being "an inspiration to youth."[27]
On November 3, 2010, it was announced that Anderson had been placed in hospice care at his Thousand Oaks home because of his deteriorating dementia condition.[28] Anderson died the next day at the age 76 in Thousand Oaks.[6] He was survived by his wife of 57 years, Carol, sons Lee and Albert, daughter Shirlee Engelbrecht, and eight grandchildren.[6] Carol died at age 79 on May 7, 2013, at home in Thousand Oaks.[29]
On June 26, 2011, the Detroit Tigers honored Anderson by retiring his number 11 from future use and placing his name and number on the outfield wall with the other past honorees and members of the Baseball Hall of Fame. Tiger players also wore commemorative patches on their uniform sleeves all season.[30]