Baseball has lost another legend.
Hall of Fame manager Sparky Anderson died on Thursday at the age of 76 of complications from dementia. He was best known for directing Cincinnati’s “Big Red Machine” to back-to-back World Series championships in 1975 and 1976, as well as leading the Tigers to a championship titleover the Padres in 1984.
From ESPN.com:
Anderson was the first manager to win World Series titles in both leagues and the only manager to lead two franchises in career wins.
His Reds teams featuring Pete Rose, Johnny Bench and Joe Morgan that won crowns in 1975 and 1976 rank among the most powerful of all-time. Led by Kirk Gibson and Alan Trammell, Anderson won with the Tigers in 1984.
Anderson’s win total of 2,194 was the third-highest when he retired after the 1995 season, trailing only Connie Mack and John McGraw. He’s still sixth on the career list — he won 863 games in nine years with the Reds and 1,331 in 17 seasons with the Tigers.
Always affable and ever talkative, Anderson was equally popular among players, fans and media.
I lived in Detroit for many years and had the opportunity to work for a sports radio station while I was there. Let me tell you first hand: Sparky Anderson was beloved. The blue-collar city that is Detroit has always been very appreciative for what Anderson brought to Motown.
I think it’s appropriate that he left us during the same week the World Series wrapped up.
R.I.P., Sparky.
