George M. Steinbrenner III, 1930-2010; Remembering "The Boss"

A couple of weeks ago I commented on a friend's blog about how often we improperly use the term "icon", sometimes using the word to define a flavor of the month personality or "This Year's Blond". ICONS should personify an era, be larger than life....John Wayne, Elvis Presley, Madonna, Michael Jackson, Marilyn Monroe or the Beatles; or Babe Ruth, Willie Mays, Jim Brown, Michael Jordan, Micky Mantle......or George Michael Steinbrenner III.

Steinbrenner, who died this morning of a massive heart attack, was the personification of an icon. The longtime 80 year old principal owner of the New York Yankees, who bought the team in 1973 for $8.8 million and turned the Yankees into an empire worth an estimated $3 billion.....and has been said to have laid out $200,000 of his own cash to complete the purchase from CBS.

It's hard to believe when looking at the Yankees now to think of where the team was in 1973. They were the #2 team in New York to the exciting young upstart Mets- New York, despite all of the Yankee championships was a National League town at heart, first with the Giants and Dodgers, and from 1962 the Mets. Attendancewise the Yankees peaked in 1948 with almost 2.8 million fans flocking to old Yankee Stadium. But attendance began a a slow decline, down 1.3 million in 1964, the year the Yankees lost to St Louis Cardinals in seven games in the World Series. The Yankees would not return to the Series until 1976....the Dynasty crumbled, and within two years the Yankees were a last place team. It was an era defined by the unfortunate ownership of CBS (who purchased the team from Dan Topping and Del Webb in 1964), sometimes called "The Horace Clarke Era", named after the mediocre second basemen during those years.

In 1973, the year Steinbrenner bought the Yankees, attendance was about 1.3 million after failing to top one million in 1972; their average of 15, 552 was fifth out of a twelve team American League. Steinbrenner, who once claimed he would be a "hands off" owner, soon started to turn things upside down. No facial beards and haircuts were mandatory; manager Ralph Houk left, soon followed by Bill Virdon and by 1976 it was time for Billy Martin (Act One). Billy would serve five terms as Yankees manager altogether.

But the thing that turned the Yankees around relatively quickly was free agency, recently won by Major League baseball's players....Catfish Hunter came over from the Athletics, and soon "The Straw That Stirs The Drink", Reggie Jackson, took the money and came to the Bronx. Through trades and the farm system the Yankees had Graig Nettles, Chris Chambliss, Thurman Munson, and Sparky Lyle, among others, and the nucleus for what became known as "The Bronx Zoo". There were for World Series appearances and two World Championships from 1976-81, and clubhouse drama, and Billy Martin being fired, Bob Lemon hired, Billy returning and being fired a second time.

The 1980's was the Era of Mattingly and Winfield on the Yankees.....and it was also the era defined by the impetuous nature of Steinbrenner. As WFAN radio personality Mike FRancesa has said, George changed managers in the decade the way most people change shirts. Eight different men managed the team in the 1980's; Billy Martin three more times, Gene Michael and Lou Pinella has two separate terms, Bob Lemon, Dick Howser, Clyde King, Dallas Green, and Yogi Berra all had time at the helm. Yogi was fired 16 games into the 1985 season- he didn't speak to Steinbrenner for more than a decade.

And in 1982 I returned home from a Yankee-Tigers Sunday afternoon game in April, a tough loss for the Yanks, to find out that Bob Lemon had been fired AGAIN as Yankee manager;it was 14 games into the season. He was replaced by Gene Michael, and "Stick" was bounced for Clyde king before season's end....three managers, a fifth place finish, and a 79-83 record.

Yes it was crazy...and it was Steinbrenner at his worst. He reacted like a fan and bounced leadership at every turn. it was a circus, and an embarrassment as a fan to watch. And of course, there was the case of Steinbrenner hiring gambler Howie Spira to dig up dirt on outfielder Dave Winfield, an action that got Steinbrenner a suspension from Baseball Commissioner Fay Vincent in 1990. It was the second suspension for Steinbrenner, who got two yaers in the early 1970's for illegal campaign contributions to the Nixon campaign....but there was alot of that going on.

Steinbrenner returned from his 1990 suspension in 1993, a changed and more mellow man. Much of the bombast of his early years was gone. In 1995 he let manager Buck Showalter go after the Yankees first postseason appearance since 1981, and replaced him with veteran manager Joe Torre. What followed was an era that came to define the later Steinbrenner years, and the rebirth of a dynasty. There was The Core Four- Andy Petitte, Mariano Rivaera, Jorge Posada, and Derek Jeter, Bernie Williams, Paul O'Neil, Tino Martinez....and ex Mets David Cone, Daryl Strawberry and Doc Gooden. There were World Championships in 1996, 1998, 1999, and 2000, as well as American League pennants in 2001 and 2003. Torre led the Yankees to the post season in every one of his 12 seasons as manager. And the Yankees became the hottest ticket in town, topping 3 million in attendance from each yearfrom 1999 on, and 4 million from 2005-08, last four years of old Yankee Stadium.

George Steinbrenner was responsible for the jewel that is the new Yankee Stadium; it was built with Steinbrenner's own money. And it was Steinbrenner who saw the changing economics of the game and became the first baseball owner to start a cable TV network for his team; today the YES network is the most successful regional network in the United States.

Just about every former player says the same thing about George Steinbrenner....he was a tough and demanding boss, but when he became a Yankee you were a Yankee for life. Many times former players down on their luck, or players needing a second or third chance, had George Steinbrenner in their corner. His charitable donations sometimes flew below the radar, because he wanted it that way. And he became a pop culture figure, with commercials for VISA and MILLER LITE, an appearance on SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE, and his " non-appearance appearance" on Seinfeld as himself (as portrayed by Larry David) was done because his grandchildren loved the show. Steinbrenner had script approval of any episode he "appeared".

You can say many things about George Steinbrenner, and the chances are you were right....he could be loud, a bully, impetuous, bombastic. Or charitable, kind, loyal, and sentimental. Or an amazing business man, an visionary, and a man who helped to revive baseball not only in New York, but nationally. He changed sports and our culture, and became the dominant sports figure in the media capital of the world.

Before Bruce and Tony Soprano, there was already one Boss in these parts.

And today he left us.

Thanks, George.

Yankees Win World Series; Some More Thoughts

Just a few thoughts about the New York Yankees on winning their 27th World Championship, and their first since 2000.

"The Core Four"+ One. Derek Jeter, Mariano Rivera, Jorge Posada, Andy Pettitte, and manager Joe Girardi; OK, for all you baseball nit pickers, Jorge Posada didn't play in the 1996 World Series, but was on the roster, and was the primary catcher on the 1998-2000 championship teams. And Andy Pettitte did leave the Yankees for a while in the early 2000's. But can you imagine going back in time to 1996 and telling the "Core Four" and the catcher in 1996, Joe Girardi, that they'd win it all in 1996, and for three consecutive years starting in 1998...and THEN all five would be part of a team that that won in all again in 2009? Girardi is the skipper, and Pettitte, Rivera, Posada, and Jeter are all veterans in their late thirties, all of whom will be Hall of Famers or at least get Hall of Fame consideration. All of the players are still productive parts of the team, and are not hanging on for "one more shot". To me, this was the most remarkable thing about this team. Much is said about the Yankee's use of big bucks to bring in free agents, like CC Sabathia, AJ Burnett, and Mark Teixeira. But its the home grown "Core Four" who are the heart and soul of this team.

Hideki Matsui- if this was the last game for this beloved Yankee, and the most popular player in the history of Japanese baseball, what a way to exit. As essentially a part-time player in this series because he is now a fulltime designated hitter, and three games were played in the DH-less National League park in Philadelphia, "Godzilla" was the Series MVP. His six RBI's in the Series tied a major league record for one game. He appeared in all six games, as a pinch hitter in games three, four, and five and had only 14 plate appearances in all. He had eight hits in 13 at bats, hit three home runs, drove in eight runs and scored three runs- he had a batting average of .615! Matsui had 18 total bases with those eight hits, and his hits/rbi ratio was one to one. A remarkable performance.

Phil Hughes, Phil Coke, Joba Chamberlain- these young Yankees in the bullpen had a rough time in the post season. But the Yanks don't get to the post season without them. And Joba Chamberalin- he belongs in the pen. When he's on he can dominate.

Current Yankees Johnny Damon and Eric Hinske are part of a small group who have won World Series as both Yankees and Red Sox. Hinske is only the second player to appear in three World Series in three consecutive years with three different teams (Red Sox, Rays, Yankees). Don Baylor is the other player.

Johnny Damon- what else can you say about his at bat in game four? He kept fouling pitches off and then singled, stole second and third on the same play, and then scored on a base hit. And with his pulled calf muscle in last night's game sending him to the bench, it became imperative to win Game Six and close out the Series. Damon was too valuable at the top of the lineup, and his absence in a Game Seven would have been hard to deal with.

Andy Pettitte was the winning pitcher in the clincher in all three post season series. Not bad for a guy who didn't know if he'd even be pitching in 2009.

And finally...there is A-Rod. At last the ghosts of the past failures in the post season have been exercised. His numbers in the World Series weren't eye popping but his five hits drove in six runs when they mattered. Overall he knocked in a remarkable 18 runs in this post season, and his home run in Game Three in Philadelphia was the turning point of the game. He came through big.

Thanks for a great post season, Alex Rodriguez.

And for that matter....thank you, Kate Hudson!

WORLD CHAMPIONS!!!!!!

The New York Yankees defeated the Philadelphia Phillies 7-3 to win their 27th World Series title.

Yankee starter Andy Pettitte went five and two thirds innings on short rest and gave up three runs, two on a home run by Phillies slugger Ryan Howard. The bullpen of Joba Chamberlain, Damaso Marte, and closer Mariano Rivera pitched scoreless baseball the rest of the way.

Yankee DH Hideki Matsui slugged a two run homer, a two run double, and a two run single, to tie Bobby Richardson for most RBI's in a single World Series game (1960, Yankees).

The Yankee Core of Four- Mariano Rivera, Derek Jeter, Jorge Posada, and and Andy Pettitte won their fifth World title as teammates (1996, 1998-2000, 2009).

Hideki Matsui was named the MVP of the Series, the first full time DH to win the trophy.

Alex Rodriguez is on a World Series winner for the first time in his Hall of Fame career.

The New Yankee Stadium- the "New House"- is now a home.

Click for BOX SCORE.