Bob Watson Left Huge Imprint During Career As Player, Executive

Joe Torre owes a piece of his Hall of Fame plaque to the late Bob Watson, who died Thursday.

Torre, now working in the office of Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred, was an out-of-work former player and manager when Watson, then a general manager, gave him the biggest break of his life.

After beating him out for the job of Yankees general manager, Watson went out on a limb to hire Torre, whose only previous success as manager of three teams was a surprise 1982 divisional title with the Atlanta Braves.

The New York tabloids were livid, posting such screaming and derisive headlines as “Clueless Joe.”

But Watson took a chance – even though he had to tempt the temper of bombastic Yankees owner George Steinbrenner.

“When he was working there, George was in full bloom,” said former Yankee slugger Reggie Jackson of Watson. “But he was a tough man. Watson got beat up a lot but he did well.”

Watson could take only so much. Often the target of abuse from the enigmatic owner, he lasted only two years as general manager in New York. But that was long enough for him to become the first black GM to win a World Series.

That happened in 1996, Torre’s first year on the job and the first time since 1978 that the Yankees were world champions. “He was a good man,” Torre said of Watson. “He was honest. He cared a great deal. He had a passion for the game. The thing I was most grateful for was that we shared the World Series in ‘96.”

The Brooklyn native went on to win four World Series rings and reach the postseason in all 12 years of his Bronx tenure. He was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1974.

In sharp contrast to the abrasiveness of earlier Yankee manager Billy Martin, Torre’s calm demeanor not only kept the peace in the clubhouse but also between the manager’s office and the executive office upstairs.

Torre’s temperament, coupled with his talent for handling players, allowed him to slam shut a revolving door that recycled managers regularly – including Martin a record five times – during the George Steinbrenner era.

During most of his stay, Torre’s immediate boss was the much younger Brian Cashman, a one-time Watson protégé who succeeded him in the GM’s chair in 1998.

“Bob was a gentle giant,” Cashman said after learning of Watson’s passing. “He was an incredibly kind person and a mentor to whom I looked up and admired. He shared his wealth of experience and deep knowledge of the game freely.

“Bob is the reason Joe Torre became manager of the New York Yankees. The two of them were instrumental in creating a winning culture that led to remarkable achievements.”

Watson, who concluded his career as an aide to the Commissioner, first made his mark as a player.

He not only scored the 1,000,000th run in baseball history but also became the first man to hit for the cycle in both leagues. A star first baseman and outfielder for the Houston Astros for 14 years, he also played for the Braves (under Torre), Yankees, and Red Sox. Over 19 seasons, the righthanded hitter crafted a .295 batting average and cranked 184 home runs — a total that would have been higher if his home park had not been the cavernous Astrodome.

Watson’s biggest home runs came off the field.

An Oakland A’s batting coach for three years after retirement, he returned to Houston as a front-office figure before climbing to general manager in 1993. His input enabled the Astros to swing the trade that brought them future Hall of Famer Jeff Bagwell.

Although his top salary as a player was $570,000 – little more than the major-league minimum today – Watson was worth much more than that. He never hit more than 22 home runs in a season but twice reached triple digits in runs batted in.

He once said he dreamed of making the majors, playing in an All-Star Game, and reaching the World Series – three goals he realized.

During his tenure as an executive for Major League Baseball, Watson raised money for the Baseball Assistance Team (B.A.T.) by offering fined players a chance to pay him or donate to that organization, which raises money for indigent former players. Most chose the latter.

Watson was also involved with USA Baseball, which helped the 2000 American Olympic team win a Gold Medal in the Sydney games.

“Bob Watson was a highly accomplished figure in our National Pastime and a deeply respected colleague for those of us at Major League Baseball,” Commissioner Rob Manfred said Friday. “I will always remember the outstanding example that Bob set for others, his years of model service to the Baseball Assistance Team and the courage with which he met his health challenges in recent years.”

The Astros will honor Watson’s memory next March when they open the Bob Watson Education Center at the Astros Youth Academy.