Tuesday, April 20, 1999
Sparky tapped for Reds Hall
Anderson induction is July 16
BY CHRIS HAFT
The Cincinnati Enquirer
Sparky Anderson will remain a Red forever. His July 16 induction into the franchise's Hall of Fame, a date the team announced Monday, assures that.
SPARKY HIGHLIGHTS
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• Career record: 26 years (1970-78 Cincinnati, 1979-95 Detroit), 2,194-1,834 (.545).
• Led Cincinnati to an 863-586 record, five NL West titles, four pennants and two World Series (1975-76) titles.
• Named NL Manager of the Year (1972, '75) and AL Manager of the Year (1984, '87).
• Is the only manager to win a World Series in both leagues (1975-76 Cincinnati; 1984, Detroit), the only manager to lead two franchises in victories (863, Cincinnati; 1,331, Detroit).
• Victory total is third-highest behind Connie Mack (3,731) and John McGraw (2,763).
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But two World Series triumphs, four National League pennants and an 863-586 record couldn't offset Anderson's grim memory of Nov. 27, 1978, when then-General Manager Dick Wagner fired him.
Now, buffered by decades of accomplishment and four years of retirement, Anderson can freely discuss his view of why he was cast aside.
“I probably got a little bit too high and mighty and forgot my place was just the clubhouse,” he said in a conference call. “I had no business up above (in the front office), and I think maybe I fought some decisions more than I should have fought them, truthfully.
“It was a two-way, 50-50 thing. They were 50 percent wrong, but I think I was 50 percent wrong.”
Coaching changes and player personnel decisions were what rankled Anderson, though he wouldn't cite names. But he was known to be close to coaches Alex Grammas and Larry Shepard, who left the Reds along with him, and was reportedly exasperated when the Reds made no effort to retain free agents such as Pete Rose and Don Gullett.
But more than 20 years have passed. George Lee Anderson, 65, sounded inca pable of summoning any bitterness. He survived his firing to manage 17 seasons in Detroit (1979-95). And he cherished his Reds career (1970-78), which featured eight first- or second-place finishes in nine years.
The thought of being immortalized with the greatest figures in Reds history — including several he managed, such as Johnny Bench, Gary Nolan and Tony Perez — filled Anderson with joy.
“I'm totally thrilled,” Anderson said. “It means so much to me because (Cincinnati's) the first place I ever managed in my career. No matter what you do, that's the place that stays the closest.”
If entering Cincinnati's hall of fame touches Anderson's heart, then enshrinement in Cooperstown's — an honor he'll surely receive — will grip his descendants.
“It's eternity ... It's for my family,” he said. “Every person in my family, from now until the end of the world, will know where their grandfather, great-grandfather, 20-times great grandfather is. When you're in there, that means you contributed to the game of baseball.”
Anderson wisely dodged the searing question of whether his likeness on his baseball Hall of Fame plaque will wear a Reds or a Tigers cap.
“That's something we're still going over,” he said. But he quickly expressed undying gratitude to former Reds GM Bob Howsam, who hired him as manager.
“Whether everybody thought he was crazy at the time, Bob Howsam did something that, had he not, I might not have ever managed in the major leagues,” Anderson said. “(No matter) which (cap) I take, Bob Howsam will always stand alongside of me for that.”
Come July 16, when Anderson is honored during ceremonies at Cinergy Field before the Reds face Colorado, he'll probably see plenty of familiar, friendly faces in the stands.
“You could walk down the street in Cincinnati and hear a bang on the window, because people knew you and wanted to wave at you,” he said. “You always feel like you're at home there. The people in Cincinnati love their Reds. I don't care if they're struggling a little bit, they still love the Reds.”
Anderson helped strengthen that ardor by guiding his Reds teams to a .596 winning percentage, tops in franchise history. He sensed immediately upon taking over in 1970 that they would succeed, though he was a little embarrassed at the memory.
“I told all the coaches in spring training that we would win (the NL West) by 10 games or more,” he said. “If I knew then what I know now, I don't think I would have ever made statements like that. I was very excited about things. I thought we could go out and just win.”
Then came his first Opening Day, with Jim Merritt pitching against Montreal's Joe Sparma on what Anderson recalled as a cold, misty afternoon at Crosley Field. Lee May clinched the Reds' 5-1 victory by blasting a three-run homer through what Anderson described as a “gale.”
At that moment, he saw one of his first hints of the Big Red Machine's greatness.
“Oh my goodness,” Anderson thought, “we do have a lot of thunder here.”
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