O'Malley, Walter

Walter O'Malley was among the most influential baseball team owners of the latter half of the 20th century. He was a persuasive and visionary businessman who altered the big league landscape with seismic force by moving his Brooklyn Dodgers to Los Angeles. Thwarted in his attempts to replace an outdated Ebbets Field, O'Malley led baseball's geographic expansion west after the 1957 season by relocating his team to California, while convincing the New York Giants to follow suit. Under O'Malley's ownership, the Dodgers became the "gold standard" of baseball franchises, winning 11 pennants and four World Series titles.