Sparky Anderson becomes first manager to win 600 games in both leagues

In 1951, a dark-haired kid named George and his teammates on Post 715 traveled from their home in Los Angeles to Briggs Stadium in Detroit to compete against Post 135 of New York in the American Legion World Series. Post 715 prevailed, and it turned out to be a prophetic moment for young George.

George’s last name was Anderson. But the world knows him better as Sparky. Thirty-five years after his teenage celebration in Briggs Stadium – on June 29, 1986 – Sparky Anderson, his hair having turned as white as snow, was celebrating again on the same field, having become the first big-league manager to win 600 games in both leagues.

“I would be lying to you if I told you it wasn’t nice,” Anderson told the Pittsburgh Press. “That’s something nobody else has done in the history of the game.”

That fleeting moment of self-congratulation was rare for Anderson, a man who refused to step into the Hall of Fame until 2000, the year he was inducted, because he felt “unworthy.” It was that self-effacing nature of his that drove him to a historic 26-year managerial career. But after more than 2,000 victories and three World Series titles, most would agree that Anderson was more than deserving.

Much of Anderson’s success stemmed from his ability to communicate with his team effectively, on a personal level. He himself had played second base for the Philadelphia Phillies – albeit only one season –batting .218 before bouncing around the minor leagues for a couple of years. He understood the pressure his players felt to prove their worth, and made sure they knew that.

“He was a people person,” Joe Morgan, a Hall of Fame second baseman, told The Associated Press. “I don’t think anybody else could have managed that team nearly as well as he did. We had a lot of different personalities. Sparky was able to deal with all of us on an individual basis but also collectively as a team. Because he was close to you and cared about you as a person, you were always willing to do more for him than you were for somebody else. I never thought of him as my manager. I thought of him as part of my family.”