Former MLB player, coach, manager and general manager Gene Michael died of a heart attack today at the age of 79.
Nicknamed Stick, Michael spent most of his big league tenure with the New York Yankees. He played seven of his ten big league seasons with the Yankees as a light hitting shortstop and with the exception of his managerial stint with the Chicago Cubs in 1986 and 1987, Michael served the Yankees in some capacity for nearly 40 years.
Michael is probably best remembered for his two short-lived managerial stints with the Yankees in 1981 and 1982. The Yankees would win the AL pennant in 1981, but George Steinbrenner sacked him in favor of Bob Lemon before the season ended. Steinbrenner replaced Lemon with Michael early in the 1982 season only to be replaced by Clyde King later that summer.
His greatest legacy with the Yankees was when he served as the team's GM from 1991 through 1995. Early in Michael's tenure, Steinbrenner was serving a suspension for his ties to a gambler. Without Steinbrenner's meddling and micromanagement, Michael was able to draft the likes of Derek Jeter, Andy Pettitte, Jorge Posada and Mariano Rivera - the Core Four. Unfortunately, Steinbrenner would fire Michael the year before the Yankees won their first of four World Series in five years. But for better or worse, Michael was a loyal company man. He bled Yankee pinstripes to very end. R.I.P.
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