George Lee (Sparky) Anderson

George Lee (Sparky) Anderson

Detroit Tigers Manager (1979 – 1995)

Sparky Anderson was born in Bridgewater, South Dakota and moved with his family to Los Angeles at an early age. After high school graduation, he was drafted as an amateur free agent by the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1953. After spending five years in the Dodgers organization he was traded to the Philadelphia Phillies where he was given an opportunity to play in the major leagues, but after one season he was sent back to the minor leagues for the remainder of his career. He started his managerial career in the minor leagues in 1964 and after six successful seasons was promoted to the Cincinnati Reds in 1970 where he won two World Series Championships (1975, 1976). After his release from the Reds in 1978, he went on to manage the Detroit Tigers for 17 seasons (1979 to 1995), where he won an additional World Series (1984). During Anderson’s 17 seasons as the Tigers manager he compiled a record of 1,331 – 1,248, and was a two-time Manager of the year. He has his number 10 retired by the Reds and his number (11) retired by the Tigers. Sparky Anderson was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 2000 and was inducted into the Michigan Sports Hall of Fame in 1992. He passed away on November 4, 2010 at 76 years of age.