New York Yankees owner George Steinbrenner dies aged 80
George Steinbrenner, the principal owner and chairman of the New York Yankees, has died at the age of 80 after suffering a heart attack.
Steinbrenner, who celebrated his birthday on July 4th, was taken to hospital in Florida after falling ill overnight, bringing to an end the colourful reign of a man who lived up to his nickname of “the Boss”.
When Steinbrenner bought the Yankees for $10m in 1973 it was a club that had gone into steep decline from its more dominant periods. Some may have doubted whether Steinbrenner could turn things around but in 37 years, during which time he became the longest-serving owner in Major League Baseball, the Yankees won 11 pennants and seven World Series titles, the last of which came in 2009.
Steinbrenner, the son of a Cleveland shipping merchant, was not a passenger and had his share of clashes with Yankees managers down the years. Steinbrenner’s view was that he spent heavily to lure the best players available to the Yankees and he wanted to have his say in team affairs. Perhaps the most celebrated love-hate relationship in sport was between Steinbrenner and Billy Martin.
Martin, a former second baseman, was hired midway through the 1975 season as manager, and was fired and hired five times.
But Steinbrenner also showed a shrewd business brain as he built the Yankees into a success off the field as well. And he was an innovator, with the Yankees becoming the first club to sell television rights to a cable company.
He was also rarely lost for words, often saying that “winning is the most important thing in my life, after breathing. Breathing first, winning next.” However, as his health declined, Steinbrenner handed over control of the Yankees to his sons, Hal and Hank, three years ago. He made an appearance at the final game at the old Yankee Stadium in 2008 and attended a game at the team's $1bn new stadium in April this year.
A statement released by his family read: “He was an incredible and charitable man. He was a visionary and a giant in the world of sports. He took a great but struggling franchise and turned it into a champion again.”
His death on the day of the All-Star game was the second in three days to hit the Yankees. Bob Sheppard, the team's public address announcer from 1951-07 and described as the 'Voice of the Yankees', died Sunday at the age of 99.
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