Bob Short
Encyclopedia
Robert Earl Short was an American
sport teams owner and politician.
, Short bought the Minneapolis Lakers of the National Basketball Association
in the late 1950s and moved the team to Los Angeles
in 1960. He later sold the team in 1965 to Canadian magnate Jack Kent Cooke
.
Outbidding comedian Bob Hope
, Short then bought the Washington Senators
Major League Baseball
franchise in the autumn of 1968. The Senators had just finished in the American League
basement and were last in the majors in attendance. Short immediately installed himself as the team's general manager
and hired Hall of Famer Ted Williams
— the major leagues' last .400 hitter — as its field manager
for 1969
.
Miraculously, the '69 Senators improved by 21 games and posted 86 victories en route to the only winning season the expansion-era version of the club would experience in its 11-year lifespan. Williams coaxed career-best batting average
s out of a number of Washington hitters. With a winning team, Williams as a drawing card, and the 1969 Major League Baseball All-Star Game
at Robert F. Kennedy Stadium, the Senators almost doubled their 1968 attendance, to over 918,000 paid spectators.
But it was a one-year wonder. The 1970
edition won only 70 games and fell into the basement of the American League East Division. Players began to complain about Williams's approach to managing — and batting. At season's end, Short dealt his best starting pitcher
and the left side of his infield
to the Detroit Tigers
for erstwhile 30-game-winner Denny McLain
, who had spent most of the 1970 campaign suspended because of gambling allegations. The deal--alleged by onetime Senators broadcaster Shelby Whitfield to have been made in order to secure the Tigers' vote in favor of the Senators' eventual move to Texas--turned Detroit back into contenders, while McLain was a monumental bust, losing a league-worst 22 games.
The Senators' attendance sunk back to near-1968 levels and Short successfully petitioned the AL to move the franchise to Arlington, Texas
, where it became the Texas Rangers
in 1972
.
The Senators' move to Texas would make Short one of the most reviled figures in Washington sports. During the final Senators game at RFK Stadium on September 30, 1971, the fans let their feelings known about Short, unfurling two giant vertical banners that read "Short Stinks". Fans would later storm the field near the end of the game, resulting in a Senators forfeit. During the Washington Nationals
' final game at RFK Stadium on September 23, 2007, a similar scene unfolded. Nationals' fans unrolled a series of three banners vertically spelling out "Short Still Stinks", in nearly the same place in the stadium that the two banners hung 36 years earlier. Luckily the game otherwise finished without major incident and unlike the infamous 1971 game, did not need to be forfeited.
In Texas, Short is infamously remembered for drafting high school phenom David Clyde
and rushing him into the majors to sell tickets, blowing out Clyde's arm within two years. The Rangers remained a cellar-dwelling unit and did not begin to win consistently until he sold them to a new local ownership group headed by Brad Corbett
in 1974
.
Short then returned to Minnesota, where he had run unsuccessfully for lieutenant governor in 1966. He was the Democratic candidate for one of two United States Senate
seats up in 1978. In the Democratic primary, he narrowly upset Congressman Donald M. Fraser
, but soundly lost the general election with 35% of the vote against Republican David Durenberger
. During the campaign, his anti-abortion position led to strife within the traditionally strong state party. He was a longtime member of the Democratic National Committee
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
sport teams owner and politician.
Biography
A native of Minneapolis, MinnesotaMinneapolis, Minnesota
Minneapolis , nicknamed "City of Lakes" and the "Mill City," is the county seat of Hennepin County, the largest city in the U.S. state of Minnesota, and the 48th largest in the United States...
, Short bought the Minneapolis Lakers of the National Basketball Association
National Basketball Association
The National Basketball Association is the pre-eminent men's professional basketball league in North America. It consists of thirty franchised member clubs, of which twenty-nine are located in the United States and one in Canada...
in the late 1950s and moved the team to Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
in 1960. He later sold the team in 1965 to Canadian magnate Jack Kent Cooke
Jack Kent Cooke
Jack Kent Cooke was a Canadian entrepreneur and former owner of the Washington Redskins , the Los Angeles Lakers , and the Los Angeles Kings , and built The Forum in Inglewood, California and FedEx Field in Landover, Maryland.-Early career:Born in Hamilton, Ontario, Cooke moved with his family to...
.
Outbidding comedian Bob Hope
Bob Hope
Bob Hope, KBE, KCSG, KSS was a British-born American comedian and actor who appeared in vaudeville, on Broadway, and in radio, television and movies. He was also noted for his work with the US Armed Forces and his numerous USO shows entertaining American military personnel...
, Short then bought the Washington Senators
Texas Rangers (baseball)
The Texas Rangers are a professional baseball team in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, based in Arlington, Texas. The Rangers are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League, and are the reigning A.L. Western Division and A.L. Champions. Since , the Rangers have...
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
franchise in the autumn of 1968. The Senators had just finished in the American League
American League
The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, or simply the American League , is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league based in the Great Lakes states, which eventually aspired to major...
basement and were last in the majors in attendance. Short immediately installed himself as the team's general manager
General manager (baseball)
In Major League Baseball, the general manager of a team typically controls player transactions and bears the primary responsibility on behalf of the ballclub during contract discussions with players....
and hired Hall of Famer Ted Williams
Ted Williams
Theodore Samuel "Ted" Williams was an American professional baseball player and manager. He played his entire 21-year Major League Baseball career as the left fielder for the Boston Red Sox...
— the major leagues' last .400 hitter — as its field manager
Manager (baseball)
In baseball, the field manager is an individual who is responsible for matters of team strategy on the field and team leadership. Managers are typically assisted by between one and six assistant coaches, whose responsibilities are specialized...
for 1969
1969 in baseball
-Expansion:Four expansion teams joined Major League Baseball for this season: the San Diego Padres, the Kansas City Royals, the Seattle Pilots, and the first MLB team in Canada, the Montreal Expos. To accommodate the additional teams, the two leagues were split into two divisions of East and West...
.
Miraculously, the '69 Senators improved by 21 games and posted 86 victories en route to the only winning season the expansion-era version of the club would experience in its 11-year lifespan. Williams coaxed career-best batting average
Batting average
Batting average is a statistic in both cricket and baseball that measures the performance of cricket batsmen and baseball hitters. The two statistics are related in that baseball averages are directly descended from the concept of cricket averages.- Cricket :...
s out of a number of Washington hitters. With a winning team, Williams as a drawing card, and the 1969 Major League Baseball All-Star Game
1969 Major League Baseball All-Star Game
The 1969 Major League Baseball All-Star Game was the 40th midseason exhibition between the all-stars of the American League and the National League , the two leagues comprising Major League Baseball. The game was played on July 23, 1969 at RFK Memorial Stadium in Washington, DC. The game resulted...
at Robert F. Kennedy Stadium, the Senators almost doubled their 1968 attendance, to over 918,000 paid spectators.
But it was a one-year wonder. The 1970
1970 in baseball
-Major Leagues:*World Series MVP: Brooks Robinson*All-Star Game, July 14 at Riverfront Stadium: National League, 5-4 ; Carl Yastrzemski, MVP-Other champions:*Caribbean World Series: Navegantes del Magallanes *College World Series: USC...
edition won only 70 games and fell into the basement of the American League East Division. Players began to complain about Williams's approach to managing — and batting. At season's end, Short dealt his best starting pitcher
Pitcher
In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throwsthe baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw a walk. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the...
and the left side of his infield
Infielder
An infielder is a baseball player stationed at one of four defensive "infield" positions on the baseball field.-Standard arrangement of positions:In a game of baseball, two teams of nine players take turns playing offensive and defensive roles...
to the Detroit Tigers
Detroit Tigers
The Detroit Tigers are a Major League Baseball team located in Detroit, Michigan. One of the American League's eight charter franchises, the club was founded in Detroit in as part of the Western League. The Tigers have won four World Series championships and have won the American League pennant...
for erstwhile 30-game-winner Denny McLain
Denny McLain
Dennis Dale "Denny" McLain is a former American professional baseball player, and the last major league pitcher to win 30 or more games during a season —a feat accomplished by only thirteen players in the 20th century....
, who had spent most of the 1970 campaign suspended because of gambling allegations. The deal--alleged by onetime Senators broadcaster Shelby Whitfield to have been made in order to secure the Tigers' vote in favor of the Senators' eventual move to Texas--turned Detroit back into contenders, while McLain was a monumental bust, losing a league-worst 22 games.
The Senators' attendance sunk back to near-1968 levels and Short successfully petitioned the AL to move the franchise to Arlington, Texas
Arlington, Texas
Arlington is a city in Tarrant County, Texas within the Dallas–Fort Worth metropolitan area. According to the 2010 census results, the city had a population of 365,438, making it the third largest municipality in the Metroplex...
, where it became the Texas Rangers
Texas Rangers (baseball)
The Texas Rangers are a professional baseball team in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, based in Arlington, Texas. The Rangers are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League, and are the reigning A.L. Western Division and A.L. Champions. Since , the Rangers have...
in 1972
1972 in baseball
-Labor strife and more moving:1972 was tainted by a players' strike over pension and salary arbitration. The strike erased the first week and a half of the season, and the Leagues decided to just excise the lost portion of the season with no makeups. As a result, an uneven number of games were...
.
The Senators' move to Texas would make Short one of the most reviled figures in Washington sports. During the final Senators game at RFK Stadium on September 30, 1971, the fans let their feelings known about Short, unfurling two giant vertical banners that read "Short Stinks". Fans would later storm the field near the end of the game, resulting in a Senators forfeit. During the Washington Nationals
Washington Nationals
The Washington Nationals are a professional baseball team based in Washington, D.C. The Nationals are a member of the Eastern Division of the National League of Major League Baseball . The team moved into the newly built Nationals Park in 2008, after playing their first three seasons in RFK Stadium...
' final game at RFK Stadium on September 23, 2007, a similar scene unfolded. Nationals' fans unrolled a series of three banners vertically spelling out "Short Still Stinks", in nearly the same place in the stadium that the two banners hung 36 years earlier. Luckily the game otherwise finished without major incident and unlike the infamous 1971 game, did not need to be forfeited.
In Texas, Short is infamously remembered for drafting high school phenom David Clyde
David Clyde
David Eugene Clyde is a former left-handed Major League Baseball pitcher who played all or part of five seasons for the Texas Rangers and Cleveland Indians...
and rushing him into the majors to sell tickets, blowing out Clyde's arm within two years. The Rangers remained a cellar-dwelling unit and did not begin to win consistently until he sold them to a new local ownership group headed by Brad Corbett
Brad Corbett
Bradford G. Corbett was the owner of the Texas Rangers of Major League Baseball's American League from 1974 to 1980. He is currently part owner of S&B Technical Products, headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas. Originally from Long Island, New York, Corbett had made a fortune in the oil business by...
in 1974
1974 in baseball
-Major League Baseball:*1974 World Series: Oakland Athletics over Los Angeles Dodgers ; Rollie Fingers, MVP*All-Star Game, July 23 at Three Rivers Stadium: National League, 7-2; Steve Garvey, MVP-Other champions:...
.
Short then returned to Minnesota, where he had run unsuccessfully for lieutenant governor in 1966. He was the Democratic candidate for one of two United States Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
seats up in 1978. In the Democratic primary, he narrowly upset Congressman Donald M. Fraser
Donald M. Fraser
Donald MacKay Fraser is an American politician from Minneapolis, Minnesota.-Early life:Donald Fraser played a critical role in making human rights an important part of U.S. policy. Fraser was born on 20 February 1924 in Minneapolis, Minnesota, to Everett and Lois Fraser. His parents were émigrés...
, but soundly lost the general election with 35% of the vote against Republican David Durenberger
David Durenberger
David Ferdinand Durenberger is an American politician and a former Republican member of the U.S. Senate from Minnesota.- Early life :...
. During the campaign, his anti-abortion position led to strife within the traditionally strong state party. He was a longtime member of the Democratic National Committee
Democratic National Committee
The Democratic National Committee is the principal organization governing the United States Democratic Party on a day to day basis. While it is responsible for overseeing the process of writing a platform every four years, the DNC's central focus is on campaign and political activity in support...
.