Roy Thomas Hartsfield (October 25, 1925 – January 15, 2011) was a second baseman and

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activitie ...

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (A ...

; his MLB playing and managing careers each lasted three years. Hartsfield played his entire major league career with the

Boston Braves The Atlanta Braves, a current Major League Baseball franchise, originated in Boston, Massachusetts. This article details the history of the Boston Braves, from 1871 to 1952, after which they moved to Milwaukee, and then to Atlanta. During it ...

from 1950 to 1952. He was then traded to the

Brooklyn Dodgers The Brooklyn Dodgers were a Major League Baseball team founded in 1884 as a member of the American Association before joining the National League in 1890. They remained in Brooklyn until 1957, after which the club moved to Los Angeles, Californi ...

for

outfielder An outfielder is a person playing in one of the three defensive positions in baseball or softball, farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder. As an outfielder, their duty is to cat ...

Andy Pafko. Hartsfield spent the next 19 years in the Dodgers organization as a

minor league Minor leagues are professional sports leagues which are not regarded as the premier leagues in those sports. Minor league teams tend to play in smaller, less elaborate venues, often competing in smaller cities/markets. This term is used in No ...

player, manager and major league

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Coac ...

. In the latter role, he worked under Los Angeles skipper Walter Alston for three seasons. He later left the Dodgers organization, and worked with the

San Diego Padres The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1969, the club has won two NL penn ...

organization. In 1977, he became the first manager of the

Toronto Blue Jays The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. Since 1989, the team has played its home games ...

, helming the club for its first three seasons.

Playing career

Hartsfield played with the

between 1950 and 1952. In 265 career games, he had a .273 batting average, 13 home runs, and 59 runs batted in during his playing career.

Managerial career

Early career

Hartsfield was a successful manager at top levels of minor league baseball, with the

Spokane Indians The Spokane Indians are a Minor League Baseball team located in Spokane Valley, the city immediately east of Spokane, Washington, in the Pacific Northwest. The Indians are members of the High-A Northwest League (NWL) as an affiliate of the Colo ...

, then the top farm team of the Los Angeles Dodgers, and the

Hawaii Islanders The Hawaii Islanders were a minor league baseball team based in Honolulu, Hawaii, that played in the Triple-A Pacific Coast League for 27 seasons from 1961 through 1987. Originally an affiliate of the Kansas City Athletics, the Islanders played ...

, the

' top affiliate, where he won

Pacific Coast League The Pacific Coast League (PCL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the Western United States. Along with the International League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A level, which is one grade below Major League Ba ...

championships in 1975 and 1976. He also coached in the Majors with the Dodgers (1969–72) and

Atlanta Braves The Atlanta Braves are an American professional baseball team based in the Atlanta metropolitan area. The Braves compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The Braves were founded in ...

(briefly in 1973).

Toronto Blue Jays

1977 season

In 1977, Hartsfield was hired as the first manager of the expansion

by the

general manager A general manager (GM) is an executive who has overall responsibility for managing both the revenue and cost elements of a company's income statement, known as profit & loss (P&L) responsibility. A general manager usually oversees most or all of ...

of the Blue Jays, Peter Bavasi, who had worked with him in the Dodgers and Padres organizations. Hartsfield was quoted in 1997 that "the guys I managed the year before in Hawaii (in the triple-A Pacific Coast League) were probably a better team." Hartsfield led the Blue Jays to a 54–107 record in the 1977 season. Notable games from the season include a 9–5 win against the

Chicago White Sox The Chicago White Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The White Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team is owned by Jerry Reinsdorf, and ...

on opening day and a 19–3 win against eventual division champions

New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East division. They are one ...

. The Jays finished the season 45.5 games behind the Yankees.

1978 season

The Blue Jays improved slightly, finishing the season with a record of 59–103, although they still finished the season in last place. The Blue Jays finished second to last in runs scored and earned run average.

1979 season

In 1979, Hartsfield led the Blue Jays to a record of 53–109, their worst showing yet, and the worst showing of any American League team since 1966. Unpopular with the Blue Jays players, by August the team was in open revolt against Hartsfield, with players airing their grievances in the media on a near-daily basis. Having lost over 100 games in each of his three years as manager, and having been very publicly criticized by the Toronto sports media for apparently having lost control of the team, Hartsfield was let go at the conclusion of the 1979 season and replaced by

Bobby Mattick Robert James Mattick (December 5, 1915 – December 16, 2004) was an American professional baseball player, scout, and manager. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a shortstop for the Chicago Cubs and Cincinnati Reds. After his playing ca ...

. "This year, we should win 10 more games on attitude alone", enthused pitcher Mark Lemongello about the managerial change. In fact, the team improved by 14 games that year. This would be Hartsfield's only managerial job in Major League Baseball. He compiled a record of 166–318 (.343) in 484 games, giving Hartsfield the worst managerial winning percentage since World War II (among managers with 200 games or more.) His teams finished last in the

American League East Division The American League East is one of Major League Baseball's six divisions. MLB consists of an East, Central, and West division for each of its two 15-team leagues, the American League (AL) and National League (NL). This division was created before ...

in each of his three seasons.

Later career

Hartsfield managed in the Chicago Cubs organization in 1981, starting the season with the Triple-A Iowa Oaks and finishing with the Double-A

Midland Cubs Midland may refer to: Places Australia * Midland, Western Australia Canada * Midland, Albert County, New Brunswick * Midland, Kings County, New Brunswick * Midland, Newfoundland and Labrador * Midland, Ontario India * Midland Ward, Kohima, Na ...

. Both teams ended up with losing records, as did the Triple-A

Indianapolis Indians The Indianapolis Indians are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League (IL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates. They are located in Indianapolis, Indiana, and play their home games at Victory Field, which opened ...

in 1983, which was Hartsfield's final management job.

Managerial record

Death

Hartsfield died of liver cancer at his daughter's home in

Ball Ground, Georgia Ball Ground is a city in Cherokee County, Georgia, United States. The city was originally Cherokee territory before they were removed from the land and it was given to white settlers. A railroad was built in 1882 and a town was formed around th ...

, on January 15, 2011, at 85.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hartsfield, Roy 1925 births 2011 deaths American expatriate baseball people in Canada Atlanta Braves coaches Atlanta Crackers players Baltimore Orioles (IL) players Baseball players from Georgia (U.S. state) Boston Braves players Deaths from cancer in Georgia (U.S. state) Charleston Rebels players Dallas Eagles players Deaths from liver cancer Des Moines Bruins players Fort Worth Cats players Greenville Spinners players Hawaii Islanders managers Indianapolis Indians managers Leones del Caracas players American expatriate baseball players in Venezuela Los Angeles Angels (minor league) players Los Angeles Dodgers coaches Major League Baseball second basemen Milwaukee Brewers (minor league) players Montreal Royals players Panama City Fliers players People from Cherokee County, Georgia Spokane Indians managers Sportspeople from the Atlanta metropolitan area St. Paul Saints (AA) players Toronto Blue Jays managers Baseball coaches from Georgia (U.S. state) American expatriate baseball players in Colombia