Robert José Watson (April 10, 1946May 14, 2020) was an American professional
baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...
player,
coach and
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 ...
. He played in
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...
as a
first baseman
A first baseman, abbreviated 1B, is the player on a baseball or softball team who fields the area nearest first base, the first of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. The first baseman is responsible for the majori ...
and
left fielder
In baseball, a left fielder, abbreviated LF, is an outfielder who plays defense in left field. Left field is the area of the outfield to the left of a person standing at home plate and facing towards the pitcher's mound. In the numbering system ...
from 1966 to 1984, most prominently as a member of the
Houston Astros
The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West Division. They are one of two major leag ...
where he was a two-time
All-Star
An all-star team is a group of people all having a high level of performance in their field. Originating in sports, it has since drifted into vernacular and has been borrowed heavily by the entertainment industry.
Sports
"All-star" as a sport ...
player. Watson had a .295 batting average over a career that also saw him play for the
Boston Red Sox
The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. Founded in as one of the Ameri ...
,
New York Yankees
The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Am ...
, and the
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 (baseball), National League (NL) National League Eas ...
.
After retiring as a player, Watson was a coach for the
Oakland Athletics
The Oakland Athletics (frequently referred to as the Oakland A's) were an American Major League Baseball (MLB) team based in Oakland, California from 1968 to 2024. The Athletics were a member club of the American League (AL) American League We ...
for four years, before he joined the Astros’ front office. In 1993, he became the second African-American general manager in major league baseball history with the Astros. He then served as the Yankees general manager from 1995 through 1998, during which time the team won the
1996 World Series
The 1996 World Series was the World Series, championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 1996 Major League Baseball season, 1996 season. The 92nd edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff between the National League (bas ...
.
Watson became the first African-American general manager to operate a team which would win the World Series.
He later served as MLB's vice president in charge of discipline and vice president of rules and on-field operations, from 2002 to 2010.
In 2020, Watson was inducted into the Houston Astros Hall of Fame.
Early life and amateur career
Watson was born in
Los Angeles
Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
on April 10, 1946. His parents separated prior to his birth, and his grandparents raised him. Watson attended
John C. Fremont High School, where he played for the school's baseball team as a
catcher
Catcher is a position in baseball and softball. When a batter takes their turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the (home) umpire, and receives the ball from the pitcher. In addition to this primary duty, the catc ...
. Fremont won the 1963 city championship; Watson's high school teammates included future major-leaguers
Willie Crawford and
Bobby Tolan. Watson went on to attend
Los Angeles Harbor College
Los Angeles Harbor College (LAHC) is a Public college, public community college in Wilmington, California. It is one of two community colleges serving the South Bay, Los Angeles, South Bay region of Los Angeles, California, Los Angeles. LAHC s ...
.
Professional playing career
The Houston Astros signed Watson as an amateur
free agent
In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...
in January 1965. He nearly quit baseball while playing in
Minor League Baseball
Minor League Baseball (MiLB) is a professional baseball organization below Major League Baseball (MLB), constituted of teams affiliated with MLB clubs. It was founded on September 5, 1901, in response to the growing dominance of the National Le ...
for an affiliate based in
Savannah, Georgia
Savannah ( ) is the oldest city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia and the county seat of Chatham County, Georgia, Chatham County. Established in 1733 on the Savannah River, the city of Savannah became the Kingdom of Great Brita ...
, due to segregation in restaurants and hotels. Nicknamed "Bull",
Watson converted to first base and the outfield by the time he made his major league debut with the Astros on September 9, 1966. Watson was a dependable hitter whose
home run
In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the Baseball (ball), ball is hit in such a way that the batting (baseball), batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safe (baseball), safely in one play without any error ( ...
numbers were somewhat hurt by the fact that he played the majority of his career in the
Astrodome
The NRG Astrodome, formerly and also known as the Houston Astrodome or simply the Astrodome, was the world's first multi-purpose, domed sports stadium, located in Houston, Texas, United States. It seated around 50,000 fans, with a record atte ...
, which had a reputation for being a
pitcher
In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("Pitch (baseball), pitches") the Baseball (ball), baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of out (baseball), retiring a batter (baseball), batter, ...
-friendly ballpark.
From 1966 through 1970, Watson appeared in less than 100 games each season for the Astros,
batting .259, with 14 home runs, and 74
runs batted in
A run batted in or runs batted in (RBI) is a statistic in baseball and softball that credits a batter for making a play that allows a run to be scored (except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play). For example, if th ...
(RBI) overall. From 1971 through 1978, Watson appeared in at least 129 games each season, batting .303, with 122 home runs, and 690 RBI altogether. He was selected as an
All-Star
An all-star team is a group of people all having a high level of performance in their field. Originating in sports, it has since drifted into vernacular and has been borrowed heavily by the entertainment industry.
Sports
"All-star" as a sport ...
twice; in 1973 and 1975.
On June 24, 1977, Watson
hit for the cycle
Hit means to strike someone or something.
Hit or HIT may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment and media Fictional entities
* Hit, a fictional character from '' Dragon Ball Super''
* Homicide International Trust or HIT, a fictional organization ...
in a 6–5 win over the
San Francisco Giants
The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...
. In total, during his 14 seasons with the Astros, Watson appeared in 1,381 games, batting .297, with 139 home runs, and 781 RBI.

On June 13, 1979, the Astros traded Watson to the Red Sox in exchange for
Pete Ladd, cash, and a
player to be named later
In Major League Baseball, a player to be named later (PTBNL) is an unnamed player involved in exchange or "trade" of players between teams. The terms of a trade are not finalized until a later date, most often following the conclusion of the seaso ...
(who turned out to be
Bobby Sprowl). Watson played 84 games for the Red Sox through the remainder of the season. He batted .337 with 13 home runs and 53 RBI. On September 15, 1979, Watson again hit for the cycle. Having already hit for the cycle with the Astros in 1977, he became the first player to accomplish this feat in both the
National League
National League often refers to:
*National League (baseball), one of the two baseball leagues constituting Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada
*National League (division), the fifth division of the English football (soccer) system ...
(NL) and
American League
The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is the younger of two sports leagues, leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western L ...
(AL).
Following the season, Watson signed as a
free agent
In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...
with the New York Yankees.
With the Yankees, he reached the post-season for the first time in his career, losing to the
Kansas City Royals
The Kansas City Royals are an American professional baseball team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Royals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. The team ...
in the
1980 American League Championship Series. A year later, Watson reached the
World Series
The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB). It has been contested since between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winning team, determined through a best- ...
for the only time in his career. Watson hit two home runs and batted .318 with seven RBIs, but the
Yankees lost to the
Los Angeles Dodgers
The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...
in six games.
Watson was nearly dealt along with
Oscar Gamble and
Mike Morgan from the Yankees to the
Texas Rangers for
Al Oliver
Albert Oliver Jr. (born October 14, 1946) is an Americans, American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as an outfielder and first baseman from through , most notably as a member of the Pittsburgh Pirates teams ...
prior to the 1982 regular season, but the transaction was squashed by Gamble whose contract had a list of eight teams to which he can be traded which did not include the Rangers. He was subsequently traded to the Atlanta Braves for
Scott Patterson on April 23, 1982. Watson helped propel the Braves to the 1982 National League West title. In 1983, Watson hit .309 mostly as a
pinch hitter
In baseball, a pinch hitter (PH) is a substitute batter. Batters can be substituted at any time while the ball is dead (not in active play); the manager may use any player who has not yet entered the game as a substitute. Unlike basketball, A ...
. He retired after the 1984 season.
In his MLB career — 19 years and 1,832 regular season games played — Watson batted .295, with 184 home runs, and 989 RBI.
He batted .371 in 17 postseason games.
Millionth run
Watson was credited with scoring the 1,000,000th
run in major league history on Sunday, May 4, 1975, at 12:32 in the afternoon. Watson scored from second base on a three-run homer by teammate
Milt May at
San Francisco
San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...
's
Candlestick Park
Candlestick Park was an outdoor stadium located in the Bayview-Hunters Point, Hunters Point area of San Francisco, California, United States. It was originally the home of Major League Baseball's San Francisco Giants, who played there from 1960 S ...
. It was known that the 999,999th run had already scored, with sponsored updates being provided by and to every ballpark. Despite the lack of in-game urgency, Watson ran at full speed, reaching home plate approximately four seconds before
Dave Concepción, who had just homered in Cincinnati and was also racing around the basepaths. "I never ran so fast in my entire life," said Concepcion. But it was Watson who won $10,000 and one million
Tootsie Rolls provided by the event's sponsor. The 1,000,000th run total only included runs scored in the National and American Leagues (not "third" major leagues, such as the
Federal League
The Federal League of Base Ball Clubs, known simply as the Federal League, was an American professional baseball league that played its first season as a minor league in 1913 and operated as a "third major league", in competition with the e ...
). Watson joked that in the aftermath of the event, his fan mail doubled—from four letters to eight. Later, more accurate recalculations of baseball's record-keeping showed that neither Watson nor Concepcion scored baseball's actual millionth run, and it is not known who did.
Post-playing career
Coach and general manager
After retirement, Watson moved into coaching and was the
hitting coach
In baseball, a number of coaches assist in the smooth functioning of a team. They are assistants to the manager, who determines the starting lineup and batting order, decides how to substitute players during the game, and makes strategy decisi ...
for the
Oakland Athletics
The Oakland Athletics (frequently referred to as the Oakland A's) were an American Major League Baseball (MLB) team based in Oakland, California from 1968 to 2024. The Athletics were a member club of the American League (AL) American League We ...
for four years.
The Astros hired Watson as their assistant general manager after the 1988 season.
At the end of the 1993 season, Watson was named general manager of the Astros, becoming the second
African American
African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...
(following the Atlanta Braves'
Bill Lucas) to serve as a GM in the major leagues. After the 1995 season, the Yankees hired Watson away from Houston to serve as their general manager. He served as GM for the Yankees from October 23, 1995, to February 2, 1998. The 1996 team won the
World Series
The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball (MLB). It has been contested since between the champion teams of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL). The winning team, determined through a best- ...
, the first Yankee team to do so since 1978. Thus, Watson became the first African American general manager to win a World Series championship.
MLB executive
After the 1997 season, Watson retired from the Yankees. He served as MLB's vice president in charge of discipline and vice president of rules and on-field operations, beginning in 2002.
[ In 2007 he was under consideration for a return engagement as the Astros general manager.
In 2000, Watson worked with ]USA Baseball
The United States Baseball Federation, doing business as USA Baseball, is a 501(c)(3) organization, 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that acts as the national Sports governing body, governing body for baseball in the United States. USA Baseball ...
to select the team roster competing in baseball at the 2000 Summer Olympics. The United States national baseball team
The United States national baseball team, also known as Team USA, represents the United States in international level baseball competitions. The team is currently ranked 5th in the world by the World Baseball Softball Confederation. The United S ...
won the gold medal
A gold medal is a medal awarded for highest achievement in a non-military field. Its name derives from the use of at least a fraction of gold in form of plating or alloying in its manufacture.
Since the eighteenth century, gold medals have b ...
.
Watson drew criticism late in the 2007 season. Under his watch, MLB mandated that managers could no longer wear a team issued pullover instead of a uniform jersey top. This caused particular friction between MLB and Red Sox manager Terry Francona, who prefers to wear a pullover due to circulation problems.
During the second inning of a Red Sox-Yankees game on August 28, an MLB representative arrived to verify that Francona was wearing a uniform jersey. The Boston media saw this as frivolous, or even biased, due to the public's alleged indifference toward the issue, the specific use of Francona as an example, and the fact that the representative appeared during an important in-division matchup.
Watson retired from his position with MLB in 2010.
Personal life
Watson and his wife, Carol, had two children.
While playing for Houston, Watson, along with several teammates, had a cameo appearance in the 1977 movie '' The Bad News Bears in Breaking Training''.
Watson was diagnosed with prostate cancer
Prostate cancer is the neoplasm, uncontrolled growth of cells in the prostate, a gland in the male reproductive system below the bladder. Abnormal growth of the prostate tissue is usually detected through Screening (medicine), screening tests, ...
in March 1994, which was successfully treated. Watson wrote about his experience with prostate cancer in his 1997 book, ''Survive To Win'', and spoke regularly at cancer awareness conferences and with players and staff in Major League Baseball. Watson's advocacy has been credited with detecting and treating many MLB personnel, including Joe Torre
Joseph Paul Torre Jr. (; born July 18, 1940) is an American professional baseball Senior management, executive and former player, Manager (baseball), manager, and television color commentator. He has served as a special assistant to the Commiss ...
.
In 1999, Watson completed a Bachelor of Science
A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, B.S., B.Sc., SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree that is awarded for programs that generally last three to five years.
The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Scienc ...
degree with a concentration in sports management at New York's Empire State College
Empire State University (SUNY Empire) is a public university headquartered in Saratoga Springs, New York. It is part of the State University of New York (SUNY) system. Empire State University is a multi-site institution offering associate degre ...
.
Watson was diagnosed with stage 4 kidney disease in 2016. He died on May 14, 2020, from that illness at the age of 74.
See also
* Houston Astros award winners and league leaders
* List of Major League Baseball players to hit for the cycle
In baseball, completing hitting for the cycle, the cycle is the accomplishment of hit (baseball), hitting a single (baseball), single, a double (baseball), double, a triple (baseball), triple, and a home run in the same game. In terms of freque ...
References
Further reading
*
*
*
External links
:
{{DEFAULTSORT:Watson, Bob
1946 births
2020 deaths
African-American baseball coaches
African-American baseball players
Amarillo Sonics players
Atlanta Braves players
Baseball coaches from California
Baseball players from Los Angeles
Boston Red Sox players
Cardenales de Lara players
American expatriate baseball players in Venezuela
Cocoa Astros players
Deaths from kidney disease
Houston Astros executives
Houston Astros players
John C. Fremont High School alumni
Major League Baseball bench coaches
Major League Baseball central office executives
Major League Baseball first basemen
Major League Baseball general managers
Major League Baseball hitting coaches
Major League Baseball left fielders
National League All-Stars
New York Yankees executives
New York Yankees players
Oakland Athletics coaches
Oklahoma City 89ers players
Salisbury Astros players
Savannah Senators players
20th-century African-American sportsmen
21st-century African-American sportsmen