Former Major League Baseball commissioner Fay Vincent died at age 86 on Sunday due to complications from bladder cancer. Current commissioner Rob Manfred released the following statement:
“Fay Vincent played a vital role in ensuring that the 1989 Bay Area World Series resumed responsibly following the earthquake prior to Game 3, and he oversaw the process that resulted in the 1993 National League expansion to Denver and Miami. Mr. Vincent served the game during a time of many challenges, and he remained proud of his association with our National Pastime throughout his life. On behalf of Major League Baseball, I extend my deepest condolences to Fay’s family and friends.”
Vincent served as commissioner from Sept. 13, 1989 — shortly following the death of predecessor Bart Giamatti — until Sept. 7, 1992.
Though Vincent served a relatively short tenure as commissioner, he oversaw several monumental events. These included a lockout in 1990, Pete Rose’s continued ban from baseball (Rose applied for reinstatement, but Vincent never acted on the application), the ban of then-Yankees owner George Steinbrenner, and, as Manfred said in his statement, expansion plans for the Rockies and Marlins.
As Manfred noted, one of the biggest challenges presented to Vincent as commissioner was the Loma Prieta Earthquake that interrupted the 1989 World Series between the A’s and Giants.
Another item of note during Vincent’s tenure as commissioner was Roger Maris’ single-season home run record of 61. Previously, MLB had ruled that Maris’ 61 and Babe Ruth’s 60 should be listed side-by-side, as Ruth hit his 60 in a 154-game season while Maris’ record took place in 162 games. Under Vincent’s “Committee for Statistical Accuracy,” Maris’ 61 was ruled as the one and only home run record.
Vincent was born May 29, 1938 in Waterbury, Connecticut. He attended Williams College in Massachusetts and suffered a near-fatal accident as a freshman. He was locked inside his room as a prank and he climbed out a window in an attempt to escape, falling and fracturing his spine. He was initially paralyzed from the chest down and the diagnosis was that he’d never walk again. He overcame the injury to walk again, though he required a cane for the rest of his life.
Post-college, Vincent became a lawyer in Washington D.C. before serving as an associate director with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. He later became chairman of Columbia Pictures and then vice president of Coca-Cola. He got into baseball via Giamatti, a friend of his. After Giamatti’s sudden death of a heart attack, Vincent was thrust into the role of acting commissioner and several days later was officially voted in as the commissioner. In 1992, with a vote of “no confidence” from 18 of the 28 ownership groups at the time, Vincent ended up resigning from the post. He was succeeded by Bud Selig.
“A fight based solely on principle does not justify the disruption when there is not greater support among the ownership for my views,” Vincent wrote in his resignation letter (via MLB.com). “While I would receive personal gratification by demonstrating that the legal position set out in my August 20 letter is correct, litigation does nothing to address the serious problems of baseball. I cannot govern as commissioner without the consent of owners to be governed. I do not believe that consent is now available to me. Simply put, I’ve concluded resignation — not litigation — should be my final act as Commissioner ‘in the best interests’ of Baseball.”
This post was originally published on this site be sure to check out more of their content.
