John Quinn (baseball executive)
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John J. Quinn | |
---|---|
Born | Columbus, Ohio, U.S. | April 1, 1908
Died | September 20, 1976 Stanton, California, U.S. | (aged 68)
Occupation | Baseball executive |
John Jacob Quinn (April 1, 1908 – September 20, 1976) was an American executive in Major League Baseball. His career spanned over 40 years and included almost 28 full seasons as a general manager in the National League for the Boston / Milwaukee Braves and Philadelphia Phillies. He produced three National League pennants and one World Series championship during his 1945–58 tenure with the Braves.
Quinn was a member of one of the game's most prominent multi-generational families. During the era between the end of
Quinn was born in
General manager of Braves and Phillies
Boston/Milwaukee Braves (1945–58)
A graduate of
Quinn's
Quinn also broke the baseball color line in Boston by purchasing the contract of fleet center fielder Sam Jethroe from the Dodgers; as a first-year player with the 1950 Braves, Jethroe was selected the National League's Rookie of the Year. Under Quinn, the Braves became the fifth of the then-16 Major League teams to integrate, and the third in the National League.
His Milwaukee champions of the 1950s relied heavily on the Braves' productive farm system, which developed Hall of Famers
Philadelphia Phillies (1959–1972)
Quinn left the Braves, the defending National League champion, in January 1959 to take the reins of the cellar-dwelling Philadelphia Phillies as general manager. Within five years, Quinn rebuilt the Phillies into contenders.[1] Quinn's reconstruction project produced three more last place finishes (1959–61) before the Phillies broke the .500 mark in 1962 and finished in the first division in 1963.
Led by players Quinn signed or acquired via trades—starting pitcher (and future Baseball Hall of Famer)
Family
Quinn represented the second generation in his family's four-generation participation in baseball management. His son
John J. Quinn briefly scouted for the Houston Astros after he left Philadelphia. He died at age 68 in Stanton, California, on September 20, 1976.
References
- ^ a b Goldman, Steven "You Could Look It Up: John Quinn's Reign", Baseball Prospectus, 2005.08.24
- ^ National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum official website
- ^ Neyer, Rob, and Epstein, Eddie, Baseball Dynasties: The Greatest Teams of All Time. New York: W. W. Norton & Cop., 2000, page 176
- ^ Atlanta Braves Attendance Data, Baseball Almanac
- ^ The Pursuit of Pennants: Best 25 GMs in Baseball History
External links
- You Could Look it Up: John Quinn's Reign at Baseball Prospectus
- John Quinn at SABR (Baseball BioProject)