Lefty Phillips
Lefty Phillips | |
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Manager | |
Born: Los Angeles, California, U.S. | May 16, 1919|
Died: June 12, 1972 Fullerton, California, U.S. | (aged 53)|
Batted: Left Threw: Left | |
MLB statistics | |
Managerial record | 222–225 |
Winning percentage | .497 |
Teams | |
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Career highlights and awards | |
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Harold Ross "Lefty" Phillips (May 16, 1919 – June 12, 1972) was an American
Early life and career
A native of Los Angeles who was raised in California's Central Valley, Phillips attended Franklin High School in Stockton. He was a left-handed pitcher in his playing days but, because of a sore arm, his professional playing career consisted of fewer than five games with the Bisbee Bees of the Class D Arizona–Texas League in 1939. With his playing days behind him, Phillips worked for a railroad[1] and, still in his early twenties, simultaneously embarked on his scouting career by joining the staff of the St. Louis Browns.
After the
In 1965, Phillips reached the Major Leagues when he was named pitching coach of the Dodgers. During his first two seasons in that post, he worked with Hall of Famers Drysdale, Sandy Koufax and Don Sutton, as Los Angeles won back-to-back National League pennants and the 1965 World Series. Although the Dodgers fell back in the standings in 1967–68, after Koufax' retirement, they still boasted one of the strongest pitching staffs in the majors.
Manager of 1969–71 Angels
At the end of the
The Angels responded to Phillips, however, improving from sixth (last) place to third in the
Phillips then resumed his scouting career with the Angels, but on June 12, 1972, he was stricken with a fatal asthma attack. He died in Fullerton, California, at age 53,[5] and is buried at the Mount Sinai Memorial Park Cemetery in Los Angeles. Phillips was posthumously elected to the Southern California Jewish Sports Hall of Fame in 2000.[6]
References
- ^ "Lefty Makes the Angels Sing," Sports Illustrated, 8 June 1970
- ^ The DeadBallEra.com
- ^ "Philips fired by California," Star-News.
- ^ "Alex Johnson traded for Vada Pinson," Daytona Beach Morning Journal.
- ^ "Lefty Phillips dies," The Spokesman Review.
- ^ "Harold 'Lefty' Phillips". Southern California Jewish Sports Hall of Fame. Retrieved 14 August 2018.
External links
- Career statistics and player information from Baseball Reference (Minors), or Retrosheet
- Lefty Phillips managerial career statistics at Baseball-Reference.com
- Lefty Phillips at The Deadball Era