Daniel Francis O'Brien Sr. (March 26, 1929 – January 16, 2017) was an American professional baseball executive who served as the general manager of the Texas Rangers, Seattle Mariners and California Angels of Major League Baseball (MLB).
Dan O'Brien Sr. | |
|---|---|
 O'Brien during his time with the Seattle Mariners, 1979–1983 | |
| Born | March 26, 1929 Elizabeth, New Jersey, U.S. |
| Died | January 16, 2017 (aged 87) |
| Alma mater | Seton Hall University, Florida Southern College |
| Occupation | Baseball executive |
| Years active | 1955–1993 |
| Children | 3, including Dan O'Brien Jr. |
Biography
editBorn in Elizabeth, New Jersey,[1] O'Brien was a graduate of Thomas Jefferson High School.[2] He attended Seton Hall University and graduated from Florida Southern College,[3] where he played varsity baseball and basketball. He served in the United States Army during the Korean War and was discharged in 1954.[1]
O'Brien was a general manager in Minor League Baseball during 1955–1963 in the Pittsburgh Pirates and Milwaukee Braves organizations,[3] then spent another nine years (1964–1972) as the chief assistant to Phil Piton and Hank Peters, presidents at the time of the National Association of Professional Baseball Leagues (NAPBL), the governing body of the minor leagues.
O'Brien came to the major leagues when he joined the Texas Rangers as a vice president during the 1973 season, and was promoted to general manager of the Rangers later that year; he would continue in that post through 1978, although he shared power with co-general manager Eddie Robinson in both 1977 and 1978. In 1979, O'Brien became president of the Seattle Mariners, then in their third year as an American League expansion team, and he added the general manager title to his duties during 1981–1983, replacing Lou Gorman. He left Seattle in 1984 and joined the front office of the Cleveland Indians in 1986, working with Peters again as his top assistant during 1987–1989. O'Brien then moved to the California Angels as top aide to general manager Mike Port, and then succeeded Port as the team's GM from the close of the 1991 season through 1993. He was replaced by Whitey Herzog at the end of the 1993 campaign.
Of O'Brien's three major league teams, only the Rangers of the late 1970s experienced sustained success, contending for, but never winning, the American League West division title. The Mariners climbed to the middle of the pack in the AL West in 1982, then fell into the basement with 102 losses in O'Brien's last year. In Anaheim, O'Brien inherited a .500 team, but the Angels lost 90 games in 1992 and 91 games during the 1993 season.
His son and namesake, Dan O'Brien Jr., served as general manager of the Cincinnati Reds during 2003–2006.
O'Brien died on January 16, 2017, in Dallas, Texas, at the age of 87.[4][5]
References
edit- ^ a b California Angels 1990 Media Guide, page 6
- ^ "Longtime baseball executive Dan O’Brien Sr. dies at 87", TheDeadballEra, January 17, 2017. Accessed September 11, 2020. "A proud native of Elizabeth, NJ, Mr. O'Brien was a distinguished dual sport athlete at Thomas Jefferson High School who was inducted into the Union County Athletic Hall of Fame in 1999."
- ^ a b Hagen, Paul (January 17, 2017). "Dan O'Brien Sr., former MLB GM, dies at 87". MLB.com. Archived from the original on April 23, 2017. Retrieved January 8, 2017.
- ^ "Dan O'Brien Obituary (1929 - 2017) the Dallas Morning News". Legacy.com.
- ^ Obituary. Star Telegram. Retrieved on January 18, 2017.