Robert Alfred Lurie (born 1929) is a real estate magnate and former owner of the San Francisco Giants franchise of Major League Baseball from March 2, 1976 until January 12, 1993. Year 1929 (MCMXXIX) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Major league affiliations National League (1883–present) West Division (1969–present) Current uniform Retired Numbers NY, NY, 3, 4, 11, 24, 27, 30, 36, 42, 44 Name San Francisco Giants (1958–present) New York Giants (1885-1957) New York Gothams (1883-1885) Ballpark AT&T Park (2000–present) a. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... March 2 is the 61st day of the year (62nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1976 (MCMLXXVI) was a leap year starting on Thursday (link will display full calendar) of the 1976 Gregorian calendar. ... January 12 is the 12th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1993 (MCMXCIII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display full 1993 Gregorian calendar). ...

Giants Ownership

In 1976, Lurie led a group to buy the Giants from Horace Stoneham for $8 million, thereby saving the team from potentially being sold to a Canadian brewery and moved to Toronto. Although Toronto was awarded with its own expansion team, the Blue Jays in 1977, it would not be the last time that San Francisco's baseball fans would fear the possibility of losing its team. Horace Stoneham (April 27, 1903 - January 7, 1990) was the principal owner of Major League Baseballs New York Giants. ... Major league affiliations American League (1977–present) East Division (1977–present) Current uniform Retired Numbers 42 Name Toronto Blue Jays (1977–present) Ballpark Rogers Centre (1989–present) a. ... Also: 1977 (album) by Ash. ... A view of the playing field at Busch Memorial Stadium, St. ... Fans of Janet Jackson, at Much Music in Toronto The word fan refers to someone who has an intense, occasionally overwhelming liking of a person, group of persons, work of art, idea, or trend. ...

The 1970s was a generally disappointing decade for the Giants and the trend continued throughout Lurie’s ownership. In 1985, a year which saw the Giants lose 100 games (the most in franchise history), Lurie responded by hiring Al Rosen as general manager. Under Rosen's tenure, the Giants promoted promising rookies such as Will Clark and Robby Thompson, and made canny trades to acquire such players as Kevin Mitchell, Dave Dravecky, Candy Maldonado, and Rick Reuschel. The Giants have not had a better influx of young position players since that period. The 1970s decade refers to the years from 1970 to 1979. ... 1985 (MCMLXXXV) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Albert Leonard Rosen (born February 29, 1924, in Spartanburg, South Carolina), nicknamed Al and Flip, was an American major league third baseman and right-handed slugger. ... William Nuschler Clark, Jr. ... Robert Randall Thompson (born May 10, 1962 West Palm Beach, Florida) was a baseball infielder with an 11 year career from 1986 to 1996. ... Kevin Darnell Mitchell is an American former Major League Baseball left fielder and third baseman. ... David Francis Dravecky (born February 14, 1956 in Youngstown, Ohio) is a Christian motivational speaker, author, and former Major League Baseball player for the San Diego Padres (1982-87) and San Francisco Giants (1987-89). ... Candido Maldonado Guadarrama (born September 5, 1960 in Humacao, Puerto Rico) was a Major League Baseball outfielder from 1981 to 1995 for the Los Angeles Dodgers1981-1985, San Francisco Giants1986-1989, Cleveland Indians, Milwaukee Brewers, Toronto Blue Jays (twice), Chicago Cubs, and Texas Rangers. ... Rick Reuschel (pronounced RUSH-el) (born May 16, 1949 in Quincy, Illinois) was a major league baseball pitcher from the early 1970s into the late 1980s. ...

Meanwhile, in both 1987 and 1989, San Francisco voters rejected two stadium referenda to replace the notoriously unaccomodating Candlestick Park as the home of the Giants, despite the franchise's offer to pick up most of the tab for a new downtown park. Worst still, a plan to improve the existing stadium failed by an even wider margin. Frustrated, Lurie looked south toward Silicon Valley only to see San Jose and Santa Clara voters reject three more proposals to build a Giants ballpark. 1987 (MCMLXXXVII) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1989 (MCMLXXXIX) was a common year starting on Sunday (link displays 1989 Gregorian calendar). ... Monster Park (colloquially, The Stick or Candlestick, after its original name of Candlestick Park) is an outdoor sports and entertainment stadium located in the San Francisco Bay Area in California. ... A view of downtown San Jose, the self-proclaimed Capital of Silicon Valley. ... Nickname: Location of San Jose within Santa Clara County, California. ... Official website: http://www. ...

Finally, in October of 1992, Lurie announced that he would sell the Giants, claiming that he could no longer sustain the financial losses (averaging about $2-7 million annually) that had accumulated over the last few years. During his announcement, Lurie appeared visibly emotional, his voice breaking as he explained his hopes for turning the business side around when he bought the team in 1976. Nonetheless, losing teams and poor weather conditions at Candlestick Park kept many fans away, and at the time of Lurie's announcement, the team had finished with a 72-90 record.

Originally, Lurie had agreed to sell the Giants for $115 million to an ownership group headed by Vincent Piazza (father of baseball player Mike Piazza) with plans to move the club to St. Petersburg, Florida. However, the National League nixed the deal, pressuring Lurie to sell the club to Bay Area investors. In an 11th hour effort to save the team from moving, a group of local investors headed by ex-Safeway magnate, Peter Magowan, offered Lurie $100 million for the Giants. Michael Joseph Piazza (born September 4, 1968 in Norristown, Pennsylvania, USA) is a U.S. Major League Baseball player for the Oakland Athletics. ... Official language(s) English Capital Tallahassee Largest city Jacksonville Largest metro area Miami Area  Ranked 22nd  - Total 65,795[1] sq mi (170,304[1] km²)  - Width 361 miles (582 km)  - Length 447 miles (721 km)  - % water 17. ... The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, or simply the National League, is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada and the worlds oldest extant professional team sports league. ... Bay Area is a common term to refer to a metropolitan area situated around a bay. ... Safeway Inc. ... Peter Magowan is the principle owner of the San Francisco Giants Major League Baseball Franchise. ...

Post-Giants Ownership

Since selling the Giants, Lurie has focused his efforts on his real estate firm, the Lurie Co., buying and selling properties and branching out beyond its core office holdings totalling over 4 million square feet, not including two hotels, a theater and a parking facility it owns. He is also involved in various philanthropic activities, which include the $20 million Louis R. Lurie Foundation.

Miscellaneous

• In June 2001, the San Francisco Zoo proudly opened its new 11,000-square-foot Connie and Bob Lurie Education Center.

• Bob Lurie was once asked about the proverbial 'complete player'. "A complete player today," Lurie remarked, "is one who can hit, field, run, throw - and pick the right agent." [Source: Glenn Liebman, Grand Slams! : The Ultimate Collection of Baseball's Best Quips, Quotes, and Cutting Remarks]

• The real estate company currently headed by Lurie was founded in 1922 by his father, Louis Lurie, a family whose name is synonymous with San Francisco real estate development during the middle part of the 20th century. The company built a number of properties along Montgomery Street over the years, including a building Bank of America bought and tore down for its world headquarters at 555 California St., and it still owns many of them. Other notable local properties owned by Lurie are the Mark Hopkins Hotel and the Curran Theatre.

• Lurie's real etate company has also upgraded some older properties in San Francisco. For example, Lurie invested $20 million in 901 Market St. and brought in retailers Copeland's Sports and Marshalls, transforming the 200,000-square-foot mid-Market Street eyesore into a winner.

The San Francisco Zoo, (previously Fleishhacker Zoo) is a zoo in San Francisco, California housing more than 250 different animal species. ... A statue on Montgomery Street in the heart of the Financial District commemorates the United States annexing San Francisco and California from Mexico during the Mexican-American war in 1848. ...

See also

San Francisco Giants Major league affiliations National League (1883–present) West Division (1969–present) Current uniform Retired Numbers NY, NY, 3, 4, 11, 24, 27, 30, 36, 42, 44 Name San Francisco Giants (1958–present) New York Giants (1885-1957) New York Gothams (1883-1885) Ballpark AT&T Park (2000–present) a. ...

External links

• Lurie for Selling Giants — New York Times article
• San Jose mayor seeks major league team — ESPN.com
• Giants to Open Stadium Talks — New York Times article
• Giants Will Stay Put — New York Times article
• Giants history and timeline — Official Giants website
• Bob Lurie ownership chronology — Baseball America Executive Database
• Bob Lurie trades Giants for new real estate lineup — San Francisco Business Times