J. Frank Cashen (born 1922^[1]) is a former general manager in Major League Baseball. He is widely considered to be the architect of the World Champion 1986 New York Mets and was also an executive while the Baltimore Orioles won the 1966 World Series and 1970 World Series. In Major League Baseball, the General Manager of a team typically controls player transactions and bears the primary responsibility on behalf of the ballclub during contract discussions with players. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... The 1986 World Series, the 83rd playing of the modern championship series in Major League Baseball, was a memorable battle between the New York Mets and the Boston Red Sox which helped to spread the legend of the Curse of the Bambino to mass public awareness. ... Major league affiliations American League (1901–present) East Division (1969–present) Current uniform Retired Numbers 4,5,8,20,22,33,42 Name Baltimore Orioles (1954–present) St. ... The 1966 World Series matched the Baltimore Orioles against the defending champion Los Angeles Dodgers, with the Orioles sweeping the Series in 4 games to capture the first championship in franchise history. ... The 1970 World Series was between the Cincinnati Reds and the Baltimore Orioles, with the Orioles winning in five games. ...

Early life

Cashen was born in Baltimore, Maryland and grew up admiring and playing baseball. He played second base at Loyola College in Maryland but was unable to hit well and did not pursue a playing career. Instead, he joined the Baltimore News-American becoming an award-winning sportswriter over 17 years at the newspaper. He also spent nights at University of Maryland School of Law and assumed his career would either be in journalism or law.^[1] Instead, he was hired by Jerry Hoffberger to be a publicity director for two Baltimore race tracks and later the advertising head at Hoffberger's National Brewing Company. In 1965, Hoffberger's brewing company purchased the Baltimore Orioles and Cashen eagerly accepted the position of executive vice president of the team.^[1] Nickname: Monument City, Charm City, Mob Town[1][2], B-more Motto: The Greatest City in America[3], Get in on it. ... The position of the second baseman Second base redirects here. ... Loyola College in Maryland, formerly Loyola College, is a private, coeducational university in Baltimore, Maryland, United States, affiliated with the Society of Jesus and the Roman Catholic Church. ... The Baltimore News-American was the Hearst newspaper in Baltimore and the final competitor to the Baltimore Sun. ... Sports Journalism is a form of journalism that reports on sports topics and events. ... University of Maryland School of Law is a law school located in downtown Baltimore, Maryland. ... The National Bohemian logo and slogan, and its mascot, Mr. ...

Baltimore Orioles

With Cashen overseeing baseball operations in Baltimore, general manager Harry Dalton made a deal to acquire Hall of Famer Frank Robinson in one of the more lopsided trades in baseball history. The following year, Robinson won the triple crown and Baltimore won the 1966 World Series for their first championship. In 1968, the Cashen/Dalton front office hired eventual Hall of Fame manager Earl Weaver. The Orioles won all three American League pennants from 1969 to 1971 and won the 1970 World Series. After 1971, Dalton left to become general manager of the California Angels and Cashen took over G.M. duties for the Orioles. Harry I. Dalton (July 28, 1928 - October 22, 2005) was a front-office executive in American Major League Baseball. ... The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum, located at 25 Main Street in Cooperstown, New York, is a semi-official museum operated by private interests serving as the central point for the study of the history of baseball in the United States and beyond, the display of baseball-related... Frank Robinson (born August 31, 1935 in Beaumont, Texas), is a Hall of Fame former Major League Baseball player. ... In baseball, the Triple Crown refers to: A batter who (at seasons end) leads the league in three major categories -- home runs, runs batted in, and batting average. ... The 1966 World Series matched the Baltimore Orioles against the defending champion Los Angeles Dodgers, with the Orioles sweeping the Series in 4 games to capture the first championship in franchise history. ... The following are the baseball events of the year 1968 throughout the world. ... New York Yankees manager Joe Torre returning to the dugout (September 2005). ... Earl Sidney Weaver (born August 14, 1930 in St. ... American League The American League (or formally the American League of Professional Baseball Clubs) is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball in the United States of America and Canada. ... The following are the baseball events of the year 1969 throughout the world. ... This article is currently under construction // This year in baseball Events January 31 - The new Special Veterans Committee selects seven men for enshrinement to the Hall of Fame: former players Dave Bancroft, Jake Beckley, Chick Hafey, Harry Hooper, Joe Kelley, Rube Marquard, and executive George Weiss. ... The 1970 World Series was between the Cincinnati Reds and the Baltimore Orioles, with the Orioles winning in five games. ... For the Pacific Coast League franchise see: Los Angeles Angels (PCL). ...

Cashen was being mentioned as a candidate for the American League presidency and was a leading choice to replace Baseball Commissioner Bowie Kuhn when a group of team owners tried to oust Kuhn in 1975. Kuhn survived the storm of 1975 and Cashen chose to leave baseball and return to Hoffberger's brewery as senior vice president of marketing and sales.^[1] In 1920, the owners of Major League Baseball, in order to reestablish confidence of fans in the sport following the Black Sox Scandal, established the office of Commissioner of Baseball. ... Bowie Kent Kuhn (born October 28, 1926 in Takoma Park, Maryland) was commissioner of Major League Baseball from February 4, 1969 to September 30, 1984. ... This article is currently under construction // This year in baseball Events January-June January 23 - Ralph Kiner is elected to the Hall of Fame by the Baseball Writers Association of America. ...

In 1979, Cashen returned to baseball when Commissioner Kuhn hired him as administrator of baseball.^[1] The following are the events of the year 1979 that happened world-wide throughout the sport of baseball. ...

Building a champion in New York

In January 1980, Nelson Doubleday, Jr. and Fred Wilpon bought the New York Mets after the Mets' third consecutive last-place finish. They were advised by several people to contact Cashen and, after he predicted four or five years for a turnaround, the new owners hired him for $500,000 over five years. Cashen hired public relations firm, Della Femina, Travisano & Partners. A new slogan, "The Magic Is Back!", was used along with television commercials emphasizing past New York area stars rather than the dismal Mets of the late 1970s.^[1] This article is currently under construction // This year in baseball Events January 9 - Al Kaline and Duke Snider are elected to the Hall of Fame by the Baseball Writers Association of America. ... Nelson Doubleday, Jr. ... Fred Wilpon is a baseball executive with the National League New York Mets. ... Public relations (PR) is the business, organizational, philanthropic, or social function of managing communication between an organization and its audiences. ... Jerry Della Femina is an American advertising executive. ...

On the field, the Mets made few trades early on, but took a chance with the first pick in the Major League Baseball Draft to sign immature high school player, Darryl Strawberry, who eventually finished his Mets career as the all-time franchise leader in home runs and RBI. In 1981, Cashen promoted Hubie Brooks and Mookie Wilson to the majors for spring training and then traded for brash home run hitter Dave Kingman. In 1982, Cashen delighted New York fans by trading for former unanimous MVP, George Foster, who signed a five-year, $10 million contract.^[1] Two months later, Cashen alienated many fans by trading away fan favorite, Lee Mazzilli. His instincts proved correct, however, as Mazzilli soon declined while one of the two pitchers the Mets received, Ron Darling, became an All-Star and the other pitcher, Walt Terrell, was later traded for offensive star, Howard Johnson. At the same time as the Mazzilli trade, the Mets were scouting young pitcher, Dwight Gooden, who they picked in the 1982 draft. Gooden would later become the ace of the pitching staff through the Mets' strong years and championship. Draft of players to play in Major League Baseball. ... Darryl Eugene Strawberry (born March 12, 1962) is a former baseball player who is well known both for his play in the baseball field and for his controversial behavior outside of it. ... In baseball, a home run is a base hit in which the batter is able to circle all the bases, ending at home plate and scoring a run himself (along with a run scored by each runner who was already on base), with no errors by the defensive team on... In baseball statistics, a run batted in (RBI) is given to a batter for each run scored as the result of a batters plate appearance. ... The following are the baseball events of the year 1981 throughout the world. ... Hubert Brooks, Jr. ... William Hayward Mookie Wilson (born February 9, 1956) is a former Major League Baseball outfielder who played with the New York Mets (1980–89) and Toronto Blue Jays (1989–91). ... A Grapefruit League game at the LA Dodgers camp in Vero Beach, Florida In Major League Baseball, spring training is a series of exhibition games which precedes the regular season. ... David Arthur Kingman (born December 21, 1948 in Pendleton, Oregon), nicknamed Kong and Sky King, is an American former Major League Baseball slugger who played for the San Francisco Giants (1971-74), New York Mets (1975-77, 1981-83), San Diego Padres (1977), California Angels (1977), New York Yankees (1977... This article is currently under construction // This year in baseball Events January 13 - Hank Aaron and Frank Robinson become the 12th and 13th players elected to the Hall of Fame by the Baseball Writers Association of America in their first year of eligibility. ... In the game of baseball, both amateur and professional, it is tradition to annually recognize the one player in the league who has contributed the most to the success of the players team. ... George Foster (1970s) George Arthur Foster (born December 1, 1948, in Tuscaloosa, Alabama) is a former left fielder and right-handed batter in Major League Baseball who played for the San Francisco Giants, Cincinnati Reds, New York Mets and Chicago White Sox from 1969-1986. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Ronald Maurice Darling (born August 19, 1960 in Honolulu, Hawaii) is a former starting pitcher for the New York Mets, Oakland Athletics and Montreal Expos for a very brief period. ... The Major League Baseball All-Star Game, also popularly known as the Midsummer Classic is an annual baseball game between players from the National League and the American League, currently selected by fan vote for the starting position players and by the manager (the managers from the previous years... Charles Walter Terrell (born May 11, 1958 in Jeffersonville, Indiana) is a former starting pitcher with a 11 year career from 1982 to 1992. ... Howard Michael Johnson (born November 29, 1960), nicknamed HoJo, is a former switch hitting third baseman in Major League Baseball who played for the Detroit Tigers, New York Mets, Colorado Rockies and Chicago Cubs from 1982 to 1995. ... Dwight Eugene Gooden (born November 16, 1964 in Tampa, Florida), a. ...

While Foster and Kingman performed below expectations and the Mets finished poorly in both 1982 and 1983, Cashen made one of the most lopsided trades in franchise history, acquiring former MVP, batting champion, and 1982 World Champion member Keith Hernandez from St. Louis for pitchers Neil Allen and Rick Ownbey. Hernandez became a team leader both offensively and defensively while Allen was an average pitcher and Ownbey played in only 21 more games in the majors. This article is currently under construction // This year in baseball Events January 12 - Brooks Robinson and Juan Marichal are elected to the Hall of Fame by the Baseball Writers Association of America. ... The 1982 World Series matched the St. ... Keith Hernandez (born October 20, 1953 in San Francisco, California) is a former Major League Baseball first baseman, who played for the St. ... Major league affiliations National League (1892–present) Central Division (1994–present) Current uniform Retired Numbers 1,2,6,9,14,17,20,42,45,85 Name St. ... Neil Allen (born January 24, 1958) became the bullpen coach for the New York Yankees in 2005. ...

"I can't tell you when are we going to win the pennant, we are to win the pennant, if I didn't have this feeling I would not have taken the job in the first place"---Frank Cashen during Mets press conference after he was hired as General Manager in January 1980 ^{[citation needed]} January is the first month of the year and one of seven Gregorian months with the length of 31 days. ... 1980 (MCMLXXX) was a leap year starting on Tuesday. ...

In 1984, Cashen hired Davey Johnson to be the Mets' manager for a $100,000 salary.^[1] Johnson had been the second baseman with the Orioles while Cashen was the G.M.^[2] After the season, Cashen and the Mets traded Hubie Brooks and three others to the Montreal Expos for future Hall of Fame catcher, Gary Carter, and most of the pieces were in place for a championship team. The Mets barely missed the playoffs in 1985 and then won the 1986 World Series with the best record of any team during the 1980s. David Allen Johnson (born January 30, 1943) in Orlando, Florida is a former second baseman and manager in Major League Baseball. ... The Montreal Expos (French: Les Expos de Montréal) were a Major League Baseball team located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada from 1969 to 2004. ... The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum, located at 25 Main Street in Cooperstown, New York, is a semi-official museum operated by private interests serving as the central point for the study of the history of baseball in the United States and beyond, the display of baseball-related... The position of the catcher Catcher is also a general term for a fielder who catches the ball in cricket. ... Gary Edmund Carter (born April 8, 1954), also nicknamed The Kid, has been regarded as one of the top hitting Major League Baseball catchers in baseball history. ... This article is currently under construction // This year in baseball Events January 7 - Outfielder Lou Brock and knuckleballer Hoyt Wilhelm are elected to the Hall of Fame by the Baseball Writers Association of America. ... The 1986 World Series, the 83rd playing of the modern championship series in Major League Baseball, was a memorable battle between the New York Mets and the Boston Red Sox which helped to spread the legend of the Curse of the Bambino to mass public awareness. ...

Decline in New York

While Cashen was largely credited for building the Mets into the 1986 World Champions, he was quickly vilified for dismantling the franchise when a dynasty never materialized. In various transactions, scrappy clubhouse leaders, Lenny "Nails" Dykstra, Roger McDowell, and Wally Backman, as well as fan favorite, Mookie Wilson, and future All-Stars, Rick Aguilera and Kevin Tapani, were traded away. In return, the Mets received the hugely disappointing Juan Samuel as well as Frank Viola (who won 20 games for the 1990 Mets but was otherwise only average in less than three seasons with New York), Jeff Musselman (who was out of baseball after 1990), and four players that never played in the majors. Hernandez, Carter and World Series MVP, Ray Knight were either released or granted free agency in the years following the championship. Instead, the Mets hopes were pinned on Gregg Jefferies who soon faltered and was very unpopular on the team.^[1] In sports, the term dynasty is often used to refer to a team that dominates their sport for a period of time. ... Lenny on the cover of Street & Smiths Baseball Leonard Kyle (Lenny) Dykstra (born February 10, 1963 in Santa Ana, California, also known as Nails) is a former Major League Baseball outfielder. ... Roger Alan McDowell (born December 21, 1960) is the pitching coach of the Atlanta Braves and was a right-handed relief pitcher for twelve seasons in Major League Baseball from 1985 to 1996. ... Walter Wally Wayne Backman (born September 22, 1959 in Hillsboro, Oregon) is a retired baseball player. ... William Hayward Mookie Wilson (born February 9, 1956) is a former Major League Baseball outfielder who played with the New York Mets (1980–89) and Toronto Blue Jays (1989–91). ... Richard Warren Aguilera (born December 31, 1961 in San Gabriel, California) is a former relief pitcher in Major League Baseball for the New York Mets, Minnesota Twins, Boston Red Sox, and Chicago Cubs. ... Kevin Ray Tapani was an American baseball player from 1989 until 2001. ... Juan Milton Samuel (born December 9, 1960 in San Pedro de Macorís, Dominican Republic) is a baseball coach and a former second baseman in Major League Baseball. ... Frank John Viola, Jr. ... Jeff Musselman (born June 21, 1963 in Doylestown, Pennsylvania), is a former professional baseball player who pitched in the Major Leagues from 1986-1990. ... The World Series MVP Award is given to the player who most contributes to his teams success in the World Series. ... Ray Knight (born December 28, 1952 in Albany, Georgia) is a former right-handed Major League Baseball player in the 1970s and 80s. ... In North American professional sports, particularly baseball, football, and basketball, a free agent is a team player whose contract with a team has expired, and the player is able to sign a contract with another team. ... Gregory Scott Jefferies (born August 1, 1967 in Burlingame, California) is a former infielder in Major League Baseball who had a 14-year career from 1987 to 2000. ...

After stumbling to a fifth-place finish in 1991, Frank Cashen stepped down as the Mets' general manager.^[1] This article is currently under construction // This year in baseball Events January 8 - Rod Carew, Gaylord Perry and Ferguson Jenkins are elected to the Hall of Fame by the Baseball Writers Association of America, with Carew becoming the 22nd player to be named in his first year of eligibility. ...

Later life

After his general manager days, continued working with the Mets in various capacities including chief operating officer in 1992 and consultant in 1993.^[3] In November 1998, the Mets general manager, Steve Phillips, took time off to address a sexual harassment lawsuit and Cashen was named interim GM for a week.^[4][5] A Chief Operating Officer (COO) is a corporate officer responsible for managing the day-to-day activities of the corporation. ... A consultant (from the latin consultus meaning legal expert) is a professional who provides expert advice in a particular domain or area of expertise such as accountancy, technology, the law, human resources, marketing, medicine, finance, public affairs, communication, or more esoteric areas of knowledge, for example engineering of different kinds... Steve Phillips (May 18, 1963 - ) is a baseball analyst for ESPN. He also served as general manager for the New York Mets from 1997-2003 and led them to the World Series in 2000. ... Sexual harassment is harassment or unwelcome attention of a sexual nature. ...

Frank Cashen has seven children with wife, Jean.^[1]

References