Posted by Former New York Yankees manager, Ralph Houk, who is fondly called by his players as “The Major”, passed away in his Winter Haven home in Florida yesterday. He died at the age of ninety.
Ralph Houk was born on August 9, 1919. He was a catcher for the Yankees farm system. When the United States engaged in World War II, he signed up for the army and became an Army Ranger. He rose to the rank of major, which was the source of his nickname when he returned to join the Yankees, and joined the Battle of the Bulge where he got a Purple Heart, Bronze Star and Silver Star.
After the war, he returned to the Yankees and served as Berra’s alternate. Houk retired as a player in 1953. He became manager in 1961 after Stengel was fired following a loss in the World Series in 1960. Under his management, the Yankees, led by Maris and mantle, won one hundred nine games and gained victory over the Cincinnati Reds in five games in order to win the World Series.
Before his death, the New York Yankees website considered him the oldest living manager of a team that won a World Series.
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