Books and articles about Chuck Tanner

Tanner debuted with the Milwaukee Braves on April 12, 1955, and became the third pinch hitter ever to homer on the first major league pitch he saw, tagging the Reds' Gerry Staley. But his only solid season as a player was 1957, with the Braves and Cubs, when he batted .279 with 48 RBI. In 1958, his 53 pinch-hitting appearances led the NL.

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At the end of his eighth season as a minor league manager, Tanner took over the helm of the White Sox. He became known for his enthusiasm and eternal optimism. He brought Chicago in second in 1972 to win TSN ML Manager of the Year honors, but was fired after a fifth-place finish in 1975. He spent a year piloting Oakland before Charley Finley traded him to Pittsburgh for Manny Sanguillen and $100,000. Tanner's 1979 Pirates won the NL pennant, and defeated Baltimore in the World Series after falling behind three games to one.

Fired by Pittsburgh after finishing in the cellar in 1984-85, Tanner was hired by the Braves' Ted Turner, whom Tanner had defeated when Turner managed Atlanta for one game, on May 11, 1977. But Tanner's positive outlook could not prevent his third straight last-place finish in 1986, nor his dismissal after the Braves had gone 12-27 in 1988. He had come into 1988 with 17 consecutive full seasons as a manager - tops among active ML skippers. His son Bruce pitched ten games for the 1985 White Sox and was later traded to Oakland. Another son, Mark, pitched in the Cub, White Sox, and Rangers organizations. (RTM)

FROM THE BASEBALL CHRONOLOGY » April 12, 1955: In a 4-2 win over the Reds, Milwaukee rookie OF Chuck Tanner hits a 8th-inning pinch-homer in his first ML AB. » July 18, 1957: Ernie Banks and Chuck Tanner of the Cubs both hit inside-the-park homers at spacious Forbes Field. The Cubs nip Pittsburgh 6-5. » May 30, 1958: Cubs Walt Moryn hits three home runs in the 2nd game at Wrigley Field as the Cubs sweep the Dodgers 3–2 and 10–8. Moose scores the winning run in the opener and then in game two goes back to back with Ernie Banks in the 4th and Chuck Tanner in the 7th. His 2-run home run in the 9th tags Sandy Koufax with his 1st loss. » September 15, 1970: The White Sox hire manager Chuck Tanner from the Pacific Coast League. He replaces Don Gutteridge, who had been fired on September 3rd. Coach Bill Adair ran the team in the interim. » December 17, 1975: Bill Veeck fires Chuck Tanner and hires old friend Paul Richards, 67, to manage the White Sox. Tanner then accepts a 3-year contract to manage Oakland. » November 5, 1976: The Pirates trade C Manny Sanguillen and an estimated $100,000 to the A's for manager Chuck Tanner. » June 12, 1985: White Sox pitcher Bruce Tanner, son of Pirates manager Chuck Tanner, beats Seattle 6–3 in his ML debut. It is Tanner's first and only ML victory. » October 7, 1985: National League Managers Chuck Tanner and Bob Lillis are fired by the Pirates and Astros, respectively. Lillis is offered a front-office job, while Tanner will be hired to manage the Braves just three days later. » May 23, 1988: Braves manager Chuck Tanner is fired and replaced by Russ Nixon. The Braves were 12-27 under Tanner, last in the National League West. » May 17, 1996: Jermaine Dye, filling in for David Justice, smacks a home run in his 1st ML at bat to back Greg Maddux's 8–2 win over the Reds. Dye is the first Brave to debut with a homer since Chuck Tanner did it on April 12, 1955.