Dick O’Connell, 87; Baseball Executive Helped Revive Red Sox
Dick O’Connell, 87, a baseball executive who was a leading figure in the revival of the Boston Red Sox in the 1960s, died Sunday at a nursing home in Lexington, Mass.
Born in Winthrop, Mass., O’Connell graduated from Boston College and served in Navy intelligence on the staff of Adm. Chester Nimitz during World War II. O’Connell joined the Red Sox organization after the war, serving in a variety of minor league positions.
He was named the club’s executive vice president of baseball and business operations in 1961.
In 1965, O’Connell took over as the general manager of a club that had a dismal record and was on its way to losing 100 games.
The team lost 90 games the next year. But before the 1967 season, O’Connell hired Dick Williams as manager. The Red Sox won the pennant that year in what was to be the first of a number of winning seasons. They also won the pennant in 1975, but in both instances lost in the World Series.
O’Connell remained with the Red Sox until 1977, when he was fired by Jean Yawkey, the widow of the club’s longtime owner, Tom Yawkey.
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