Cedric Tallis | |
|---|---|
 Tallis in 1968 | |
| Born | (1914-07-29)July 29, 1914 New York City, U.S. |
| Died | May 8, 1991(1991-05-08) (aged 76) Tampa, Florida, U.S. |
| Occupation | Baseball executive |
Cedric Nelson Tallis (July 29, 1914 – May 8, 1991) was an American executive inMajor League Baseball who served as the firstgeneral manager of theexpansionKansas City Royals and later played an important role in theNew York Yankees' dynasty of the late 1970s.
AWorld War II veteran of theUnited States Army, where he attained the rank ofmajor,[1] Tallis was the general manager of teams inminor league baseball, including theBirmingham Barons of theDouble-ASouthern Association and theVancouver Mounties andSeattle Rainiers of theTriple-APacific Coast League, through the end of the 1960 season. His first major league job was as business manager of one of theAmerican League's first twoexpansion teams, theLos Angeles Angels, whom he joined in their maiden season,1961.
Seven years later, in 1968, Tallis was hired by Royals' ownerEwing Kauffman to build his expansion team when it entered the AL in1969. Tallis recruited a management team that included future GMsJohn Schuerholz,Lou Gorman,Syd Thrift,Jack McKeon andHerk Robinson. Gorman, in his autobiography, described Tallis as "enthusiastic, energetic, extremely personable and eager for the challenge to prove he could run a major league ball club."[2] He drafted wisely in the1968 AL Expansion Draft, supervised the founding and operation of theKansas City Royals Baseball Academy, a revolutionary training ground for elite athletes without significantbaseball experience, and built a strongfarm system. By1971, their third season, the Royals sported a winning record—earning Tallis the Executive of the Year Award fromThe Sporting News that season.[3] Two years later, the Royals moved into a state-of-the-art new ballpark,Royals Stadium, now Kauffman Stadium.
But in June1974, Tallis was replaced as Kansas City's GM byJoe Burke, former general manager of theTexas Rangers. Under Burke, players signed and developed during Tallis' tenure—such asBaseball Hall of FamerGeorge Brett—would mature to help Kansas City dominate theAmerican League West Division during the latter part of the 1970s.[3] Tallis, however, soon joined the front office of the Yankees, reporting toGeorge Steinbrenner and Yankee president/GMGabe Paul. Tallis' first task in the Bronx was to serve as the club's supervisor of the successful 1974–75 renovation ofYankee Stadium. After the1977 season, and the Yankees' firstworld championship in 15 years, Paul resigned to become president of theCleveland Indians. In the front office overhaul that followed, Tallis was named Yankee general manager.
Tallis held the title during the1978 and1979 seasons, although owner Steinbrenner took an integral role in the team's day-to-day operations and at one point namedmanagerBob Lemon as the team's GM-designate during the middle of the 1978 season. During Tallis' administration, the Yankees continued their aggressive role inbaseball free agency (notably signing Hall of Famerelief pitcherGoose Gossage). In his first season, New York roared back from a14+1⁄2-game midseason deficit to beat theBoston Red Sox in a one-game playoff for the 1978AL East flag, defeat Tallis' old Royals club for the third consecutive season in theALCS, then take the1978 World Series in six games from theLos Angeles Dodgers. The following year, however, the Yankees suffered the tragic loss ofcatcher and team captainThurman Munson in an August plane crash and finished fourth,13+1⁄2 games in arrears of theBaltimore Orioles. Tallis was replaced as general manager byGene Michael at the end of the season.
He spent three more years in the Yankee front office as an executive vice president before leaving the organization in 1982. He then became executive director of the Tampa Bay Baseball Group, which was established to lure a Major League club to theTampa Bay area. Although the group nearly convinced theChicago White Sox to move to theFlorida enclave, it did not succeed in its mission during Tallis' lifetime. He died of a heart attack inTampa at the age of 76 in 1991. All told, Tallis had a 43-year career in baseball management.
| Preceded by Franchise created | Kansas City RoyalsGeneral Manager 1968–1974 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | New York YankeesGeneral Manager 1977–1979 | Succeeded by |