This year, we lost two of the most popular figures in Tiger/Michigan History. We lost Ernie Harwell, whose statue is pictured here in today's Year in Review entry, on May 4, and we lost "Sparky" Anderson, who passed last month, on November 4. Many people have fond memories of the both of them, especially of the roles they played in their lives of many people across the country, especially the Metro Detroit area. Ernie Harwell broadcast for the Tigers for 42 years, from 1960-2002, with the exception of 1991, when he was fired, which was an unpopular move by the Tigers front office. People got angry and started boycotting the Tigers and Domino's Pizza (this is back when the original owner of Domino's owned the Tigers), until the Tigers re-hired him before the 1992 season. Sparky Anderson was the manager of the Tigers from 1979-1995, and led the Tigers to the 1984 World Series and the 1987 playoffs, as well as managing the Cincinnati Reds from 1970-1978, including back-to-back World Series championships in 1975 and 1976. He founded the charity CATCH for kids at Childrens' and Henry Ford Hospitals here in Detroit back in the '80s. I read somewhere on the internet or in a book that he got the nickname "Sparky" (his real name was George) after arguing with the umpires during games when he was a player back in the days. Both Ernie Harwell and Sparky Anderson will be missed amongst all Tiger fans, wherever they may be.
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