Fay Vincent was born on May 29, 1938 and started serving as the Commissioner of Major League Baseball on September 13, 1989. Three years later, his reign as commissioner ended when he stepped down from the post due to a vote of no confidence by eighteen team owners. Baseball Almanac is pleased to present our Commissioner Fay Vincent biography.
"The game (of baseball) will survive long past you or I." - Commissioner of Major League Baseball Fay Vincent after the earthquake in the 1989 World Series
Fay VincentA Definitive Record |
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Fay VincentBiography |
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Commissioner Fay Vincent Biography | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Following the unexpected death of A. Bartlett Giamatti after a single season, Francis T. "Fay" Vincent, Jr. was selected to replace the fallen Commissioner. The choice seemed fitting as it had been Giamatti, who had appointed Vincent as deputy commissioner after establishing the new position. Following the unanimous agreement, it was decided that Vincent would complete Giamatti's five-year term, which began on April 1, 1989. Like his mentor, "Fay" was also a "Yale Man" after graduating with honors from Williams College in 1960 and receiving his law degree from Yale in 1963. Upon graduation, Vincent became an associate in the New York law firm of Whitman and Ransom and was later named as a partner in the Washington, DC law firm of Caplin and Drysdale. During his time in Washington, he also served as Associate Director of the Division of Corporate Finance of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. In 1978, he left the courtroom for the movie set and became President and Chief Executive Officer of Columbia Pictures. Following the acquisition of Columbia by the Coca-Cola Company, Vincent was appointed Senior Vice President and President and CEO of its Entertainment Business Sector. Eventually, he was promoted to Executive Vice President of the entire Coca-Cola Company. Almost immediately after taking the Major League Baseball office, Vincent was called upon as a crisis manager after the San Francisco Bay area was hit with a massive earthquake, disabling the City of San Francisco and post-postponing the World Series between the Giants and Athletics. Amidst a media circus, he was able to preside over meetings with city officials and announced that the World Series would resume on October 27. The remainder of his term was fraught with multiple labor disputes and negotiations between Major League Baseball and the Major League Baseball Players Association. After talks between the two parties had stalled in 1990, a settlement was reached some thirty-two days into the spring training schedule. Due to the lockout, Opening Day was delayed one week to provide adequate time for Spring Training, but the settlement ensured that a full season would be played. Expansion was also a major focus of the Vincent years and two new National League teams were established bringing the number of Major League Baseball franchises to twenty-eight. He also declared that the American League would receive $42 million of the National League's $190 million in expansion revenue but in return, the American League would provide players in the National League expansion draft. Disgruntled with the constant rising stress of labor disputes, Vincent resigned on September 7, 1992. |
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Commissioner Fay Vincent Biography |
Did you know that Baseball Almanac has a comprehensive biography on file for every Commissioner of Major League Baseball? Take a moment, review each biography, and learn more about the men who have actually been called the "Second Most Powerful Men in America".
Fay Vincent sent a letter during the summer of 1992 telling team owners he would not resign from the Office of the Commissioner. Eighteen (18) team owners voted "no confidence" against him and within a week Vincent resigned from his post. The teams who supported him were the A's, Astros, Expos, Marlins, Mets, Orioles, Rangers, Red Sox and Royals.
After leaving the office, Vincent moved to England where he wrote a book. He returned to the states when he was appointed to the Time Warner board of directors, later turned down an offer to be president of the New York Mets, and currenty serves as an investment banker.