My interviews with Mr. Steinbrenner
Graig Nettles, that’s who was the toughest Yankee of them all, George Steinbrenner told me in an interview I did with the Yankees owner in 2002.
George Steinbrenner, the icon of the New York Yankees and loved and hated by Yankees fans throughout his ownership, passed away this morning at the age of 80.
Eight years ago, I was an assistant sports editor at The Tampa Tribune and my area of coverage was high school sports and boxing.
On April 19th, with a fight between China Smith and Saul Montana about to start at the SunDome at USF, I approached Howard Grossworth, one of George Steinbrenner’s assistants with the Yankees. I asked if I could do an interview with Mr. Steinbrenner and chat with him about boxing.
It took Mr. Steinbrenner all of about a second to wave me over to his table. We talked about boxing and I said “I’m sorry Mr. Steinbrenner, but my sports editor Duke Maas wants me to ask this question. Who would win in a fight? Reggie Jackson or Billy Martin (the two two were known to have fought in the dugout)” Mr. Steinbrenner replied with not really any answer, but stated that Nettles – the third baseman – on that team was the toughest Yankee he’s ever had. We would go on talking and I asked what was the best boxing match he had seen and he told me.
We would go on to discuss a couple other things, in fact he admitted to me that he tried to buy the Cleveland Indians before the Yankees.
After I left his table it was about five minutes later I was talking to someone and my boxing writer, Anwar Richardson, came up to me and said “Mr. Steinbrenner would like to speak with you.” I went over and Mr. Steinbrenner corrected himself, “No, No Ali-Frazier I that was the best fight I ever saw – I was there.”
Mr. Steinbrenner was very big in Tampa and well-loved, especially by the high school community. One of my writers, Eddie Daniels, did a story on how Tampa Bay Tech had a shortage of football equipment for the junior varsity teams. Two days after the story appeared – an anonymous donor – bought ALL of Hillsborough County high schools brand new equipment for the varsity and junior varsity teams. We, at the Tribune, knew who the donor was and I’m sure many in Hillsborough County knew too.
Every year, Mr. Steinbrenner would host a dinner and dance for all of the Hillsborough County coaches and with it he would give away trips to places like San Francisco and Hawaii as well as a trip to New York to see the Yankees. And for any coach that coached more than 20 years – their name was put in a drum and drawn at the end of the night and that coach would win a brand new car.
Last year, a high school opened and was named Steinbrenner High in his honor.
Mr. Steinbrenner always gave back to the Hillsborough high school coaches and high school community. He will be missed in Tampa.
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