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Frank Howard, whose towering 6-foot-7 presence as a slugging outfielder and first baseman was followed by a coaching career featuring stops in Queens and The Bronx, died Monday due to “complications from a stroke,” according to the Washington Post.
He was 87.
Howard’s MLB career began with the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1958, but after seven years, he was traded to the Washington Senators and became a fixture in the city’s baseball scene.
Following his retirement in 1973, Howard embarked on a coaching journey that featured a 116-game stint as Mets manager in 1983 and a stint as a Yankees coach, as well as stops with the Rays (as a coach) and the Padres (as manager in 1981).
“Growing up a baseball fan in Washington D.C., Frank Howard was my hero,” Mark Lerner, the Nationals’ owner, said in a statement, according to MLB.com. “The towering home runs he hit into the stands at RFK Stadium gave him the nickname ‘Capital Punisher,’ but I’ll always remember him as a kind and gentle man.
“The entire Lerner family would like to offer our thoughts and condolences to Frank’s family during this difficult time. The world of baseball has truly lost a giant.”
Howard — nicknamed Hondo — stayed on as a coach with the Mets in 1984 after he was replaced as manager by Davey Johnson and was back on the Mets bench from 1994-96.
He coached with the Yankees in 1989 and from 1991-93.
Howard’s most recognizable trait was his size, listed at 6-7, 255 pounds, but often heavier than that.
The NBA’s Philadelphia Warriors drafted him in the third round following a collegiate career — for both baseball and basketball — at Ohio State.
When the Yankees’ selected 6-7 Aaron Judge in 2013, Howard’s name was inserted back into baseball discourse.
“Despite his size, Howard was known to all as ‘The Gentle Giant,’” the Mets said in a statement. “He was known throughout the organization as one of the most kind and generous individuals.”