Farewell to Bambi Bob's Backstop for April 6, 2004

This time, it's Bambi that died.

For all of us who grew up traumatized by watching Bambi's mother die, today we have another cause for tears, as George Bamberger passed away at age 78 on Sunday, the Orioles' opening night. Bamberger, or Bambi, as he was known by most people in baseball, had been suffering from cancer for three years.  He is survived by his wife Wilma. She and the former Orioles and New York Giants pitcher have made Redington Beach, Fla., their home for the last forty years.

It was ironic that he was known as Bambi, since his language, among the saltier in the majors, would have even made Earl Weaver blush from time to time.

He was the Orioles' pitching coach from 1968 through 1977, a 10-season sequence in which the team produced 18 20-game winners. The 1971 American League champion Orioles had four 20-game winners: Jim Palmer, Mike Cuellar, Dave McNally and Pat Dobson. "He was absolutely the best pitching coach I ever saw," Frank Cashen said upon hearing of Bamberger's passing. "Some of his theories were revolutionary. He grew up in the era of the four-man rotation and believed in it passionately."

Bamberger's favorite pitch was the "Staten Island Sinker", as he called it, aka the spitter. Mike Cuellar, Doug Sisk, and Mike Caldwell were the leading practitioners of this lost art under Bamberger's tutelage.

Bambi was also, of course, a successful manager, leading the Brewers to two ninety-plus win seasons before retiring due to a bypass in 1980, though he returned to managing, under old boss Frank Cashen, with the Mets in 1981, replacing the fired Joe Torre. The Mets finished last in his two seasons, though he did make Mookie Wilson a regular, and Jesse Orosco into a closer, as well as taking rookie Daryl Strawberry under his wing, acting as a gruff but understanding mentor.

George's stint as pitching coach for the Orioles coincided with the most dominating era of Oriole history. He was also one of the few members of a rare breed, a pitching coach who became a successful manager.

The Oriole family is a little smaller today, and a little sadder, as George is probably at the pearly gates, giving Saint Peter an earful.