Former MLB coach and player Jeff Torborg died Sunday at the age of 83. The news was first announced by the Baseball Hall of Fame.
The Hall of Fame remembers 1965 World Series champion and 1990 American League Manager of the Year Jeff Torborg, who died Sunday morning.
Torborg, a 10-year veteran with the Dodgers and Angels, caught Sandy Koufax’s perfect game, Bill Singer’s no-hitter and Nolan Ryan’s first no-hitter. pic.twitter.com/PdLdY0f9sQ
– National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum (@baseballhall) January 20, 2025
Torborg won the American League Manager of the Year award in 1990 for leading the Chicago White Sox to a 94-68 finish in the American League West. That was a 25-game improvement over the White Sox’s previous season, during which they finished last in the division with 69 wins.
Unfortunately for Torborg and the White Sox, MLB was still made up of two divisions in 1990 (the Boston Red Sox finished first in the American League East that season with a record of 88-74). Had there been a wild card team in the playoffs or three divisions? —which MLB implemented four years later—Chicago would have qualified for the postseason.
The White Sox noted Torborg’s death on social media, as did Ozzie Guillen, who played three seasons for him.
Former MLB catcher and Chicago White Sox manager Jeff Torborg passed away this morning in Westfield, New Jersey. He was 83 years old.
Torborg was named American League Manager of the Year in 1990 after leading the Sox to a 94-68 record that season, a 25-game improvement from the previous year. pic.twitter.com/cKpNNdLod7
– Chicago White Sox (@whitesox) January 20, 2025
I am heartbroken. My mentor and friend has passed away. someone who really understood me and gave me the opportunity to lead, to be a captain. A lot of my way of managing and being in a clubhouse came from him.
To his entire family, my deepest condolences. jeff i will miss you pic.twitter.com/VHA30fswkZ— Ozzie Guillén (@OzzieGuillen) January 20, 2025
That 1990 season was Torborg’s best in his 11 years as a major league manager. The White Sox went 87-75 the following season. He also managed the Cleveland Indians, New York Mets, Montreal Expos and Florida Marlins during his career.
When he started with the Indians in 1977, Torborg was the youngest manager in MLB at 35 years old. He was nearly named captain of the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1976, but the team opted to hire Tommy Lasorda. (That worked out quite well, as Lasorda won two World Series titles and 1,599 games, and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1997.)
Torborg finished with an overall record of 634–718 and never led a team to the postseason.
He was also a manager for the New York Yankees from 1979 to 1988 and a broadcaster for CBS Radio and Fox for six years before returning to managing in 2000.
It is very sad to hear of the passing of former Mets manager Jeff Torborg. An extremely nice man with a good sense of humor. Seeing busts of Mets Hall of Famers at Shea’s Diamond Club, he said, “They should have one of mine. I was the biggest arrest they ever had! RIP.
– Howie Rose (@HowieRose) January 20, 2025
Torborg played 10 seasons in the majors as a catcher for the Dodgers and California Angels. He batted .214 with a .533 OPS, eight home runs, 42 doubles and 101 RBIs in his career and was part of the Dodgers’ 1965 World Series championship team.
However, Torborg’s most notable accomplishments as a player were catching Sandy Koufax’s perfect game in 1965, Bill Singer’s no-hitter in 1970, and Nolan Ryan’s first no-hitter in 1973.
Torborg’s number 10 jersey was retired by Rutgers in 1992 and he was inducted into the school hall of fame two years later. He earned All-American honors in 1963 and set a program record with a .540 batting average.