Walt Jocketty
Walt Jocketty | |
|---|---|
 Jocketty before Opening Day 2006 at Busch Stadium | |
| Born | February 19, 1951 Minneapolis, Minnesota, U.S. |
| Died | April 25, 2025 (aged 74) |
| Education | University of Minnesota |
| Known for | General Manager of St. Louis Cardinals and Cincinnati Reds |
| Spouse | Sue |
Walter Joseph Jocketty (February 19, 1951 – April 25, 2025) was an American baseball executive. He was the general manager of the St. Louis Cardinals of Major League Baseball from October 14, 1994 until October 3, 2007, and worked as a special advisor for the Cincinnati Reds from 2008 until his death in 2025.
Early life
[edit]Jocketty was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota. He had two brothers and two sisters.[1]
Jocketty attended Marshall High School in Marshall. He played baseball, football, basketball, and hockey in high school.[2] Jocketty attended the University of Minnesota, where he earned a bachelor's degree in business administration.[3]
Career
[edit]Oakland and Colorado
[edit]Jocketty began working for the Oakland Athletics beginning in March 1980, when he was hired by owner Charlie Finley as Director of Minor League Operations and Scouting.[3] It was in this capacity that Jocketty took a lead role in overhauling the A's minor league system, and was also instrumental in founding the Arizona Rookie League and the Dominican Summer League.[3] Less than five years into his time with Oakland, Jocketty was promoted to Director of Baseball Administration, a post he held the remainder of his time in Oakland. During the 1994 season Jocketty served the Colorado Rockies for a brief stint as their assistant general manager of player personnel.[3][4]
St. Louis Cardinals
[edit] | This section needs additional citations for verification. (April 2025) |
Jocketty was hired as general manager of the St. Louis Cardinals on October 14, 1994. When Anheuser-Busch sold the team following the 1995 season, the new ownership chose to retain Jocketty. He was instrumental in bringing new manager Tony La Russa, whom he had worked with in Oakland, to St. Louis.
During his time as Cardinal GM, the Cardinals compiled seven National League Central Division championships (1996, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2005, 2006), two National League Championships (2004 and 2006), and one World Series Championship (2006). The Cardinals had seven straight winning seasons under Jocketty, including 100+ win seasons in 2004 and 2005. Jocketty won The Sporting News Executive of the Year Award three times, in 2000, 2004, and 2010.
Jocketty was fired by the Cardinals organization on October 3, 2007. Team owner Bill DeWitt cited divisiveness in the baseball operations front office as the reason for Jocketty's dismissal.[5]
Cincinnati Reds
[edit]Jocketty was hired as a special advisor to the Cincinnati Reds on January 11, 2008. Jocketty's role was to advise and assist the team in their baseball operations which includes the front office, personnel, scouting, minor and international operations and training and medical services. He was named the next general manager of the Reds after Wayne Krivsky was fired on April 23, 2008.[6]
After the 2010 season, Jocketty was named Sporting News Executive Of Year.[7] After the 2015 season, he was named to the new position of president of baseball operations.[8] On December 27, 2016, he was named executive advisor to the CEO.[9]
Personal life
[edit]Walt Jocketty died on April 25, 2025.[10]
References
[edit]- ^ https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/walt-jocketty/
- ^ "Cardinals saddened by the passing of former team executive Walt Jocketty". MLB.com. Retrieved Apr 26, 2025.
- ^ a b c d St. Louis Cardinals 2006 Media Guide. Hadler Printing Co.. Page 9.
- ^ "Walt Jocketty". Baseball America. Retrieved 2007-10-03.
- ^ "Cardinals News > Jocketty no longer GM of Cardinals". The Official Site of the St. Louis Cardinals. Archived from the original on October 11, 2007. Retrieved 2007-10-03.
- ^ "The Official Site of The Cincinnati Reds: Official Info: Reds name Walt Jocketty President of baseball operations and general manger". web.archive.org. May 6, 2008. Retrieved Apr 26, 2025.
- ^ Ramsey, Jamie (27 October 2016). "WALT JOCKETTY: EXECUTIVE OF THE YEAR". ramsey.mlbblogs.com. Medium. Retrieved 26 October 2020.
- ^ "Reds Promote Dick Williams to GM; Jocketty to Serve as President of Baseball Ops".
- ^ "2021 Cincinnati Reds Media Guide | Fans".
- ^ "Walt Jocketty dies at 74: MLB executive won World Series titles with Cardinals and A's". MLB.com. Apr 27, 2025. Retrieved Apr 27, 2025.
External links
[edit]- Walt Jocketty at IMDb
- 2002 news conference about the sudden death of Cardinal pitcher Darryl Kile