Don Zimmer spent 66 years working in baseball, and he picked up friends and admirers wherever he went in the game — which was a lot of places.
As news of Zimmer’s passing Wednesday night at the age of 83 spread throughout big league ballparks, tributes for this beloved character of the diamond came rushing forth.
Vin Scully, baseball’s grandest orator, had known Zimmer since they both worked in the Dodgers organization in the 1950s. Scully shared some wonderful, loving stories on the Dodgers broadcast from Chavez Ravine.
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Zimmer most recently worked as an adviser for the Rays, and broadcaster Todd Kalas was noticeably choked up as he reported on Zimmer’s death.
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Zimmer also won four World Series rings with the Yankees as Joe Torre’s bench coach. His passion and pluck were exemplified to a younger generation of fans when he tangoed with Pedro Martinez in this memorable brawl at Fenway Park during the 2003 ALCS.