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A native of Miami, Florida, Howser attended college at Florida State University, where he twice received honors as an All-America shortstop and set a school record with a batting average of .422 in 1956. Drafted by the Kansas City Athletics, he hit .280, stole 37 bases, scored 108 runs, and led American LeagueThe American League (or formally the American League of Professional Baseball Clubs is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball in the United States of America and Canada. It developed from a minor league, the Western League, that aspired to shortstops in putoutBaseball statistics In baseball statistics, a putout (denoted by PO or fly-ball when appropriate) is given to a defensive player who records an out by one of the following methods: tagging a runner with the ball touching a base that a runner on a force pls and errorAn error has different meanings in different domains. Current meanings in some of those domains are described below. The Latin word error meant "wandering" or "straying". Train wreck at Montparnasse, France, 1865 Statistics An error is a difference betwees in his rookie season. For this, he was selected to the 1961See also 1960 in sports, other events of 1961, 1962 in sports and the list of 'years in sports'. Auto Racing Stock car racing: Marvin Panch won the Daytona 500 NASCAR Championship Ned Jarrett Indianapolis 500 A. Foyt USAC Racing A. Foyt won the driving ch All-StarThe Major League Baseball All-Star Game is an annual exhibition baseball game between the best players from the National League and the American League. The All-Star Game usually occurs in mid-July and marks the middle of the Major League Baseball season. team and named The Sporting NewsThe Sporting News (TSN) is an American-based sports newspaper, currently affiliated with the Fox network. It was established in 1886, and in its first decades came to become the dominant American publication covering baseball so much so that it acquired t rookie of the year.
His production declined in the following two years, and his only other season as a regular was with the Cleveland IndiansBaseball teams The Cleveland Indians are a Major League Baseball team based in Cleveland, Ohio. They are in the Central Division of the American League. Founded 1901 (charter American League member) Formerly known as the Cleveland Blues ( 1901), Broncos o in 1964See also 1963 in sports, other events of 1964, 1965 in sports and the list of 'years in sports'. Auto Racing Stock car racing: Richard Petty won the Daytona 500 NASCAR Championship Richard Petty Indianapolis 500 A. Foyt USAC Racing A. Foyt won the season. His major league career spanned eight seasons with three clubs: Kansas City, Cleveland, and the New York Yankees.
Howser was more successful as a manager, never finishing lower than second place during his seven-year managerial career. He made his debut in 1978, managing one game with the Yankees. In 1980 he became a full-time manager of the team, taking them to the AL Eastern Division championship with a 103-59 record but losing to the Kansas City Royals in the playoffs. Yankees owner George Steinbrenner fired him following the postseason.
Meanwhile, Kansas City, his postseason rival, hired him to manage the last 33 games of the strike-shortened 1981 season. Under Howser, the Royals finished second in 1982 and 1983. Prior to the 1984 season, their clubhouse ravaged by drug problems, started disassembling their team and starting over. Kansas expected 1984 to be a rebuilding year, and Howser guided the young team to a division title.
The following year, Howser guided the Royals to their first and only World Series title, defeating the St. Louis Cardinals in seven games.
As manager of the defending AL champions, Howser managed the 1986 All-Star game. Broadcasters noticed he was messing up signals when he changed pitchers, and Howser later admitted he felt sick before the game. It was the last game he would manage in the major leagues, as he was diagnosed with a cancer brain tumor and underwent surgery.
Howser attempted a comeback during spring training of 1987, but quickly found he was physically too weak and abandoned the attempt in late February. Three months later, he died in St. Luke's Hospital in Kansas City, Missouri at the age of 50, and was buried in Tallahassee, Florida.
On July 3, 1987, Howser's number 10 became the first number retired by the Kansas City Royals. Also in that year, the St. Petersburg Area Chamber of Commerce established the Dick Howser Trophy, college baseball's equivalent of college football's Heisman Trophy, in Howser's honor.
Florida State University's baseball team plays in Dick Howser Stadium, named in his honor, and he is honored with a bronze bust on the stadium grounds.