Bob Watson

Robert José Watson (April 10, 1946 – May 14, 2020) was an American professional baseball player and sports executive. He was born in Los Angeles, California.

Watson was a first baseman and left fielder who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Houston Astros, Boston Red Sox, New York Yankees and Atlanta Braves from 1966 to 1984. Watson was a two-time All-Star during his playing career.

After retiring as a player, Watson coached for the Oakland Athletics and was general manager for the Astros from 1993 through 1995 and the Yankees from 1995 through 1998. The Yankees won the 1996 World Series.

He was MLB's vice president in charge of discipline and vice president of rules and on-field operations until 2010.

Watson was diagnosed with stage 4 kidney disease in 2016.^[1] He died on May 14, 2020 from the disease in Houston at the age of 74.^[2]