"knew the baseball rule book better than anyone in baseball," calling him a "brilliant strategist" and "one of the most astute bench managers I ever saw." However, John also noted that "he never won a pennant because he didn't understand pitching." Mauch thought a pitcher could easily be replaced with a pitching machine. Mauch ultimately served as a manager in 26 seasons (with 24 as full-time manager), and he had a winning record in twelve of those seasons. On July 27, 1987, he lost his 2,000th game as a manager, becoming the third manager to ever do so (since then, three more managers have joined him). He managed his nephew Roy Smalley III during his tenure with the Minnesota Twins. Smalley's father, Roy Jr., married Mauch's sister, Jolene. Roy Jr. and Mauch grew up and played sandlot baseball together in Los Angeles, California. Managerial record Death After retiring from baseball, Mauch lived in a desert community in California. Mauch died at age 79 at Eisenhower Medical Center in Rancho Mirage, California, from lung cancer. See also List of Major League Baseball managers by wins References Inline citations Bibliography External links Gene Mauch at SABR (Baseball BioProject) Gene Mauch at Baseball Almanac Gene Mauch at Baseball Biography Gene Mauch at The Deadball Era Baseball Hall of Fame - 2008 Veterans Committee candidate profile 1925 births 2005 deaths Atlanta Crackers managers Atlanta Crackers players Baseball players from Los Angeles Baseball players from Kansas Boston Braves players Boston Red Sox players Brooklyn Dodgers players California Angels managers Deaths from lung cancer in California Chicago Cubs players Durham Bulls players John C. Fremont High School alumni Indianapolis Indians players Kansas City Royals coaches Los Angeles Angels (minor league) players Major League Baseball infielders Milwaukee Brewers (minor league) players Minneapolis Millers (baseball) managers Minneapolis Millers (baseball) players Minnesota Twins managers Montreal Expos managers Montreal Royals players Philadelphia Phillies managers Pittsburgh Pirates players St. Louis Cardinals players St. Paul Saints (AA) players Sportspeople from Salina, Kansas United States Army Air Forces personnel of World War II