his 1977 dismissal. But LeRoux' "coup" was halted by court order, and Sullivan remained in power. LeRoux eventually sold his share of the club in 1987, Mrs. Yawkey died in 1992, and Sullivan sold his general partnership late in 1993. Over time, O'Connell and the Red Sox mended fences and he was admitted to the Boston Red Sox Hall of Fame in 1997. Pundits hailed him as the architect who most helped to create Red Sox Nation by bringing the team back from near-irrelevance in 1967. By the time of his death, at age 87 on August 18, 2002, in Lexington, Massachusetts, O'Connell was recognized as one of the most important men in Red Sox annals. He was praised by author Howard Bryant, who stated in a 2004 interview with The Hardball Times, "To me, Dick O'Connell is the most underrated person in Red Sox history. He was the first Red Sox executive to look at the club and make baseball decisions and not crony decisions." References External links Keane, Kerry, Dick O'Connell. Society for American Baseball Research Biography Project Biography on Fenway Fanatics website The New York Times obituary Further reading The Associated Press, Higgins Gets Pact: Red Sox Manager, Signed for Three Years, Has 'Free Hand''', The New York Times, October 1, 1960. Bryant, Howard, Shut Out: A Story of Race and Baseball in Boston. Boston: The Beacon Press, 2002. Gammons, Peter, Beyond the Sixth Game. Boston: Houghton-Mifflin Co., 1985. The Sporting News, 1951 Official Baseball Guide, 1955 Baseball Dope Book, 1960 Baseball Dope Book, 1966 Official Baseball Guide, 1967 Official Baseball Guide. Stout, Glenn and Johnson, Richard A., Red Sox Century.'' Boston and New York: Houghton-Mifflin Co., 2000. 1914 births 2002 deaths United States Navy personnel of World War II Baseball executives Baseball people from Massachusetts Boston College alumni Boston Red Sox executives Major League Baseball general managers People from Winthrop, Massachusetts Sportspeople from Suffolk County, Massachusetts