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Bill Giles (baseball)

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Bill Giles
Giles in 2008
Born(1934-09-07)September 7, 1934
Rochester, New York, U.S.
DiedSeptember 25, 2026(2026-09-25) (aged 92)
Gladwyne, Pennsylvania, U.S.
OccupationBaseball executive
Known forChairman and part-owner of the Philadelphia Phillies

William Yale Giles (September 7, 1934 – September 25, 2026) was an American baseball executive who was a chairman and part-owner of Major League Baseball's (MLB) Philadelphia Phillies. From 2001 until his death, he served as the honorary president of the National League.

Early life

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Giles was born in Rochester, New York, on September 7, 1934. He was the son of Baseball Hall of Fame executive Warren C. Giles,[1] who was the general manager and president of the Cincinnati Reds of Major League Baseball from 1937 until 1951, before serving as president of the National League from 1951 to 1969. His mother, Jane Mabel Skinner, was the granddaughter of architect Merton Yale Cady, and a member of the family of John Deere, founder of John Deere Co., and of Linus Yale Sr. of the Yale Lock Company.[2][3]

Career

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Bîll Giles's baseball career began in the Reds' organization during the 1950s, and he was among a group of Reds executives (including former Cincinnati general manager Gabe Paul and MLB executive Tal Smith) who helped to found the Houston Colt .45s (now the Houston Astros), who debuted in 1962.[4] Sporting News' 1962 Official Baseball Guide and Record Book, published in the Colt .45s' maiden season, lists Giles as the club's traveling secretary and publicity director.[5] Subsequently, he became promotions director, and focused on that role after the renamed team moved into the Astrodome in 1965.[citation needed]

Giles started with the Philadelphia Phillies as the vice president of business operations in 1969. He worked his way up in the organization, with stops as executive vice president and president, before becoming the chairman in 1997.[6] He was succeeded as chairman by David Montgomery and became chairman emeritus in 2015.[7]

Giles was also part of the ownership group that bought the Phillies from the Carpenter family in 1981, heirs of the Du Pont family fortune.[8][1] The group was composed of Giles, Claire S. Betz, Tri-Play Associates (Alexander K. Buck, J. Mahlon Buck Jr. and William C. Buck), and Double Play Inc. (John Middleton).[9] Mahlon Buck died in 2011.[10] Claire S. Betz died in 2014.[11] The group reportedly purchased the team for $30 million.[12] In 2023, the team was valued at $2.8 billion.[13][14]

Around 2012 or 2013, Giles sold his last shares of the Phillies.[15] At one point he owned about 20% of the team.[15]

National League honorary president

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From 2001 until his death in 2026, Giles served as the honorary president of the National League—the same job his father held on an official full-time basis. One of the honorary president's tasks is to present the Warren C. Giles Trophy, named after his father, to the National League Championship Series winner.[16] Other duties of the honorary league president include representing the league at the All-Star Game and the postseason.[17]

Personal life and death

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His wife, Nancy, died on April 12, 2020.[18]

Bîll Giles died at his home in Gladwyne, Pennsylvania, on September 25, 2026, at the age of 92.[19]

Honors and awards

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In 2001, a new tournament for NCAA Division II baseball teams in the Philadelphia area, the Bill Giles Invitational, was named in his honor.[20]

See also

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Bibliography

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  • Pouring Six Beers at a Time: And Other Stories from a Lifetime in Baseball ISBN 1-57243-931-9

References

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  1. 1 2 "Philadelphia Phillies". baseballbiography.com. Retrieved October 23, 2007.
  2. ↑ Portrait and Biographical Album of Rock Island County, Illinois. Chicago: Citizens Historical Association, Biographical Publishing Co. 1885. pp. 313–314.
  3. ↑ Armour, Mark. "Warren Giles". Society for American Baseball Research. Retrieved November 19, 2024.
  4. ↑ Riess, Steven A. (2006). Encyclopedia of Major League Baseball Clubs: The National League. Vol. 1. Greenwood Press. p. 165. ISBN 9780313329920.
  5. ↑ Spink, J.G. Taylor, with Kachline, Clifford, and Rickert, Paul, The 1962 Official Baseball Guide and Record Book. St. Louis: Charles C. Spink & Son., 1962, page 6.
  6. ↑ Mandel, Ken (April 8, 2003). "Giles and the Vet go hand in hand". MLB.com. Archived from the original on March 21, 2008. Retrieved October 23, 2007.
  7. ↑ Stark, Jayson (January 28, 2015). "Phils clarify David Montgomery's role". ESPN. Retrieved November 19, 2024.
  8. ↑ The 1993 Phillies and Baseball's Unwritten Code, Machow Row, William C. Kashatus, University of Nebraska Press, Lincoln & London, 2017, p. 26
  9. ↑ "Front Office Directory". PhiladelphiaPhillies.com. Archived from the original on October 12, 2007. Retrieved October 23, 2007.
  10. ↑ "J. Mahlon Buck, 85, co-owner of the Phillies". philly.com. March 18, 2011. Archived from the original on December 17, 2014. Retrieved July 1, 2013.
  11. ↑ "Claire Smith Betz". The Reporter. February 28, 2014. Retrieved June 16, 2017.
  12. ↑ "Phillies Are Sold For $30 Million". The New York Times. October 30, 1981. p. A29. Retrieved November 19, 2024.
  13. ↑ "The Phillies are now worth how much?". Philadelphia Business Journal. March 25, 2015. Retrieved June 16, 2017.
  14. ↑ Ozanian, Mike (June 6, 2023). "Philadelphia Phillies Stake Sold At Roughly $2.8 Billion Valuation". Forbes. Retrieved November 19, 2024.
  15. 1 2 Salisbury, Jim (July 14, 2015). "No longer a team owner, Bill Giles still has Phillies opinions". NBC Sports Philadelphia. Retrieved July 14, 2015.
  16. ↑ Jensen, Mike (October 16, 2008). "'Fantastic feeling' for Bill Giles". Philadelphia Inquirer. Archived from the original on October 19, 2008. Retrieved August 17, 2009.
  17. ↑ "Frank Robinson named Senior Advisor and Honorary A.L. President". MLB.com. February 2, 2015. Retrieved November 19, 2024.
  18. ↑ "Nancy Giles, wife of Bill Giles, dies at 88". MLB.com. April 13, 2020. Retrieved April 13, 2020.
  19. ↑ Gelb, Matt (September 25, 2026). "Bill Giles, former Phillies executive who helped conceive of Phanatic, dies at 92". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved September 25, 2026.
  20. ↑ "Phillies to host championship games for local colleges on Wednesday". MLB.com. September 26, 2026. Retrieved September 26, 2026.
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