Former Rockies broadcaster, 1987 World Series champ George Frazier passes away

CINCINNATI -- As the Rockies mark their 31st season, they say goodbye to someone who helped document over half of those seasons.

Longtime color analyst George Frazier died Monday at his home in Tulsa, Okla., after battling an illness. He was 68. Described as a family man, Frazier is survived by his wife, Kay, and his four children.

Before becoming a voice synonymous with summers in Denver, Frazier spent 10 years as a Major League pitcher, winning a World Series with the Twins in 1987. Despite having no connection to the Rockies -- he was born in Oklahoma, grew up in Missouri and threw his final pitch before the franchise was founded -- Frazier joined the team behind the mic in 1998 and stayed there until he retired in 2015.

“In a game that has spawned great characters through the years, George, as I like to say, would have had a seat at the head table,” said Drew Goodman, Frazier’s partner in the booth from 2002-15.

His broadcasting tenure overlapped with some of the best moments in franchise history, including the 2007 “Rocktober” team that went to the World Series. Frazier saw seven of the 10 years of Larry Walker’s Rockies career and the first five years of Charlie Blackmon’s career.

Frazier was drafted by the Brewers out of Oklahoma University in 1976 and was traded to the Cardinals in ‘77. The reliever made his debut with St. Louis, playing just over 200 miles away from where he grew up in Springfield, Mo. He also spent time with the Yankees, Indians and Cubs before retiring with Minnesota.

But according to current Rockies clubhouse manager Mike “Tiny” Pontarelli, Frazier always seemed most proud of his three seasons with the Yankees. He had 65 regular season appearances with New York, striking out 164 batters to the tune of a 3.25 ERA and was regarded as one of their best relievers in the early '80s.

Frazier found unfortunate notoriety with the Yankees in 1981 as the first pitcher in Major League history to record three losses in a best-of-seven World Series. But he was solid the following two seasons with New York before he was traded to Cleveland.

Pontarelli said that Frazier always loved taking trips to Yankee Stadium. In the franchise’s first trip to the Bronx in 2004, the pair spent some downtime together to visit Monument Park.

“He was saying 'OK, go stand over by Mickey. Go stand over by the Babe. Go stand over by DiMaggio,'” Pontarelli said. “And he was taking my picture by all the monuments. And I just saw George light up like a little kid again because I just know how proud he was to have been a New York Yankee for those years.”

Among those that knew him best, Frazier was known for telling outlandish stories in the most entertaining way possible. One story that particularly stands out to Goodman is the “Cook County Courthouse story.”

According to Frazier, when he was a Cub, he had a friend that was a local attorney and would let him sit in on cases. One day, the attorney let Frazier cross examine a witness in a drug case. Frazier said he determined that the witness wouldn’t have been able to see the drug transaction due to the witness’ poor eyesight, leading to the judge dismissing the case.

“And you're like, ‘Wait a second, was there a jury? He's cross examining, are you an attorney?’” Goodman said. “All these questions running through your head, but you're just laughing so hard that you just kinda walk off, shake your head and go, 'That was an entertaining story, none of it probably happened, but it was great.' That was Fraiz.”

Pontarelli first met Frazier when he was a high schooler working in the Coors Field visiting clubhouse after school and on weekends. Even when Frazier was new to the booth, he often made stops in the visiting clubhouse. Not only would he make connections with the opposing players and coaches, but he was familiar with the entire visiting clubhouse staff.

When Pontarelli went to college in Monterey, Calif., Frazier still kept in touch. Frazier would invite Pontarelli to the booth when the Rockies were 100 miles north in San Francisco, and Pontarelli would help Frazier keep score. That connection continued when Pontarelli transferred to Regis University in Denver. The two stayed close and spoke frequently up until Frazier’s passing.

“He had a way of relating to younger people, especially younger people that had a genuine interest in baseball and a pure love for the game of baseball, so it was easy for us to connect in that regard,” Pontarelli said.

Rockies manager Bud Black best remembers Frazier best not for his work with the Rockies, but for their conversations when Black was a manager for the NL West rival Padres and coach for the Angels.

“George was always a friendly face that came into the visiting clubhouse and came into the visitor's manager's office,” Black said. “I always enjoyed my conversations with George. He'd come in, sit down on the chair, and we'd talk baseball. We were contemporaries, to a certain extent. Our timelines overlapped, and it was an easy conversation. It really was.

“He was a baseball guy.”