Calvin Griffith

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

He was born in Montreal, Quebec, as Calvin Griffith Robertson, the son of James A. Robertson and the former Jane Barr Davies. His father was a native of the Shetland Islands who emigrated to Canada and became a minor league baseball player. Robertson had a tryout with the Montreal Royals of the high minors before his career washed out and he became a newspaper distributor. Troubled by alcoholism, he died in 1922, leaving a widow and seven young children in Montreal in dire circumstances. But a sister, Anne ('Addie') Robertson, had moved to the United States, where in 1900 she married Clark Griffith, a future Hall of Fame pitcher who became a manager (Chicago White Sox, New York Highlanders, Cincinnati Reds and Washington Senators) during the first two decades of the 20th century, and then president and chief stockholder of the Senators after 1920. Clark and Addie Griffith had been concerned for some time about James' alcoholism. After he died, the childless Griffiths took Calvin and a sister, Thelma, into their Washington home in 1923, when Calvin was 11 years old. The two children both assumed the Griffith surname, even though they were never formally adopted. Their mother and siblings moved to nearby Takoma Park, Maryland. Griffith was a batboy for the Senators, including during their 1924 World Series championship. During the 1925 World Series, United Press published short articles written by Griffith and the batboy for the opposing team, the Pittsburgh Pirates (who won the series).

In Their Own Story

By autumn 1960, Griffith had orchestrated the transfer of the Senators after 60 years in Washington, D.C., moving them to Minneapolis–Saint Paul. This decision followed a decade of doubts about the franchise's survival in a deteriorating neighborhood and failed negotiations for a new stadium. Earlier attempts to move west were thwarted when Brooklyn Dodgers owner Walter O'Malley outmaneuvered him for Los Angeles. Even after securing a new home, Griffith faced resistance from Washington officials regarding rental terms for the planned District of Columbia Stadium. The relocation created the Twins, though the team's first season in Minnesota began in 1961. On June 19, 2020, the Minnesota Twins removed his statue from Target Field, citing racist comments made by Griffith in Waseca in 1978 and admitting a racial motivation to moving the Senators.

Reader's Guide

Under Calvin's ownership, the left-field dimensions of cavernous Griffith Stadium were immediately shortened. Although the distance along the left-field foul line decreased by only to in , the left-center-field power alley was reduced to ; a -high inner fence made the new contour even friendlier to right-handed power hitters. The original dimensions were favored by the late Clark Griffith, who, as a former moundsman, built his successful early 20th-century teams on pitching, speed, gap-to-gap hitting, and defense. The pennant-contending 1945 Senators, who fell short of the AL championship by 1 games, hit only one home run—an inside-the-park blow by Joe Kuhel on September 7—in 2,601 home at bats all season. The 1955 Senators hit 20 home runs at Griffith Stadium during their 77-game home schedule. The 1956 club, with the new dimensions in place, slugged 63 long balls at their home park, and Washington clubs of the late 1950s featured powerful right-handed hitters like Roy Sievers, Jim Lemon, Bob Allison and Hall of Famer Harmon Killebrew. Sievers () and Killebrew () established a new Senators' single-season home run record with 42 blasts to lead (or, in Killebrew's case, co-lead) the American League in that category. However, the Washington pitching staff bore the immediate brunt of the changes to the ballpark. The 1955 Senators posted a 4.62 staff earned run average—4.01 at Griffith Stadium. One year later, the staff ERA jumped to 5.33—with an abysmal 5.55 ERA at home. To Griffith's credit, however, his pitching staff (led by ace right-hander Camilo Pascual) began to post respectable earned run averages beginning in and by , the Senators' ERA was down to 3.77 (3.88 at Griffith Stadium). Calvin Griffith also invested in Washington's traditionally weak farm system and scouting operations. In , The Sporting News' Official Baseball Guide showed only three full-time scouts on the Senators' org chart, although one of them was Joe Cambria, who established a pipeline of playing talent from Cuba to the franchise that endured until his death in 1962. The TSN Baseball Guide listed eight scouts on the Senators' staff. But by 1960, the team's last year in Washington, the same annual listed 23 full-time talent hunters working on the Senators' behalf. The changes to the farm system were less dramatic. Historically, Clark Griffith's farm system was concentrated on low-level

Did You Know?

• Calvin Griffith was born Calvin Griffith Robertson and assumed the Griffith surname after moving in with his uncle Clark Griffith, though he was never formally adopted.
• He was a batboy for the Washington Senators during their 1924 World Series championship and wrote short articles for United Press during the 1925 World Series.
• Griffith was the last MLB owner who had no income apart from his franchise.
• The 1955 Senators hit 20 home runs at Griffith Stadium during their 77-game home schedule.
• The 1956 club slugged 63 home runs at their home park after the left-field dimensions were shortened.

Early Life and Family Ties

Born Calvin Griffith Robertson in Montreal, Quebec, he was the son of James A. Robertson and Jane Barr Davies. His father, a Shetland Islands native and minor leaguer, died in 1922 from alcoholism, leaving seven children in poverty. In 1923, Calvin (age 11) and his sister Thelma moved to Washington, D.C., to live with their childless aunt Addie Robertson Griffith and her husband, Hall of Fame pitcher Clark Griffith. Though never formally adopted, the children assumed the Griffith surname. Calvin worked as a batboy for the Senators during their 1924 World Series win and wrote articles for United Press during the 1925 series. He later attended Staunton Military Academy and George Washington University before playing and managing in the minors, eventually joining the front office in 1941.

Ownership Structure and Family Dynasty

Calvin Griffith operated as a unique family-run business from 1955 to 1984. He held effective control because his sister Thelma Griffith Haynes voted her shares with him. The organization employed multiple Robertson siblings: Sherry, Jimmy, and Billy became executives, while brother-in-law Joe Haynes joined the front office. Hall of Famer Joe Cronin, married to Mildred Robertson, served as playing manager before becoming general manager of the Red Sox and president of the American League. Calvin's son Clark Griffith II and nephews Bruce Haynes and Tom Cronin later held executive posts in the Twins' front office. Notably, Calvin was the last MLB owner with no income apart from his franchise.

Strategic Shifts in Washington

Griffith altered the Senators' playing style by modifying Griffith Stadium in 1956 to favor power hitting. He shortened left field to 388 feet and the left-center alley to 360 feet, installing a low inner fence. This change boosted home runs from 20 at home in 1955 to 63 in 1956, helping Roy Sievers (42 HRs in 1957) and Harmon Killebrew (42 HRs in 1959) set records. The move initially hurt pitching, with the staff ERA jumping from 4.01 at home in 1955 to 5.55 in 1956, but stabilized to a 3.77 team ERA by 1960 under Camilo Pascual. Griffith also expanded scouting from three full-time scouts in 1946 to 23 by 1960 and added Triple-A affiliates, developing talent like Jim Kaat, Zoilo Versalles, and Pedro Ramos.

Relocation Controversy and Legacy

In autumn 1960, Griffith moved the Senators from Washington, D.C., to Minneapolis–Saint Paul after 60 years in the capital. This followed failed talks for a new stadium and interest from cities like Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Louisville. The team became the Twins in 1961. While famous for his devotion to the game and sayings during his tenure, Griffith's legacy was tarnished decades later. On June 19, 2020, the Minnesota Twins removed his statue from Target Field due to racist comments he made in Waseca in 1978. The organization admitted that racial motivation influenced his decision to move the team from Washington.