Art Fowler, 84; Dodgers, Angels pitcher became Yankees coach

Art Fowler, 84, who pitched for the Dodgers and the Angels and became a pitching coach for five major league teams, died Monday at his home in Spartanburg, S.C., according to his son John. The cause of death was not reported.

Fowler, as pitching coach, won World Series rings with the New York Yankees in 1977 and 1978 under manager Billy Martin, his close friend.

Fowler worked as a pitching coach for 14 years, mostly under Martin. He also was with Minnesota, Detroit, Texas and Oakland teams. He coached pitchers Ron Guidry, Joe Coleman and Mike Norris to 20-victory seasons. In Fowler’s second season with the Yankees, Guidry won the Cy Young Award.

Born in Converse, S.C., Fowler signed with the New York Giants in 1944 and spent 10 years in the minor leagues before getting a shot with the Cincinnati Reds. He pitched for the Reds from 1954 to 1957. He later played in Los Angeles for the Dodgers and Angels. He pitched mostly in relief and had a career record of 54-51 with a 4.03 ERA.

“Art was a character, really,” New York Mets manager Willie Randolph, a former Yankees player and coach, told the Hartford Courant some years ago. “I just thought he was a loose, funny kind of character. He was one of Billy’s boys. They knew each other for a long time, drinking buddies and hang-out buddies and stuff like that. Billy had a lot of faith in him.”

Martin died in an automobile accident in 1989.