Robert James Valentine was born on May 13, 1950, in Stamford, Connecticut. His parents were Joseph and Grace Valentine. His father was a carpenter. Bobby is a former player and manager. He played for the Los Angeles Dodgers (1969, 1971–72), California Angels (1973–75), New York Mets (1977–78), and Seattle Mariners (1979) over a 10 year career.

Bobby was drafted by the Los Angeles Dodgers as the fifth pick in the first round of the 1968 MLB June Amateur Draft. He was considered the prize of the Dodgers draft class that year, one that included future major league stars Steve Garvey, Ron Cey, Bill Buckner, and Davey Lopes.

After his playing days, he became one of the most colorful managers in baseball during the last decade of the 20th century. Bobby was always candid and outspoken throughout his managerial career.

He managed the Texas Rangers (1985–92), the New York Mets (1996–2002), and the Boston Red Sox (2012) of MLB, as well as the Chiba Lotte Marines of Nippon Professional Baseball (1995, 2004–09).

In 2000, Bobby led the Mets into the first “Subway Series” in New York since 1956, as they faced the crosstown Yankees in a battle to determine the World Championship. In a series that was filled with lots of drama, the Yankees outlasted Valentine’s Mets, winning the series, 4-1. In the four games the Yankees won, three were decided by one run, and the other by two runs. The Yankees only outscored the Mets by three runs in the entire series. “The Yankees are a little better team,” Valentine said when the series was over. “That’s the reality of the situation."

He was voted in the top five four times (1986, '97, '99, '00) for the Manager of the Year award, but never won it. Interestingly, after being ejected from a game on 6/9/99 while with the Mets, he returned to the dugout in a disguise.

(excerpted from Wikipedia, BR Bullpen and Baseball Almanac)