Former San Francisco Giants and Chicago Cubs manager Herman Franks passed away Monday at his home in Salt Lake City, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. Franks was 95.

Franks was at the helm of the Giants from 1965-1968, leading the team to four straight second-place finishes, and skippered the Cubs from 1977-1979.

Franks died of congestive failure while surrounded by family, according to the Chronicle, which spoke to Franks' son, Dan.

"He started in pro ball when he was 17 or 18 and was still going to reunions a few years ago," Dan Franks told the paper. "Every day was an adventure for him. He enjoyed it all. He lived for the moment, and we all tried to take a page from that book."

Franks was born in 1914 in Price, Utah, and caught in parts of six Major League seasons, batting .199 in 188 games.

He was a coach with the New York Giants under Leo Durocher, and, according to a 2006 book, he was involved in stealing Brooklyn Dodgers catchers' signs with a telescope from an outfield window during the famous 1951 game at the Polo Grounds that decided the National Leauge pennant when Bobby Thomson hit "The Shot Heard Around The World" off Ralph Branca.

"This guy was a Giant," former Giants player and current special assistant to Giants Minor Leaguers Joey Amalfitano told the Chronicle. "Some guys are Dodgers. Other guys are Cubs, like (Ernie) Banks. This guy was a Giant.

"He was like a second dad to me, a mentor. He was a pillar in my life. His philosophy was to not get in the way of players. Turn them loose. He was really good at putting his arm around somebody and also kicking them in the (rear)."

Franks compiled the best overall record in the Major Leagues during his four seasons as manager of the Giants, and he managed clubs that featured Willie Mays, Willie McCovey, Juan Marichal, Gaylord Perry and Orlando Cepeda, who are all now in the Hall of Fame.

Mr. Franks is survived by his wife, Ami, three children (Dan, Herman Jr. and Cyndi Wright), and seven grandchildren. Funeral arrangements are pending, according to the Chronicle.