By Bob Nightengale, USA TODAY  His vow lasted four months, and he forever changed the landscape of baseball, turning the Yankees into the most successful sports franchise in the USA.  "He was arguably the most recognizable and most-known owner in all of sports," Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter said from the All-Star Game. Jeter originally had planned to visit Steinbrenner today in Tampa. "Even if you're not a Yankees fan, you appreciate what he's done.  "When you say New York Yankees, he's one of the first names that come to mind."  Steinbrenner, who suffered a heart attack, turned the Yankees from a dormant franchise in 1973 into an internationally known business entity.  "He was clearly a giant in the sport," Major League Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig said. "When you think about what the Yankees were in 1973 and you think about what they are today; when you think of what baseball was in 1973 and where baseball is today … you understand his impact.  "He was and always will be as much of a New York Yankee as Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Joe DiMaggio, Mickey Mantle, Yogi Berra, Whitey Ford and all of the other Yankee legends."  Steinbrenner's legacy will be mixed. He will forever be revered by players and perhaps loathed by the majority of owners.  "His impact on the game can't be denied," said Chicago White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf, whose tenure since 1981 now is the longest in baseball.  "Some people think it was negative. Some will think it was positive. He did a lot of positive things, but did a lot of negative things, too.  "More than anybody else, including (original Major League Baseball Players Association chief) Marvin Miller, George had more to do with the raising of salaries than anyone in baseball."  Steinbrenner's group purchased the Yankees for $8.7 million, and today the club is valued at about $1.6 billion, according to Forbesmagazine.  The average salary in baseball has soared to a record $3.27 million, in part because of Steinbrenner's exorbitant spending in a sport unconstrained by a salary cap. The Yankees, who first paid big money for a free agent by signing pitcher Catfish Hunter to a record $3.75 million contract in 1975, have had at least a $100 million payroll since 2001. They have baseball's highest payroll this year at $206.3 million — $44 million more than any other team. Their median salary is $5.5 million, including Alex Rodriguez's 10-year, $275 million deal.  "He's one of the reasons why everyone's making a lot of money, I'm sure," Boston Red Sox second baseman Dustin Pedroia said of Steinbrenner. "He changed the game …and I think everyone's grateful for that."  Steinbrenner's free spending forced other teams to escalate their payrolls. He created his own TV network, compelling clubs to seek other ways to generate revenue to compete. And New York's massive payroll led the way for revenue sharing.  Big bucks, huge impact on baseball  It was Steinbrenner's passion for winning that dramatically changed the way baseball operates today. MLB implemented revenue sharing in 1995 after the strike that canceled the 1994 World Series. The increase in funds for small-market teams has led to more competitive balance, which Selig says has created more parity than at any other time in the sport's history.  "Mr. Steinbrenner understood and embraced the power of the players," said Michael Weiner, executive director of the players union, "and he put this knowledge to good use in establishing the Yankees as one of the sports world's most iconic brands."  Steinbrenner negotiated a landmark 12-year, $486 million cable TV contact in 1988 with the Madison Square Garden Network, and launched the YES Network in 2002. The Yankees became the first team in baseball with a $200 million payroll, provoking anger among owners and non-Yankees fans.  Yet, they won. Again and again. The Yankees had gone 11 years without a championship when Steinbrenner purchased the team. They were in the World Series three years later, and won titles in 1977 and 1978 with free-agent slugger Reggie Jackson. Despite the rings, it still hasn't earned Steinbrenner a space in baseball's ultimate shrine.  "I think George is a Hall of Famer for what he's done for the game as an owner," Jackson said recently. "He has certainly impacted the game and economically made it better."  Said former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani: "He was truly the most influential and innovative owner in all of sports. He made the Yankees a source of great pride in being a New Yorker."  Steinbrenner didn't care what it took — winning is all that mattered.  "He expected a lot, he demanded a lot," Yankees All-Star pitcher Andy Pettitte said. "He raised the level of not only the organization, but I feel he raised the bar around baseball for other teams to try to keep up and compete."  The Yankees won 11 American League pennants and seven World Series under Steinbrenner, including last year's title. They have reached the postseason every year but one since 1995.  "He's one of the best owners of all time," San Diego Padres All-Star first baseman Adrian Gonzalez said. "He was not in it just to be in it. He was in it to win it all. That's all you can ask. Every player would want to play for a guy like that."  Steinbrenner, whose health had been fragile in recent years, received his final World Series ring in a private ceremony with Jeter and manager Joe Girardi in his suite on opening day.  "That was the last time I saw him," said Jeter, who was named Yankees captain in 2003 by Steinbrenner. "We got a chance to present him with a championship ring. I got a chance to tease him because he had an Ohio State ring and I told him to take it off and replace it with the Yankee ring."  'George fired anybody and everybody'  But for every championship and accolade, it seemed there always was fodder for tabloids and late-night talk shows. Steinbrenner ruled the Yankees empire with a bombastic style that bordered on cartoonish. He hired and fired managers 20 times in his first 23 years, including Billy Martin five times. No one in the organization was safe. Secretaries were fired for bringing the wrong sandwich. His employees were so fearful, many ran for cover just upon word he was coming to the office.  "George fired anybody and everybody," says Hall of Fame pitcher Bob Feller, who like Steinbrenner grew up in Cleveland. "But the great thing about him is that he'd always forget who he fired so they would keep on getting paid."  Baseball Hall of Fame President Jeff Idelson began working as a public relations assistant for the Yankees in 1988. He introduced himself to Steinbrenner at a Yankees cocktail party. Idelson made the mistake of informing Steinbrenner that he came from the Boston Red Sox.  "He looked at me and said, 'I have three words of advice for you young man: Rent, don't buy,' " Idelson said.  Idelson was fortunate. He lasted five years.  Steinbrenner's motto was simple: Do your job or be gone. He had no patience for excuses. He used to say, "Winning is the most important thing in my life, after breathing."  "That was George," said Chicago Cubs manager Lou Piniella, who played, coached, managed and was a general manager under Steinbrenner. "The man was driven to win. You didn't always agree with how he went about it, but you can't argue with his determination.  "He wasn't the easiest man to work for, but I don't know of anyone who wanted to win more."  Rodriguez, traded to the Yankees from the Texas Rangers on Feb. 16, 2004, remembers meeting Steinbrenner for the first time. He had heard the stories and knew about Steinbrenner's reputation. Everything was validated in their first meeting.  "He was basically congratulating me for coming into the organization," Rodriguez said, "and within the first two minutes he said, 'We have to win a world championship' about three or four times. So really quickly I got a good idea of what his front-and-center thoughts were."  Joe Torre found out quickly, too. He led the Yankees to 12 consecutive postseason berths, winning six pennants and four World Series. Yet, after the Yankees failed for the fourth consecutive year to reach the World Series in 2007, he was asked to take a pay cut. He refused, and the Yankees hired Joe Girardi to replace him.  "To think I've been here three years already," Girardi said. "I'm lucky."  Perhaps the two most egregious offenses during Steinbrenner's career came in 1974 and 1990, when he was suspended from baseball — in 1974 for paying illegal contributions to President Nixon's re-election campaign and in 1990 for hiring a gambler to find dirt on outfielder Dave Winfield.  At the same time, he became a cultural icon with his combative style. He hosted Saturday Night Live. He was lampooned by a caricature on Seinfeld. And he appeared in beer and credit card commercials in which he was seen firing Martin and dancing with Jeter.  He also had a delightful sense of humor. Steinbrenner wagered with Selig each year on the Ohio State-Wisconsin and Green Bay Packers-Tampa Bay Buccaneers football games, and called Selig on Tuesdays to see if he took the trash out, according to Selig. Reinsdorf says Steinbrenner taunted him about the Chicago Bulls.  "If it weren't for George, I never would have owned the Bulls," Reinsdorf said. "George at one time owned about 8% or 10% of the Bulls. We had dinner the summer of '84 in New York and he was complaining about writing checks every year and how they were losing money. I told him I would love to own the Bulls. I got the team. We drafted [Michael] Jordan. And we won six titles."  Reinsdorf says that even years later, no matter who was present, "George would yell at me, 'You screwed me out of the Bulls!' "  "He was one of a kind. I know people have different opinions on George, but he will be missed."  Steinbrenner is survived by his wife, Joan; daughters Jennifer and Jessica; sons Hank and Hal — who run the organization; and 13 grandchildren. A private funeral was expected to be held this week, followed by a public memorial.  Contributing: Seth Livingstone, The Associated Press  You share in the USA TODAY community, so please keep your comments smart and civil. Don't attack other readers personally, and keep your language decent. 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New York Yankees owner George Steinbrenner, who died Tuesday morning at 80, promised fans he would stay out of the way and stick to his shipbuilding business when he bought the storied baseball franchise in 1973.