Dom DiMaggio, centerfielder for the Boston Red Sox is shown in this April 22, 1952 file photo. DiMaggio, a seven-time All Star who still holds the record for the longest consecutive game hitting streak in Boston Red Sox history died early Friday morning.

BOSTON – Dominic DiMaggio, the bespectacled Boston Red Sox center fielder who was overshadowed by his older brother Joe’s spectacular career, died early Friday. He was 92.

DiMaggio was surrounded by his family at his death at his Massachusetts home, according to his wife, Emily. She did not give a cause of death but said that DiMaggio had been ill lately.

“He was the most wonderful, warm, loving man,” his wife of 61 years said. “He adored his children, and we all adored him.”

DiMaggio was a seven-time baseball All Star who still holds the record for the longest consecutive game hitting streak in Boston Red Sox history.

Known as the “Little Professor” because of his eyeglasses and 5-foot-9 (1.75 m), 168-pound (76 kg) frame, DiMaggio hit safely in 34 consecutive games in 1949. The streak was broken on Aug. 9 when his big brother caught a sinking line drive in the eighth inning of a 6-3 Red Sox win over the New York Yankees.

The younger DiMaggio also had a 27-game hitting streak in 1951, which still ranks as the fifth longest in Red Sox history. Joe set the major league record with a 56-game hitting streak with the Yankees in 1941 and was elected to the sport’s Hall of Fame.

The oldest of the three center field-playing DiMaggio brothers was Vince, who had a 10-year major league career with five National League teams. Joe died in March 1999, while Vince died in October 1986.

Dom DiMaggio spent his entire career with the Red Sox, 10 full seasons plus three games in 1953. He was teammates and close friends with Red Sox greats Ted Williams, Bobby Doerr and Johnny Pesky.

While Dom did not have the batting numbers of Joe, he was generally regarded as a better defensive player with a stronger arm.

He was a career .298 hitter with 87 home runs, while Joe was a .325 career hitter with 361 homers. Dom’s baseball career was interrupted for three years (1943-45) by World War II when he served in the Navy, a military obligation that may have cost him induction into the Hall of Fame.

On June 30, 1950, Dom and Joe DiMaggio homered in the same game, the first time brothers had hit homers in the same game in the majors in 15 years. They played in the outfield together in three All-Star games.

Dom played a pivotal role in Game 7 of the 1946 World Series against the St. Louis Cardinals, a heartbreaker for Boston fans. He batted in two runs in the eighth inning to tie the game at 3, but he injured his leg while running the bases and was replaced in center field by Leon Culberson for the ninth.

It was Culberson who fielded Harry Walker’s double and threw it to Pesky during Enos Slaughter’s famous “Mad Dash” from first to home that won the game for the Cardinals.

Many argued that if DiMaggio had still been in center he would have handled the play better and prevented Slaughter from scoring.

After the Red Sox finally won the World Series in 2004, their first since 1918, DiMaggio, Pesky and Doerr were on hand on opening day 2005 to raise the championship banner at Fenway Park.

DiMaggio grew up in San Francisco, one of nine children born to Sicilian immigrants. His mother was a teacher and his father was a fisherman. He is survived by his wife and three children, Dominic Paul, Peter and Emily.

Dom DiMaggio of the Boston Red Sox, left, and his brother Joe DiMaggio of the New York Yankees are shown, in this July 12, 1949 file photo.

BOSTON – The Boston Globe and its largest employees union reached a tentative agreement early Wednesday on concessions that will keep the 137-year-old newspaper publishing, the union president said.

The breakthrough came about 4 a.m. after nearly 11 hours of negotiations, said Dan Totten, president of the Boston Newspaper Guild. Both sides agreed not to release details, pending a meeting of Guild members scheduled for Thursday.

The agreement is subject to approval by members of the Guild, which represents about 700 editorial, business and advertising staff.

The Globe, owned by The New York Times Co. had set a deadline of midnight Sunday to reach an agreement with its unions on $20 million in cuts to annual expenses. The company had threatened to close the Globe.

The Times Co. struck agreements with six of seven unions before the deadline, then resumed talks Tuesday evening with the Guild. In those talks, the Globe had proposed to slash Guild wages by as much as 23 percent to gain concessions of $10 million from that union.

An employee familiar with the tentative agreement said the proposed pay cut is significantly less than 23 percent, but higher than the total 5 percent the Guild proposed on Sunday. The employee was not authorized to release details and spoke on condition of anonymity.

Employees were guarded in their response.

“I think everybody is breathing a sigh of relief that there’s at least a tentative agreement to keep the Globe publishing, which we all recognize was our top priority,” said Scott Allen, a reporter who has been with the Globe for 16 years.

“But it’s really hard for any of us to draw conclusions about the agreement until we know how deep is the pay cut, how many benefits are we going to lose, how much seniority protection have we lost. I can’t tell you as I sit here whether I support it or not.”

The Times Co. also sought to change provisions granting some employees lifetime job guarantees, a key sticking point. At least one of the smaller unions agreed to modify the guarantees for its members, but the Guild resisted, at least initially.

Nearly 470 employees across six unions have the guarantees, including about 190 Newspaper Guild members. Most got the promises in a contract ratified in 1994, shortly after the Times Co. bought the Globe for $1.1 billion, in exchange for other concessions at the time. Workers can still be fired for cause, but the newspaper says the guarantees hamper its ability to pare its operations.

The Times Co., which overall lost $74.5 million in the first quarter, has said that of all its newspaper properties, the Globe has been the most dramatically affected by the recession, the advertising downturn and the migration of readers online. The Globe had $50 million in operating losses in 2008 and had been projected to lose $85 million this year.

BOSTON – The Boston Globe and its largest employees union reached a tentative agreement early Wednesday morning on concessions that will keep the 137-year-old newspaper publishing, the union president said.

The breakthrough came at about 4 a.m., said Dan Totten, president of the Newspaper Guild. He did not release details pending a meeting with Guild members scheduled for Thursday.

“Out of respect for our members, the Guild and the New York Times Co. have agreed not to release details until Guild leaders have a chance to meet with our members,” Totten said.

Globe spokesman Robert Powers said in a statement that details would not be released until Thursday. The Guild represents about 700 editorial, business and advertising staff.

The company had set a deadline of midnight Sunday to reach an agreement with its unions to make $20 million in cuts or close the Boston Globe. The Times Co. struck agreements with six of seven unions before the deadline, but even though talks with the Guild stalled, management backed off its threat to file a notice required by federal law to begin the process of shutting down the newspaper.

The two sides resumed talks Tuesday evening at a location outside Boston.

The Globe had proposed to slash wages by 23 percent to gain concessions of $10 million and keep the financially-strapped newspaper from closing.

The Guild has offered a 3.5 percent pay cut, plus three unpaid furlough days, for a total salary reduction of just under 5 percent. It said its offer represents more than the $10 million in concessions sought.

The Times Co. also sought to change its lifetime job guarantees, a key sticking point. At least one of the smaller unions agreed to changes in the guarantees for its members, but the Guild resisted giving up the guarantees.

Nearly 470 employees across six unions have the guarantees, including about 190 Newspaper Guild members. Most got the promises in a contract ratified in 1994, shortly after the Times Co. bought the Globe for $1.1 billion, in exchange for other concessions at the time. Workers can still be fired for cause, but the newspaper says the guarantees reduce its ability to pare its operational structure.

The Times Co., which overall lost $74.5 million in the first quarter, has said that of all its newspaper properties, the Globe has been the most dramatically affected by the recession, the advertising downturn and the migration of readers online. The Globe had $50 million in operating losses in 2008 and is projected to lose $85 million this year.