Born in Westerly, Rhode Island, Sawyer was a minor league outfielder in his playing days who batted and threw right-handed; he was listed as 6 feet (1.8 m) tall and 210 pounds (95 kg).

He reached the highest minor-league level in 1937 with the Oakland Oaks of the Pacific Coast League, but soon turned to managing in the Bronx Bombers' system.

[5] Concurrently, the Phillies were being transfused with young blood, bringing to the majors many of the players who would become the Whiz Kids: Robin Roberts, Richie Ashburn, Del Ennis, Granny Hamner, Willie Jones, Curt Simmons, Bubba Church and others.

Sawyer, a patient man accustomed to working with young players, was an ideal choice to mold the Phillies into a cohesive outfit.

The 1949 champion Brooklyn Dodgers suffered from pitching troubles and the outbreak of the Korean War had disrupted Major League rosters.

The Phillies charged into the league lead and, despite a late-September tailspin, partially caused by the loss of Simmons to military service, they held off Brooklyn in the season's final game as Sisler's tenth-inning home run sealed a 4–1 victory.

After managing the Phillies for the opening game of the 1960 season, a 9–4 loss to the Cincinnati Reds on April 12,[18] Sawyer resigned his position, famously saying: "I'm 49 years old and I want to live to be 50.