Official Baseball In Memoriam Thread

[Bodhizefa]

Tommy Hanson apparently died yesterday of catastrophic organ failure. Nothing else has been reported. Hanson was 29 years old. Rest in peace, Tommy.

[revo]

Tommy Hanson apparently died yesterday of catastrophic organ failure. Nothing else has been reported. Hanson was 29 years old. Rest in peace, Tommy.

Holy crap, I just saw this on CNN. Terrible.

[swampdragon]

Tommy Hanson apparently died yesterday of catastrophic organ failure. Nothing else has been reported. Hanson was 29 years old. Rest in peace, Tommy.

http://sports.yahoo.com/news/report-...5796--mlb.html

[onejayhawk]

Has cause of death ever been determined?

J

[revo]

Has cause of death ever been determined?

J

Here's your answer:

"It was a combination of cocaine and booze that killed ex-Braves pitcher Tommy Hanson last month.

Autopsy results were released on Friday morning and revealed that Hanson died of "delayed complications of cocaine and alcohol toxicity." It was ruled an accidental death. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution published the details of the Coweta County coroner's report."

http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/baseball/ex-braves-pitcher-tommy-hanson-died-cocaine-booze-article-1.2463194

[revo]

Dave "Hendu" Henderson, who hit one of the most dramatic HRs in post-season history, died this morning at age 57.

[TranaGreg]

Dave "Hendu" Henderson, who hit one of the most dramatic HRs in post-season history, died this morning at age 57.

Wow, that's just too early.

I read this about it ... http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_29316034

[Grinch]

RIP to Vintage Draft regular Monte Irvin who passed away at age 96. One of the better players in history!

Fixed....

[revo]

In the last week, two minor leaguers were killed in accidents: Jose Rosario, a pitcher for the Astros; and Ramon Ramirez, an infielder for the Orioles.

[TranaGreg]

wow ...

Tony Phillips Passes Away At 56 Years Of Age

Long-time big leaguer Tony Phillips has died in Arizona of an apparent heart attack, as Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports. Phillips was just 56 years old.

His former teammate and current Diamondbacks GM Dave Stewart conveyed the news. He noted the sad fact that Phillips was preceded in death recently by two other prominent members of the A’s 1989 championship club — Bob Welch and Dave Henderson.

Phillips was taken in the first round of the 1978 draft, cracked the majors in 1982 with the Athletics, and didn’t play his last MLB game until 1999 — at forty years of age. It took a broken leg in his final season to stop him, Slusser notes. Indeed, he put up a sturdy .244/.362/.433 batting line with 15 home runs and 11 steals in 484 plate appearances that year.

As Slusser notes, Phillips battled through drug problems (and resulting legal troubles) late in his career. But he seemingly bounced back and remained active in the game, even suiting up for some independent league action in recent seasons.

All told, over parts of 18 seasons in the majors, Phillips entered the batter’s box 9,110 times and contributed a .266/.374/.389 slash, 160 home runs, and 177 stolen bases. He played all over the diamond, racking up significant innings at second, third, short, and all three outfield positions. The net output was worth fifty wins above replacement, per Baseball Reference, most of it coming with the A’s and Tigers. Phillips also spent time with the Angels, White Sox, Mets, and Blue Jays.
There has been an immediate outpouring of sympathy from around the game for the highly-respected Phillips. MLBTR joins in celebrating his legacy and offering its sympathy to his family, friends, and former teammates..

[revo]

Wow, what a shock. He was a player who seemingly got better as he got older. He was an OBP machine. RIP.

"Tony Phillips, who won a World Series title with the Oakland A’s in 1989, died of an apparent heart attack on Wednesday. He was 56. Phillips’ former A’s teammate Dave Stewart shared the news with Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle. His former manager Tony La Russa told the Chronicle he was “in shock” over Phillips’ death. “He was still in great shape,”La Russa said. “He was down here at our camp three or four days a week. I’m just in shock.”

[revo]

From ages 33-38, he averaged 114 walks per year. In 1993, he hit .313 with a .443 OBP. That's insane.

[revo]

Milt Pappas, who came within a disputed pitch of throwing a perfect game for the Chicago Cubs in 1972 and was part of the lopsided trade that brought Frank Robinson to Baltimore, died Tuesday. He was 76.

Pappas died of natural causes at his home in the northern Illinois community of Beecher, said his widow, Judi Pappas.

The 6-foot-3 right-hander won 209 games during his 17-year career with the Orioles, Cincinnati Reds, Atlanta Braves and Cubs, finishing with a career ERA of 3.40 to go along with 1,728 strikeouts and 43 shutouts. Pappas was a teenager when he joined the Orioles in 1957 and he started quickly.

[revo]

Former All-Stars Dick McAuliffe and Sammy Ellis both passed away earlier this week. RIP.

[rhd]

Former All-Stars Dick McAuliffe and Sammy Ellis both passed away earlier this week. RIP.

I remember McAuliffe from his many years in Detroit. He had one of the most unusual batting stances I've ever seen. Wide open stance w the bat held way above his head. Never seen another stance like it.

IIRC was on the 1968 WS champion team w Willie Horton, Bill Freehan, Mickey Lolich, Denny McLain (his 31-win season), Jim Northrup, Mickey Stanley, Eddie Brinkman. Not sure whether Norm Cash was still there or not.

RIP.