Official Baseball In Memoriam Thread

[Judge Jude]

a Reds fan on another site said that Fernandez there - Larkin was still at SS - was the best defensive 3B he has ever seen.

most career hits by a Blue Jay with 1,583, and no current Blue Jay has 1,000.

also leader with 72 triples, and no current Blue Jay has 30.

[revo]

Johnny Antonelli, pitcher for the NY/SF Giants who went 21-7 on their 1954 championship team and went 126-110 with a 3.34 career ERA, died at age 89. RIP.

[Hornsby]

One of the great nicknames in all of sports..."The Toy Cannon".

[chancellor]

His numbers playing in the pitcher-friendly years of the '60s and in the Astrodome were amazing.

[madducks]

Bill Bartholomay, the former Braves owner who moved the team from Milwaukee to Atlanta in 1966 to become Major League Baseball's first team in the South, has died. Bartholomay headed the group that sold the Braves to Ted Turner in 1976 but retained a partial interest and remained as the team's chairman until November 2003, when he assumed an emeritus role. He was 91 years old. RIP.

[Judge Jude]

His numbers playing in the pitcher-friendly years of the '60s and in the Astrodome were amazing.

Wynn sailed into the Hall of Merit pretty easily almost as soon as he was eligible. mainly-CFs who have six top 10 OPS+ seasons tend to do that, 'cause they are few and far between beyond the half-dozen or so absolute legends.

[Gregg]

Bill Bartholomay, the former Braves owner who moved the team from Milwaukee to Atlanta in 1966 to become Major League Baseball's first team in the South, has died. Bartholomay headed the group that sold the Braves to Ted Turner in 1976 but retained a partial interest and remained as the team's chairman until November 2003, when he assumed an emeritus role. He was 91 years old. RIP.

He broke my young heart by moving my team out of state. I did not understand "it's just business."

I have no hard feelings, but do remember it as being very sad at the time.

[chancellor]

Wynn sailed into the Hall of Merit pretty easily almost as soon as he was eligible. mainly-CFs who have six top 10 OPS+ seasons tend to do that, 'cause they are few and far between beyond the half-dozen or so absolute legends.

Makes sense. His '67 'season just amaze me - top 10 in runs (5), HR (2), RBI (4) and just out of the top 10 in SB. In the Astrodome. On a terrible team with absolutely no protection. Five of those top 10 OPS years came in the Astrodome.

All out of a guy who was listed at 5'10" and 160 lbs.

[Judge Jude]

well, OPS+ does factor in the ballpark, although like anything it can do less well at extremes - but the raw tallies are amazing indeed.

148 walks in 1969, when no one was even paying attention to the value there.

[Judge Jude]

well, OPS+ does factor in the ballpark although like anything it can do less well at extremes - but the raw tallies are amazing indeed.

148 walks in 1969, when no one was even paying attention to the value there.

10 times in top 10 in walks

[revo]

Longtime White Sox announcer and pitcher Ed Farmer died at age 70. RIP.




Bob Lee, a pitcher who had a 5-year career with the Angels, Reds and Dodgers from 1964-1968, died at age 82. RIP.

[Gregg]

I enjoyed listening to Ed Farmer on occasion (as i a Cubs Homer) and always enjoyed his unabashed homerism.

He went to his first White Sox game at the age of 5. At that game he told his mother, someday I am going to play for them. And he did!

RIP Ed.

[revo]

Tigers legend and HOFer Al Kaline died at age 85. RIP.

[Judge Jude]

https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/a141b60c

that's the must-read SABR bio

"During a picnic festival, Kaline threw a ball 173.5 feet. The disbelieving judges ordered him to throw again, believing that the measurement was off. Kaline threw again, this time 175 feet. While developing his arm, Kaline also learned to overcome osteomyelitis, a chronic bone disease that forced the removal of diseased bone from his left foot. To combat the physical impairment left behind, Al taught himself to run on the side of his foot. The determination to overcome injury became a trademark of Kaline’s career."

[rhd]

https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/a141b60c

that's the must-read SABR bio

"During a picnic festival, Kaline threw a ball 173.5 feet. The disbelieving judges ordered him to throw again, believing that the measurement was off. Kaline threw again, this time 175 feet. While developing his arm, Kaline also learned to overcome osteomyelitis, a chronic bone disease that forced the removal of diseased bone from his left foot. To combat the physical impairment left behind, Al taught himself to run on the side of his foot. The determination to overcome injury became a trademark of Kaline’s career."

Osteomyelitis was the malady that plagued Mickey Mantle also. I didn't know that Kaline also suffered from this.

Kaline was born in Baltimore but played his entire career for Detroit. As a young Orioles fan, I saw Kaline help beat the O's many times. I don't know what his lifetime stats were against us but it seemed like he murdered us year after year.

He was an 18-time AS and a 10-time GG winner. He was on 1 WS champion in 1968 in the latter years of his career. He also still is the youngest MLBer to win a batting title, which he won in 1955, hitting .340 at 20 y/o. Of course, he's in the HOF. RIP.