Official Baseball In Memoriam Thread

[fuhrdog]

Earl Weaver dies at 82. He was one fun guy to watch.

http://espn.go.com/mlb/story/_/id/8859584/hall-famer-earl-weaver-former-manager-baltimore-orioles-dies-82

[revo]

Chuck Hinton, a power/speed OFer in the 1960s and the last Senators player to hit .300 passed away at age 78. He was also the longtime head coach at Howard University.

[Judge Jude]

1971 NL Rookie of the Year Earl Williams (Braves) dies at age 64

http://www.nj.com/sports/index.ssf/2013/01/former_braves_catcher_earl_wil.html

I have too many Topps baseball rookie cards of these guys whose names have been turning up of late

[Don Quixote]

1971 NL Rookie of the Year Earl Williams (Braves) dies at age 64

http://www.nj.com/sports/index.ssf/2013/01/former_braves_catcher_earl_wil.html

I have too many Topps baseball rookie cards of these guys whose names have been turning up of late

When Williams first came up, he was a dynamite hitter for a catcher, not as good a hitter as Johnny Bench (for power) or Manny Sanguillen (for BA), but darned good. His problems lay on defense. He wound up playing a lot of 1B to keep his bat in the lineup. When he was dealt to Baltimore, at first he played C against righties and 1B against lefties, but soon went into a downward spiral offensively that wound up ending his career. Up at age 22, done at 29. Definitely not the career trajectory of your average catcher.

[revo]

Rick Camp, who once posted consecutive seasons with a sub-2.00 ERA as a Braves reliever, reportedly died Thursday. He was 59.

According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, authorities said there was nothing that suggested Camp's death was a result of anything other than natural causes.

Camp, a native of Trion, Ga., who also attended two colleges in the state, spent nine years on the Braves' pitching staff, mostly in the bullpen. The organization drafted him in the seventh round in 1974.

Camp logged a 1.91 ERA in 1980, which helped him place 20th in the balloting for the National League Most Valuable Player Award. In '81, he compiled a 9-3 record and a 1.78 ERA to go along with 17 saves.

Camp tallied 21 victories between 1982-83, spending time in both the starting rotation and bullpen. In all, he recorded a 3.37 ERA and 56-49 record across nine big league seasons.

Camp also hit one very memorable home run in 197 career plate appearances. With the Braves trailing the Mets, 11-10, in the bottom of the 18th inning on July 4, 1985, Camp slugged a two-out homer to extend a game the Braves eventually lost, 16-13, in 19 innings.

[revo]

Brad "The Animal" Lesley -- who played a few years of Major League Baseball before appearing in a slew of '90s sports movies -- passed away this weekend. He was 54.

Lesley's ex-wife, Chiho Svimonoff, tells TMZ ... Lesley had been suffering from kidney problems and had been living in a nursing home for the past seven months, where he was receiving dialysis.

Svimonoff says Lesley was rushed to a hospital in Marina Del Rey on Saturday night and ultimately died from kidney failure.

Lesley played for the Cincinnati Reds and Milwaukee Brewers from 1982 to 1985 before switching to acting. In the '90s, he appeared in "Mr. Baseball," "Space Jam" ... and, of course, he played that angry pitcher with the goatee in "Little Big League."
Read more: http://www.tmz.com/2013/04/29/brad-l...#ixzz2S4E7D9YO


And for those of you who are MXC fans, he was one of the enforcers on that show:

[TranaGreg]

Fascinating. I love this thread revo, well done.

I was curious what type of team Cincinatti was when Lesley was with them, given the Big Red Machine of the 70's; in 1982 they were 61-101!!! Lesley however was decent when he was up, with a 2.58 ERA & 1.04 ratio over 38 .1 IP, with 29 Ks.

and yeah, I miss MXC!

[Erik]

Former MLB reliever Justin Miller was found dead in his home on Wednesday. He was just 35 and the cause of death has not yet been determined.

[overkill94]

Former MLB reliever Justin Miller was found dead in his home on Wednesday. He was just 35 and the cause of death has not yet been determined.

That dude had all kinds of tattoos. Seemed like a bit of a wild one, it'll be interesting to see what the cause was.

[revo]

GREENVILLE, Miss. (AP) — George "Boomer" Scott, a three-time All-Star first baseman during the 1960s and 1970s who slugged 271 career homers, has died. He was 69.

Washington County coroner Methel Johnson confirmed Scott died on Sunday in Greenville.

Scott spent most of his 14-year career with the Boston Red Sox and Milwaukee Brewers. He hit 27 homers during his rookie season with the Red Sox in 1966 and had his best year with the Brewers in 1975, when he hit 36 homers and had 109 RBI.

Scott was a big man, listed at 6-foot-2 and over 200 pounds in his playing days, but surprising nimble in the field. He won eight Gold Gloves, playing primarily first base.

[Judge Jude]

Ex-Cubs pitcher Frank Castillo, age 44.
drowned

http://www.kvia.com/news/former-mlb-pitcher-el-paso-native-frank-castillo-has-died/-/391068/21230038/-/776yg/-/index.html

http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/c/castifr01.shtml

[TranaGreg]

Ex-Cubs pitcher Frank Castillo, age 44.
drowned

http://www.kvia.com/news/former-mlb-pitcher-el-paso-native-frank-castillo-has-died/-/391068/21230038/-/776yg/-/index.html

http://www.baseball-reference.com/pl...astifr01.shtml

he also pitched for the Jays at one point; between him & Justin Miller it's been a bad summer for former toronto bullpen pitchers.

[revo]

Former Tiger Gates Brown dies at age 74.

[Judge Jude]

great Gates Brown story here

http://www.baseballthinkfactory.org/newsstand/discussion/tigers_pinch_hitting_great_gates_brown_75_dies

On August 7, 1968, Brown made history. He wasn't in the starting lineup, so he decided to grab two hot dogs from the clubhouse. He was ordered by manager Mayo Smith to pinch hit. He stuffed the hot dogs in his jersey to hide them from his manager.

"I always wanted to get a hit every time I went to the plate. But this was one time I didn't want to get a hit. I'll be damned if I didn't smack one in the gap and I had to slide into second—head first, no less. I was safe with a double. But when I stood up, I had mustard and ketchup and smashed hot dogs and buns all over me.

"The fielders took one look at me, turned their backs and damned near busted a gut laughing at me. My teammates in the dugout went crazy." After fining Brown $100, Smith said, "What the hell were you doing eating on the bench in the first place?" Brown: "I decided to tell him the truth. I said, 'I was hungry. Besides, where else can you eat a hot dog and have the best seat in the house'"

[Judge Jude]

Andy Pafko, 5-time All-Star who played for the Cubs' last NL pennant winner - in 1945 - made it to age 92

http://voices.suntimes.com/sports/andy-pafko-former-1945-cubs-world-series-outfielder-dead-at-92/