Wednesday, January 12, 2022

RIP - Tom Matchick

 
Tom Matchick, a utility infielder for the Tigers and 4 other teams in the late-60s and early-70s, passed away on January 4, 2022 at age 78. 
Matchick broke in with Detroit in September 1967, and played all of 1968 and 1969 with the Tigers. He started 45 games at shortstop in their 1968 World Championship year, mostly over the 2nd half until center fielder Mickey Stanley famously took over in the final week of the regular season. The following year Tom started 76 games, mostly at 2B and 3B. 
 
He split the 1970 season between the Red Sox and the Royals, then spent the next 6 seasons in the minors, although he did play 42 games with the Brewers in '71 and 3 games with the Orioles in '72.
 

 

Saturday, January 1, 2022

2021 Re-cap

It's time once again for my annual year-in-review post, where I re-cap all the players who passed on during the year.
 
In recent years I also listed the players that appeared on my blogs that year. However, in 2021 (in addition to the deceased players) other casualties have been my blogs. I said goodbye to my '63, '65, and '66 set blogs in January, having exhausted the players I wanted to post there. My other blogs have been spotty at best this past year. 
 
It's a combination of running out of players, and running out of the desire to blog. The '67 player list has been completed, with only a review of the Mets team remaining, and any other ad hoc topic that comes to me. The '68 to '70 set blogs are near the end (player-wise) as well, with mostly league leaders and other non-player-specific topics still on my to-do list. 
 
It's been a good 12-year run for me. I still read other blogs at least weekly, and will probably post occasionally on my 60s, '68, '69, and '70 blogs. Happy New Year to everyone! 
 
 
1960s' players who left us in 2021: 
 
 
And from outside the baseball world: 
Gerry Marsden
Tanya Roberts
Gregory Sierra
Siegfried Fischbacher (Siegfreid & Roy)
Phil Spector
James Purify
Larry King
Cloris Leachman
Cicely Tyson
Dustin Diamond
Christopher Plummer
Leon Spinks
Mary Wilson (Supremes)
Chick Corea
Rush Limbaugh
Roger Mudd
Marvin Hagler
Yaphet Kotto
Elgin Baylor
George Segal
G. Gordon Liddy
Prince Philip
Walter Mondale
Michael Collins (Apollo 11)
Johnny Crawford
Olympia Dukakis
Bobby Unser
Lloyd Price
Tawny Kitaen
Charles Grodin
Gavin McLeod
B.J. Thomas
Arlene Golonka
F. Lee Bailey
Clarence Williams III
Ned Beatty
Donald Rumsfeld
Jackie Mason
Tom T. Hall
Don Everly
Charlie Watts
Ed Asner
Michael Constantine
Willard Scott
Jean-Paul Belmondo
Big Daddy Graham
Norm MacDonald
Jane Powell
Sarah Dash
Tommy Kirk
Colin Powell
Peter Scolari
Jay Black
Mort Sahl
Dean Stockwell
Graeme Edge
Billy Hinsche
Eddie Mekka
Lee Elder
Arlene Dahl
Dave Draper
Bob Dole
Al Unser
Mike Nesmith
Desmond Tutu
John Madden
Betty White

Also: Football deaths in 2021