2024 Re-cap

 

1960s' baseball players who left us in 2024:

And from outside the baseball world (centenarians in bold):

David Soul
Glynis Johns
Joyce Randolph
Charles Osgood
Melanie
Carl Weathers
Don Murray
Toby Keith
Richard Lewis
Steve Lawrence
Eric Carmen
M. Emmet Walsh
Joe Lieberman
Louis Gossett Jr.
Barbara Rush
Joe Flaherty
O.J. Simpson
Robert McNeil
Dickie Betts
Duane Eddy
Roger Corman
Dabney Coleman
Darryl Hickman
Bill Walton
Janis Paige
Parnelli Jones
Tony Lo Bianco
Jerry West
Anouk Aimee
Donald Sutherland
Martin Mull
Dave Loggins
Shelley Duvall
Ruth Westheimer
Richard Simmons
Shannen Doherty
James B. Sikking
Bob Newhart
Lou Dobbs
John Mayall
Greg Kihn
Wally Amos
Gena Rowlands
Peter Marshall
Phil Donohue
John Amos
James Darren
Sergio Mendes
James Earl Jones
Tito Jackson
Kathryn Crosby
Maggie Smith
Kris Kristofferson
Dikembe Mutombo
Cissy Houston
Ethel Kennedy
Mitzi Gaynor
Jack Jones
Phil Lesh
Teri Garr
Quincy Jones
Bela Karolyi
Chuck Woolery
Earl Holliman
Michael Cole
Kreskin
Greg Gumbel
Dayle Haddon
Olivia Hussey
Jimmy Carter
Linda Lavin

 

Football deaths in 2024

  

RIP - Gary Sutherland

 

(I've skipped 13 deaths since July 1st, but this one was one of my hometown faves back in the day.) 

 

Gary Sutherland, a middle infielder for the Phillies, Expos, and Tigers, passed away on December 16, 2024 at age 80.

Pictured above is my first Gary Sutherland card, which I pulled from a pack in early-1968. As a young Phillies fan, besides the usual choices of Johnny Callison and Richie Allen, I also liked Sutherland - maybe because on this card he didn't look much older than I was at the time. (He was). 

 

Sutherland's rookie season was 1967, and he platooned at both shortstop and left field for much of that season. After riding the bench in '68, he was drafted by the expansion Expos and was their regular 2nd baseman in their first season. 

 

After 2 seasons as a part-time player, Gary was traded to the Astros, then made his way to the Tigers, where he regained a starting role in '74 and '75. Sutherland bounced around to the Brewers, Padres, and Cardinals at the end of his career. 

 

After his playing career, he worked in the Angels' front office.

 

Obituary 

  

RIP - Pete Rose

Pete Rose, the all-time Hit King, passed away on September 30, 2024 at age 83.

             

 

Rose had attended an autograph show the day prior to his death.

Some stats: 

1963 NL Rookie of the Year 

First "$100,000 singles hitter" 

17-time All-Star, and at 5 different positions 

3-time NL Batting Champ 

1973 NL MVP 

1975 World Series MVP 

3-time World Series champ 

2-time Gold Glove winner (surprisingly enough) 

Career .303 batting average

4,256 career hits 

 

After Rose was banned from baseball, he was initially still eligible for the Hall of Fame. Although not on that first ballot, many writers stated that they were going to write him in anyway (ostensibly giving the fans what they wanted). 

 

The spineless minions running the Hall of Fame quickly scurried about, changing the rules to make him ineligible for induction, rather than letting the voters decide, and having the chips fall where they may. 

 

The Baseball HOF is topped only by the Rock and Roll HOF in terms of shady eligibility and voting practices.

 

Cincinnati Enquirer obituary  

 

Philadelphia Inquirer obituary

 

MLB obituary 

 

Felix Mantilla is 90

 

Happy 90th birthday (7/29) to Felix Mantilla!

RIP - Orlando Cepeda

 

Orlando Cepeda, the 1967 National League MVP, passed away on June 27, 2024 at age 86.

Cepeda debuted with the Giants in 1958, and won the Rookie of the Year award. 

 

He led the league in homers and RBI in 1961, and was an All-Star for his first 7 seasons with the Giants. 

 

After missing much of 1965 with injuries, he was traded to the Cardinals during the following season, and went on to lead the Cardinals to the World Series in 1967, winning the MVP. 

 

(Can you imagine if the Giants had kept Cepeda, eventually giving them a lineup featuring Cepeda, Willie Mays, Willie McCovey, Bobby Bonds, and Jim Ray Hart?) 

 

Before the 1969 season he was traded to the Braves for Joe Torre, and 3 years later to the Athletics for Denny McLain. 

 

He also played for the Red Sox and Royals.  

 

New York Post obituary  

 

AP obituary

   

Oldest living players from 1966-70 (redux)

With the recent passing of Willie Mays, I remembered a post I made almost 6 years ago today:  

 

“Who are the oldest living players with baseball cards in the Topps sets that I am following?”

Pirates’ reliever Elroy Face is still at the top of the list for the 1966-69 sets, at age 96. Here are the 5 oldest living players per set that I follow:

1966 
Elroy Face
Al Worthington
Vern Law
Bob Skinner
George Altman

1967 
Elroy Face
Al Worthington
Vern Law
Ozzie Virgil
George Altman

1968 
Elroy Face
Al Worthington
Al Spangler (6th in 1966 set)
Rocky Colavito (6th in 1967 set)
Orlando Pena (7th in 1967 set)

1969
Elroy Face
Al Spangler
Camilo Pascual (6th in 1968 set)
Bill White (7th in 1968 set)
Luis Aparicio (8th in 1968 set)

1970
Al Spangler
Camilo Pascual
Luis Aparicio
Felipe Alou (8th in 1969 set)
Bob Humphreys (9th in 1969 set)

RIP - Willie Mays

 

Willie Mays passed away today, June 18, 2024 at age 93. 

 

I just learned about this 10 minutes ago, and am crying as I type this. (Haven't done that since the Mick's passing.)

What is there to say about him that everyone doesn't already know? 

 

The photo above is a model I assembled back in the mid-1960s. I found it hidden in my basement about 10 years ago. 

 

My earlier post about this model:  

https://mlb1960s.blogspot.com/2013/05/the-catch.html 

 

Associated Press obituary

 

ESPN obituary 

  

Fathers' Day

60 years ago, Jim Bunning pitched a perfect game against the Mets on Fathers' Day 1964.

It Was 80 Years Ago Today

 

The D-Day invasion of Normandy. 

 

The most famous baseball player there that day was 19-year-old Lawrence Berra, of the U.S. Navy. 

 

 

Other future celebrities there included: 

Alec Guinness - British Royal Navy 

James Doohan - Canadian Army 

Medger Evers - U.S. Army 

Charles Durning - U.S. Army

https://www.newsweek.com/d-day-remembrance-celebrities-who-served-during-normandy-invasion-1440071

   

RIP - Hank Allen

 

Hank Allen, an outfielder for the Senators in the late-1960s, passed away on May 29, 2024 at age 83.

Like his younger brothers Dick and Ron, Hank was signed by the Phillies in the early-1960s. 

 

He was purchased by the Senators in January 1965, and made his major-league debut with the Nats in September 1966. Allen was the Senators' 4th outfielder in 1967 and 1969. He was with the team for part of 1968, but spent much of that year in the minors. 

 

He was traded twice in 1970 - to the Brewers in May, and to the Braves in December. The Braves released him in April 1971, and after a season in the minors, he played briefly with the White Sox from 1972-73. 

 

Hank and Dick Allen with the White Sox in 1972:

Jim Gentile is 90

 

Happy 90th birthday (6/3) to Jim Gentile!

Russ Snyder is 90

 

Happy 90th birthday (6/2) to Russ Snyder!