In Memoriam, 2020

Too many noteworthy Chicago sports personalities passed away this year. The most prominent were two genuine Chicago legends--the electrifying Bears running back and kick returner Gale Sayers and the indomitable Bulls guard and coach Jerry Sloan. They were joined by luminaries such as Glenn Beckert, Pat Stapleton, and Roosevelt Taylor. There were Chicago fixtures Ed Farmer, Jimmy Collins, and Michael McCaskey. And then there were the likes of Tom Seaver, Lou Brock, Les Hunter, Dick Allen, and Jim Frey, who passed through Chicago briefly but nonetheless made their mark.

     Below is the list of Chicago sports figures who passed away in 2020. We thank them all for their contributions to the greatest sports town in the world. (If we have missed anyone, please let us know in the Comments and we will correct it.)

 

DICK ALLEN

 

Dick Allen, 78, White Sox first baseman 1972-1974, American League Most Valuable Player 1972, three-time All-Star with White Sox and seven-time All-Star overall (December 7). “He has magnetism,” Sox manager Chuck Tanner said of Allen. “Like Clark Gable, say, or Marilyn Monroe. He is above the ordinary.”

 

GLENN BECKERT

Glenn Beckert, 79, Cubs second baseman 1965-1973, four-time All-Star, one-time Gold Glove (April 12). “He’s some kind of player,” Cubs manager Leo Durocher said in 1968. “He’s the best damn second baseman in the league.”

Jim Bolger, 88, Cubs outfielder 1957-1958 (April 9).

 

LOU BROCK

Lou Brock, 81, Cubs outfielder 1961-1964, disastrously traded to St. Louis in 1964; White Sox broadcaster 1981; National Baseball Hall of Fame 1985 (September 6). “If I’d been here [in Chicago],” Brock once said, “the Cubs would have won the pennant in ’68 and ’69.”

Roger Brueggemann, 75, trainer of 2015 Arlington Million winner The Pizza Man and a fixture at Arlington Park and Hawthorne for three decades (December 14).

Ken Burmeister, 72, DePaul University men’s basketball assistant coach 1990-1994; Loyola University men’s basketball head coach 1994-1998 (May 19).

Kenneth Church, 90, leading jockey at Arlington Park in 1950 and at Washington Park in 1953 (July 13).

Gil Coan, 97, White Sox outfielder 1955 (February 4).

 

JIMMY COLLINS

Jimmy Collins, 74, Bulls guard 1970-1972; University of Illinois men’s basketball assistant coach 1983-1996; UIC men’s basketball head coach 1996-2010, qualified for NCAA tournament three times (December 13).

Ramon Conde, 85, White Sox third baseman 1962 (February 23).

Tony Curcillo, 89, Chicago Cardinals halfback and defensive back 1953 (December 8).

Jim Derrington, 80, White Sox pitcher 1956- 1957 (March 12).

Angel Echevarria, 48, Cubs first baseman/outfielder 2002 (February 7).

 

ED FARMER

Ed Farmer, 70, White Sox pitcher 1979-1981, All-Star in 1980; White Sox broadcaster 1991-2019 (April 1). “Ed grew up a Sox fan on the South Side of Chicago,” said chairman Jerry Reinsdorf, “and his allegiance showed every single night on the radio as he welcomed his ‘friends’ to the broadcast.”

Jesse Freitas Sr., 99, Chicago Rockets (AAFC) quarterback 1948 (May 18).

 

JIM FREY

Jim Frey, 88, Cubs manager 1984-1986, won division championship in 1984; Cubs broadcaster 1987; Cubs general manager 1988-1991 (April 12). “I don’t give a damn about what happened in 1969,” Frey said in 1984 when asked about the Cubs’ infamous collapse of 15 years earlier. “It has no interest or appeal to me at all.”

Carl Garrett, 72, Bears running back 1973-1974 (August 24).

Charlie Haeger, 37, White Sox pitcher 2006-2007 (October 3).

Jim Hicks, 80, White Sox outfielder 1964-1966 (October 29).

 

LES HUNTER

Les Hunter, 77, Loyola University men’s basketball center 1961-1964, member of NCAA championship team 1963, uniform number 41 retired in 1991, inducted into the College Basketball Hall of Fame with his Loyola teammates in 2013 (March 27). “Our whole premise was to get out and run,” Hunter said of the Ramblers. “We pressured regardless of how far we were ahead or behind. A lot of teams tried to freeze the ball and we stole it.”

 

BART JOHNSON

Bart Johnson, 70, White Sox pitcher 1969-1977 (April 22).

Ben Johnson, 88, Cubs pitcher 1959-1960 (May 8).

Lou Johnson, 86, Cubs outfielder 1960, 1968 (September 30).

 

JAY JOHNSTONE

Jay Johnstone, 74, White Sox outfielder 1971-1972; Cubs outfielder 1982-1984 (September 26).

Howie Judson, 94, White Sox pitcher 1948-1952 (August 18).

Matt Keough, 64, Cubs pitcher 1986 (May 1).

Don Larsen, 90, Cubs pitcher 1967 (January 1).

Phil Maloney, 92, Blackhawks center 1958-1960 (February 21).

John Matias, 75, White Sox outfielder/first baseman 1970 (April 7).

 

MICHAEL McCASKEY

Michael McCaskey, 76, Bears president 1983-1998; Bears chairman 1999-2011 (May 16).

Lindy McDaniel, 84, Cubs pitcher 1963-1965, National League Fireman of the Year 1963 (November 14).

Jeannie Morris, 85, Chicago sports journalist and broadcaster (December 14).

Howard Mudd, 78, Bears guard 1969-1970 (August 12).

 

MARKUS PAUL

 

Markus Paul, 54, Bears safety, 1989-1993 (November 25).

Don Pavletich, 81, White Sox catcher 1969 (March 5).

Mary Pratt, 101, Rockford Peaches (AAGPBL) pitcher 1943-1944 and 1946-1947 (May 6).

Jack Rosenberg, 94, WGN television and radio sports editor for more than forty years (December 27).

Eldred “Salty” Saltwell, 97, Cubs general manager 1976 (May 3).

 

GALE SAYERS

Gale Sayers, 77, Bears running back 1965-1971, nicknamed “the Kansas Comet,” NFL Rookie of the Year 1965, NFL leading scorer 1965, NFL leading rusher 1969, five-time All-Pro, four-time Pro Bowl, Pro Football Hall of Fame 1977, uniform number 40 retired in 1994, ranked No. 4 among Chicago Tribune 100 greatest Bears of all time in 2019 (September 23). “He looks no different than any other back when he’s coming at you,” 49ers defensive back George Donnelly said of Sayers, “but when he gets there he’s gone.”

 

TOM SEAVER

Tom Seaver, 75, White Sox pitcher 1984-1986, won his 300th career game for Sox in 1985; National Baseball Hall of Fame 1992 (August 31). “It was apparent in Tom Seaver’s minor-league debut that he was ready for the majors,” said Hall of Fame manager Earl Weaver. “He had an excellent fastball and slider, and he put them precisely where he wanted to.”

Dick Scott, 86, Cubs pitcher 1964 (February 16).

 

JERRY SLOAN

Jerry Sloan, 78, Bulls guard 1966-1976, nicknamed “the Original Bull” and “Mr. Chicago Bull,” two-time All-Star, six-time All-Defensive team, uniform number 4 retired in 1978; Bulls head coach 1979-1982; Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame 2009 (May 22). “The fans responded to the kind of team we were,” Sloan said of the early Bulls, “because Chicago is a blue-collar city, and the players were much the same way.”

 

PAT STAPLETON

Pat “Whitey” Stapleton, 79, Blackhawks defenseman 1965-1973, captain 1969-1970, three-time All-Star; Chicago Cougars (WHA) defenseman and head coach 1973-1975; Cougars co-owner 1974-1975 (April 9). “He possessed superior acumen while defending,” wrote Bob Verdi, “but was also gifted at generating rushes. In 1968-69, he garnered 50 assists, a National Hockey League record [for defensemen] at the time.”

 

ROOSEVELT TAYLOR

Roosevelt “Rosey” Taylor, 82, Bears safety 1961-1969, All-Pro 1963, Pro Bowl 1963 and 1968, led NFL in interceptions 1963, member of 1963 world championship team, ranked No. 43 among Chicago Tribune 100 greatest Bears of all time in 2019 (May 29). “Bear opponents have learned, to their dismay, that the odds somehow seem to favor Taylor in a battle for the ball,” Cooper Rollow of the Tribune wrote. “Several reasons have been cited for this edge— competitive instinct, eyesight, reflexes—but the key may be Taylor’s tremendous jumping ability.”

Tony Taylor, 84, Cubs second baseman 1958-1960 (July 16).

Earl Thomas, 71, Bears wide receiver/tight end 1971-1973 (July 4).

Claudell Washington, 65, White Sox outfielder 1978-1980 (June 10).

 

RYAN WETNIGHT

Ryan Wetnight, 49, Bears tight end 1993-1999 (May 1).

George Yankowski, 97, White Sox catcher 1949 (February 25).

 

Check out our book Heydays: Great Stories in Chicago Sports on Amazon.

Ron Santo

Ron Santo, who passed away ten years ago today at the age of 70, was unique in Chicago sports history. No other person was so prominent as a player and so beloved as a broadcaster for such a long time.

    

RON SANTO

 

Santo the player was easily the best National League third baseman of his day and one of the best of all time. He was a nine-time All-Star, five-time Gold Glover, and four times finished in the top ten in MVP balloting. For the period of 1964 through 1969, Santo had the highest WAR (wins above replacement player) in the major leagues—better than Willie Mays, Hank Aaron, Roberto Clemente, Frank Robinson, or anyone else. By that measure, he was the most valuable player in baseball over the six-year period.

     The core players on the Cubs teams of the late 1960s and early 1970s--Santo, Ernie Banks, Billy Williams, Fergie Jenkins, Glenn Beckert, Randy Hundley, Don Kessinger, and Ken Holtzman--became lifelong friends. Unfortunately, they never won any championships together, and Santo's personal accomplishments did not land him in the Hall of Fame during his lifetime (he was inducted posthumously in 2012). That was a bitter pill, but Santo swallowed it with the same fortitude that carried him through his long and harrowing struggle with diabetes.
 

Santo the broadcaster spent two decades in the Cubs' radio booth, teamed first with Thom Brennaman and Bob Brenly, and then, for 15 years, with Pat Hughes.
     As a broadcaster, Santo was a mirror for the feelings of his listeners in good times and bad. No one was more delighted than Santo when the Cubs won, and no one was more disappointed when they lost. Few fans will forget Santo's anguished cry of "Oh, nooooooooo!" when left fielder Brant Brown dropped a fly ball in 1998 that cost the Cubs a late-season game and almost cost them the wild-card playoff berth they eventually won.
     It was easy to criticize Santo for being too much of a cheerleader, for not doing his homework, etc., but most of his listeners didn't care. They knew that he was genuinely invested, as they were, in the fortunes of the Cubs. And Hughes was a very generous partner. He cleverly found a way to make their broadcasts work not in spite of Santo's limitations, but because of them. One of the memorable exchanges between the two went something like this:
     Hughes: "Former Cub Ruben Quevedo coming on to pitch for the Brewers."
     Santo: "Who is it?"
     Hughes: "Ruben Quevedo."
     Santo: "He hasn’t missed too many meals."
     Hughes: "You could say that, Ronnie."
     Santo: "He reminds me of someone we had not too long ago."
     Hughes: "Who might that be, Ron?"
     Santo: "Hmmm."
     Hughes: "Should I give you a hint?"
     Santo: "It's on the tip of my tongue, Patrick."
     Hughes: "Might it be Ruben Quevedo?"
     Santo: "Oh gosh, I’m not sure."

 

 

Check out our book Heydays: Great Stories in Chicago Sports on Amazon.