Bill Johnson - Cubs: I have to admit I didn't know who Bill Johnson was when he passed in late January. He only had a cup of coffee for the playoff-bound Cubs in 1984. I haven't used him yet in this Statis Pro season.
Oscar Gamble - Yankees: This passing stung baseball fans across the globe, especially card collectors who were in love with Gamble's epic afro pictures on cardboard. My favorite Gamble memory, though, comes from Graig Nettles' autobiography, Balls. If you're not familiar with it, it's basically a chronicle of the 1983 New York Yankees season where he absolutely unloads on George Steinbrenner for being a meddling owner who doesn't understand how baseball works. My dad gave it to me to read at a much too young age. It's not unlike Jim Bouton's Ball Four in that it gives you a very real insider's view of team dynamics. At one point in the book Nettles is describing Steinbrenner's obsession with getting hits with runners in scoring position. Nettles relays Gamble's reply to his owner, "When I'm at bat, I'm in scoring position." I wasn't too young to immediately laugh when I read it.
Sammy Stewart - Orioles: Sadly, Stewart's passing didn't come as a surprise as Baltimore fans know of his long history of substance abuse and subsequent prison time. He appeared to turn his life around once he was released and all O's fans will remember his importance to the 1983 World Series winner and the 1979 playoff team.
Rusty Staub - Mets: You rarely find such beloved players like Rusty Staub. He's iconic to Montreal, New York, Houston and Detroit fan bases. Rusty was an enormously charitable individual off the field and I've never heard a bad word about him. He had a near Hall of Fame career though in the real 1984 he was exclusively a pinch hitter.
Thank you, gentlemen, for your contributions to the game of baseball and the memories you've given us. It's an honor to manage you in Statis Pro. God bless.
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