It’s been a rough couple of weeks. We lost four players, three of whom were from my own “golden age” of fandom.
Frank Thomas (died at age 93 on Jan. 16) was one of the few bright spots for the 1962 Mets, clubbing 34 home runs, a mark that stood until Dave Kingman’s 36 in 1975. A three-time All-Star, Thomas also played for Pirates, Reds, Cubs (twice), Braves (twice), Phillies, and Reds, blasting 262 homers over 16 big league seasons. Here’s his obit by Richard Goldstein in The New York Times.
Sal Bando (78, Jan. 20) also played for 16 years, eleven with the dynastic Oakland A’s and five with the Milwaukee Brewers. He was a four-time All-Star and finished second in the AL MVP race in 1971. Alex Traub contributed this obit, which also appeared in the Times.
Gary Peters (85, Jan. 26) was the AL Rookie of the Year in 1963 for the White Sox, winning 19 of 27 decisions and leading the league in ERA. He won 20 the following year but never came close again, finishing 124-103 in 14 seasons, the last three spent with the Red Sox. This memorial appeared in the Chicago Sun-Times.
Ted Savage (86, Jan. 15) was more of an itinerant bench player for eight teams in nine years (Phillies, Pirates, Cards, Cubs, Dodgers, Reds, Brewers, and Royals). His best season came in 1971 with Milwaukee where he set career highs in all major offensive categories. This, from RIPBaseball.com.
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