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Post by jimsteel on Sept 21, 2023 10:23:04 GMT -5
Bobby Durnbaugh, a former MLB shortstop, passed away at the age of 90. Several social media posts from close friends who had contact with the family posted of his passing. Durnbaugh was signed out of high school at the age of 18 by the Cincinnati Reds. He then stayed in the minors until he was called up to MLB by the Reds during the 1957 season. He played 2 games for the Reds and was then sent back to the minors. He played for the following teams: 1951 Welch Miners Appalachian League 1952 Ogden Reds Pioneer League 1955 Nashville Volunteers 1956 Nashville Volunteers 1957 Seattle Rainiers 1957 Rochester Red Wings 1957 Omaha Cardinals 1957 Cincinnati Redlegs National League 1958 Nashville Volunteers 1959 Nashville Volunteers 1961 Mobile Bears 1961 Shreveport Sports
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Post by TDalton on Sept 21, 2023 10:42:04 GMT -5
Roric Harrison, a former MLB pitcher, passed away at the age of 76. Roric Harrison was a key member in one of the greatest minor league baseball teams of all-time. He went 15-5 with a 2.81 ERA on the 1971 Rochester Red Wings, who also had Don Baylor and Bobby Grich on the roster. Harrison struck out 18 batters in a game that year, and also batted .273 with 4 home runs. He was inducted into the Red Wings Hall of Fame in 2001.
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Post by jimsteel on Sept 22, 2023 11:55:45 GMT -5
Sheffield United Women's side confirmed yesterday that Maddy Cusack had tragically passed away aged 27. Cusack became the first player to reach 100 appearances for the women's side.
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Post by jimsteel on Sept 22, 2023 17:55:07 GMT -5
Mark Manges, a former NFL quarterback, passed away at the age of 67. After playing high school football at Fort Hill High School, Manges played college football for the Maryland Terrapins (1974–1977), appearing on the cover of Sports Illustrated's October 1976 issue. He was also named to the All-ACC first-team. At the beginning of his senior year (1977), he was a Heisman Trophy contender but Manges broke his hand in the third game of the season thus ending any consideration for the award. After his college career, Manges was a 4th round selection (105th overall pick) of the 1978 NFL Draft by the Los Angeles Rams. He played in one game in the NFL with the St. Louis Cardinals. Manges also played one game with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats of the Canadian Football League in 1979.
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Post by jimsteel on Sept 23, 2023 18:32:29 GMT -5
Nic Kerdiles, a former NHL left-winger, passed away on as a result of injuries sustained in a motorcycle accident. He was 29 He played briefly in the National Hockey League with the Anaheim Ducks. Kerdiles was selected by the Ducks in the second round (36th overall) of the 2012 NHL Entry Draft. As a youth, he played in the 2007 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament with a minor ice hockey team from Los Angeles. He attended the University of Wisconsin–Madison where he played two seasons of NCAA Division I hockey with the Wisconsin Badgers. During his freshman season he led the Badgers to capture the Broadmoor Trophy as the WCHA playoff champion, and was recognized for his outstanding performance when he was voted the most valuable player of the 2013 WCHA Men's Ice Hockey Tournament. On April 5, 2014, Kerdiles relinquished his final two seasons of NCAA eligibility to sign a three-year entry-level contract with the Anaheim Ducks of the National Hockey League. He made his professional debut with the Ducks' American Hockey League affiliate, the Norfolk Admirals, during the 2014 Calder Cup playoffs. On February 22, 2017, Kerdiles became the first player raised in Orange County to play for the Anaheim Ducks in his NHL debut against the Boston Bruins. The club re-signed him to a one-year, two-way extension worth $650,000 on June 17, 2017. As an impending restricted free agent, Kerdiles was traded by the Ducks to the Winnipeg Jets in exchange for Chase De Leo on June 30, 2018. He was later signed to a one-year, two-way contract with the Jets on August 21, 2018. He played in 3 NHL games during parts of two seasons with the Ducks.
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Post by TTX on Sept 23, 2023 18:45:18 GMT -5
RIP to those who have died.
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Post by jimsteel on Sept 25, 2023 11:11:26 GMT -5
Jim Vechiarella, a former NFL assistant coach, passed away at the age of 86. The following is an excerpt from Vechiarella's online obituary: "Jim was a 1954 graduate of The Rayen High School. He was a standout football player at center on offense and linebacker on defense, which earned him Vindicator All City Choice and Ohio All-Star Team awards. Jim continued playing for his hometown college Youngstown University under the legendary coach Dike Beede. A two-way player, Jim started at center and linebacker for four years. Quite simply, he was a standout player. Professionally, because he loved football, Jim made it his career. After his playing career at Youngstown University, Jim began his coaching career at Poland and Rayen High Schools. There he was an assistant football coach and teacher. In 1964 he became the first former athlete hired by the faculty and a full-time member of the coaching staff at Youngstown University. He coached with his mentor, Dike Beede. He was their defensive coordinator for 11 years. In 1975, in a most courageous fashion, Jim uprooted his family and moved them from his beloved Youngstown to Charlotte, North Carolina, to coach the startup World Football League’s Charlotte Hornets. After two seasons there, the family moved again in 1977 to Carbondale, Illinois. Jim coached at Southern Illinois University. The very next year they moved again to Kenner, Louisiana. There Jim was an assistant coach at Tulane University. After two successful seasons there, Jim broke into the NFL ranks and began his 22 year NFL coaching career as a special teams coordinator and defensive backs coach for the Los Angeles Rams. After two years in California, the family then moved again to Kansas City, Missouri, where Jim coached for the Kansas City Chiefs as special teams coordinator and linebacker coach. From there he continued on to New York to coach for the Jets as a linebacker coach. After four years with the Jets, he went on to coach for the Cleveland Browns in 1990. From there, Jim went on to the Philadelphia Eagles, where he was a linebacker coach for what is considered one of the best NFL defenses of all time. After four years in Philadelphia Jim went back to coach for the New York Jets, where he was the defensive coordinator for two years. Jim’s final move in the NFL was to the San Diego Chargers, where he coached the legendary Junior Seau. Jim ended his NFL career in 2001 and returned home to Youngstown, Ohio to enjoy a well deserved and long retirement. Jim’s extraordinary football life afforded him and his family the opportunity to literally see and be exposed to the whole country. In fact, it took them all over the globe as he coached in games in London, England, Sydney, Australia and Tokyo, Japan. Vechiarella coached several pro football teams and below is a list of the positions and teams he coached: Charlotte Hornets (1975) Defensive line coach Tulane (1978–1980) Assistant coach Los Angeles Rams (1981–1982) Special Teams Coach Kansas City Chiefs (1983–1985) Special teams coordinator & linebackers coach New York Jets (1986–1989) Linebackers coach Cleveland Browns (1990) Defensive coordinator Philadelphia Eagles (1991–1994) Linebackers coach New York Jets (1995–1996) Defensive coordinator & linebackers coach San Diego Chargers (1997–2001) Defensive coordinator
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Post by jimsteel on Sept 25, 2023 21:46:43 GMT -5
Danny Morris, an MLB pitcher, passed away at the age of 77. He appeared in six Major League games for the 1968–1969 Minnesota Twins. and was a top prospect, with a 98 mph fastball until an arm injury ended his career. Morris played seven seasons (1966–1972) of professional baseball, all in the Twins' organization. He twice won 16 games in the minor leagues, going 16–8 with an earned run average of 2.16 with the Wisconsin Rapids Twins of the Class A Midwest League in 1966, and 16–15 (3.94) with the Denver Bears of the Triple-A Pacific Coast League in 1968. After the latter season, he received his first trial with the 1968 Twins, working in three September games, two as a starting pitcher, and losing his only decision in a September 18, 1968, starting assignment against the California Angels. Morris spent most of 1969 with Denver, but was recalled by the Twins in June and appeared in three more games. In his only start for the 1969 Twins, he again faced the Angels and again absorbed the defeat, giving up two earned runs and three hits (including a two-run home run by Rick Reichardt) in three innings of work. The following is an excerpt from his online obituary: "After graduating from Greenville High School in Greenville, KY in 1964 he signed his first professional baseball contract with the Minnesota Twins where he played professional baseball for 8 years in both the Major and Minor leagues. In 1965 he set the strike out record for the Wisconsin Rapids in the Midwest League by averaging 11 strikeouts per 9 innings to earn TOPPS Player of the month for August 1965. He was named Kentucky Colonel the same year.
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Post by jimsteel on Sept 26, 2023 17:23:20 GMT -5
Brooks Robinson, a former third baseman in Major League Baseball who played his entire career for the Baltimore Orioles from 1955 to 1977 passed away at the age of 86. Nicknamed "The Human Vacuum Cleaner" or "Mr. Hoover," he is generally considered to have been the greatest defensive third baseman in major league history A 15-time All-Star, he won 16 consecutive Gold Glove Awards, setting a record later tied by Jim Kaat and broken by Greg Maddux. His 2,870 career games at third base not only exceeded the closest player by nearly 700 games when he retired, but also remained the most games by any player in major league history at a single position. His 23 seasons spent with a single team set a major league record since matched only by Carl Yastrzemski. Robinson played a major role in rejuvenating what had been one of the weakest major league clubs. He became the centerpiece of the team as they posted the best record in the major leagues during the decade counted from 1965 to 1974, capturing four American League (AL) pennants and two World Series titles. He was named the AL Most Valuable Player (MVP) in 1964 after posting career highs with a .317 batting average, 28 home runs, and 118 runs batted in (RBIs), leading the AL in the last category. In 1966 he finished second in the MVP voting behind teammate Frank Robinson after again posting 100 RBIs as the Orioles won the pennant, then swept the Los Angeles Dodgers for the team's first Series title. In the 1970 World Series against the Cincinnati Reds, Robinson drew wide attention with his strong defensive play, time after time robbing Cincinnati players of base hits, and drove in runs in the first four games; his performance won him the World Series MVP Award as Baltimore defeated the Reds in five games. In 1971 he became one of just 12 players to earn over $100,000 annually. Robinson led AL third basemen in fielding percentages eleven times and in assists eight times, both major league records, and in putouts and double plays three times each. He still holds a major league record for career putouts (2,697), assists (6,205), total chances (9,165), and double plays (618) at third base, with each total being between 13% and 20% higher than the closest player. His career fielding percentage of .971 was a major league record until 2006, and remains the top AL mark. Upon his retirement during the 1977 season, Robinson's 2,896 career games and 10,654 at bats each ranked fifth in major league history, behind only Ty Cobb among AL players, and his 2,848 hits ranked seventh in AL history. From 1969 to 1980, he held the AL record for career home runs by a third baseman. He set franchise records for career games, at bats, hits, runs (1,232), RBIs (1,357), doubles (482), total bases (4,270), and home runs by a right-handed hitter (268), all of which were later broken by Cal Ripken Jr. Robinson was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1983 in his first year of eligibility, the first time a third baseman had done so. Following his playing career, he served as a broadcaster for the Orioles and also joined Opening Day Partners, which owns several minor league teams. Robinson remained popular with Oriole fans for his kindness and patience with them. "Never has a player meant more to a franchise and more to a city than Brooks has meant to the Orioles and the city of Baltimore," said Oriole historian Ted Patterson.
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Post by TTX on Sept 26, 2023 18:12:37 GMT -5
There's a big name for a change. RIP Brooks.
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