Chicago (AP) -ryne Sandberg, a second baseboard of the Hall of Fame who became one of the best all-round players of baseball while playing the leading role for the Chicago Cubs, died. He was 65.
According to the team, Sandberg was surrounded by his family when he died in his house on Monday.
Sandberg announced in January 2024 that he was diagnosed with metastatic prostate cancer. He had chemotherapy and radiation treatments and then said in August 2024 that he was cancer-free.
But He posted on Instagram on December 10 That his cancer had returned and spread to other organs. He announced this month that he still fought, while looking forward to getting the best with my loving family and friends every day. “
Cubs chairman Tom Ricketts said that Sandberg “will be remembered as one of the big ones in almost 150 years of this historical franchise.”
“His dedication to and respect for the game, along with his relentless integrity, grit, crowds and competitive fire were characteristics of his career,” Ricketts said in the team’s statement.
Sandberg was born and raised in Spokane, Washington. He was selected by Philadelphia from high school in the 20th round of the amateur design of 1978.
He made his Major League debut in 1981 and went 1 to 6 in 13 games with the Phillies. In January 1982 he was traded with Larry Bowa to Chicago for experienced Infielder Ivan de Jesus.
It turned into one of the most crooked deals in baseball history.
Sandberg hit .285 with 282 Homers, 1,061 RBIs and 344 Steals in 15 years with Chicago. He made 10 All-Star-Teams winning the home run derby in 1990 and took nine golden gloves home.
“Ryne Sandberg was a legend of the Chicago Cubs franchise and a beloved figure in Major League Baseball,” said MLB commissioner Rob Manfred. “He was a player with five holes who excelled in every facet of the game thanks to his strength, speed and work ethic.”
Even with the great game of Sandberg, the Cubs only made two performances after the season while he was in Chicago.
He was the NL MVP in 1984 and hit .314 with 19 gays, 84 RBIs, 32 Steals, 19 triples and 114 points scored. Chicago won the NL East and Sandberg .368 (7 to 19) in the play -offs, but the Cubs were eliminated by San Diego after winning the first two games of the National League Championship series on Wigley Field.
The 1984 season contained what Cubs fans still call ‘The Sandberg Game’, when he homered twice and rode in seven points in a 12-11 victory over St. Louis in 11 innings on June 23.
Chicago paid tribute to Sandberg and that game then it revealed a statue Van de Infielder Buiten Wrigley Field on that date in 2024.
“He was a superhero in this city,” said Cubs President of Baseball Operations Jed Hoyer during a TV broadcast of the game of the team on July 20. “You think of (Michael) Jordan, Walter Payton and Ryne Sandberg here at the same time, and I can’t imagine that a person who treats their fame better, their responsibility for a city better than him.”
Sandberg led Chicago back to the Play -Offs in 1989 and hit .290 with 30 homers when the Cubs won the NL East. He hit .400 (8 for 20) in the NLCs, but Chicago lost to San Francisco in five competitions.
Sandberg set a career high with an NL-Beste 40 Homers in 1990 and rode in a career-best 100 runs in 1990 and 1991, but he never returned to the late season. He retired after the 1997 season.
“When you investigate the attack and defense, you will find a few years in which he was the best player you’ve ever seen in your life,” said former Cub’s first baseman Mark Grace.
Sandberg was included in the Hall of Fame in 2005 and received 76.2% of the votes by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America in his third attempt. The Cubs withdrew its number 23 that same year.
“Ryne Sandberg had a ruthless work ethics and an unwavering positive view,” said Hall of Fame chairman Jane Forbes Clark. “With this he inspired everyone who knew him.”
Sandberg also managed Philadelphia from August 2013 to June 2015, 119-159. He got the interim track when Charlie Manuel was fired, and He resigned With the Phillies in the middle of a difficult 2015 season.
AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb
