With great sadness, we share that Ryne Sandberg has passed away today.

Donate To GopherHole


Wow bummer. Late season 1997 before I moved back to MPLS from LA, I needed a break from packing.

Looking for something to do, noticed the Cubs were in town and Ryno had already announced his re-retirement. No brainer, headed to Dodger Stadium.
 
Last edited:

On June 23, 1984, several weeks after my wife and I got married, we took my mom to the Cubs-Cardinals game at Wrigley Field. Great seats behind home plate in the upper deck.

The Cubs were down 7-1 after 2 innings and I was thinking what a shitty game it was going to be. But the Cubs came back, down 1 in the bottom of the 9th, and Ryno hits a homer to left off of former Cub, Bruce Sutter, to put the game into extra innings. The Cubs manage to give up 2 runs in the 10th and are down 11-9. The first two Cub batters in the bottom on the 10th are out, but Sutter walks Bob Denier, and Sandberg is up again. And damned if he didn’t hit another home run to tie it again. The Cubs won it the 11th inning. The game is known as The Ryne Sandberg Game, and I was there.

Later in the season, the Cubs have a charity event for Cancer research. Ironic. I had a number of coaches and players autograph a ball for me, including Ryno.

IMG_5643.jpeg

Ryne Sandberg was a class act and one of my all time favorite Chicago Cubs.

RIP Ryno. Baseball history will remember you as one of the all time greats.
 

KGF said:
On June 23, 1984, several weeks after my wife and I got married, we took my mom to the Cubs-Cardinals game at Wrigley Field. Great seats behind home plate in the upper deck.

The Cubs were down 7-1 after 2 innings and I was thinking what a shitty game it was going to be. But the Cubs came back, down 1 in the bottom of the 9th, and Ryno hits a homer to left off of former Cub, Bruce Sutter, to put the game into extra innings. The Cubs manage to give up 2 runs in the 10th and are down 11-9. The first two Cub batters in the bottom on the 10th are out, but Sutter walks Bob Denier, and Sandberg is up again. And damned if he didn’t hit another home run to tie it again. The Cubs won it the 11th inning. The game is known as The Ryne Sandberg Game, and I was there.
Click to expand...

I remember watching the start of it on TV (Game of the Week/NBC), going and playing my own game (Babe Ruth League) and getting home to see Sandberg's theatrics.

Sandberg Game - Wikipedia

en.m.wikipedia.org en.m.wikipedia.org
 
Last edited:



In the summer of '84, I was moving with my parents from central MN to southern MN, before the start of 7th grade. This involved many trips back and forth in pick-ups and for a townie kid to be moving out to farm country, my head wasn't in a very good space.

On one of these trips, we were able to tune the radio to a station out of Chicago (WLS?) most likely because the pick-up we had at the time only had the AM dial. We stuck on the station and this became the "Sandberg game"--two home runs against Bruce Sutter--one in the 9th to send it to extras and another in the 10th to win it, coming back from 7-1, to win 12-11. Sandberg finished 5 for 6 with the two HR's and 7 RBI's. Listening to that game was the highlight of the summer. (well, that and discovering Madonna through the Lucky Star video--wowser, but I'm digressing.)

* I should note, the details of the Sandberg game were helped by a Google search, but the joy of listening to Wrigley Field erupt through the radio with each of Sandberg's home runs is a memory etched in my mind.
 

coolhandgopher said:
In the summer of '84, I was moving with my parents from central MN to southern MN, before the start of 7th grade. This involved many trips back and forth in pick-ups and for a townie kid to be moving out to farm country, my head wasn't in a very good space.

On one of these trips, we were able to tune the radio to a station out of Chicago (WLS?) most likely because the pick-up we had at the time only had the AM dial.
Click to expand...
Back in 1984 the Cubs flagship was WGN 720-AM.

Harry Caray would normally only be doing a the middle innings on radio, splitting his time with WGN-9 on TV. With the game being on NBC, perhaps he did a few more for 720-AM.

They also have maintained a radio affiliate in St Cloud/Sauk Rapids 660-AM, which I think goes beyond 1984. Low wattage at night though. Currently their Chicago flagship is 670-AM, The Score. Sounds clear as a bell in Minnesota after sundown.

WBHR Chicago Cubs

www.660wbhr.com www.660wbhr.com

I am not sure why that station has carried Cubs games, but it's possibly due to at one time the St Cloud Rox being one of their minor league affiliates. A friend of mine was always a huge Lou Brock fan as that was where he started his pro career, as a Cubs farm hand.
 
Last edited:




Unregistered User said:
And get your prostate checked people!

And get a colonoscopy! It is predicted that by 2035, the leading cause of death among men under 50, will be colon cancer.
Click to expand...
I had my first colonscopy a couple of weeks ago and while the preparation the day before is no picnic (self induced diarrehea-good times!), the actual procedure is relatively quick and I was knocked out for it. It turns out I had three polyps, all small, removed easily and nothing to worry about because of the size when removed, but the doctor told me that all polyps turn cancerous if not removed and as they grow, which was a real eye opener for me. So, what UU is saying--line up your colonoscopy today!
 

Ope3 said:
I am not sure why that station has carried Cubs games, but it's possibly due to at one time the St Cloud Rox being one of their minor league affiliates. A friend of mine was always a huge Lou Brock fan as that was where he started his pro career, as a Cubs farm hand.
Click to expand...
I read somewhere that Artie Fufkin's favorite player was Lou Brock.
 

Can’t wait for Danny B and Ron (Tom Kelly disliked) Coomer to compare notes. It’s great having every TC media personality to be fans of teams other than the hometown. So fun!
 

coolhandgopher said:
In the summer of '84, I was moving with my parents from central MN to southern MN, before the start of 7th grade. This involved many trips back and forth in pick-ups and for a townie kid to be moving out to farm country, my head wasn't in a very good space.

On one of these trips, we were able to tune the radio to a station out of Chicago (WLS?) most likely because the pick-up we had at the time only had the AM dial. We stuck on the station and this became the "Sandberg game"--two home runs against Bruce Sutter--one in the 9th to send it to extras and another in the 10th to win it, coming back from 7-1, to win 12-11. Sandberg finished 5 for 6 with the two HR's and 7 RBI's. Listening to that game was the highlight of the summer. (well, that and discovering Madonna through the Lucky Star video--wowser, but I'm digressing.)

* I should note, the details of the Sandberg game were helped by a Google search, but the joy of listening to Wrigley Field erupt through the radio with each of Sandberg's home runs is a memory etched in my mind.
Click to expand...
On WGN with Milo Hamilton, Lou Boudreau, and Vince Lloyd. Best baseball game that I’ve ever attended and nothing is close.
 




I'll bite my tongue and not comment on my personal interactions with the guy but it does bring me back to my youth of watching him and Dawson on WGN a lot. RIP.
 

You must log in or register to reply here.



Top Bottom