Apr 14 2009
Rash of baseball deaths strange
Man its just strange how we have so many people in the sports world dying lately. Just in the last week alone there has been three deaths. First was Los Angeles Angels rookie pitcher Nick Adenhart killed when a drunk driver ran a red light. Then yesterday there was two deaths. Former Detroit Tiger pitcher Mark “The Bird” Fidrych was killed in a accident on his Massachusetts farm when a dump truck crushed him. Then Philadelphia Phillies announcer Harry Kalas died suddenly yesterday.
Mark “The Bird” Fidrych was born in Worcester,Massachusetts and played only four seasons for the Detroit Tigers. He made the All- Star team twice in 1976 and 1977 and was also voted Rookie of the year in 1976. He had a career record of 29-19 and a lifetime E.R.A. of 3.10. His career was cut short due to a torn rotator cuff.
Harry Kalas was born in Naperville, Illinois and got his start in broadcasting in 1962 while in the army calling games for a minor league Hawaiian team. His first major league team he worked for was the Houston Colts which later became the Astros. He was hired by the Philadelphia Phillies in 1971 and also by NFL Films in 1975. The work he did for NFL Films is how I will always remember him. I loved watching those old NFL shows and hearing his voice on them.
