The San Diego Padres and Major League Baseball are mourning the loss of the great Jerry Coleman tonight. Coleman had been calling games for the Padres since 1972.
The Coleman file:
- Born September 14, 1924
- Made his MLB debut with the New York Yankees in 1949
- Earned the Rookie of the Year Award in 1949 from the Associated Press
- Won the BBWAA’s Babe Ruth Award in the 1950 World Series as MVP
- He served in both the Korean War and World War II as a member of the United State Marine Corps
- He retired from MLB in 1957 following an injury
- He had a seven-year run calling New York Yankees games starting in 1963
- Was inducted into the National Radio Hall of Fame as a sports broadcaster in 2007
Coleman is known for his “Oh Doctor!” call as well as “You can hang a star on the baby!”, “And the beat goes on” and “The Natives are getting restless”.
The Padres released the following statement this afternoon:
“The San Diego Padres are deeply saddened by the news today of the passing of Jerry Coleman”. “We send our heartfelt sympathy to the entire Coleman family, including his wife, Maggie, his children and grandchildren. On behalf of Padres’ fans everywhere, we mourn the loss of a Marine who was truly an American hero as well as a great man, a great friend and a great Padre.”
The Padres also released the following message to their fans in San Diego via Twitter: “The Jerry Coleman statue will remain open until 11:30 p.m. tonight for fans who would like to pay their respects”.
The Good in Sports salutes the life and times of Jerry Coleman. He will always be a legend in our book and to Padres’ fans, he was truly a Game Changer.
Your thoughts or comments?