It was a sad Christmas for the Hegan family as former player and broadcaster Mike Hegan died:

Mike Hegan, a former major league player who was a longtime broadcaster with the Cleveland Indians, has died. He was 71.

The Indians say Hegan had his family by his side when he died Wednesday morning in Hilton Head, S.C. No other details were provided by the team.

Hegan was a radio and TV broadcaster for the Indians for 23 years. He retired after the 2011 season. He also spent 12 seasons as a broadcaster with the Milwaukee Brewers.

My thought go out to his family and friends.

Mike was a second generation player, his father Jim Hegan was a catcher. Mike played first base. He did a great job getting on base through walks, with an OBP almost 100 points higher than his BA. He did not hit for power, however, so had a long career as a part time player, especially after the 1969 expansion made more jobs available. He was an original Seattle Pilot, and moved with the team to Milwaukee. He eventually finished his career there.

He also is part of one of my earliest baseball memories. I was a Cub Scout in the late 1960s, and Boys’ Life did a profile of Hegan. Reading the obituary triggered that memory. I don’t remember much of the article, but I do remember the picture of him that came with it and learning that this dad was a former player.