Tag Archives: Ron Santo

July 22, 2012

Hall of Fame Day

The Hall of Fame honors Barry Larkin and the late Ron Santo as players Sunday afternoon.

Larkin’s prime lasted a very long time, probably five years more than most players. Shortstop is a young man’s position, but at age 34 Barry posted a 5.5 rWAR, and in his 11 years of dominance never fell below 3.4, averaging over five rWAR a season. He only played six games away from shortstop, three at second base early in his career and three at designated hitter late. It was a remarkable run.

Santo was not voted in by the writers during his eligibility. His WAR numbers show he deserved the honor. The problem was multi dimensional:

Santo played for a series of Cubs teams that went from bad to good but not great.
His ballpark tended to make people think Ron’s numbers were inflated.
His career ended very early.

Ron came up at a very young age, 20 years old, but when his career fell apart, it fell apart quickly. He went from 4.8 rWAR in 1972 at the age of 32 to 2.1 in 1973 to -1.8 in 1974 and then did not play again. Hall of Fame voters did not see him as a Koufax, where his career was so great the early exit didn’t matter. Part of that was seeing Wrigley as a band box. That was true, but without the better measures we have today, they couldn’t see Santo’s greatness. It’s good the veterans committee corrected the mistake.

December 5, 2011

Santo in the Hall

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The Veterans Committee of the Hall of Fame elected to enshrine Ron Santo. He received 15 of 16 votes, 12 needed for election. The Sweet Spot blog explains why, beyond the numbers, this is the right call.

Ron Santo was the crazy grandfather who overlooked your flaws; seriously, how else could someone love some of those awful Cubs teams the way Ronnie did. He was the voice of a fight, raising millions upon millions for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF). He was a stubborn patient, the one who wouldn’t let the disease — actually, the diseases — keep him from living his life. I saw no-hitters and 60-homer seasons in Chicago; I saw a team on the other side of town win a World Series. Yet, the achievement that stands above all else was watching Ron Santo, on two prosthetics, work his way down that steep flight of stairs into the Cubs’ clubhouse, finally get to the bottom and smile. Not complain. Never complain. Smile. Walk through the clubhouse and say hello to reporters and players and clubhouse staff, asking “How you feeling today, big boy?”

It’s too bad Ron is not around to enjoy the honor.

December 3, 2010

Santo Passes

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Ron Santo died on Thursday:

Legendary Chicago Cubs player and broadcaster Ron Santo died Thursday night in Arizona. He was 70.

Friends of Santo’s family said the North Side icon lapsed into a coma on Wednesday before dying Thursday. Santo died of complications from bladder cancer, WGN-AM 720 reported.

“He absolutely loved the Cubs,” said Santo’s broadcast partner, Pat Hughes. “The Cubs have lost their biggest fan.”

Santo battled diabetes for years, losing his legs. It took a cancer to kill him, however. The peak of his career occurred from 1964 to 1969, during a time of low offense in baseball. He posted a .291/.387/.505 slash line during that time. About the same time, changes in the National League caused Wrigley Field to become a more extreme hitter’s park. Ballparks added to the NL in the previous decade (in Milwaukee, Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York and Houston) tended to favor pitchers. That shift helped Santo as he hit .309/.406/.574 at home in those years. Still, he posted monster WARs, and many fans believe he belongs in the Hall of Fame.

My thoughts go out to his family, friends and many fans.