RYNE SANDBERG (1959-2025)
Yesterday, it was announced that Ryne Sandberg had died at the age of 65. He had been diagnosed with metastatic prostate cancer in 2024.
Sandberg was a lifetime .285 hitter who starred for the Chicago Cubs. He started with the Phillies in 1981 and had one hit in six at-bats. He then added 2385 hits, including 282 homers, playing for the Cubs. By the way, that one hit as a Phillie? It was on September 27, 1981, in the second game of a double-header off Mike Krukow…in Wrigley Field. Sandberg played shortstop. The omnipresent Bill Buckner of the Cubs had two homers and a double in that game.
I am the only writer (at this point) of the Billy-Ball five-time weekly post you are reading, but I don’t write alone. In the recesses of the backrooms are numerous friends and contacts I have made. As I have repeatedly told you, judge me by the company I keep. My injury guy is Will Carroll, who writes Under the Knife, a terrific post about baseball injuries. He doesn’t just list them; he explains them and often tells us how they could have been prevented. Today, however, Will wrote about a different kind of hurt, the hurt you feel when you lose a baseball hero. I felt that when Mickey Mantle died. I felt that again, following the sudden death of Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe. Today, Will wrote about Ryne Sandberg.
Ryne Sandberg was born a baseball player. He was named after Ryne Duren and had a brother named Del for Del Ennis. He and Ken Griffey Jr. are the only players to win an MVP, HR Derby, and 9+ Gold Glove Awards.
I often wake up at about 3:30 each morning, not because I enjoy having my sleep disrupted, but because I’m thinking about what to write the next day. Last night’s sleep was interrupted as I was figuring out how to express the loss that people were feeling about HOFer Ryne Sandberg’s passing. Had I known that Will would be so eloquent today, I wouldn’t have lost an hour’s sleep. With his permission, here’s today’s Under the Knife, by Will Carroll.
Ryne Sandberg died Monday. Sixty-five. Metastatic prostate cancer.
The game loses a Hall of Famer. I lose the reason I ever fell in love with baseball, if that is something that can be truly lost.
I grew up in the 1980’s and when my family first got cable, the channel I chose was WGN. In the sunny green afternoon, watching a young third baseman the Cubs had just stolen from Philadelphia, I fell hard. Harry Caray was new to the north side. Steve Stone was there in his rookie season as an announcer. That’s where I learned baseball, through that broadcast window and on dusty fields trying to be Sandberg. I was never an infielder.
I met him four times. Choked three of them.
The first time was before a Cubs playoff game. It was the one we all now call the Bartman Game, down on the Wrigley grass. I was in a circle with Len Kasper and Boog Sciambi. I felt someone join us, turned, and there he was. Sciambi says I went ghost-white. Never said a word.
Second time was at Harry Caray’s restaurant, where I was having dinner with Steve Stone. (I’m sorry some of this sounds like namedropping.) Someone came over to the table. It was Sandberg again. I shook his hand and he and Steve spoke a minute but me? No words.
Third time was at Victory Field here in Indy. He was managing the IronPigs, doing it the hard way — buses, backfields, small parks. Media availability. My turn to ask a question. I opened my mouth and all that came out was “uhhhh.” Complete choke.
Fourth time, same place later in the year. I promised myself I would get words out. I got all of them out. Too many. It came out in a rush - that he was the reason I loved baseball, that I’d watched every inning, that I dreamed of ivy, that I remembered the MVP, the Sandberg Game, the playoff runs, the retirement, the comeback. Every bit of 12-year-old me spilled out in a single breath.
He nodded. “Thank you. Next question.”
That was it. That was my moment with my hero.
I’ve heard he died on Hall of Fame induction day and that he didn’t want the announcement to overshadow anyone else. I don’t know if that’s true, but it tracks. That was Sandberg. No fuss. No noise. Just go out and do the job better than anyone else on the field.
Ryne Sandberg was everything I wanted to be - quiet, confident, handsome, skilled, and the best in the world at something he loved.
Monday, Ryne Sandberg died. With him went a little of that WGN afternoon light.
That great obituary/eulogy above, so eloquently narrated by MLB’s Matt Vasergian, is outstanding and includes the “Sandberg Game,” which you should know about (if you don’t already).
RYNO IN HIS OWN WORDS
AmericanRhetoric.com is an online repository of speeches. It includes, amongst its great speeches, Ryno’s Hall of Fame induction speech (written with Daily Herald columnist Barry Rozner), in which he spoke about respect.
I was taught you never, ever disrespect your opponent or your teammates or your organization or your manager and never, ever your uniform. Make a great play -- act like you’ve done it before. Get a big hit -- look for the third base coach and -- and -- and get ready to run the bases. Hit a home run -- put your head down, drop the bat, run around the bases, because the name on the front is more -- a lot more important than the name on the back.
That’s Respect.
RYNE SANDBERG AND HARRY CAREY
Darren Rovell posted, “In a stroke of perfection, Ryne Sandberg & Harry Caray debuted with the Chicago Cubs on the same day, also hung it up on the same day.”
FINAL THOUGHTS
“Hall of Famer and Cubs stalwart Ryne Sandberg wasn’t just a great baseball player – he was a class act who never cheated the game. Everyone in Chicago – including White Sox fans – will miss him deeply.” - Barack Obama
“There was so much sadness in Cooperstown this weekend as his fellow Hall of Famers braced for this news. Ryno was so beloved. His smile, his warmth, his kindness were ever present. He was always there for anyone who needed help. RIP to one of my favorite people in baseball.” - Jayson Stark
Ryne Sandberg…..Dude, Dawg, Stud, MVP, HoFamer! I am sad tonite…..we are losing them too fast and too often! - Chipper Jones
“For all of us who love the game of baseball, we lost one of the best to ever play second base. Ryne Sandberg. #23. Tremendous player and all around great guy. RIP Ryne. You fought courageously.” - Jim Palmer
“I learned so much from my teammate, Ryne Sandberg. Maybe the most important lesson was how to value quiet strength.” - Doug Glanville
“Ryne Sandberg wasn’t just a Cubs legend—he was a symbol of grit, class, and quiet excellence. His heroic play and humble leadership inspired generations of Chicagoans, including me. Rest in peace, Ryno. Your legacy lives on in the heart of Wrigley.” Illinois Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi
“Cubs players will wear a patch honoring him on their jerseys for the rest of the season. Cubs fans will wear his memory in their hearts forever.” - Jon Greenberg, The Athletic
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