Just found out a little while ago that Chicago Cubs legend, Ernie Banks has passed away at the age of 83. A part of my childhood has died tonight.
By the time I discovered baseball, Ernie Banks' career was on the decline. Although he started out as a shortstop he eventually had to move to 1st base due to injuries. But he was already a legend by that time. I never had the opportunity to meet the man, but he had a reputation in baseball as one of the nicest guys on the planet. Always upbeat. Never a sour word from him. One of his stock phrases was "Let's play two!"
He began his career with the Kansas City Monarchs in the old Negro League. He joined the Cubs in 1953. I was lucky enough to be home sick from school in May of 1970 and was watching the game on WGN when he hit his 500th home run. I'll never forget that. To be honest, part of me seems to remember that I pretended to be sick that day on the chance that he'd hit #500.
Ernie Banks hit 512 home runs and had 1,636 RBIs over his MLB career. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1977. He was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Obama in 2013.
RIP Mr. Cub..