Pastime Passings

From time to time, I’ll post obituaries on former major leaguers and other significant baseball figures who have passed away in recent days. The New Year has already seen the loss of legendary USC baseball coach Rod Dedeaux and several other men who played major league baseball, including longtime reliever Paul Lindblad, whom we honored in yesterday’s post.

Seth Morehead (Died on January 17 in Shreveport, Louisiana; age 71; heart attack): A veteran of five major league seasons, Morehead pitched for the Philadelphia Phillies, Chicago Cubs, and Milwaukee Braves. In 132 games, the left-hander posted a 4.81 ERA and a record of 5-19. Morehead was the last pitcher to face Roy Campanella before the Hall of Famer’s career-ending auto accident and also the last pitcher to face the Brooklyn Dodgers before the team’s move to the West Coast.

Merv Connors (Died on January 8 in San Francisco, California; age 91): A longtime minor league slugger, Connors eventually reached the major leagues, playing in 52 games for the Chicago White Sox during the 1930s. In 165 at-bats, the first baseman-third baseman batted .279 with eight home runs and 24 RBIs. During his minor league career, which spanned from the thirties through the fifties, Connors clubbed over 400 home runs. In 1944 and ’45, Connors served in the military as part of the World War II effort.

Rod Dedeaux (Died on January 5 in Glendale, California; age 91; complications from a stroke): Dedeaux played in only two major league games as a shortstop, but forged a far more lasting legacy as one of the greatest and most enduring coaches in the history of college baseball. During a 45-year tenure as the head coach at the University of Southern California, Dedeaux won an NCAA record 11 national championships, 28 conference titles, and a total of 1,332 games against only 571 losses. After retiring as USC’s coach in 1986, he became the school’s director of baseball. Over 50 of Dedeaux’ players eventually made the major leagues, including Hall of Famer Tom Seaver and standouts like Randy Johnson, Fred Lynn, Mark McGwire, and Roy Smalley.

Paul Lindblad (Died on January 1 in Arlington, Texas; age 64; Alzheimer’s disease): A member of three World Championship teams, Lindblad was a reliable left-handed reliever for much of the late 1960s and early seventies. During a 14-year career spent entirely in the American League, Lindblad posted a 3.29 ERA, 64 saves, and a record of 68-63. Originally a member of the Kansas City A’s, Lindblad moved with the franchise to Oakland and then spent time with the Washington Senators and Texas Rangers before returning to the A’s in a 1973 trade. Pitching primarily in middle relief as one of the primary set-up men to Rollie Fingers, Lindblad pitched for Oakland’s World Championship teams in 1973 and ’74. He pitched in the 1973 Fall Classic, hurling the ninth and tenth innings of a Game Three victory over the New York Mets. Lindblad later returned to World Series play, appearing for the New York Yankees in a 1978 matchup against the Los Angeles Dodgers.