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RIP Dad

Stradling
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Stradling Hall of Fame

Stradling

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Last night my dad passed away at the age of 83 after a 7 month battle with MDS, a form of bone marrow cancer. We were blessed that he never experienced any pain during the entire process. My dad was a great man that grew up on a farm in Iowa. He liked to tell the story about the first baseball game he ever saw in person, it was Memorial day, I believe it was 1950, where he and his buddies drove from Iowa to St Louis to watch a game. Bob Feller pitched that game, and I think he won the game, 8-1. My dad was a lot of things in his life, from a farmer, to a soldier, to an electrical engineer, to a cab driver in Anaheim. He use to get tickets for the Angel games from people he would pick up in his cab. I remember him telling a story about picking up Ron Guidry after a rough outing, where Reggie had taken him deep. My dad was an ordained minister when he retired. We grew up in Anaheim and my dad would take us to a couple of games each year. We didn't have a lot of money so he would either wait for Double Headers, back when they were scheduled, so we could watch two games for the price of one. Or he would wait until Family Night, where the entire top of the stadium (the 400's and 500's) at that time was general admission and the tickets were only a buck or two. We were there to see Chuck Finley's debut out of the bullpen, I think it was a double header against Detroit. My dad would drive his cab and it didn't have a radio, so he would bring a transistor radio and listen to the games. He was a man of integrity, a man of God, and a humble family man, that loved us very much. About 8 years ago, my dad moved out of state and ended up in North Dakota. He followed the Twins, and could tell you just about everything you need to know about them. He remained an Angel fan as well. I am sure a handfull of you met him a few years back when I brought him to Fan Fest, I think it was the game that Bruce Chen pitched the shut out against us. I will miss him dearly, he just had this calming affect on me, like whenever I was with him everything would be ok. He is the reason I am a baseball fan, because he shared the love of the game with my brothers and I. I am sure my brother will chime in on this thread and share other stories, but I wanted to share some of mine. Thank you for allowing me to post this here. I posted a little something on FB, but this is really where I spend most of my internet time, and I wanted to share. Sorry it is so jumbled up, it was more of a string of conscience type of post, rather than a well thought out post.

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mtangelsfan Baseball Ops

mtangelsfan

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Scott, I'm so very sorry about your dad.  I know I am approaching that very same scenario in the next few years.  It isn't something I even want to think about.

 

Words aren't great for this kind of thing but know I am praying for you and the rest of your family.

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The Ghost of Bob Starr Baseball Ops

The Ghost of Bob Starr

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Scott, I'm very sorry for your loss.  I am glad your father passed without pain.   The memories you share of going to the games with your father, is something many of us identify with.   Like you have done with your kids, now we are passing on that tradition to our children.   

 

My condolences to you and the rest of your family.

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Splint7438 Just Drafted

Splint7438

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For those you didn't know, I am Stradlings brother. Our dad absolutely loved baseball.and understood the game better than most people do. When he relocated to ND he started to watch Twins baseball. Thankfully the Twins have played a good brand of baseball for 25 years or so. They don't always win but the play the game right. We recently bought Appletv for hi. So he could watch the Twins before the Angel game came on. As I recall the Guidry story, Reggie had hit three homers and when dad mentioned that Reggie was having a good night, Guidry replied " he only got two off me". LOL what else can you say? I remember dad taking us all to a game in which Mike Witt struck out 17 if memory serves. He always swore that Bob Feller was as good as any he had seen in his 83 years. Even though he had some confusion issues over the last 8-9 months he was crystal clear when he said about Mike Trout "that kid is GOOD"! My dad was a master of the understatement. I mean John Cleese took his tips from my dad. And I only recall three players that he got excited about watching or talking about. Bob Feller, Nolan Ryan and Mike Trout. The last few years his comments about most players were " he used to be on the Twins". "Twins can't afford him". "Miggy kills the Twins". Thank you all for this small indulgence. Baseball is the perfect game loved by the perfect dad.

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