Jerry Coleman |
One family of fans who never met Jerry Coleman say
good-bye
OH, DOCTOR--You have to be a special breed of sports fan to be loyal to the San
Diego Padres, one of the few teams never to have won a Major League World
Series championship. Yet, for Padres
fans “winning isn’t everything.” Loyal Padres
fans have other joys: great weather, a beautiful baseball park and of course, its
long-time broadcaster Jerry Coleman.
Jerry, 89, died over the
weekend because of complications following a fall.
San Diegans all have a
favorite Jerry Coleman story.
Here’s another one.
As a kid growing up on
Golden Hill, I watched on TV the San Diego Padres led by lefthander Bob
Kerrigan win the 1954 Pacific Coast League pennant. The game was at late, great Lane Field, which
is still an empty lot at Pacific Coast Highway and Broadway. It was one of the first games ever telecast
in town.
Been a Padres fan ever
since.
In 1969, my then infant son
Zac went with me to see many games during the Padres first major league season.
Zac went on to college in
the San Francisco Bay Area, where he graduated from college, eventually
married, bought a home in Pleasant Hill near Walnut Creek. And, he’s a proud
dad of two sons, the oldest being a left-handed pitcher for Concord de la Salle
High school.
Of course, the grandsons,
along with their dad are steadfast Padres fans. They claim they’re the only
Pads fans in Pleasant Hill.
Zac and his brother Mike
bought us tickets to opening day of the Padres first game in Petco Park in
2004. Like so many, many others, we
listened to our pocket radio’s while following the game in person. We listened to Jerry Coleman.
Many of us in the audience
teased Jerry for his malapropos, but we also listened to his every word when
the Colonel screamed over the air that the San Diego Padres had the 1998 National
League pennant wrapped around their shoulders.
“Oh, Doctor!”
When we learned that Jerry
Coleman, patriot, US Marine fighter pilot in two wars, major league Hall of
Famer, San Diegan and Padres broadcaster, passed away, it saddened an
entire city, including my sons and family, especially our oldest grandson,
Coleman Daniel Shess.
Image: Courtesy San Diego Padres
National Broadcaster Keith Olbermann delivered a heartfelt tribute to Jerry at the following link: http://atmlb.com/KAAr5J
UPDATE: On the Wednesday following Jerry's death the student cheering section at the San Diego State basketball game vs. Boise State saluted Jerry and his famous catch phrase: "You can hang a star on that one (great play)." Pretty cool, Aztecs!
National Broadcaster Keith Olbermann delivered a heartfelt tribute to Jerry at the following link: http://atmlb.com/KAAr5J
UPDATE: On the Wednesday following Jerry's death the student cheering section at the San Diego State basketball game vs. Boise State saluted Jerry and his famous catch phrase: "You can hang a star on that one (great play)." Pretty cool, Aztecs!
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