July 17, 1974: Dizzy Dean Heads To The Great Baseball Diamond In The Sky

      While researching the fact about Bob Gibson's 3,000th strikeout, I could not help but notice that on that same day in 1974 the great Dizzy Dean passed away at the age of 63. Dean's antics, as well as his spectacular performances on the mound made him the face of the Gashouse Gang in the thirties, then he would go onto become a larger than life personality in the booth calling games in the decades that followed. His days on earth may of ended that day, however, the legend of Dizzy Dean will stand the test of time. He was truly something special when it comes to the history of the Cardinals and all of baseball as well. While we may acknowledge the day that someone passed away, I do believe it is more important to celebrate the days that they lived. Therefore, today take some time to read about the life and times of the man they called Dizzy. What a grand tale it was. Read his SABR bio here: http://sabr.org/bioproj/person/40bc224d

I like to believe when Dizzy made it to the great baseball diamond in the sky he looked at the first batter he faced and said "Son, what kind of pitch would you like to miss?" He then fired one in and sure enough there was swing and a miss.