Sad News, Rickey Henderson Passes
 

Sad news today. Just saw the confirmation.

Rickey Henderson, a Baseball Hall of Famer and MLB’s all-time stolen bases leader, has died, The Post has confirmed.

He was 65 and passed while in the Oakland area on Friday after battling pneumonia, per TMZ.

Just days before his famous Christmas birthday. Very sad and shocking news, as he was only 65. RIP.

The Top 5 Rickey Henderson Rookie & Early Career Cards

Rip rickey

Shocking to say the least. Very sad. RIP...

Wow, my favorite player to collect while growing up. RIP Rickey!

RIP Rickey, may you forever live in the field of dreams.

A game always got better once he drew a walk

Wow - RIP Rickey. You sure made a lot of people smile and laugh while you were here.

Lived in the Bay Area in the 1980s and went to a lot of A's games. The team was loaded with talent with Rickey Henderson leading the pack. What an exciting player he was. Shocked to learn of his passing. A sad day.

He certainly added an exciting element to the game.
RIP "Man of Steal"

Very sad to hear this. Long may you run, Rickey, and condolences to the family.

Damn!!!! I just taped part of an SGC Blind Reveal video where I was talking about what an absolute menace he was on the basepaths and how much he changed the game. Wow, just shocked. RIP Rickey.

Oh Wow! Loved his time on the Yanks. Maybe the funnest player to ever watch play the game. Baseball turned into a white knuckle video game whenever he came up to the plate and got on base......however he decided to get on base...if he didn't just decide to launch a HR instead.

Say what you want about him. Big Ego! Sometimes ignorant of baseball etiquette! Clubhouse disruptor! Sometimes got bored too easily and would seemingly fall into pouting sessions..........whatever.

The man LOVED to play baseball, as evidenced by his 3 years of Independent League ball in his mid-40's, after MLB was done with him.

Age 45 in the Atlantic League he stole 37 bases in 39 attempts in 91 games. Had a .462 OBP that season, LOL.

I've been to Atlantic League games. It's not bad baseball. Mostly older experienced guys who are no longer considered prospects, but were mostly still very productive players in the farm systems they came out of. Lots of former Quad A type players and former Major Leaguers.

Everyone loves Ricky.. RIP..

Saw him in the Atlantic League. Blessed for my kids were able to see him play and he was vintage Ricky the way he has that “snapping catch”/flick of wrist/glove after catching the ball.
And he still hustled when he played
One of my favorite players
Passed so young.
Will be missed
RIP

Rickey had a certain thing I've never seen in any other prolific base stealer that I can't quite put my finger on.

He'd get on base any way he could....bunt, walk, forced error, chop hit, or HR.

He'd get into a pitchers head, any way he could...1st inning or 9th. He'd force balks, he'd make that pitcher pay attention to him, instead of the batter the pitcher was facing...he'd mesmerize the entire infield to pay attention to him and him alone.

Maybe it was just a childhood hallucination, but I swear I've seen him fake a bunt and hit a HR instead....possibly more then once...:D

It's not a coincidence that Don Mattingly had 145 RBI's and won an MVP Award overwhelmingly, the 1st season a fully motivated Rickey came to the Yanks. A season which in statistical hindsight, Rickey accumulated a full 3.4 WAR more then Mattingly, in 16 less games played.

Truly sad! RIP Rickey Henderson ⚾️

Only 65. IMHO, Leadoff GOAT.

RIP

A Truly Dynamic Ballplayer
 

As others have said, what a shock. A sweet guy. My favorite Rickey story is when he received a one million dollar check from the Yankees. It was never cashed so the Yankees called him about it. He told them he had framed it and put it on his wall.
I will never forget when he stole 130 bases (I believe) in 1982. It was so exciting. Thank you, Rickey, for giving baseball such a charge. We are all forever grateful. RIP.

Saw him when As were playing @ Skydome in early 90s
Our seats were about 15 rows back down 3rd base line between 3b and LF
Throughout first few innings people kept stopping by to chat with lady couple rows up all decked out in fancy dress and tons of jewelry
Usher would later let us know it was Mama Henderson and she was just as gracious with everybody as people describe Rickey
Haven’t thought about that in a while


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His durability was extraordinary.

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That's also one of my favorite Rickey memories/stories. He was approachable and didn't mind signing for the kids. Just an incredible lead off talent.

Ouch. That one’s another nail in the coffin of my childhood. I am shocked.:(

Rest in peace, Rickey.

Wow. I had to check ESPN on that report and found nothing. I guess the crew at ESPN is caught up in the college football playoff. He always was a great signing guest. Gone to soon.

RIP Rickey

It amazes me that I never saw him mentioned when the subject was 'Greatest Living Player'.

While only an average defender, he was, IMO, one of the top 20 players of ALL-TIME. What an offensive weapon he was!

When I turn 69 in three weeks, I'll still think of Rickey always being in perfect shape...65 was too young...and I admit to being shocked that he left so soon.

Life remains fragile. RIP Rickey.


.

RIP Rickey

Rickey was mentioned literally in the first two replies to the "Greatest Living Player" thread you started earlier this year after Willie passed, and mentioned numerous times thru out. One member even stated:

He was definitely mentioned along with the likes of Bonds/Griffey/Ryan/Koufax/Pujols/Clemens/A-Rod/Ohtani/Judge

Rickey
 

I don't post a lot but here's my take on Rickey.
Rickey could have crushed it in any era.
Dead Ball. You got it. Base to base.
Power... if necessary.
OBP, sure why not.

Rickey coulda had the highest average if that's all Rickey wanted.
Rickey coulda hit the most home runs.
But scoring runs wins games.
So Rickey always tried to get home faster than anyone.

Wish Rickey would have spent a little more time with us before Rickey went home today. But that's Rickey being Rickey.

There will never be another Rickey. Incredible athletes like him, Tim Raines, and Vince Coleman rarely choose baseball these days. It's sad that the sport is largely dead in the black community.

RIP Rickey,

Darn, now the players who made their debut in my adult years are starting to pass.

Joe Posnanski had a blog post obituary for Rickey that talked about all the teams he played for and the different numbers he wore. It included the story below that made me laugh. RIP.

"When he was traded to Toronto in 1993, Turner Ward wore No. 24, so Rickey briefly wore No. 12. He quickly bought No. 24 from Ward, for a reported $25,000. He also took Ward’s locker and his spot in leftfield. “I told my wife to stay away from him,” Ward said."

At the 2015 All Star Game, MLB honored the Franchise Four, the greatest living players, Willie Mays, Hank Aaron, Sandy Koufax and Johnny Bench. I agree that they were all better than Henderson. Koufax and Bench are still alive.

Agree.

My reply was simply to the poster saying Rickey wasn't mentioned in the "Greatest Living Player" thread, when he clearly was mentioned. I wasn't making a case that Rickey was better than anybody.

There was a poll on this site right after Mays died in which we picked the greatest living player and more than 400 people voted. Henderson finished sixth in that poll, though one right ahead of him was Pete Rose, who passed between Mays and Henderson.

I noted in my comment for that poll that I did an informal survey among 14 people I know outside of the board (including myself in that count) and Bonds and Henderson were the only two people who got votes. Pujols and Maddux were both named as honorable mentions twice, but only Bonds and Henderson got votes.

I would say we could do another vote, but it would be a waste because Bonds won by a huge landslide the first time. No one else even got half as many votes as him.

Joe DiMaggio continues to insist he be referred to as baseball's greatest living player.

Rickey was one of my favorite ballplayers of all time!
Greatest lead off hitter, stolen base king and he played left field for my A's during the '80s
I had to have his rookie card in the '80s and I still have the same card today.

RIP

I'm shocked, man. Only 65 too. F*cking pneumonia. I got this sh*t last winter and it took over a month for it to f*ck off. It was caused by a virus too and so the pills did nothing. The hardest part was trying to sleep at night ...

Try to stay away from sick people and mask up if you have to. Wash hands frequently as well. Too much nasty sh*t out there.

No way, that's sad news! RIP to one of the greats...

RIP Rickey!

Henderson is way too underrated and IMO was the one of the top 10 to ever play the game.

My first “focus” when I got back into collecting was a master Rickey Henderson “set”. It’s an impossible task made even more impossible by all the extreme rarities out there. At one point, I had over 2,000 unique contemporary Henderson cards (pre-2006), but sold many of my rarer Henderson collectibles as I transitioned to collecting HOF rookies. I still have one “one-of-a-kind” Rickey (shown at the bottom below).

There is quite a huge contingent of passionate Rickey Henderson collectors and there are some unbelievable collections out there.

Here are a few cards that are no longer part of my collection. I’m happy to have been a temporary caretaker of so many great cards!

1978-79 Mexican League Sticker (only one known):
https://photos.imageevent.com/derekg...%20Sticker.jpg

1982 Fleer Test:
https://photos.imageevent.com/derekg...r%20Test_1.jpg

1982 Topps Blackless:
https://photos.imageevent.com/derekg...lackless_1.jpg

1977 Chong:
https://photos.imageevent.com/derekg...C%20_sold_.jpg

1981 Granny Goose:
https://photos.imageevent.com/derekg...e%20_sold_.jpg

1984 Topps “Head In Box” Test Proof:
https://photos.imageevent.com/derekg...st%20Proof.jpg

And the only rarity still in my collection (a “one-of-a-kind”)….

1987 Starting Lineup Talking Baseball Prototype:
https://photos.imageevent.com/derekg...ll%20Proof.jpg

https://photos.imageevent.com/derekg...f%20_back_.jpg

Precisely! That's what's missing from the game these days and it's very sadly missed. Mayhem on the base paths adds immeasurably to the game.

:(

Very early in Rickey's career he was an autograph guest at a show in St. Louis. I was helping out in some small capacity and ended up sitting near him before the signings began. Johnny Mize was also signing that day. I think everyone expected Henderson to be too cool for the room, but he turned out to be a great guest. I sat in amazement as Rickey asked Mize about hitting. The Big Cat talked for quite a while and Rickey hung on every word. It was inspiring to see an already successful young superstar eager to learn from a great player 45 years his senior.

For all his hilarious Rickeyisms, he was truly a genius on the diamond. What a wonderful story regarding Mize. It goes to prove that the best are forever learning, always students.

Rickey would have made for a very interesting manager if only he could have learned English! :). Imagine Rickey as manager with Yogi as a coach. What I would have given to be at those press meetings.

Wasn’t a big fan for most of his career, although he did seem to mature later on in some ways. Back in 82 the year he stole 130 my dad and I were on a west coast trip and went to a midsummer Oakland game. The A’s fell behind 6-0 early and Henderson drew a walk and immediately tried to steal 2nd. They pitched out and threw him out by a mile. My dad commented (correctly imo) that it was a selfish play and bad baseball given the game situation. I also didn’t like how Rickey seemed to invent that odd glove flip after making routine catches on fly balls. I don’t know if he was the first to do it but I recall seeing him do it. This is unfundamental baseball of course. You’re supposed to catch everything with two hands and it always struck me as unnecessary bombast. I also didn’t love when he hoisted 3rd base in the air when he beat Brock’s record, although in retrospect I’m probably being a snob about that and it was kind of cool and also spoke volumes about his personality. He went to quite a few teams. Just struck me as a mercenary me first type, certainly not humble in any event. Over time, the good, playful side of his personality came out and he seemed to mature with life experience, like most people do. In any event, he was an outstanding player.

“Best ever….”

Not many unarguable “best ever” players in baseball history:

Nolan Ryan - best ever strike out pitcher
Mariano Rivera - best ever closer
Willie Mays - best ever all around player

Rickey Henderson - best ever leadoff hitter

After 140 or so years of history, it’s really something to be be the undisputed best at anything in this game - and Rickey was one of those few.

What a legendary player he was

My son-in-law grew up an Oakland A's fan during Rickey's prime. As a kid he had a poster in his bedroom of the iconic photograph of Rickey holding third base over his head immediately after breaking the record and just before the "I am the greatest" speech. His mother had taken the poster to a show and gotten Rickey to sign it. As you might expect, the poster disappeared between high school and marriage.

Several years ago, I commissioned a mosaic of the poster made from baseball cards and gave it to him. It strikes me as the way that Rickey would like to be remembered:

This one really sucks.

Rickey was an amazing talent but to me the greatest thing about him was his personality. He made zero effort to conform to others' wishes. In a sport of great conformity, where guys make it their job to enforce ancient "unwritten rules" -- like they are working towards achieving world peace or curing cancer, as opposed to playing a child's game -- Rickey was who he was. He was thoughtful and kind and 100% genuine. He wasn't afraid to be weird as hell. He wasn't Derek Jeter repeating the same 15 phrases for a career, or Mike Piazza basically doing the same, but 110% this is who am am, like it or lump it. Funny guy and everyone says a great teammate. Imagine being as great as he was and just maintaining your authentic self and not bending to how others want you to act. That's a goal any one in any field could strive for.

Met him once with my son, who was maybe 8. Last day of the season for the Newark Bears. Fans could come on the field and met the players take pictures. I assumed Rickey, one of the greatest of all time wouldn't not be out there with a line up of basically minor league talent. Nope, there he was. Standing off by himself. My son and I approached him and Rickey made small talk and signed my son's hat. A great memory. For such a boisterous guy he seemed incredibly quiet and shy.

So many great Rickey stories. This is a pretty well known one and tells a lot about who he (and the aforementioned catcher) are.

https://not.fangraphs.com/another-re...-the-greatest/

…ancient "unwritten rules"…

These ancient “unwritten rules” are what makes baseball the greatest sport in the world. No other sport has these…

Yeah, sure. No touching the buffet in the clubhouse before the veterans eat . . .that's huge. Throw some dude's food on the floor. That's what makes the sport great.

I don't know. I don't think I've ever said "I'm so in love with this game because XYZ never offends anyone."

I started watching baseball in 1990s. People were saying Griffey was horrible for wearing his hat backward. Griffey is the undeniable favorite modern player for collectors.

Today, there is just something about watching Elly de la Cruz. He is young, a diamond in the rough, but he is bringing people to baseball. His bat flips, eagerness, smile, it's contagious. I've worn Reds hats and jerseys for years. Nobody cared. Now random people walk past me and stop me to say things. And it's no longer, "Are you a Chicago Bears fan?"

Shohei Ohtani is just boring, regardless of his talent. Rickey being Rickey made people love him or hate him.

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The problem now is that Rickey Henderson would be very tame in comparison to some players. He wouldn't be flashy now, he'd be average. Some of these celebrations we see now are somewhere between obnoxious and childish. Grown men have choreographed dances for home runs and take 35 seconds to get through it. One of the craziest things people say is let them have fun, as if hitting a Major League home run isn't fun. As if celebrating a home run with your teammates isn't fun. A lot of the celebrations just show a lack of respect for the opponents. No one wants a league full of guys acting like Jesse Winkler, but we could be headed that way.

Yeah, sure. No touching the buffet in the clubhouse before the veterans eat . . .that's huge. Throw some dude's food on the floor. That's what makes the sport great.

This happens in literally every sport. Not just baseball. Your argument is dumb.

"Grown men have choreographed dances for home runs and take 35 seconds to get through it."


Perhaps you are thinking about the NFL?

I think I was at that show as well, I still have the Rickey and Mize autos from that day. I’m positive that Lou Brock was signing as well, do you remember? I think it was 1982.

I'm going to guess that you think the Yankee's no facial hair policy elevates the game somehow.

I think Acuna plays the game with great flair and joy, without being too obnoxious.

A league full of Jesse Winkers would be unbearable! [emoji1787]

Yeah, just like Rickey, Griffey Jr would be tame by comparison.

But you have to admit, the televised WBC games with Latin teams are entertaining. Randy Arozarena brings that flare. Little Leaguers were loving Arozarena a couple years ago. They were wearing pearls like Joc Pederson. It's fun to see kids finding joy like I did with Griffey.

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Not to mention Maury Wills and Lou Brock from the 1960's.

But there's been a pronounced decline in base stealing overall this century to the detriment of the game. Baseball is oft criticized for being slow with little action. Well a speed merchant/base stealer on the base paths adds a quantum level of excitement to the game.

:(

Mike Bossy of the New York Islanders was the first such shocker for me. Born 22 January 1957, he passed away of lung cancer on 15 April 2022.

:eek:

Can only express what has already been said:

65, so sad (and scary that's about my age).
Greatest lead-ff off hitter, no questions.
His stolen base record will never be beaten (they don't steal much these days).

One of my favorite players, and can recall my most favorite play, his "bunt double" ---

Bunted the ball real hard to right side of infield. Ball shoots between charging pitcher and 1B. By the time the 2B (covering first), and the RF (with ball trickling to him), noticed what was happening, Ricky was on second !!!!

Sad, sad, Scott :(

That was all Billy Martin. Billy had burned out the A's starting staff the previous couple of seasons and the offense had the lowest Batting Average in all of baseball that season. Billy was just playing chaos ball to try and stay in games.

They had Rickey and a bit of pop, so they were still about league average in Runs Scored, but their pitching was so horrendous it didn't matter.

Billy gave Rickey the green light to go whenever, wherever, and in all situations. Just try and cause chaos and maybe we'll eke one out here and there.

Also rumors were Billy was trying to get fired to go back and work for Steinbrenner......so....there's that. ;)

Not a coincidence Billy did come back as manager, the same year Henderson came to the Yanks.

This is the scenario I love:

Young guy hits homerun in a big spot, showboats a little going around the bases.

Certain percentage of fan base snickers of is really pissed at the celebration. (Particularly if player has dreads or is wearing a doo rag.)

Reporter asks pitcher after the game if he was pissed at celebration.

Pitchers says "hell, he can celebrate however he wants. He hit a homerun.
Only thing I'm worried about is throwing a better pitch in that spot."

Fans getting their panties in a twist while fellow players shrug and say who cares.

The anticipation and excitement was tremendous when Ricky was on base! Just loved to see him - the cat/mouse with the pitchers trying to hold him close - his break to second base - his speed - the thrill of his head first slide! A lotta fun !

Amazing, Rickey is basically the Wayne Gretzky of stolen bases. I just realized he played another 12 seasons AFTER he broke Lou Brock's record.

:eek:

There's no way Johnny Bench was better than Ricky Henderson! Pete Rose, maybe, but not Johnny Bench.

For a good part of his career...the pitcher and catcher KNEW he was going. It was just a matter of whether they could do anything about it.

Saw many Walks turn into Triples. Saw him get picked off a lot to. Also saw him beat a lot of pickoffs (and pitchouts) to 2nd base. :D:D

This is the scenario I love:

Young guy with dreadlocks or doo rag hits homerun in a big spot, showboats a little going around the bases thus neglecting to touch second. Is thrown out.

;)

He led the league at age 39 lol.

I think this came up in the playoffs, but the base almost missed (HR upheld on review) was first base.

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I hate football and even I know they don't have home runs.

If you've never seen choreographed dances around the basepaths that take too long then you haven't watched baseball in ten years.

Rickey had some memorable postseason performances to.

Absolutely dominated in 1989 in both the Championship Series and the World Series.

In 1999, at age 40 with the Mets, in the Division Series against Arizona, he batted .400 and went 6 for 6 stealing bases. :D

There's a misconception among MLB fans that think Latin players are being unfairly held back in the fun department. I watched winter league ball as part of my job for almost 15 years and I can tell you that the people who hate the Latin celebrations most are opposing Latin players. The amount of brawls in Latin countries (Mexico, Dominican, Colombia and Venezuela were the ones I watched the most) was far beyond anything we have seen in the majors.

They don't like over the top celebrations against them, they don't like guys watching homers. The celebrations where the entire team comes out of the dugout seems to be completely acceptable from what I've seen. I have probably seen at least twice as many winter league brawls in about 750 games total (give or take), than I have in almost 40 years of watching MLB and minor league games religiously, probably close to 10,000 games total. I've also watched about 150-200 games from Australia and I've seen one brawl there.

I thought it was hilarious that they were trying to make it about Latin players celebrating too much and that's why people were against it. They don't let anything go down there if it's disrespectful. MLB is a saint compared to winter ball in policing disrespectful celebrations.

So basically, Latin celebrations can add some excitement (you can't beat the crowds at winter league games) if done how they consider to be "correct", but winter ball celebrations can also lead to wild brawls pretty easy.

One of the most electric ball players I’ve ever seen play.

I hope wherever Rickey is at now, he can see the Entire State Building from there.

Funny I feel there's no way Pete Rose was better than Henderson, but Bench clearly was.

Rose? Rickey was an order of magnitude better than Rose. I know WAR is not the end-all be-all, but in this case they’re so far apart that it does tell you pretty much all you need on this question. Rickey 111.1, Rose 79.5. Bench had 79.1, for reference.

Bench had 79.1 as a Catcher with a much shorter career then both...partly or mostly because he was a full-time catcher.

I'm in the Rickey better than Rose, while Bench is much more debatable camp...simply because of the position that Bench played.

If I were to start a team off, and had to pick a young Bench, or a young Rickey...I'd probably pick Bench, having the hindsight to know the type of skillset that Bench possessed, and how rare it is to have that steady presence at that position both offensively and defensively for over a decade.

Rickey might get bored and be off somewhere else after a few seasons. ;)

I'll give it to Rose though. He was more durable then both (not that either one was made of china either). Sometimes, just being available everyday is an under-rated skill, when it means somebody at the end of the bench has to fill in for you.

I would have certainly put Rickey ahead of Koufax however. Rickey was just as (or almost as) electric as Koufax for as long as Koufax was for a certain number of prime years......plus he was pretty damn good for another 10-15 years on top of that.

One of the reasons I got into the hobby at age 9 was Rickey Henderson - he will be missed - my first card that I ever got was 1980 Topps RC card

Jimmy

I feel that Elly de la Cruz brought this to the MLB last year, for the first time in a long time. I only got to witness Rickey playing in a few games of his career due to my distance from Detroit (Kalamazoo) in the 1980's/90's, but I remember feeling the same buzz when he was on base at the old Tiger Stadium. My family's yearly trip to watch the Tigers was always against the A's or Yankees (on purpose). Everyone in the stadium knew he was running, but on which pitch?

And how many other superstar players in sports with a first name or nickname could immediately be identified besides Michael, Junior, Bo, Barry, or Sweetness, etc.? For people paying attention, every 'sports nut' in the 1980's and 1990's knew exactly who 'Rickey' was.