Must Read Obit--Terry Cannon & His Baseball Reliquary
 

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/09/s...ion=Obituaries

Just read this AMAZING obit in today's NY Times. What a guy, what a life. You will be blown away by his HOF, who he honored, and what he has in terms of "memorabilia." I guarantee it. Sadly he passed away at 66.

Stay healthy.

Fun read. Sounds like he was my kind of guy! RIP.

how does one's wife allow there to be a life-size cut-out of Sparky Anderson next to the bed?

Seems like an odd/interesting fellow, to say the least.

Terry's passing was a great tragedy to all of us who were lucky enough to have known him and of The Reliquary. Five years ago, I was fortunate and humbled to have been awarded The Reliquary's Tony Salin Memorial Award (more about that below).

About six months ago, The Reliquary had gotten some nasty social media hate, calling the idea a "joke" and other, less kind names. Remember, The Reliquary is NOT the Hall of Fame, and the players and personalities enshrined in it are elected by fans and not baseball writers with their own agenda.

When I saw how much heat The Reliquary and Terry was taking, I wrote the following:

Terry Cannon: My 2015 Tony Salin Award has been the thing I am most proud of in my entire career.

The words describing the award, "given to individuals for their commitment to the preservation of baseball history," made my lifetime of interest in baseball history and writing and illustrating the obscure and forgotten players all worthwhile.

I was never so proud as when I accepted the award in front of my wife and in-laws. Later, Tony Salin’s son asked me to sign a glove which past Reliquary awardees signed. He saved a special spot for me right next to the one and only Steve Dalkowski. As an added bonus, my old pal Charlie Vascellaro just so happened to be the keynote speaker.

To me, the Reliquary does what the Hall of Fame cannot – honor the forgotten, the passed over and the trail blazers. The working stiff in the stands who can only afford a single hot dog and a beer. The kid who saved up for a month to get a bleacher seat. The young professional who played hooky from work to take in a day game. The mom who shlepped a Ford station wagon full of kids to bobble head night. The college kid who watches quietly in his dorm room as his boyhood hero takes the last at bat of his career.

Someone has to represent these people, and to me, the Baseball Reliquary does.

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When I found out about his passing, I wrote a small tribute to him and his Reliquary, but instead of dwelling on his death, I decided a better way to honor Terry would be to write about one of his favorite players, Steve Dalkowski. You can read about it HERE.

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I hope The Reliquary lives on long after Terry's passing. It is the perfect institution to restore one's faith in the game and bring back the joy we all had for baseball when we were young.