Ryne Sandberg, Chicago Cubs legend and Hall of Famer, dies at 65

Slugger cubs of the temple of reputation in Chicago and the second basic player Ryne Sandberg died, after a battle against prostate cancer.

Sandberg died on Monday July 28, confirmed the Cubs. He was 65 years old.

“Ryne Sandberg was a hero of a generation of Chicago Cubs fans and will remember one of the greats of all time in almost 150 years of this historic franchise,” said Cubs executive president Tom Ricketts, in a statement. “His dedication and respect for the game, as well as his implacable integrity, her grain, his competitive fire and was the characteristics of his career. He was extremely proud of his teammates and his role as a global ambassador for the baseball game, but above all, he was proud of Margaret, his children and his role as husband, father and grandfather.”

Sandberg played in some parts of 16 large league seasons, almost entirely with the cubs.

Sandberg was born on October 18, 1959 in Spokane, Washington. He was the youngest of four children from Derwent “Sandy” Sandberg, a mortician, and Elizabeth “Libby” Sandberg, nurse, according to the Society for American Baseball Research.

Sandberg’s parents appointed him for the New York Yankees launcher Ryne Duren, the company reported.

At the North Central High School in Spokane, Sandberg was out of competition in baseball, as well as football and basketball, noted the company, citing local newspaper reports. He received the honors of the All-America team from Parade magazine as a quarter and bettor in the school’s football team and received the honors of the Greater Spokane League basketball team its junior and senior years, the company reported.

On the basketball field, John Stockton, later from Utah Jazz, was a rival of the Sandberg of Gonzaga Prep High School, the company reported.

But of course, it was the baseball diamond that turned out to be Sandberg’s call. In high school, Sandberg made the All-City team twice, reaching 0.417 with four circuits and helped his high school team at a 25-3 file and a second place in the championship of the state tournament.

The major leagues baseball scouts already had your eyes on Sandberg when he signed a letter of intent to go to the Washington State University for a football purse, the company noted. Although this was sufficient for most scouts to be interested, the scouts for the Philadelphia phillies continued to court Sandberg, and he ended up choosing baseball rather than football.

The Phillies drafted Sandberg in 1978. He first played in the minor leagues with the Pioneer League in Helena, Montana, then with the class A of Spartanburg in the Western Carolinas League in 1979, noted the company.

Sandberg progressed towards reading double-A in 1980 and made the Eastern League stars team. He played Triple-A Oklahoma City in 1981, before the Phillies called him to the majors at the end of the season.

After the 1981 season, the Phillies and the Cubs exchanged stops – Larry Bowa came to Cubs in exchange for Iván Dejesus – but the Director General of Cubs, Dallas Green, also wanted Sandberg, according to the renowned temple of baseball.

During his first season with the Cubs in 1982, Sandberg played the third goal and struck .271 with 33 doubles and 32 stolen bases. According to the temple of baseball fame, it finished sixth in the recruit of the year of the national league.

Sandberg was passed to the second goal for the 1983 season – that the Cubs finished with a record of 71-91, and who remembers the best of a tirade by manager today Lee Elia intended for disrespectful fans. But Sandberg won the first of the nine consecutive prices Gold Glove that year, noted the temple of baseball renown.

In 1984, Jim Frey replaced Elia as manager of Cubs. Sandberg was a starter for cubs alongside other legends such as Jody Davis, Leon Durham and Keith Moreland.

When the Cubs faced the cardinals of St. Louis at Wrigley Field on June 23, 1984, Sandberg continued to drive in races to overcome a deficit from the beginning of 7-1 Cubs. But the cubs were still down 9-8 when the bottom of the ninth started – only for Sandberg to strike a circuit and attach it.

The Cubs did not score again at the end of ninth, and the game was in additional sleeves. Saint-Louis scored two additional points at the top of the 10th and took an advance of 11-9, but with two withdrawals and person on the basis, Bob Last worked to Sutter-and Sandberg struck another circuit to equalize the match at 11 years, according to The Baseball Hal of Fame.

The Cubs marked once again on a simple RBI of Dave Owen – and won 12-11. The game became known as “Ryne Sandberg Game” and propelled the Cubs from 1984 to success this season.

The Cubs won the Championship of the East Division of the National League in 1984 – for their first appearance in the playoffs since the 1945 World Series.

While the Cubs lost the series of championships in the 1984 3-2 national league, Sandberg won the prize for the most precious players in the National League and awarded the list of stars for the first of 10 times. According to the temple of baseball renown, Sandberg struck 0.314 in 1984 and led the NL in points marked with 114 and tripple with 19.

In 1989, a season in which Cubs also won the East Division Championship of the National League, Sandberg reached the brand of 30 counterparts, according to the reproductive temple of baseball. According to the temple of renowned baseball, he led the national league with 40 circuits, 116 points, 344 bases, 100 products produced and 25 interceptions in 1990.

That year, Sandberg was the first second goal player to lead the National League in circulation since Rogers Hornsby in 1925 and the first second base player to reach 30 or more circuits in consecutive baseball seasons, according to the baseball renowned temple.

Sandberg retired after the 1997 season.

In total, Sandberg has raised a career .285 / .344 / .452 Slash Line (114 OPS +) and marked around 68 victories above the replacement, by baseball reference.

He was an All-Star 10 times and a winner of Nine Gold Glove Awards, Seven Silver Slugger Awards and the most precious players’ prize in the 1984 National League. He was inducted at the baseball renowned temple in 2005, earning more than 76% of the votes during his third year on the ballot.

After his retirement, Sandberg was a training instructor in the spring with the Cubs in Mesa, Arizona. From 2007 to 2010, Sandberg was director of the CUBS minor league system-first with the single-A with the Triple-A Iowa Peoria Chiefs, then the Cubs Double-A of Tennessee, and finally the Cubs of the Valley Triple-A Lehigh.

When Lou Piniella retired as a Cubs manager after the 2010 season, Sandberg was a favorite to take his place. However, the director general of Cubs, Jim Hendry, transmitted Sandberg and went with Mike Quade instead.

Sandberg then left the organization of Cubs and became director of minor leagues for phillies. He was Philadelphia bench coach, then director of the Phillies for three seasons from 2013 to 2015.

Sandberg won 42.8% of his 278 competitions as a phillies manager before being withdrawn from the position halfway during the 2015 season.

Sandberg has received a prostate cancer diagnosis In January 2024. He underwent treatment and shared that he had been declared without cancer in August of the same year, but Four months laterHe told fans that cancer had returned and spread to other organs.

Sandberg appeared in training in the spring of Cubs In Mesa, Arizona, for the Cubs spring training in February 2025, with its former Shawon Dunston teammates, Mark Grace, Rick Sutcliffe and Fergie Jenkins. The manager of the Cubs, Craig Counsell, looked like a young person with admiration for Sandberg to other veterans – and Counsell spoke of stories of icons like what meant so much for him.

“People like Ryno and the renowned temple have an impact as when they intervene in the room – and that’s what Ryno has already done for us,” said Counsell. “He has already had an impact.”

But Sandberg and the group also conferred their wisdom to young players like Matt Shaw.

“This is why we are here. We are here for the players,” said Sandberg. With Matt, you know, I had a conversation – I could think immediately at 1982, and be in the camp, and have seasons of minor leagues to my credit with some success, and “OK, now it’s the major leagues” – just to let him know what I experienced, and what it was essentially for me.

In July 2025Sandberg said he couldn’t have been in Wrigley Field as much as he wanted for the baseball season, but he had encouraged the team and watched from home.