Mike Tiernan

popular name: Will White

date_of_death: August 31, 1911

age: 56

cause_of_death: Drowning

claim_to_fame: Sports

best_know_for: William "Whoop-La" White was an American baseball pitcher and manager from 1875 to 1889. He played all or parts of 10 seasons in Major League Baseball, primarily for the Cincinnati Reds in the National League (1878–1879) and the Cincinnati Red Stockings in the American Association (1882–1886). He had three 40-win, and one 40-loss, seasons in Cincinnati. During the 1882 and 1883 seasons, he led the American Association in wins, compiling an 83–34 win–loss record and a 1.84 earned run average (ERA). Over the course of 10 major league seasons, White compiled a 229–166 record with a 2.28 ERA. His career ERA ranks ninth on the all-time list of Major League Baseball career ERA leaders. White also set a number of major league pitching records and still holds several. His 1879 totals of 75 complete games, 75 games started, 680 innings pitched, and 2,906 batters faced remain major league records. Overlooked no longer, he was named to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 2013. Will never became quite as famous as his older brother, but his accomplishments in his short career were as impressive as those of several Hall of Fame pitchers. He has been compared to Addie Joss, Dizzy Dean and Sandy Koufax, all of whom are in Cooperstown.1 He won more major league games than any of that immortal trio and had a better earned run average than either Dean or Koufax. Upon his death, he was laid to rest at Forest Lawn Cemetery in Buffalo, NY.

popular name: Andy Leonard

date_of_death: August 21, 1903

age: 57

cause_of_death: Hematemesis caused by stomach ulcers

claim_to_fame: Sports

best_know_for: Andy Leonard was one of the first professional baseball players of the 19th century (and firs of Irish descent), who played primarily left field. He played for a number of teams but was best known for his time with the Cincinnati Red Stockings (the first fully professional baseball team) and the Boston Red Stockings. His greatest success was with Boston where he won six championships during his seven seasons. He later worked for former teammate George Wright's sporting goods firm, Wright & Ditson, for several years before his 1903 death in Boston at age 57 of a stomach ulcer. On Saturday September 9, 2017 The Leonard Family, Major League Baseball and The Society for American Baseball Research dedicated a monument for Andrew Leonard, one of the original ten professional baseball players at New Calvary Cemetery, 800 Harvard Street in Mattapan, Massachusetts. This is the second monument that MLB and SABR have erected in the United States.

popular name: Billy Martin

date_of_death: December 25, 1989

age: 61

cause_of_death: Automobile accident

claim_to_fame: Sports

best_know_for: Billy Martin was a fiery and complex figure in Major League Baseball, best known for his success and volatility as both a player and a manager. As a player, he was a gritty second baseman who spent most of his career with the New York Yankees in the 1950s, contributing to multiple World Series championships and earning a reputation for toughness and clutch play. After retiring as a player, Martin became a manager and achieved notable success, including leading the Minnesota Twins to an American League West title in 1969, the Detroit Tigers to a division title in 1972, and the Oakland Athletics to three consecutive World Series appearances, winning the championship in 1974. His most famous managerial tenure was with the Yankees, whom he managed a record five separate times, winning the World Series in 1977. Despite his strategic brilliance and ability to get the best out of players in the short term, Martin’s career was repeatedly derailed by his explosive temper, frequent conflicts with players and management, and off-field incidents, making his legacy a mix of undeniable baseball acumen and self-destructive behavior.