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Ernie Banks Photo Gallery
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Tribute To Ernie Banks (January 31, 1931- January 23, 2015)
This week will mark the seven-year anniversary of the death of the great Hall-of-Famer, Ernie Banks. Since he was my favorite player as a kid growing up in Chicago, I thought this would be a good time to re-post my tribute to Ernie which I wrote at the time of his death.
Ernie Banks, RIP
One of my earliest – and fondest – recollections in life is sitting on my grandfather’s lap on lazy summer Sunday afternoons watching the Cubs play a double-header on the old “black and white” with Jack Brickhouse calling the game. I can still remember my grandfather saying, “That’s Ernie Banks, he’s real good!”
Even as a little kid, I could see he was good, better than anybody else on the Cubs. Not only did he play shortstop, and play it well, he hit home runs…lots of them. What kid doesn’t like to see home runs?? That was unheard of for a shortstop! Why, you’d have to go all the way back to Honus Wagner, according to my grandfather….
I fell in love with baseball back then, mostly because of that “wonderful old man,” as Brickhouse came to call him in later years. My story is no different from that of many of my friends and from many other Cub fans from my generation. That’s why we’re Cub fans today. That’s the kind of impact Ernie Banks had on our lives. And for that we’re forever grateful to him.
I can still hear the exuberant cheers that erupted from the stands whenever the old field announcer from the ’50s, raspy-voiced Pat Pieper, announced Ernie’s name for the day’s game. Those cheers for Ernie always dwarfed the cheers for any other Cub player. It was always worth watching a Cub game just to see Ernie play. Those Cub teams in the ’50s were pretty miserable, so Brickhouse had little to get excited about, except for this young power-hitting shortstop, just up from the Kansas City Monarchs, whoever they were. I can still remember how excited Brickhouse got whenever Ernie hit one into the bleachers:
Back!…Back!…Back!…Hey Hey!! Atta’ boy, Ernie!
We all have fond memories of how Ernie stood at the plate, bent slightly forward at the waist, bat held erect, and fingers wiggling nervously along the shaft of the bat. Ernie was known for his incredibly strong wrists. I remember shaking hands with Ernie once back in the early 1970s shortly after he had retired. The reason I remember it so vividly is that I felt like I had put my hand in a vise! Yes…I can attest that Ernie had strong hands and wrists!
Ernie personified everything that is good about this game we grew to love in our childhood: his sunny disposition, his love of the game, the way he interacted with the fans. Everybody loved Ernie. Even White Sox fans had a grudging admiration for him. I don’t think I ever heard a Sox fan say a bad word about him. He was a living personification of the Martin Luther King ideal of judging a man by the content of his character rather than the color of his skin. He lived this in the way he treated others – and the way others treated him.
That’s because Ernie Banks had a rare but wonderful God-given gift of being able to bring out the very best in everyone he met. What a wonderful legacy! Who among us would not be proud to have the same said about us when our days are over?
Little did I know that 65 years later, the love affair he inspired in a five-year-old kid would still be going strong. Ernie Banks was a great ballplayer for sure, but much more important than that, he was an even greater man. We’ve endured a great loss today and we’re all very sad to hear the news. No doubt a part of all of us goes with him. And yet our lives have been enriched because we have had Ernie Banks in our midst.
May he rest in peace.
Gary Livacari
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Take a guess at this week’s Mystery Player:
I grew up watching Ernie in the 50s too. The day I learned he had passed a little of my childhood died that day.
Right…that’s exactly what I meant. Thanks.
Hi Gary:
In describing the great Ernie Banks, you sound like me describing what Gil Hodges was to me. We Brooklyn fans hated the Cubs. You guys always seemed to thwart us in our pursuit of a win. I think we had more trouble with Chicago than any other team in the National League. And, would you believe every time we went to an important game, we had a passle of Cub fans sitting right near by, It was uncanny. However, It was a pleasure to see Ernie play. He was as sunny a personality as I ever saw. God bless him. Wherever he is today, I hope it’s a great day and he gets to play two.
Sincerely,
Joan
Thanks Joan. But I find it hard to believe that the Cubs of the 50s, as bad as they were, gave the great Brooklyn Dodger teams of that era a hard time. I guess I was too young to realize.
Hey Gary:
By golly. You may be right. Have I confused the Mets and the Dodgers in my mind? That’s very possible. It just might have been the Cardinals with Stan Musial, Red Schoendinks (did I come anywhere close to the correct spelling on that?) They were a really good team.
If I have mixed them up, I apologize.
Regards,
Joan
Haha! I think you probably did Joan. I’d guess those Cardinal teams with Stan Musial and Red Schoendienst were a bit tougher than the lowly Cubs of the 1950s! By the way, I have to look up “Schoendienst” every time I write it. Still not sure I got it right even now!
Thanks for being so gracious, Gary. I wonder if a five-year-old boy in kindergarten had a hard time learning how to spell Schoendienst? That’s a toughie.
J
Great job, Gary!
You’ll always remember that vice-like grip from an immortal who contributed so much to the game of baseball.
Best, Bill
You’re right Bill…I just realized that was over 50 years ago, and I remember it like it was yesterday! -DD
Hi Gary:
In your response to Bill, you sign off -DD. Is that a private thing? I’m not curious, I was just wondering if it had something to do with both of your admiration for Ernie Banks.
Regards,
Joan
Hi Joan- Haha! You picked up on that! Yeah it is a bit of a private joke between Bill and me. A while back I did a post on the great Negro League star, Ted “Double Duty” Ratcliffe.” Ever since, Bill has been referring to me as “DD,” short for “Double Duty,” since I function as both editor and writer for the website. I’m doing Double duty! Hence, his nickname for me is “DD”.
Hey Gary:
Cool!
Joan
Very perceptive, Joan. And I know you’ll agree- Double D runs the best baseball website, period!
Hi Bill:
I have to say, it works for me. I haven’t thought about these things in years. Of course, I haven’t had anyone to remember with. My youngest son (52) lives and breaths The Mets and Islanders sports.I can talk Mets baseball with him, but, he can’t relate to the Dodgers the way you folk can. He was pretty sad last night with the passing of Islander great Clark Gillies yesterday. That reminded me of Gil’s death. I don’t know if you guys know this. Gil Hodges had a bowling alley. It was three very l o n g blocks from my parents house. (Guess who took up bowling when it opened.) So many of his fans gathered there to remember and commiserate after he died. The suddenness of it was so stunning. The alley under his name was there for many years, but I’m pretty sure it’s gone now.
I hate to end this on a sad note, but truthfully, remembering Gil, no matter what the circumstance, is always good for me.
Regards,
Joan
A very nice sentiment Gary. Growing up in New Jersey and rooting for the Yankees I rarely got to see Ernie Banks. I do remember as a kid reading about this National League shortstop who hit home runs. (As you mentioned in your essay a home-run- hitting short stop in the fifties and sixties was unheard of.) So, I was intrigued by him and got to see him only in the All-Star games. Still as I got older and my interest in baseball broadened (beyond just the Yankees) I began to appreciate what a truly remarkable player Ernie Banks was. Although I don’t envy your misfortune of having such an under-performing team as the Cubs to root for, watching Ernie Banks everyday must have been a special treat.
Thanks a lot Steve…I envy you guys in the East with all those great teamsand great players to cheer for when you were growing up. Well, at least I learned the concept of loyalty!