Notable Last Survivors -- 2023 Baseball Edition

Willie is blind, and rarely appears in public anymore.

In most recent public appearances, he wore a cap

with a Giants' "G" on it, because he knows he is still

beloved in both New York and San Francisco.

May 6, 1931, 92 years ago: Willie Howard Mays Jr. is born in Westfield, Alabama, outside Birmingham. The former Giants star is the last survivor of the triad of great New York center fielders of the 1950s, broken up in 1957, when the New York Giants were moved to San Francisco and the Brooklyn Dodgers were moved to Los Angeles. 64 years. Mickey Mantle of the Yankees died in 1995, and Duke Snider of the Brooklyn Dodgers died in 2011.

This also makes him the last surviving player mentioned in the 1950s section of Terry Cashman's 1981 song "Talkin' Baseball (Willie, Mickey & the Duke)." Among the players mentioned in the 1980s section, there are 7 still alive: George Brett, Pete Rose, Reggie Jackson, Rod Carew, Steve Garvey, Mike Schmidt and Vida Blue. (UPDATE: Mere hours after I posted this, Vida Blue died, lowering the number to 6.)

He is also  is the last surviving player from the Bobby Thomson Game, October 3, 1951. Nearly 72 years. He is also the last surviving player from Game 6 of that year's World Series, which was Joe DiMaggio's last game.

He is also the last surviving player from the game where he made "The Catch," Game 1 of the World Series, September 29, 1954. 69 years. And he is the last survivor from the team of "Greatest Living Players" selected for the 100th Anniversary of professional baseball in 1969.

Notable last survivors of baseball occurrences:

* June 10, 1904: Walter T. Avery, 90, the last participant in what was long purported to be the 1st baseball game, and was definitely the 1st one played under what became known as the Knickerbocker Rules, at the Elysian Fields in Hoboken, New Jersey on June 19, 1846. 58 years.

* March 27, 1927: Joe Start, 84, the last survivor of the Brooklyn Atlantics team that gave the Cincinnati Red Stockings, the 1st openly professional baseball team, their 1st loss, on June 14, 1870. 57 years.

* August 21, 1937: George Wright, 90, the last survivor of the 1869 Cincinnati Red Stockings. 68 years.

* July 7, 1939: James "Deacon" White, 91, the last surviving player from the 1st Major League Baseball game, on May 4, 1871. 68 years. Playing for the Cleveland Forest Citys, he was the game's 1st batter, against the 1st pitcher (and thus the 1st MLB player), Bobby Matthews.

White, elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2013, 74 years after his death, was also the last surviving player from that 1st professional league, the National Association, 1871 to 1875. 64 years.

* July 3, 1948: Charles Witherow, 96, the last living MLB player from the 1870s. 69 years. He pitched 1 game for the 1875 version of the Washington Nationals.

* May 3, 1958: Al Maul, 92, the last surviving player from the Union Association, a quasi-major league that played only the 1884 season, playing for the Philadelphia Keystones. 74 years. He led the National League in earned run average in 1895, with the NL version of the Washington Senators, and last played in the major leagues with the 1901 New York Giants.

* July 17, 1961: Ty Cobb, 75, the last survivor of the original 5 honorees by the Baseball Hall of Fame, January 16, 1936. 25 years. He played center field, mostly for the Detroit Tigers, from 1905 to 1928. Christy Mathewson died in 1925, before the Hall was established; Walter Johnson in 1946, Babe Ruth in 1948, Honus Wagner in 1955.

* December 15, 1961: William Elsworth Hoy, 99, the last surviving player from the Players' League of 1890. 71 years. Known as Billy, and as Dummy because he was deaf (although not mute, as "dumb" then meant), he was long erroneously believed to be the inspiration for umpires' hand signals, as he couldn't hear them yell, "Ball!" or "Strike!"

He was also the last surviving player from the 1880s. 72 years. He played from 1888 to 1902, batted .288 lifetime, collected 2,044 hits, stole 607 bases, led the National League in stolen bases in 1888, and won the 1st American League Pennant with the 1901 Chicago White Sox.

He died 2 months after throwing out the first ball at a World Series game hosted by one of his former teams, the Cincinnati Reds, and 5 months before he would have become the 1st former MLB player to reach a 100th birthday.

* July 17, 1962: Lewis "Sport" McAllister, 87, the last surviving player from the worst single-season team in MLB history, the 1899 Cleveland Spiders who went 20-134. 63 years. An outfielder, he was also an original Detroit Tiger in 1901.

* June 28, 1963: Frank "Home Run" Baker, 77, the last survivor of the Philadelphia Athletics' "$100,000 Infield" of 1910-14. 59 years. He was the 3rd baseman. 2nd baseman Eddie Collins died in 1951, 1st baseman John "Stuffy" McInnis in 1960, and shortstop Jack Barry in 1961.

* January 16, 1965: Jimmy Williams, 88, the last survivor of the 1903 New York Highlanders, the 1st season of the team that became the New York Yankees. 62 years. He was a 2nd baseman.

* January 23, 1969: Al Bridwell, 85, the last survivor of the Fred Merkle Game that cost the New York Giants the National League Pennant, and gave it to the Chicago Cubs, September 23, 1908. 61 years. He was a shortstop, and hit the ball that drove in the apparent winning run, before Merkle ran off the field without touching 2nd base. He later admitted that he wished he'd never gotten that hit, for what Merkle had to endure.

* November 7, 1972: Freddy Parent, 96, the last surviving member of the winning team in the 1st World Series, the 1903 Boston Americans. 69 years. The team changed its name to the Red Sox in 1907. Parent was also the last surviving player in the Jack Chesbro Game of October 10, 1904.

* March 26, 1973: George Sisler, 80, the last survivor of the group of members of the Baseball Hall of Fame honored at the Hall's opening in Cooperstown, New York, June 12, 1939. 34 years. He played 1st base, mostly for the St. Louis Browns, from 1915 to 1930.

* March 1, 1974: Larry Doyle, 87, the last survivor from the Playoff game between the Giants and the Cubs that was forced by the Merkle Game, won by the Cubs, October 8, 1908. 66 years. He was a 2nd baseman, who once proclaimed, "It's great to be young and a Giant."

* October 2, 1975: Charlie Emig, 100, the last surviving player from the 19th Century. 76 years. He appeared in 1 game in 1896 for the Louisville Colonels. He is also believed to have been the 1st MLB player to have lived to see a 100th birthday.

* October 13, 1975: Charles "Swede" Risberg, 81, the last survivor of the "Eight Men Out," the Chicago White Sox players who threw the World Series, losing it to the Cincinnati Reds on October 9, 1919. 56 years.

* September 7, 1984: Joe Cronin, 77, the last survivor of the 5 straight American League players struck out by National League and New York Giants pitcher Carl Hubbell in the 1934 All-Star Game at the Polo Grounds in New York. 50 years. In order: Babe Ruth died in 1948, Lou Gehrig in 1941, Jimmie Foxx in 1967, Al Simmons in 1956, and Cronin in 1984. Bill Dickey, who lived until 1993, then got a hit. Lefty Gomez, who lived until 1989, then struck out -- but while that was a 6th strikeout, it wasn't a 6th consecutive strikeout. Hubbell lived until 1988.

* October 7, 1984: Artie Butler, 96, the last surviving teammate of Cy Young, with the 1911 Boston Rustlers (who became the Braves the next season). 73 years. He was an infielder.

* July 27, 1985: Smoky Joe Wood, 95, the last surviving player from the Addie Joss Benefit Game, held to support the family of the Cleveland Indians pitcher who died of meningitis at the start of the season, July 24, 1911. 75 years.

A pitcher, Wood was also the last survivor of the 1912 and the 1915 World Champion Boston Red Sox. 73 and 71 years. That also made him the last surviving player from the Fred Snodgrass Game in the 1912 World Series. He was also the last surviving player from the 1900-09 decade. 76 years.

* December 6, 1985: Burleigh Grimes, 92, the last survivor of the 17 pitchers who were still allowed to throw one of the altered pitches that fell under the category of "spitball" after they were outlawed in 1920. 65 years. The Hall-of-Famer, who pitched most of his career with the St. Louis Cardinals, including winning the 1931 World Series, and won 270 games, was also the last active pitcher allowed to do it, retiring after the 1934 season.

* July 28, 1986: Joe Oeschger, 94, the last survivor from the longest game in MLB history, 26 innings, finally called due to darkness, with Oeschger going the distance for the Boston Braves, and Leon Cadore going the distance for the Brooklyn Dodgers. 66 years. Both pitchers missed a start, but still had good seasons after that. Cadore lived until 1958.

Oeschger was also the last living player from the Philadelphia Phillies' 1915 National League Pennant winners, and was invited to throw out a ceremonial first ball at the World Series when the Phillies won the Pennant in 1983.

* August 17, 1986: Sammy Vick, 91, the last surviving player from the game in which Ray Chapman became the 1st player to sustain a fatal injury in an MLB game, August 16, 1920. 66 years. Vick played for the Yankees against Chapman's Cleveland Indians, who won 4-3. Carl Mays hit Chapman in the head with a pitch -- unintentionally, Mays always insisted -- and Chapman died the next day.

* March 14, 1988: Zeb Terry, 96, the last surviving teammate of Shoeless Joe Jackson, who was banned from baseball in 1920. 68 years. An infielder, Terry was a teammate of Jackson on the 1917 World Champion Chicago White Sox, but was with Pittsburgh when Jackson was (accused of) throwing the 1919 World Series.

* March 21, 1988: Edd Roush, 94, the last surviving player from the Federal League of 1914 and 1915, having played for the Pennant-winning Indianapolis Hoosiers in 1914, and moved with them to become the Newark Bears in 1915. 73 years.

He was also the last survivor of the 1919 World Champion Cincinnati Reds. 69 years. He insisted to the end of his life that they would have won the World Series even if the Chicago White Sox had played to win all the way. He was also the last surviving teammate of Christy Mathewson, who closed his career with the Reds in 1916. 72 years. Roush also threw out the first ball before the last game at Cincinnati's Crosley Field in 1970.

With a .323 lifetime batting average, and one of the best outfield arms anyone had ever seen at that point, he was generally considered to be the Reds' greatest player ever before the Big Red Machine of the 1970s, and was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame.

* July 14, 1988: Lawton "Whitey" Witt, 92, the last surviving player from the 1923 New York Yankees, meaning he was the last survivor of the 1st game at the original Yankee Stadium on April 18, and of the 1st Yankee team to win the World Series, on October 15. 65 years.

* January 9, 1989: Bill Terry, 90, the last surviving player mentioned in Ogden Nash's 1949 poem "Line-Up for Yesterday." 40 years. The Hall of Fame 1st baseman for the New York Giants (Nash's favorite team) was also the last player to bat .400 for a full season in the National League, in 1930.

* May 17, 1989: George "Specs" Toporcer, 90, the last surviving baseball player interviewed by Lawrence S. Ritter for his book The Glory of Their Times, published on September 26, 1966. 23 years. An infielder for the St. Louis Cardinals, he was the 1st player known to have worn glasses on the field, hence his nickname.

He was also the last surviving player from their 1926 team that won the World Series, which included Grover Cleveland Alexander's strikeout of Tony Lazzeri with the bases loaded in the 7th inning of Game 7. 63 years.

* February 3, 1990: Erv Kantlehner, 97, the last surviving teammate of Honus Wagner, who retired in 1917. 73 years. A pitcher, Kantlehner was with the Flying Dutchman on the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1914, '15 and '16.

* April 22, 1993: Mark Koenig, 88, the last surviving player from the 1927 World Champion New York Yankees, a.k.a. Murderers' Row, often called the greatest baseball team ever. 66 years. He was also the last surviving player from Game 7 of the 1926 World Series, the St. Louis Cardinals' 1st World Series win, featuring baseball's most famous strikeout (other than the fictional one of "the Mighty Casey"), Grover Cleveland Alexander fanning Tony Lazzeri with the bases loaded in the 7th inning and the Cards up 3-2. And he was the last survivor of the Yankees' 1928 World Series win, too.

* November 12, 1993: Bill Dickey, 86, the last surviving player to have played for the Yankees under manager Miller Huggins, in 1928 and 1929. 64 years.

* June 27, 1997: Ray Benge, 95, the last surviving teammate of Grover Cleveland Alexander, who retired in 1930. 67 years. Benge and Alexander both pitched on the 1930 Philadelphia Phillies.

* September 26, 1997: Elwood "Woody" English, 91, the last surviving player from the 1st Major League Baseball All-Star Game, at Comiskey Park in Chicago, July 6, 1933. 64 years. He was a shortstop for the Chicago Cubs. He was also the last surviving player from Game 3 of the 1932 World Series, which featured Babe Ruth's "Called Shot."

* September 17, 1998: Chet "Red" Hoff, 107, the last surviving Yankee to have played under the New York Highlanders name, 1912. 86 years. He was also the last surviving player from the 1910s, and thus the last surviving player from the Dead Ball Era. 79 years.

Despite being teammates on the 1915 St. Louis Browns, in George Sisler's rookie season, Hoff turned out to be Sisler's last surviving teammate. He is also believed to be the longest-lived MLB player ever.

* March 8, 1999: Joe DiMaggio, 84, the last surviving inductee into Monument Park at Yankee Stadium prior to its closing for renovation, September 30, 1973. 26 years. Miller Huggins died in 1929, Jacob Ruppert in 1939, Lou Gehrig in 1941, Babe Ruth in 1948, Ed Barrow in 1953, Pope Paul VI in 1978, and Mickey Mantle in 1995.

He was also the last surviving player from the "Greatest Players Ever" list chosen for the 100th Anniversary of professional baseball in 1969. He was chosen as the "Greatest Living Player," and he insisted upon being introduced as such for the rest of his life.

* April 1, 2001: Joe "Jo-Jo" Moore, 92, the last surviving player who had played for the New York Giants under manager John McGraw, who retired in 1932. 69 years. He was an outfielder, made 6 All-Star Games, and helped McGraw's successor, Bill Terry, win the 1933 World Series.

* March 7, 2002: Mickey Haslin, 92, the last surviving player from MLB's 1st night game, at Crosley Field in Cincinnati, May 24, 1935. 67 years. An infielder, he drove in the Phillies' run in a 2-1 loss to the Reds.

* April 3, 2002: Karl Swanson, 101, the last surviving player who had played for the Chicago White Sox under founding owner and ballpark namesake Charlie Comiskey, who died in 1931. 71 years. Swanson was a 2nd baseman, who had played for the Pale House in 1928 and '29.

* July 5, 2002: Ted Williams, 83, the last man to bat .400 for a full season in 1941. 61 years.

* September 25, 2002: Ray Hayworth, 98, the last surviving teammate of Ty Cobb, who retired in 1928. 74 years. A catcher, he was a rookie on the Detroit Tigers in 1926, Cobb's last season with them, before closing his career with 2 seasons with the Philadelphia Athletics.

* January 2, 2004: Paul Hopkins, 99, the last pitcher who gave up one of Babe Ruth's 60 home runs in the 1927 season. 76 years. At the time, he pitched for the Washington Senators. This also made him the last surviving teammate of Walter Johnson. Tris Speaker was also on that '27 Senators team, before closing his career with Cobb on the '28 A's, so Hopkins was also Speaker's last living teammate.

* October 30, 2005: Al López, 97, the last surviving player from the 1920s. 75 years.

* July 22, 2007: Rollie Stiles, 100, the last surviving teammate of Rogers Hornsby, who last played in 1937. 70 years. He pitched for player-manager Hornsby on the 1933 St. Louis Browns.

* January 22, 2009: Bill Werber, 100, the last surviving teammate of Babe Ruth, playing for the Yankees in the 1930 and 1933 seasons. Ruth played his last game on May 30, 1935, so, 74 years. Werber also won the 1940 World Series with the Cincinnati Reds.

* December 1, 2009: Tommy Henrich, 96, the last surviving player from, and the beneficiary of, The Mickey Owen Game, Game 4 of the World Series, October 5, 1941. 68 years. He was also the last survivor of the Yankees' 1937, 1938, 1939 and 1941 World Champions. This also made him the last surviving Yankee who had played for team owner Jacob Ruppert. And the last surviving teammate of Lou Gehrig.

* August 9, 2010: Gene Hermanski, 90, the last surviving player from Jackie Robinson's debut game, April 15, 1947. 63 years.

* December 15, 2010: Bob Feller, 92, the last pitcher to have given up a hit to Joe DiMaggio during his 56-game hitting streak in 1941. 69 years. He was probably the best pitcher in baseball at the time. He also turned out to be the last player interviewed for Chicago Daily News sports editor John P. Carmichael's 1945 book My Greatest Day In Baseball.

* February 18, 2011: Buddy Lewis, 94, the last surviving player from Lou Gehrig's last game, on April 30, 1939. 72 years. A 3rd baseman for the Washington Senators, he also turned out to be the last player in the doubleheader played on Lou Gehrig Day on July 4, 1939.

* February 2, 2014: Ralph Kiner, 91, the last survivor from the New York Mets' original broadcasting trio that lasted from 1962 to 1979. 48 years. Lindsey Nelson died in 1995, Bob Murphy in 2004. Kiner was also a Hall of Fame slugging outfielder for the Pittsburgh Pirates.

* May 8, 2014: Charlie Mead, 93, the last surviving teammate of Mel Ott, who last played in 1947. 67 years. They played together on the New York Giants in 1943, '44 and '45.

* September 22, 2015: Yogi Berra, 90, the last surviving player from Game 3 of the 1947 World Series, the Bill Bevens Game. 68 years. He caught Bevens in that near-no-hitter. Bobby Brown, the last survivor of the Al Gionfriddo Game, did not play in the Bill Bevens Game. He was also the last survivor of the game where the Dodgers won their only World Series, Game 7, October 4, 1955, the Johnny Podres Game. 60 years.

* January 11, 2016: Monte Irvin, 96, the last living player who was a player in the Negro Leagues and elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame, prior to the desegregation of the game in 1947. 69 years.

* November 23, 2016: Ralph Branca, 90, the last surviving member of the 1st desegregated Major League Baseball team, the 1947 Brooklyn Dodgers. 69 years.

* April 28, 2017: Luis Olmo, 97, the last surviving MLB player who "jumped" to the Mexican League in 1946, a.k.a. "the Mexican Jumping Beans." 71 years. One of the earliest Puerto Ricans in MLB, he had been a star outfielder for the Brooklyn Dodgers.

* November 13, 2017: Bobby Doerr, 99, the last surviving MLB player from the 1930s. 78 years. With the 1941 Boston Red Sox, he became the last player on the team for which Ted Williams batted .406, and the last surviving teammate of Lefty Grove. 76 years. With the 1945 Red Sox, he became the last surviving teammate of Jimmie Foxx. 72 years.

With the 1949 Red Sox, he became the last surviving player from the 1949 Pennant-decider against the Yankees. 68 years. For the moment, he is also the longest-lived member of the Baseball Hall of Fame.

* October 18, 2018: Dick Cole, 92, the last survivor of the Chicago Cubs' ill-fated "College of Coaches" experiment of the 1961 and 1962 seasons. 56 years.

* January 1, 2020: Don Larsen, 90, the last surviving player from the perfect game that he pitched for the Yankees against the Brooklyn Dodgers in Game 5 of the World Series, still the only no-hitter in World Series history, October 8, 1956. 63 years.

Larsen was also the last surviving player in the trade with the Kansas City Athletics that brought Roger Maris to the Yankees, on December 11, 1959. 60 years. He and Hank Bauer were the most prominent players going to Kansas City.

* October 8, 2020: Edward "Whitey" Ford, 92, the last surviving player among the Yankees who were involved in what became known as "The Copacabana Incident" at the Copacabana nightclub in Midtown Manhattan, May 16, 1957. 63 years.

Billy Martin died in 1989, Mickey Mantle in 1995, Hank Bauer in 2007, Johnny Kucks in 2013 and Yogi Berra in 2015. The wives of all except Martin, then between marriages, were also there, and Ford outlived all of them as well.

* March 25, 2021: Bobby Brown, 96, the last surviving teammate of Bill Dickey, debuting with the Yankees in Dickey's last season, 1946. 75 years. He was also the last surviving player in Game 6 of the 1947 World Series, the Al Gionfriddo Game; and the last surviving player on the Yankees' World Series winners of 1947, 1949, 1950 and 1951.

* May 5, 2021: Del Crandall, 91, the last surviving player from the Boston Braves, who played their last home game on September 21, 1952, 69 years, and then moved to Milwaukee. He was the catcher on their team that won the 1957 World Series. (There are 30 surviving players from the Braves' Milwaukee tenure, 1952 to 1965.)

* October 4, 2021: Eddie Robinson, 100, the last surviving player from the last World Series winner from Cleveland, the 1948 Indians. 73 years.

* January 8, 2022: Eddie Basinski, 99, the last surviving player from the "tricornered game" in which the Yankees, Brooklyn Dodgers and New York Giants each played 6 innings at the Polo Grounds, to raise money for war bonds, June 26, 1944. 77 years.

A Dodger infielder, Basinski was also the last survivor of the 1930s and '40s players mentioned in Dave Frishberg's song "Van Lingle Mungo." Playing for the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1947, Basinski was also the last surviving teammate of Hank Greenberg.

* December 13, 2022: Curt Simmons, 93, the last surviving player from the Philadelphia Phillies' 1950 Pennant-winning "Whiz Kids." 72 years.

*

Alive as of May 6, 2023:

* As far as I can tell, there are only 3 former Negro League players still alive. And 2 of them also played in the white major leagues: Mays; and Bill Greason, who pitched 8 games with the 1948 Birmingham Black Barons, and thus was a teammate of Mays, and then 3 games with the 1954 St. Louis Cardinals. The other is Ron Teasley, 96, who played 2 games in the outfield for the 1948 New York Cubans. (For many years, "Cuban" was code for "too dark-skinned to pass for white.")

* There are 4 surviving men who played in MLB in the 1940s: Tommy Brown, Carl Erskine, Larry Miggins, Bobby Shantz. Having debuted on August 3, 1944, and remaining the 2nd-youngest player in major league history, but lasting in the majors until 1953, Tommy "Buckshot" Brown, 95, is the earliest remaining former MLB player, and the last living man who played in MLB during World War II. (UPDATE: Miggins died on December 12, 2023. And Erskine died on April 16, 1924, lowering the number to 2: Brown and Shantz.)

* There are 5 surviving men who are veterans of both World War II and MLB: Erskine, Miggins, Shantz, Ed Mickelson and Frank Saucier. (UPDATE: The deaths of Miggins and Erskine lowers the number to 3: Shantz, Mickelson and Saucier.)

* Bobby Shantz, 97, the last surviving player from the Philadelphia Athletics, who played their last home game on September 19, 1954. 69 years. He was also the last player to have played for owner-manager Connie Mack on the Athletics, October 1, 1950. 73 years. Pitching for Mack's replacement, Jimmy Dykes, Shantz won the 1952 American League MVP, and later helped the Yankees win the 1956 and '58 World Series.

* Tommy Brown, 95, the last surviving player from the Dick Sisler Game, where Sisler's 10th inning home run against the Dodgers gave the Phillies the 1950 Pennant. 70 years. With some irony, Brown had been the 2nd-youngest player in MLB history, debuting at age 16 with the 1944 Dodgers.

* Charlie Maxwell, 96, the last surviving player from 3 notable Yankee games in 1951. 72 years. An outfielder for the Boston Red Sox, he played on April 17, making him the last survivor from the 1st MLB game for Mickey Mantle, and the Yankees' 1st game with Bob Sheppard as the public address announcer at Yankee Stadium.

And on September 28, he played in a doubleheader. The opener was Allie Reynolds' 2nd no-hitter of the season. The nightcap was the Pennant clincher. 

* Art Schallock, 99, the last surviving teammate of Joe DiMaggio, who last played in 1951. 72 years. A pitcher, Schallock is also the last survivor of the Yankees' 1953 World Series winners. 70 years. He was not on the Series roster in 1951 or '52. He is also the oldest living former MLB player, and the earliest surviving World Series winner.

* Carl Erskine, 96, the last survivor of the Brooklyn Dodger players Roger Kahn profiled in his book The Boys of Summer, having covered the team for the New York Herald Tribune in 1952 and '53. 71 years. (UPDATE: Erskine died on April 16, 2024.)

* There are 3 remaining players from the St. Louis Browns, who played their last game on September 27, 1953, 70 years, then moved to become the Baltimore Orioles: Outfielder Frank Saucier, 96; 1st baseman Ed Mickelson, also 96; and infielder Billy Hunter, about to turn 95.

Hunter is also the last surviving player from the biggest trade in baseball history, 17 players between the Baltimore Orioles and the Yankees, December 18, 1954. 69 years. Among the players joining Hunter in going from Venable Park to the South Bronx was Don Larsen. Hunter would later become known as the 3rd base coach for the 1966-71 quasi-dynasty on the Orioles, and briefly as the manager of the Texas Rangers.

* There are 4 living former teammates of Bob Feller, who pitched his last game for the Cleveland Indians on September 30, 1956, 67 years: Hank Foiles, Dick Tomanek, Stan Pawloski and Rocky Colavito.

* There are 8 surviving players from the Brooklyn Dodgers, who played their last game on September 24, 1957, 66 years, and were then moved to Los Angeles: Tommy Brown, Bobby Morgan, Jim Gentile, Carl Erskine, Fred Kipp, Bob Aspromonte, Roger Craig and Sandy Koufax.

Brown, Morgan, Erskine, Aspromonte, Craig and Koufax are the last 6 surviving teammates of Jackie Robinson.

(UPDATE: Morgan died on June 1, 2023, Craig 3 days later, and Erskine on April 16, 2024. That leaves 5 surviving Dodgers, and 3 who played with Robinson: Brown, Aspromonte and Koufax, who played with him; and Gentile and Kipp, who played for the Dodgers in 1957, after Robinson retired.)

* There are 10 surviving players from the New York Giants, who played their last game on September 29, 1957, 66 years, and were then moved to San Francisco: Billy Gardner, Joey Amalfitano, Ozzie Virgil Sr., Ray Crone, Jackie Brandt, Al Worthington, Eddie Bressoud, Joe Margoneri, Bill White and Willie Mays. (UPDATE: Bressoud died on July 13, 2023. And Gardner died on January 3, 2024, leaving 8.)

(UPDATE: Bressoud died on July 13, 2023. Gardner died on January 3, 2024, leaving 8.)

* There are 6 surviving players from the American League Pennant-winning Chicago "Go-Go" White Sox of 1959: Luis Aparicio, Lou Skizas, Joe Hicks, Ken McBride, J.C. Martin and Claude Raymond.

(UPDATE: Skizas died on November 17, 2023. Joe Hicks died on December 2, 2023. That leaves 4: Aparicio, McBride, Martin and Raymond.)

* There are 2 surviving players from the baseball-themed game show Home Run Derby, which aired in syndication from January 9 to July 2, 1960, 63 years: Willie Mays and Rocky Colavito.

* There are 7 surviving teammates of Ted Williams, who played his last game for the Boston Red Sox on September 26, 1960, 63 years: Charlie Maxwell, Pete Daley, Marty Keough, Ted Bowsfield, Jerry Mallett, Jim Mahoney and Ted Wills.

* There are 10 surviving players from the "Old" Washington Senators, who played their last game on October 2, 1960, 63 years, and were then moved to become the Minnesota Twins: Bob Ross, Bob Oldis, Camilo Pascual, Pedro Ramos, Whitey Herzog, Ken Aspromonte, Bobby Malkmus, Dan Dobbek, Jim Kaat and Billy Gardner. (From the "New Senators," who played from 1961 to 1971, and were then moved to become the Texas Rangers, there are 94 living players, so, too many to list.)

(UPDATE: Dobbek died on November 28, 2023. Gardner died on January 3, 2024, leaving 8 players.)

* From the Bill Mazeroski Game, October 13, 1960, 63 years ago, there are 8 survivors. The Pittsburgh Pirates have 5: Mazeroski himself, Bob Skinner, Joe Christopher, Vernon Law and Roy Face. The Yankees have 3: Bobby Richardson, Tony Kubek and Bobby Shantz.

(UPDATE: Christopher died on October 3, 2023, leaving 7: Mazeroski, Skinner, Law, Face, Richardson, Kubek and Shantz.)

* There are 11 surviving players who played for Casey Stengel on the Yankees: Art Schallock, Bobby Richardson, Billy Hunter, Lou Skizas, Bobby Shantz, Tony Kubek, Zach Monroe, Gary Blaylock, Fred Kipp, Hal Stowe and Johnny James.

(UPDATE: Skizas died on November 17, 2023, leaving 10.)

* From the game where Roger Maris hit his 61st home run of the season, October 1, 1961, 62 years ago, there are 3 survivors: Yankees Bobby Richardson and Tony Kubek; and Red Sock Carl Yastrzemski.

* There are 4 surviving players from the New York Mets' 1st game, an 11-4 loss to the Cardinals at Sportsman's Park in St. Louis, April 11, 1962. 61 years. For the Mets: Roger Craig and Félix Mantilla. For the Cardinals: Julián Javier and Bill White.

* There are 12 surviving players from the original New York Mets of 1962: Craig Anderson, Joe Christopher, Galen Cisco, Cliff Cook, Roger Craig, John DeMerit, Rick Herrscher, Jay Hook, Ed Kranepool, Ken MacKenzie, Félix Mantilla and Jim Marshall.

(UPDATE: Craig died on June 4, 2023. Christopher died on October 3, 2023. Ken MacKenzie died on December 14, 2023. That leaves 9.)

* Denny McLain, 79, is the last surviving pitcher to have won 30 games in a season, going 31-6 to help the Detroit Tigers win the 1968 World Series. 55 years.

* The earliest living Met manager is Joe Torre, from 1977. The earliest living Yankee manager is Lou Piniella, from 1986.

* The earliest living manager of a World Series winner, or even a Pennant winner, is Whitey Herzog, 91, of the 1982 St. Louis Cardinals, 41 years.