Bob Broeg

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Robert William Patrick Broeg (March 18, 1918 – October 28, 2005) was an American sportswriter.

Born and raised in St. Louis, Missouri, he officially covered the St. Louis Cardinals for forty years. He graduated from Cleveland High School (Class of '36) and the University of Missouri before entering the United States Marines. He served in Washington as a result of an eye injury suffered at birth.

Bob Broeg, sports writer in St. Louis

After the war, Broeg joined the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. He was privy to many important events in baseball history. Broeg was partially responsible for the famous picture of Eddie Gaedel at the plate in 1951. He told the photographer to stay at the game until Gaedel came to the plate and the picture was taken.

Later, he helped Bob Gibson win the 1967 World Series. Gibson was unable to get breakfast at the Cardinals' hotel in Boston, so Broeg delivered a ham and egg sandwich to the star right-hander. Gibson pitched a complete game and carried his team to victory.

Among other things, Broeg is known for coining the nickname "Stan the Man" for Cardinal baseball player Stan Musial, championing the Hall of Fame causes of Cardinals Red Schoendienst, Enos Slaughter and Chick Hafey and helping to devise, and successfully push for the first pension plan for veteran major-league players.

Broeg was named to the board of directors of the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1972, a position he held for 28 years. He was also a longtime member of the Committee on Baseball Veterans. His knowledge was reported to be encyclopedic, even into his 80s. His willingness to share that knowledge with everyone from colleagues and loyal readers to complete strangers at the ballpark or on the street endeared him to fans spanning multiple generations. He penned his last column in 2004.

The St. Louis chapter of the Society for American Baseball Research is named for Bob Broeg. He was awarded the J. G. Taylor Spink Award in 1979. He was elected to the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Hall of Fame in 1997.

Broeg said he wished his epitaph to read, "Hopefully, he was fair, as in just, not as in mediocre." Appropriately, Bob Broeg died five hours after the final game of the 2005 World Series. He was 87.

Awards and honors[]

  • 1964 Sportswriter of the Year award – Rockne Club
  • 1969 University of Missouri Faculty Alumni Award
  • 1971 University of Missouri journalism medal
  • 1978 Missouri Sports Hall of Fame
  • 1979 Cooperstown Baseball Writers Hall of Fame
  • 1979 J. G. Taylor Spink Award – National Baseball Hall of Fame
  • 1997 Sportswriters & Sportscasters Hall of Fame
  • 1998 National Baseball Congress Hall of Fame

External links[]

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