Here’s a look back at the athletes, coaches and sports personalities we lost in 2019.
Mel Stottlemyre
The former New York Yankees ace turned pitching coach for both New York teams died at the age of 77 of complications from multiple myeloma, an incurable bone marrow cancer.
Frank Robinson
A member of the Baseball Hall of Fame, Robinson was the first black manager in Major League Baseball and the only player to win the MVP award in both leagues, he was 83.
Nick Cafardo
The longtime Boston Globe baseball writer died after collapsing at the Red Sox’s spring training ballpark complex. He was 62.
Mean Gene Okerlund
The WWE Hall of Famer, announcer and interviewer, whose many famous interviews included Hulk Hogan, died at age 76.
Don Newcombe
This pitcher for the Brooklyn Dodgers was one of the first black players in the major leagues and went on to win the rookie of the year, Most Valuable Player and Cy Young awards. He was 92.
Ted Lindsay
This NHL Hall of Famer and Detroit Red Wings great died at 93. Lindsay was a nine-time All-Star and he also helped organize the original Players’ Association.
John Havlicek
The Boston Celtics great whose steal of Hal Greer’s inbounds pass in the final seconds of the 1965 Eastern Conference final against the Philadelphia 76ers remains one of the most famous plays in NBA history died at 79.
King Kong Bundy
This 6-foot-4, 458-pound wrestler from Atlantic City debuted in 1981, and his career was highlighted by his WrestleMania 2 steel cage match with Hulk Hogan in 1986.
Dan Jenkins
A legendary sportswriter and author, Jenkins died when he was 89.
Harry Howell
This NHL Hall of Fame defenseman and seven-time All-Star played the most games in Rangers history (1,160). He was 86. His No. 3 is retired by the team.
Johnny “Lam” Jones
A former Olympic gold medal sprinter whose electrifying speed and receiving ability prompted the Jets to make a blockbuster move to take him second overall in the 1980 draft, Jones was 60 when he died.
Forrest Gregg
This tackle and guard from the 1960s Packers died at 85. Legendary Packers coach Vince Lombardi referred to Gregg as the “best player I ever coached.”
David Montgomery
The Phillies chairman and president during the team’s 2008 World Series championship season died at 72.
Harold Lederman
The International Boxing Hall of Famer who judged matches both in an official capacity and as a ringside analyst on HBO’s broadcasts died at 79.
Bart Starr
The Packers’ quarterback of Vince Lombardi’s powerhouse teams of the 1960s, Starr was 85.
Gunther Cunningham
He spent more than five decades in football, including college and the Canadian Football League, and mad a name for himself in the NFL. He worked for six different franchises over 34 years in the league, including two years as head coach of the Kansas City Chiefs. He was 72.
Ashley Massaro
Ashley Massaro, a former WWE star, was found dead in May from what is believed to be from an overdose. She was 39.
Bill Buckner
The Red Sox All-Star first baseman whose misplay of Mookie Wilson’s ground ball in Game six of the 1986 World Series became one of the most infamous plays in major league history. He died at 69.
Pat Bowlen
The Denver Broncos owner who transformed the team from has-beens into NFL champions and helped the league negotiate a billion-dollar TV deal died just two months before he was enshrined into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. He was 75.
Tyler Skaggs
The Los Angeles Angels pitcher died on July 1 at the age of 27 due to an apparent drug overdose on the team’s roadtrip in Texas.
Jared Lorenzen
Former Giants and University of Kentucky quarterback Jared Lorenzen died at 38.
Jim Bouton
This former Yankees pitcher and best-selling author died on July 10 at the age of 80.
Walt Michaels
This former New York Jets head coach, who was the defensive coordinator for the team’s Super Bowl III victory over the Colts, died at 89.
Pernell “Sweet Pea” Whitaker
Former boxing champion and Olympic gold medalist Pernell Whitaker died after he was hit by a car in Virginia. He was 55.
Elijah “Pumpsie” Green
The first black player to play for the Boston Red Sox died at age 85.
Mitch Petrus
Petrus, a former New York Giants offensive lineman who won a Super Bowl in his second season, died of apparent heat stroke on July 18.
Maxim Dadashev
This light-welterweight Russian boxer died after suffering a brain injury in a fight with Subriel Matias in Maryland. He was 28.
Cathy Inglese
A Hofstra University women’s basketball assistant coach who had previously coached at Boston College, Inglese died in July, a week after sustaining a brain injury in a fall. She was 60.
Nick Buoniconti
This NFL Hall of Famer and the biggest name on the Dolphins’ “No-Name Defense” died at 78. After he retired. he was a television host, agent, lawyer, and business executive.
Cedric Benson
This former NFL and Texas running back died in a motorcycle accident in August at age 36.
Al Jackson
An original Met in 1962 who spent 50 years with the franchise in different capacities, Jackson died at 83.
Barry Bennett
A former NFL defensive lineman who played 11 seasons with the Saints, Jets, and Vikings, Bennett and his wife were found dead in August after a friend went to their Minnesota home for a welfare check. Bennett was 63.
Jevan Snead
The former Mississippi quarterback who ranks among the school’s career passing leaders died in Texas at age 32.
Bill Bidwill
Owner of the Arizona Cardinals, Bidwill died in October at 88.
Patrick Day
An up-and-coming boxer, Day died in October after suffering a traumatic brain injury during his title fight against Charles Conwell four days earlier. He was 27.
Jim Gregory
A Hockey Hall of Famer and popular longtime NHL executive, Gregory is best known for being one of the first to start bringing European players to the NHL. He was 83.
These people are gone but never forgotten, etched in sports history and fans’ minds forever.
