Spokane mourns the loss of Baseball Hall of Famer Ryne Sandberg

The Spokane community paid tribute to Ryne Sandberg this week after the Major League Baseball Hall of Famer and local sports hero died of cancer at 65 years old.

Among the many who addressed Sandberg’s death was Tom Armitage, a longtime drama teacher at Sandberg’s alma mater, North Central High School. Sandberg was drafted by the Philadelphia Phillies after graduating from North Central in 1978. While Armitage did not begin teaching at NC until fall 1979, he has several fond memories of interactions with Sandberg.

In 1983, Armitage decided that he was going to revive “The Doll Shop,” a student-written play that had been a longtime tradition at NC. It was always a struggle for Armitage to convince male students to try out for the school plays.

Armitage had an idea to produce a video of Sandberg encouraging students to participate in NC’s 1984 edition. By then, Sandberg had made his way through the minor leagues and was at spring training in Tempe, Arizona, starting as the second baseman for the Chicago Cubs. Armitage reached out to Sandberg, unsure if it would work, but determined to convince students to audition.

Sandberg recorded the video in Tempe and went on to record 165 hits and win the Gold Glove award that year. Armitage was thrilled that he agreed to make the video, and it worked better than he imagined.

“I just remember this one kid who loved playing baseball,” Armitage said. “He came into my classroom and said, ‘Oh my God, how did you get him?’ And it really worked.”

After seeing Sandberg’s video, 180 students took part in the play. From then on, the play remained an NC tradition, taking place every three years. Armitage does not think that there would have been nearly as much of a turnout had Sandberg not taken the time to make the video.

“In ’84 we did the first ‘Doll Shop’ and then Ryne Sandberg was named the National League MVP, which of course everybody in Spokane, especially at North Central, we were just so excited about that,” Armitage said.

In 1985, North Central held a schoolwide convocation to honor Sandberg when it was announced that the school’s baseball field would be named after him. In an effort to make the assembly more fun for the students, Armitage reached out to several graduated students who were formerly part of the school’s all-boys kazoo band, asking them if they would be willing to give a performance at the convocation.

The group of former students agreed, and it arrived at the assembly wearing Cubs hats and sporting their old kazoos. Armitage recalled the joy Sandberg expressed during the performance.

“He was sitting next to a really good friend of his from high school and the smile on his face was worth everything,” Armitage said. “He just absolutely loved that moment when the kids played the kazoo band for him.”

Armitage also had a story of his own. He was in Chicago taking a bus tour, standing on the sidewalk outside of a hotel while he waited for the bus to arrive.

He began a dialogue with a nearby Cubs fan and told him that he teaches at Sandberg’s former high school.

Armitage recalled the excitement on the fan’s face simply upon hearing Sandberg’s name.

Along with Armitage, several NC alumni commented on a tribute post that was added to a Facebook page on Monday.

“Such sad news. Condolences to his family. We have lost another great one,” commenter Renita Dimico Foust wrote.

Randy Hastings wrote, “A sad day for everyone. After growing up with him since 3rd grade, we all knew he would become a superstar. RIP Ryne and thanks for all the memories you left us.”

“I loved watching him play football at NC. He was definitely big man on campus and did some amazing things with his life and was someone to aspire to. RIP,” Chris Johnson wrote.

“Definitely one of the good ones. He was way too young,” Loren Boles wrote.

Commenter Susan Robertson O’Brien said, “A sad day indeed. Ryne, you made a big impression on everyone who got to know you. Go with God and rest in peace.”

Commenter Cindy Sommer reflected on a moment from her time at NC, saying, “I remember Ryne Sandberg and Steve Samis both hanging out together on the left side of the staircase at NC after lunch. They both passed away from cancer. My heart hurts tonight.”

In honor of Sandberg, Spokane Mayor Lisa Brown ordered flags lowered to half-staff through Thursday morning.

“Ryne was a hometown hero whose impact reached far beyond Spokane,” Brown said in a news release. “He left a lasting mark on baseball and all those who knew him.”