ST. LOUIS (KMOX) - Many across not just Cardinal Nation, but the entire baseball world were deeply saddened when news went around of the death of World Series-winning and Hall of Fame manager Whitey Herzog back in April.
Herzog's death left a mark for many in Cardinal Nation, from players who played for him, and those who had a chance to meet and know him.
"The 1980s...when you look at Cardinals history, that's one of the more significant decades in franchise history, and you can pin that directly on Whitey Herzog," said Stan McNeal, Senior Staff Writer at Cardinals Magazine on the Chris and Amy Show.
The impact of Herzog, who managed the Cardinals to win three NL Pennants and one World Series title in the 1980s, left a significant mark on the franchise that many have grown to enjoy and cherish.
Now, those memories and feeling of nostalgia from watching Whiteyball can be revisited in the latest edition of Cardinals Magazine, which honors and looks back at Herzog's life both on the baseball field and off of it.
"The coverage was in two blocks. One of them was his baseball career and we did tributes and drew back on our archives with old interviews we did with Whitey," said McNeal. "The other of it (and one I was focused on) was Whitey after baseball up in his later years. He turned 92 last November and he was still as sharp as someone half his age."
A story in the magazine that left a mark on McNeal was one on how Herzog's neighbors helped drive him to Cooperstown, New York so he could attend the Baseball Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony last July, which featured former Cardinals third baseman Scott Rolen.
"(His neighbors) loaded up the SUV and headed to Cooperstown so you could imagine how much fun that could be," said McNeal. "They did play some baseball trivia....and they said they did stump him some and they even did stump the game a couple times. We had some experts in that car."
Another story that left a mark on McNeal was one where he learned that MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred had invited every Baseball Hall of Famer to have a conversation on the rule changes that came into effect before the start of the 2023 Season, along with a conversation about the overall state of the game at Cooperstown.
"Whitey was excited to be able to do that and wanted to kind of give the Commissioner a piece of his ear," said McNeal. "He showed up to the room and did exactly that. Joe Torre was there and Torre said Whitey did a lot of the talking. He also said both were kind of in sync and everything was good. The only real issue was when Manfred was ready to move on to another topic, but Whitey's hearing aids weren't working, so he kept on going and kept getting his point across. That's a very Whitey thing for me."
Cardinals fans who are interested in getting a look at the magazine and read stories of Herzog can get it at Busch Stadium, along with being able to order it online at the Cardinals Magazine website, or calling 314-345-9000.