ST. LOUIS (KMOX) - The Cardinals organization and many more across the baseball world were sad Tuesday when it was announced that legendary Cardinals Hall of Fame manager Whitey Herzog died at the age of 92.
"On behalf of the entire St. Louis Cardinals organization, I would like to offer our condolences to the family and many friends of Whitey Herzog," said Cardinals' Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Bill DeWitt, Jr. in a statement from the Cardinals. "Whitey and his teams played a big part in changing the direction of the Cardinals franchise in the early 1980s with an exciting style of play that would become known as 'Whitey Ball' throughout baseball. Whitey loved the Cardinals, their fans, and St. Louis. He will be sorely missed."
MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred released a statement mourning the loss of Herzog.
"Whitey Herzog was one of the most accomplished managers of his generation and a consistent winner with both ‘I-70’ franchises. He made a significant impact on the St. Louis Cardinals as both a manager and a general manager, with the Kansas City Royals as a manager, and with the New York Mets in player development." said Manfred.
KMOX Sports Director Tom Ackerman joined the Chris and Amy Show Tuesday to discuss Herzog's death.
"He was a big part of my life," said Ackerman on the Chris and Amy Show Tuesday. "As a kid growing up a Cardinals fan, you became a fan through Whitey's team if you are my age. I was born in 1975. When I was old enough to understand who the Cardinals were, I watched Whitey Herzog win a World Championship. I was there in 1982 for Game 6 (of the 1982 World Series) with my dad."
Longtime Cardinals pitcher Adam Wainwright posting a tribute to Herzog on his X, formerly known as Twitter account.
"Sad to read that my friend Whitey Herzog passed away," said Wainwright on X. "He was a great Cardinal, brilliant baseball mind, and trusted mentor to so many of us that have been blessed to wear the Birds on the Bat. A true legend… he will be missed."
Cardinals veteran Matt Carpenter also posted a tribute to Herzog on his X account, calling Herzog a "baseball savant..his legacy in our game will live on forever…Midwest man and Cardinal royalty....Praying for his family.. he will be surely missed."
Former Cardinals reliever Kyle McClellan joined the Chris and Amy Show Tuesday (interview starts at 20:30), while he never got the opportunity to play under Herzog, McClellan he was always amazed to see Herzog whenever a Cardinals Fantasy Camp took place.
"He goes down (to the Cardinals Fantasy Camp), and he's in his element," said McClellan. "He's down (on the field), he got his own golf cart, he drives around and goes wherever he wants to go, sometimes drives across the field and no one ever says anything to him. He shows up whenever he wants and he just sits there and he's perfectly in his environment because he gets to talk and be around baseball, be around his former players."
Former KMOX personality and baseball historian Bob Costas joined KMOX to discuss Herzog and called him not only a Hall of Fame manager, but one of, if not, the sharpest baseball men he ever saw.
"He had a brilliant baseball mind, but on top of that, he was a presence," said Costas on the Chris and Amy Show. "Presence is hard to quantify, but you know it when you see it and feel it. Whitey had a certain presence. He of course won three pennants in the 1980s, but it wasn't just that they won, it was a style of play that wasn't just a winning style, but it was distinctive and exciting."
The Kansas City Royals, who Herzog managed before the Cardinals, sent their deepest condolences to his family on Twitter.