July 28, 2025
Ryne Sandberg, a 10-time MLB All Star, NL MVP, nine-time Gold Glove winner and Hall of Famer who broke into the big leagues with the Phillies and later managed them, died Monday after a battle with cancer, Major League Baseball announced. He was 65.
Sandberg, a 20th-round draft pick by the Phillies in 1978, broke into the majors with the Phillies in 1981 at 21 years old and played 13 games before being traded to the Cubs in the offseason, along with Larry Bowa, to reunite with Dallas Green, who had left the Phillies to become Cubs general manger.
In Chicago, Sandberg became a superstar. His 1984 season marked his breakout, as he batted .314 and totaled 19 homers and 84 RBIs – major power numbers for a second baseman in that era – along with an MLB-best 19 triples and 32 stolen bases in becoming an All Star, MVP, Silver Slugger and winner of a Golden Glove.
He was named an All Star for every season from 1983 to 1993. In 1990, Sandberg smacked 40 homers and totaled 100 RBI, the first of consecutive 100-RBI seasons. In 1985, he stole 54 bases.
Sandberg also set an MLB record for second basemen with 123 consecutive games without an error, including a 90-game error-less streak in 1989. In 2005, he was inducted into the Hall of Fame.
Sandberg returned to the Phillies in 2010 to manage the Triple-A Lehigh Valley IronPigs after three seasons of managing in the Cubs' minor league system. Sandberg led the IronPigs to their first postseason trip in 2011 as Lehigh Valley made it to the International League championship series.
After the 2012 season, the Phillies promoted Sandberg to third-base and infield instructor at the major league level. He then took over as interim manager in August of 2013 after the Phillies fired World Series champion manager Charlie Manuel.
In September of 2013, the Phillies named Sandberg as their permanent major and gave him a three-year contract but Sandberg resigned 74 games into 2015 season with the Phillies at 26-48 and his overall record at 119-159.
In 2024, the same year a statue of Sandberg was unveiled at Wrigley Field, Sandberg went public with his diagnosed of metastatic prostate cancer.
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