Bill Shannon
Posted by Andy on October 27, 2010
Bill Shannon, senior official scorer for the Yankees and Mets and baseball historian, has died in a house fire.
Here's a link to the LoHud Yankees Blog note on Shannon's death. From there you can track back to the original story on the fire. I warn you that it's not a pleasant story, even as house fire stories go.
This news hits me particularly hard. You may have noticed that my output on this blog has been lower this year than in years past. This is because my own home was destroyed by a fire late last year. Since then, my family has been fighting the insurance company with little progress. It's been an extremely time-consuming and unpleasant process.
Still, though, I was the only one home at the time of the fire and nobody was injured. For Mr. Shannon to perish in such a fashion is absolutely horrible. My thoughts are with his mother and family, as well as all of the baseball journalists, officials, and fans that he touched in his distinguished career.
October 27th, 2010 at 11:13 am
Andy,
Sorry about your house. My childhood home burned down in 1986 while I was in high school (no one was injured). It is a tremendously painful and arduous experience. I hope things go well for you from here on, regarding your situation with the insurance company, etc.
October 27th, 2010 at 11:28 am
I just lost my job today and suddenly it doesn't seem so bad in perspective. This is tragic news and my sincerest condolences go out to Shannon's family and friends.
October 27th, 2010 at 11:32 am
Djibouti, very sorry to hear that. The fact that my day job (not blogging) has been going very well has been the second most-important thing in helping me get through the fallout from the fire...the most important being my family.
October 27th, 2010 at 11:34 am
My condolences go out to the Shannon family.
October 27th, 2010 at 6:12 pm
Official scorers are quite important to the game but are often overlooked. It wouldn't surprise me if there are lots of fans who don't know just who determines hit or error, wild pitch or passed ball, RBI or no RBI on a fielder's choice or error, or the winning pitcher if the starter doesn't go five innings but leaves with a lead that is never relinquished and is followed by multiple relievers.
Andy, I'm sorry to hear about your troubles with your insurance company, but I'm glad that no one was injured in the fire at your home.
October 27th, 2010 at 11:04 pm
The news hit me hard as well. I had the pleasure of knowing Bill during my brief sportswriting career in the mid-1990s, and he was one of the nicest people I ever met. I sat with him in the press box at Shea and Yankee Stadiums for a few dozen games during the 1996 season, and he was very generous with his intricate knowledge of the game and scoring. He was quite happy to field questions about and discuss each official scoring decision he made. I often drove him home to Manhattan after the game, and he was a gracious and pleasant traveling companion. I last saw him at a Cornell-Columbia basketball game at Levien Gym in January 2009, and he greeted me warmly by name even though we hadn't seen each other since 1996. RIP Bill.