Craig Sager

Craig Graham Sager

• School Northwestern University
• High School Batavia (IL) High School

• Born June 29, 1951 in Batavia, IL USA
• Died December 15, 2016 in Atlanta, GA USA

Biographical Information

Craig Sager was a reporter for several stations, including TBS and CNN. His main field of activity was NBA basketball, but he also did some baseball coverage. He often worked as a sideline reporter for postseason baseball coverage on TBS. From 1978 to 1981 he broadcast spring training games of the Kansas City Royals, then started working on baseball coverage for CNN, the first all-news cable television station, as well as anchoring its nightly sports bulletin.

Among his most famous interviews was one of Hank Aaron after his 715th home run; he was then just starting his career as a reporter for a radio station in Florida and managed to dodge security to make his way to home plate with a microphone and recorder in hand to capture the slugger's immediate reaction as he finished circling the bases.

He was also known for his flamboyant costumes

A lifelong fan of the Chicago Cubs, he got to witness his favorite team break its 108-year championship drought shortly before passing away on December 15, 2016, the victim of a rare form of cancer. For over three decades, he would place a bet early in the new year on the Cubs winning that year's World Series; he was finally a winner in his final year, the bet returning $4,000 on a $1,000 wager. he was inducted in the Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame only two days before his death.

Further Reading

• Mark Bowman: "'Inspirational' Sager beloved across MLB: Reporter covered Aaron's 715th HR, was longtime Cubs fan", mlb.com, December 15, 2016. [1]
• Gabe Lacques: "NBA reporter Craig Sager left his imprint on baseball", USA Today Sports, December 15, 2016. [2]