And by that, I mean Rod Beck, who passed away in his northeast Phoenix home on Sunday. Beck was the first player I could recognize as a child due to his absolutely ridiculous moustache and nasty stuff that he used to close games most notably for the Cubs and Giants, but he also pitched well for the Red Sox, where he had a great regular season but was not as effective in the postseason, and the Padres, where he converted 20 of 20 saves while Trevor Hoffman was injured in 2003, but was ineffective as a 7th inning man when Hoffman returned.
Before Beck got signed by the Pads, he played AAA ball for the Iowa Cubs. Even though he had a bit of his major league salary left, Beck decided to make his home in Iowa in an RV in the parking lot...just past the outfield fence. Beck would welcome in fans for a beer and a chat, something that I would have driven to Iowa for had I been of age at the time. Beck became a cult hero for this choice of living arraingments. Beck was an everyman, though a little more guarded from fans in the majors, where his beer and cigarettes and chilling was done with teammates after games.
Beck was the reason I started playing baseball. As a kid, I saw a dude just having fun and closing games. His time in Iowa made me believe him to be the coolest man to play the game, and for that reason, I will miss you, Rod Beck. Rest in peace, dude.
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