September 15, 2012, the San Diego Padres honor Jerry Coleman with a special ceremony and a statue that will remind us today and those in generations to come what it means to be a patriot and contributor to your profession and your community.
His signature call of, “Oh, Doctor! You can hang a star on that baby” quite simply is what perfectly applies to Jerry Coleman and his contributions to the game on the diamond, in the broadcast booth, and in the community. I’ve had the pleasure of knowing Jerry since 1997, telling his story from growing up in San Francisco, to playing for the Yankees, serving in two wars, and broadcasting national and local games. In 2005, for the second edition of One on One featuring “the Colonel” I traveled to Cooperstown with videographer Dan Roper to document when the Baseball Hall of Fame honored him in the Broadcast Wing. Because he did not play for a full ten seasons, the second baseman with numerous baseball credentials did not qualify for consideration for induction into the Hall of Fame.
I learned on that trip to Cooperstown– talking with players and fans — that Jerry Coleman is known and appreciated across baseball and across the country. He is a national treasure, and San Diegans are fortunate he calls San Diego home. Here is an excerpt from the One on One program produced in 2005.
The days before Cooperstown, he was inducted into the Marine Corps Hall of Fame in Quantico, Virginia. Perhaps even a bigger honor, as he has consistently declared that being a Marine was the important thing he’s achieved (professionally) in his life. His wife Maggie shared, “For Jerry, it’s family first, country second, and baseball third.” And as much a patriot as he is, some of the military memories have been difficult to discuss, “because there are some sad moments.”
Jerry has seen and experienced nine decades of life. Good, bad, exciting, heartbreaking, inspiring. He, indeed, has relayed such moments to those tuning in on the radio, and to those whose hands he’s shaken, or baseballs he’s signed, with such ease, humor and generosity.
Congratulations Jerry. And thank you for being our friend.
The chapter on Jerry Coleman in my book begins on page 430.