Ron Santo
MLB debut June 26, 1960 for the Chicago Cubs Last MLB appearance September 29, 1974 for the Chicago White Sox Career statistics Batting average .277 Hits 2,254 Home runs 342 Runs batted in 1,331 Teams Chicago Cubs (1960–1973) Chicago White Sox (1974) Career highlights and awards 9× All-Star (1963–1966, 1968, 1969, 1971–1973) 5× Gold Glove Award (1964–1968) Chicago Cubs #10 retired Member of the National Baseball Hall of Fame Induction 2012 Vote 93.75% Election Method Golden Era Committee Ronald Edward Santo (February 25, 1940 – December 3, 2010) was an American third baseman in Major League Baseball who played from 1960 to 1974, all but the last year with the Chicago Cubs. A nine-time National League (NL) All-Star, he led the league in walks four times, in on-base percentage twice and in triples once. He batted .300 and hit 30 home runs four times each, and is the only third baseman in major league history to post eight consecutive seasons with 90 runs batted in (RBI) (1963–1970). He was the second player at his position to hit 300 career home runs, joining Eddie Mathews, and also ended his career ranking second to Mathews among third basemen in slugging average (.464) and third in runs batted in (1,331), total bases (3,779) and walks (1,108). He was a National League winner of five consecutive Gold Glove Awards for defensive fielding excellence at third base (1964–1968). He set or tied NL records by leading the league's third basemen in total chances eight times, in games, putouts and assists seven times each, and in double plays six times; from 1966 to 1974 he held the NL record for assists in a single season. He also set NL records for career assists (4,532), total chances (6,777) and double plays (389) at third base, all of which were eventually broken by Mike Schmidt between 1986 and 1988; his NL total of 2,102 games at third base fell 52 short of Mathews' league record, and he then ranked sixth in NL history in putouts (1,930) and ninth in fielding percentage (.954). Santo enjoyed his success despite suffering from diabetes, a condition which he carefully concealed for 80% of his career; it eventually necessitated the amputation of the lower half of both his legs. From 1990 until his death he was a member of the Cubs broadcasting team. While Santo initially received little support for induction into the Baseball Hall of Fame, his standing among baseball enthusiasts and sabermetricians gradually increased over time, culminating with his induction to the Hall of Fame through the Golden Era Committee in 2012, two years after his death.