Extracted from The Boston Globe (Boston, MA)
SAM NARRON, 83 WAS MAJOR LEAGUE CATCHER, COACH
MIDDLESEX, N.C. -- Sam Narron, a retired major league catcher and coach, died Tuesday. He was 83.
The cause of death was congestive heart failure, his son said.
Mr. Narron's career spanned 31 years as a player or coach with the St. Louis Cardinals, Brooklyn Dodgers and Pittsburgh Pirates.
He played in the World Series in 1942 and 1943 with the Cardinals and appeared in two others, as a coach, with the Dodgers in 1949 and the Pirates in 1960. He also coached in two All-Star games.
He leaves his wife, Susie Finney Narron; a daughter, Rebecca Murphy; a son, Richard, and four grandchildren.
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Extracted from The News & Observer (Raleigh, NC)
Narron starred on sidelines
Sam Narron was the kind of man every baseball team needs.
While not a big-league star, he hung around the game for three decades and even had a small role in a movie.
Narron was a catcher who knew how to successfully work pitchers and later became a nurturing coach who provided a steadying hand for young players.
``He was always a positive influence,'' said Clyde King, a former big-league pitcher and friend of Narron's for 50 years.
Narron, a Johnston County native, died this week at age 83 of congestive heart failure. He spent 31 years in professional baseball, including stints as a player or coach for the St. Louis Cardinals, Pittsburgh Pirates and Brooklyn Dodgers.
His highlights include two World Series with the Cards, in 1942 and '43, and one Series each as a coach with Brooklyn and Pittsburgh. Although he batted only 29 times in the majors (collecting eight hits) and just once in the Series, his demeanor and his other abilities kept him in the game for years.
``As a player he had good power and a good arm, and he knew how to handle pitchers,'' said King, who now does special assignment work for the world champion New York Yankees.
``He was like Roy Campanella [former Dodgers catcher] in that he could get a lot out of pitchers. Sometimes he would make them think they were better than they were and get them through [tough] situations.'' Richard ``Rooster'' Narron, Sam's son and a former catcher who played at the Class AA level, said his father usually gave a modest appraisal of his own skills.
``He said he was never a star but rubbed shoulders with them,'' Richard recalled.
That's an understatement. Narron's teammates on the great Cardinals teams of 1935 and 1942-43 included Hall of Famers Dizzy Dean, Frankie Frisch, Joe Medwick, Stan Musial and Enos Slaughter. In the prime of Narron's career, he was a backup to Walker Cooper, a perennial National League All-Star receiver.
But Narron was valuable - in the bullpen, on the bench, in the coach's box and in the locker room.
The managers in Pittsburgh changed, but Narron remained. Skippers Bill Myers, Fred Haney, Bobby Bragan and Danny Murtaugh kept him on their staffs.
``He was sort of like a father image,'' King said. ``Easy going. Never got excited. Normally a quiet, peaceful guy who was easy for the players to go to if they had a problem.'' As the story goes, Narron once found Roberto Clemente sitting in the dressing room crying.
Asked what the trouble was, Clemente said the batting coaches wanted him to emphasize pulling the ball instead of spraying it. The young Pirates outfielder feared that change might dilute his hitting ability.
Narron provided words of comfort and advice, which went something like this: ``Listen to 'em, son; look 'em in the eye. But when you're at bat, hit like Clemente.'' After that, Clemente's average began to rise and he emerged as one of baseball's premier hitters. Pirates executive Joe Brown later wrote Narron a letter, thanking him for talking to Clemente about his batting philosophy.
Sam Narron was one of seven family members to play professional baseball but the only one known to have played in a movie. He was a base coach in ``Angels in the Outfield,'' a 1994 Walt Disney movie.
But he wasn't Hollywood. He was a baseball man. The series appearances were among his biggest thrills, and he turned that experience into a big fund raiser.
``He brought a baseball back from the 1942 World Series, and it brought over $1 million at auctions,'' Richard said. ``One [civic] club would buy it and keep it for a while, then it was sent to another one to auction. It was to help the war effort.'' Narron's life transcended the diamond. He also liked to farm, hunt, fish and help his community as a member of Antioch Baptist Church in Middlesex and as a Mason, Shriner and volunteer fireman.
Friday, January 3, 1997
Friday, January 3, 1997