Oscar Gamble, who spent the most productive of his 17 major-league seasons as a member of the White Sox’s 1977 “South Side Hitmen,” died Wednesday at 68, the team confirmed.
Gamble’s wife told the Associated Press he died of a rare tumor in his jaw.
Born in Ramer, Ala., in 1949, Gamble played for seven teams during a career that spanned from 1969 to 1985, including single-season stints with the Sox in 1977 and 1985. Later known for his oversized Afro hairstyle, Gamble began his career with the Cubs and also played for the Phillies, Indians, Yankees (twice), Padres and Rangers.
“He was a guy (who) truly loved life,” said Sox broadcaster Steve Stone, a teammate of Gamble’s on the ’77 squad. “He got the most out of his career that he could possibly get.”
While a member of the South Side Hitmen, so nicknamed for their ability to hit the long ball, the left-handed-hitting Gamble batted .297 with 31 home runs and 83 RBIs as a designated hitter/outfielder to help keep the Sox in the pennant race throughout much of the season.
“For a relatively small guy, Oscar could hit the ball as far as anybody around,” Stone said. “I saw him hit one out of the old Met Stadium in Minneapolis that might still be going. He coiled up in this little crouch and just exploded at the ball, and he could hit it a long, long way.”
Gamble often did so with his helmet perched atop his trademark Afro.
“He was one of the real characters of the game,” Stone said. “Obviously, everybody wants to talk about his hair because it was pretty unusual. We all had a whole lot of hair; Oscar just had a whole lot more of it than most of us.”
Dan Epstein’s book on the 1976 season, “Stars and Strikes,” describes Gamble’s love for his giant Afro. Yankees owner George Steinbrenner instituted new rules in ’76 banning “beards, beads, mutton chops and long hair,” forcing Gamble to go to a barber before he took the field in spring training. Epstein wrote that the funky ’fro measured 10 inches high at its apex.
“You know, I had an offer from Afro Sheen to do some commercials this summer,” Gamble said in the book. “But now I don’t have no hair. I’m losing a lot of money, but if I hadn’t cut it, I might not have been on the team. And then I would’ve lost everything.
“I liked my long hair, but it’ll grow back I hope.”
The next year, Gamble and Richie Zisk joined the Sox on owner Bill Veeck’s “rent-a-player” plan, which had him acquiring players he knew would leave for more money on the free-agent market the next season. The ’77 Sox remain one of the most beloved teams in franchise history.
“For 4½ months it was a very entertaining race,” said Stone, who went 15-12 with a 4.51 ERA that season. “Oscar was a huge part of it. The South Side Hitmen will live as long as the White Sox will.”
In 1,584 career games, Gamble batted .265 with 200 homers and 666 RBIs. He appeared in 18 postseason games with the Yankees and batted .286 with two homers and seven RBIs.
After the Cubs drafted him in the 16th round in 1968, Gamble made his big-league debut at 19 and finished the ’69 season with a .225 average, one homer and five RBIs in 24 games.
Gamble finished his career with the Sox after signing as a free agent before the ’85 season. He batted .203 with four homers and 20 RBIs and was released in August.
Twitter @ChrisKuc
Twitter @PWSullivan
http://embed.sendtonews.com/player2/embedcode.php?fk=MgMyoC4n&cid=4591
