Jim Hickman obit

Former Major League All-Star Jim Hickman dies at 79

 

He was not on the list.

Former Major League All-Star Jim HIckman, who was born and raised in Henning, Tennessee, died Saturday. He was 79 and in hospice care.

Hickman's son Joey is the longtime golf pro at Old Hickory Country Club.

Jim Hickman was inducted into the Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame in 1996.

After six years in the minors HIckman, whose nickname was "Gentleman Jim," became an original member of the New York Mets in 1962.

After five seasons in New York, Hickman went to the Los Angeles Dodgers (1968), Chicago Cubs (1968-73) and St. Louis Cardinals (1974).

He was named an All-Star in 1970 when he hit .312 with 32 home runs and 100 RBIs.

In the All-Star game Hickman drove in Pete Rose in a famous play where Rose steamrolled catcher Ray Fosse at the plate.

The play gave the National League a 5-4 win.

After his playing career Hickman served as the Reds minor league hitting coordinator from 1987-2006.

The funeral will be at Garner Funreral Home in Ripley, Tenn., but the details are incomplete at this time.

In April 1968, Hickman was traded to the Cubs. During the 1968 season he hit .223, and in 1969 he hit .237. Hickman then had his best season in 1970, when he hit .315 with 162 hits, 33 doubles, 32 home runs, 115 RBIs, 102 runs scored, and 93 walks — all career highs. His performance won the National League Comeback Player of the Year Award and placed him 8th in the NL Most Valuable Player balloting.

Hickman made his only All-Star appearance on July 14, 1970, at the Cincinnati Reds' newly opened Riverfront Stadium where, in the 12th inning, his RBI single drove in hometown favorite Pete Rose for the winning run, Rose barreling over Cleveland Indian catcher Ray Fosse to score the run. Like Hickman, the pitchers of record were also Tennessee natives; Claude Osteen, Hickman's Dodger teammate in 1967, was the winning pitcher, while Hickman collected the walk-off single off Clyde Wright, his eventual 1970 American League Comeback Player of the Year counterpart.

In his six seasons with Chicago, Hickman batted .267 with 97 home runs and 336 RBIs in 682 games played.

 

Teams

New York Mets (1962–1966)

Los Angeles Dodgers (1967)

Chicago Cubs (1968–1973)

St. Louis Cardinals (1974)