Wood was a journeyman pitcher for the Red Sox and Pirates until being acquired by the Chicago White Sox in 1967, where he fine-tuned a seldom-used knuckleball with the help of future Hall of Famer Hoyt Wilhelm, who was on the Chicago staff.
The rarest of rare as a lefthander knuckleballer, Wood would win the Fireman of the Year award for relievers in 1968, but would truly flourish as a workhorse after being moved to the starting rotation in 1971.
Wood would win 20 games or more in each of the seasons from 1971 to 1974, led the American League in victories twice, made the All-Star team three times, and started over 40 games in each of those seasons, as well as in 1975.
Wood was off to a strong start in 1976 when he was line-driven by Detroit's Ron LeFlore, who broke his kneecap. As a result, Wood never regained his previous caliber upon his return in 1977 and 1978.
Goodbye to Bobby Duncum at the age of 81.
Duncum was drafted by the then-St. Louis Cardinals as a linebacker from West Texas A&M in 1967 and would play in four games for the football Redbirds in 1968, but would earn more fame in the wrestling ring as a heel cowboy.
Duncum would receive title chances against both Bruno Sammartino and Bob Backlund for the WWWF crown, would hold titles in Florida, Georgia, and the AWA, and as part of the "Black and Blue Express, with Ken Patera, who were one of the more underrated teams of their era.
Duncum's son, the late Bobby Duncum Jr, was a wrestler with WCW as part of the "West Texas Rednecks" faction.
Goodbye to John Brodie at the age of 90
The 1970 MVP, Brodie, was the third overall pick in the 1957 NFL draft by the San Francisco 49ers from Stanford, and would spend his entire seventeen-year career in the Bay Area.
Brodie was one of the better NFL announcers after his retirement with NBC Sports, forming a great duo with Don Criqui, and was an excellent golfer.
Brodie was on the Senior PGA Tour for thirteen years and won one tournament, the 1991 Pacific Senior Classic.
Brodie was one of the players credited with getting the AFL-NFL merger talks rolling when he signed a huge future contract with the AFL's Houston Oilers.
Those contracts forced the NFL to negotiate the truce, which would lead to the two leagues becoming one.
Goodbye to Floyd Vivino at the age of 74.
Known professionally as "Uncle Floyd, Vivino was the star of the "Uncle Floyd Show" from 1974-1998, a parody of children's shows which was aimed at adults.
Mostly seen in the New York City/New Jersey market, The Uncle Floyd Show did have a period where it was syndicated in other East Coast markets, which is where I saw it following SCTV on Saturday late nights in the early 1980s.
Vivino often appeared in programs filmed in the NYC area and worked as a comic, musician, and radio host after the demise of his show.
Vivino set a Guinness World Record in 1999, when he played a piano continuously for over 24 hours and ran twice as a write-in candidate for Governor of New Jersey in a campaign parody.
Goodbye to Scott Laidlaw at the age of 72.
A fourteenth-round draft pick by the Dallas Cowboys in the 1975 NFL Draft, in one of the best drafts ever by one team (twelve players made the team, including five future Pro Bowlers, and Randy White in the Hall of Fame), Laidlaw was the backup fullback to Robert Newhouse and a standout on special teams.
Laidlaw played in three Super Bowls, winning one, for the Cowboys, and in 1978, Laidlaw replaced an injured Newhouse on Thanksgiving Day for their game against Washington, with Laidlaw rushing for 122 yards and two touchdowns to defeat Washington.
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