On this day in 2010, Ron Santo died.
The way Ron Santo ended up on the White Sox is unique. The Cubs wanted to trade their long time player and Ron fell under the new five and ten rule; five years on the same team and ten years in the majors. The new agreement stated that if you fell into this category, you could block any trade. The Cubs had a trade all set with the Angels, but Ron didn't want to go to the west coast. He would only agree to a trade if it was local. The only team that fit that criteria was the White Sox. So, on December 11, 1973, the Cubs traded Ron Santo to the Chicago White Sox.
Santo played in one hundred seventeen games for the Sox in 1974. He batted a dismal .221, but managed to play all infield positions and was mainly used in the designated hitter position, which Ron hated. Santo wanted to play the field, but manager Chuck Tanner would not bench third baseman Bill Melton to accommodate him. Ron retired after the season.
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