News on Rod Beaton (includes update from Maria Beaton)

Some of you may be aware that Rod Beaton of USA Today has been ill for some time. I'm sorry to pass along this news, which was sent out by the BBWAA:

<i>"I have some sad news to share on Rod Beaton. I spoke with Maria, Rod's wife, and she said he's terminally ill with Lewy body dementia and Parkinson's disease. He's in a nursing home and is wheelchair-bound.

Rod wears a pacemaker, but his brain is gradually dying, and Maria thinks it might be a matter of months before he passes. He's already undergone three brain surgeries in a span of 18 months, and his body can't take much more."</i>

I'm sure some people on the hockey beat know Rod from his days of covering the NHL, too. He's always been a friend to everyone, and it's just devastating to get this report.

I hope you'll keep Rod and his family in your thoughts.

 

Re: Sad news on Rod Beaton

Sad, sad, news. Best wishes to Rod, Maria and his family.

 

Re: Sad news on Rod Beaton

How old is he?

That's awful.

 

Re: Sad news on Rod Beaton

Amen. He and his family are in my thoughts.

 

Re: Sad news on Rod Beaton

A great man, a hell of a guy. I always enjoyed hanging out with him. Dang it all.

 

Re: Sad news on Rod Beaton

Jesus that's awful. Piggybacking on Cowbell, I wonder how old he is too...certainly seemed younger than someone who would have to go thru something like this.

I remember, in the days before the Internet cornered the market on fantasy baseball reportage, he used to self-publish a really comprehensive book every spring. Was really good stuff. Hope he and his family find peace in whatever time he has left.

 

Re: Sad news on Rod Beaton

Aw, shit. Rod is good people and, man, did he love the game.

 

Re: Sad news on Rod Beaton

Holy, how terrible. Rod is one of the nicest people I ever met covering sports, as well as a fellow Delaware Blue Hen. Just the worst sort of news. A wonderful man.

 

Re: Sad news on Rod Beaton

I believe Rod is 57. He and his wife have two sons in college.

 

Re: Sad news on Rod Beaton

I hung out with Rod quite frequently covering baseball in the 1980s and early '90s. What a great guy, with a wonderful sense of humor and a deep love of baseball. There was a time, prior to the advent of the internet, when he was one of the most prominent figures in baseball writing as USA Today's lead man. Everybody knew and respected Rod -- players, managers, executives. It's been sad watching his health deteriorate over the years, and this news is just devastating.

I also distinctly remember an incident in which Rod stood up to Barry Bonds in a manner that made him a hero among fellow sportswriters. I did a little Googling and found this 1996 article on the incident by Henry Schulman. This is the Rod Beaton I'm going to remember:

PITTSBURGH - Barry Bonds might be on to something. Fight
with a sportswriter, hit a home run.
Before Tuesday night's game in St. Louis, he launched into
an obscenity-laced tirade against Bay Area writers whose
only crime was waiting in the clubhouse to talk to manager
Dusty Baker, and then he hit the game-winning home run.
On Wednesday, no screaming, no home run.
Then on Thursday, after he engaged USA Today reporter Rod
Beaton in a confrontation that led to some minor shoving,
Bonds hit his 15th homer.
There is no truth to the rumor that the Giants have invited
Hannah Storm to sit next to Bonds in the dugout and ask him
about his divorce.
If all of this sounds light-hearted, that's OK, because
Bonds said he was only joking when he approached Beaton
before the Giants lost to the Cardinals, 16-8.
The ensuing conflict led to an eight-minute meeting
between Bonds and Beaton after the game, and a public
statement of protest by USA Today. The newspaper also said
it wouldn't file an official grievance and considers the
matter closed.
"He never acknowledged it was over the line pushing me,
and he never apologized for it," Beaton said. "I don't
want this to become a festering thing, but I want him to
know that players can't push writers. That's going too
far."
The incident occurred in the Giants clubhouse about 70
minutes before Thursday's game. Beaton was waiting to
interview Robby Thompson, who was chatting with four
members of the NHL's Detroit Red Wings who were visiting
the clubhouse. The writer was still permitted to be in the
clubhouse, which isn't closed until 45 minutes before
game time.
Beaton said Bonds walked by and said, "Don't be hanging
around our house." Two minutes later, Beaton said, Bonds
came by again and hollered at Thompson to let him know that
Beaton was waiting, to which Beaton replied, "Barry,
you're not my social director."
That's when things escalated, with Bonds putting his hand
on Beaton's chest as if to push him away. Beaton said he
hit Bonds' arm to move it away, but Bonds started pushing
him again. That's when pitching coach Dick Pole came by
and gently moved Bonds away, telling him not to touch
Beaton.
"It was no big deal," Bonds said. "It was just a
miscommunication. We get our butts kicked and that's what
you want to talk about? It was a big, huge joke, and he
(Beaton) got whacked out."
Beaton conceded "it was not an Albert Belle kind of
thing. It never got vicious."
Baker said he didn't plan to talk to Bonds nor discuss the
incident.
"I'm not going to answer for something I wasn't involved
in," Baker said. "When you turn 21 years old you answer
for your own actions."
Bob Rose, the Giants' director of public relations, said,
"The Giants certainly don't condone this action. It
clearly does not epitomize the relationship our players
have with the media." <

 

Re: Sad news on Rod Beaton

If any of Rod's friends would like to send notes or cards:

Rod Beaton
c/o Emeritus of Arlington
3821 Wilson Blvd. Room 213
Arlington, VA 22203