Larry Whiteside facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Larry Whiteside
|
|
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born | September 19, 1937 |
| Died | June 15, 2007 (aged 69) |
| Alma mater | Drake University |
| Occupation | Sportswriter |
| Years active | 1959–2004 |
| Known for | Boston Red Sox coverage |
| Spouse(s) | Elaine |
| Children | 1 |
| Awards | J. G. Taylor Spink Award (2008) |
Lawrence W. Whiteside (born September 19, 1937 – died June 15, 2007) was an American journalist. People often called him "Sides." He was famous for writing about baseball in newspapers, especially for his work covering the Boston Red Sox for The Boston Globe.
Contents
Larry Whiteside's Early Life
Larry Whiteside was born in Chicago, Illinois, in 1937. He went to Drake University and earned a degree in 1959. While he was studying there, he also wrote for a newspaper called The Des Moines Register.
Starting His Career in Journalism
In 1959, Whiteside became a full-time writer for The Kansas City Kansan. Later, he moved to Milwaukee, Wisconsin. There, he wrote about the Milwaukee Braves baseball team. He also wrote about important civil rights issues for The Milwaukee Journal.
The owner of the Milwaukee Brewers baseball team, Bud Selig, offered Whiteside a job with the team. This was in 1970 when the team moved from Seattle. But Larry Whiteside loved being a journalist more, so he chose to keep writing for newspapers.
In 1971, Whiteside created something special called The Black List. This list helped sports editors find talented black journalists to hire. At first, the list only had nine names. But by 1983, it had grown to include more than 90 journalists.
Writing About Boston Baseball
Whiteside moved to Boston in 1973. He started working for The Boston Globe newspaper and stayed there for the rest of his career. At that time, he was the only black journalist who covered Major League Baseball every day for a major newspaper.
Whiteside wrote about many big moments in Boston baseball history. He covered Bucky Dent's famous home run that helped defeat the Red Sox in 1978. He also wrote about the Red Sox losing the 1986 World Series to the New York Mets. Another big event he covered was Roger Clemens' second game where he got 20 strikeouts.
Larry Whiteside was also an expert on Negro league baseball. He was one of the first American journalists to follow baseball in other countries. In 1999, the National Association of Black Journalists gave him a special lifetime achievement award. He was also part of the group that helped choose the Major League Baseball All-Century Team.
Later Years and Legacy
In the early 2000s, Whiteside developed Parkinson's disease. This made it hard for him to continue his reporting work, and he stopped writing in 2004. In September 2003, the Red Sox honored him. They asked him to throw out the ceremonial first pitch at Fenway Park.
Larry Whiteside passed away in Boston in June 2007. He was survived by his wife, Elaine, and their son. On the day he died, the Red Sox held a moment of silence for him before their game.
In July 2007, Whiteside was chosen as a finalist for the J. G. Taylor Spink Award. This award is given to baseball writers. He won the award on December 5, 2007, after a vote by the Baseball Writers' Association of America (BBWAA). He was honored in July 2008 and included in the writers' section of the Baseball Hall of Fame. Larry Whiteside was the first African-American beat writer to receive the Spink Award.
