Ryne Sandberg

Ryne Sandberg, also commonly referred to as “Ryno”, is a former professional baseball player and current professional baseball manager. Sandberg has been contributing his talent and wisdom to Major League Baseball since 1981. He was born in 1959 in Spokane, Washington and was a three-sport athlete in high school. Excelling athletically, Sandberg’s high school retired both his varsity football and baseball numbers. He was recruited to pursue a collegiate football career by numerous Division I NCAA teams, and even signed a letter of intent with Washington State University. Choosing instead to join the Philadelphia Phillies roster in the 1978 amateur draft, Sandberg traded in his college football opportunity. He debuted professionally for the Phillies just three years later and played one season with them before spending nearly fifteen years as a Chicago Cub. As a nine-time Gold Glove award recipient, seven-time Silver Slugger award recipient, league MVP, Home Run Derby winner and ten-time All-Star, Sandberg retired his playing career in 1997. However, he did not retire his involvement with the sport of baseball as he went back in 2013 to become the manager of the Philadelphia Phillies. In addition, Sandberg was honorably inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2005 and continues to manage the Phillies with pride.