Danny Thompson (baseball)

For other people named Danny Thompson, see Daniel Thompson.

Danny Thompson
Shortstop
Born: February 1, 1947 Wichita, Kansas
Died: December 10, 1976(1976-12-10) (aged 29) Rochester, Minnesota
Batted: Right	Threw: Right
MLB debut
June 25, 1970 for the Minnesota Twins
Last MLB appearance
October 2, 1976 for the Texas Rangers
Career statistics
Batting average	.248
Hits	550
Runs batted in	194
Teams
Minnesota Twins (1970–1976) Texas Rangers (1976)
Career highlights and awards
1974 Hutch Award

Danny Leon Thompson (February 1, 1947 - December 10, 1976) was a professional baseball player, a major league shortstop from 1970-76.

Born in Wichita, Kansas, Thompson grew up in tiny Capron, Oklahoma, and played college baseball at Oklahoma State, where he was an All-American. He broke into the majors with the Minnesota Twins in 1970. He played for the Twins until June 1976, when he was traded to the Texas Rangers in a multi-player deal.

Danny Thompson was diagnosed with leukemia before the 1973 season, but he continued his major league career for the next four seasons. He received the Hutch Award in Seattle following the 1974 season, and batted .270 in 1975, leading all American League shortstops.

Thompson appeared in 98 games in 1976, and went 1 for 3 in his final start for the Rangers on September 29th, appropriately at shortstop in Minnesota's Metropolitan Stadium. In his final game on October 2nd, he was used as a pinch hitter. [1] He died less than ten weeks later, at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. He was just 29, leaving behind a wife and two young daughters.

During the 1977 season, members of the Texas Rangers wore a black armband with the No. 4 on their left uniform sleeve. Examples of this tribute can be seen in the 1978 Topps baseball card set.

An annual golf tournament honoring Thompson is held in late August in Sun Valley, Idaho. The Danny Thompson Memorial Golf Tournament, benefiting leukemia and cancer research, was launched in 1977 by the late hall of famer Harmon Killebrew, a former teammate with the Twins, and Ralph Harding, a former Idaho congressman. The tournament has donated over $8.6 million since its inception.

External links

• Career statistics and player information from Baseball-Reference
• Danny Thompson Memorial Golf Tournament - official site
• Idaho Mountain Express - Danny Thompson Golf Tournament - 17-Aug-2007
• Sun Valley Guide - Danny Thompson Golf Tournament - Summer 2003

Persondata
Name	Thompson, Danny
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	February 1, 1947
Place of birth	Wichita, Kansas
Date of death	December 10, 1976
Place of death	Rochester, Minnesota