Lip Man 1 Posted December 5 Share Posted December 5 Sun Times story on Bill: https://chicago.suntimes.com/white-sox/2024/12/05/former-white-sox-star-bill-melton-dies 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lip Man 1 Posted December 5 Share Posted December 5 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wegner Posted December 5 Share Posted December 5 Prayers for Bill and his family. Going to pull out my Beltin Bill tshirt tonight that I got at the ballpark a few years ago to wear as I put the lights on the tree. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ducksnort Posted December 5 Share Posted December 5 Dang, this sucks. I grew up watching him on pre and post. He's a part of my childhood in a way. RIP Beltin Bill Melton. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melton1972 Posted December 5 Share Posted December 5 Just heard about his death. Obviously he was the Sox player I looked up to when I became a Fan in 1970. He was our home run hitter and seemed to be a great guy. My other favorite player was Ed Hermann and now they are both gone. Rest in Peace Bill 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zisk Posted December 6 Share Posted December 6 my brothers and I were watching on tv when Bill hit his 30th on Sept 21, 1970. the first White Sox to reach the hallowed milestone. we all wish his family the best during this emotional time. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lip Man 1 Posted December 6 Share Posted December 6 My tribute/obit for Bill: https://www.southsidesox.com/2024/12/5/24314460/bill-melton-1945-2024-in-memoriam-chicago-white-sox-dead-at-79-obituary-white-sox-history 1 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Texsox Posted December 6 Share Posted December 6 Those players, not necessarily teams, from the 70s really cemented my love of the team. Thinking of Bill I'm sitting at my kitchen table on Washington Street adjusting the rabbit ears on a portable TV to watch the game on a UHF channel 44?? . My dad was always in the road for work and my mom wasn't much of a baseball fan so I never really got the main TV. 2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Highland Posted December 6 Share Posted December 6 Great guy. Provided a lot of great memories. I remember many of his upper deck home runs and his great opening day of 1971. Interviewed him for a book I was doing in 2000. Very open and honest. One of my all time favorite Sox players. Sad day but the memories are great. Will always remember him. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WestEddy Posted December 6 Share Posted December 6 26 minutes ago, Highland said: Great guy. Provided a lot of great memories. I remember many of his upper deck home runs and his great opening day of 1971. Interviewed him for a book I was doing in 2000. Very open and honest. One of my all time favorite Sox players. Sad day but the memories are great. Will always remember him. Is this book available to the general public? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greg775 Posted December 6 Share Posted December 6 (edited) What a great hitter. I remember this the most about Melton, courtesy of Lip's post: "September 30, 1971 - When Bill Melton smashed a home run on the last day of the season off the Brewers Bill Parsons in the third inning, he became the first Sox player to ever win a home run championship. Melton hit three home runs in the final two games to pass former Sox player Norm Cash and Reggie Jackson for the title. Typically, White Sox, he only had 33, the lowest total for a champ since 1965." He patrolled 3B the years the Sox had an astroturf infield and grass outfield for some reason. That 'almost' ruined the experience at Comiskey as it was ugly configuration with turf, then grass in the outfield. Not to be preachy but it's sad to see the Sox have no players to root for now like Melton, just stiffs on the 40 man for the most part. Bill played for that abysmal Sox team but still kept the fans' interest cause of Melton's homers. Lots of kids copied Melton's batting stance. Rest in peace to a Sox legend. Edited December 6 by greg775 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pcq Posted December 6 Share Posted December 6 Bill was the original #14. Great guy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Falstaff Posted December 6 Share Posted December 6 15 hours ago, Lip Man 1 said: This is my all-time favorite SI cover. It's hard to explain how big of a deal it was to back in the day to get on the SI cover. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Falstaff Posted December 6 Share Posted December 6 (edited) 15 hours ago, South Side Fireworks Man said: Sad to hear about Bill Melton. If only he didn't fall off that ladder the Sox would have probably won the pennant in '72, and he probably would have gone on to have a greater career as a good defensive slugging third baseman. I remember one day I went to a Sox game and it was so hot the third baseman was Melton. RIP Bill, you will be missed. I always believed the Sox would have won the West in 1972 with Belt' in Bill in the lineup. Detroit was an aging team at the time, you never know. I will say the Sox had a magical season single handily fueled by Dick Allen, add in a 30 HR season from Melton and it would have been game on. Edited December 6 by Falstaff 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Grinder Posted December 6 Share Posted December 6 RIP Bill. Growing up in my neck of the woods, most boys on my baseball team were admiring Ron Santo. Not me. Belton Melton all the way 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Falstaff Posted December 6 Share Posted December 6 I am a Sox fan today because of Bill Melton and the group he came up with. I will always think of Bill along with the changing of the guard with young guns coming onboard, Bart Johnson Terry Forster, Ed Herrmann, Carlos May, and Rich Gossage a year or so later I had the pleasure of meeting Bill in person at Camelback when I took my dad to Spring Training. What a great guy, heaven just got better. 2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Highland Posted December 6 Share Posted December 6 12 hours ago, WestEddy said: Is this book available to the general public? Thanks for interest, but it is out of print. Melton gave me a great interview. Talked about when he won the HR championship on the last day of the 1971 season. Didn't even remember when he hit a home run in each game of an opening day double header in that same year. Was also gracious to fans at Sox Fest. He will be missed. Have a book on the 2005 team coming out in the spring. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
South Side Fireworks Man Posted December 6 Share Posted December 6 2 hours ago, Falstaff said: I always believed the Sox would have won the West in 1972 with Belt' in Bill in the lineup. Detroit was an aging team at the time, you never know. I will say the Sox had a magical season single handily fueled by Dick Allen, add in a 30 HR season from Melton and it would have been game on. They would have beaten out the A's with a healthy Bill Melton batting behind Dick Allen. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Look at Ray Ray Run Posted December 6 Share Posted December 6 (edited) In modern times, it's common for the world to subdue ones shortcomings upon passing. We spend a lot of time talking about how great or impactful people were when, during their life, they were complex and in some cases evil/abusive and bad people generally speaking. The only good you hear of someone is when they're gone - it's an observation that has gotten very loud as I've aged. With Bill, it's the exact opposite. All anyone ever had to say about Bill was he was a great guy, considerate, thoughtful, approachable and a man of integrity. Those words were spoken by everyone before bill passed. They were spoken while he lived. I'm glad Bill got to live a full life and even more glad he got to touch the amount of people he did and, most importantly, was able to receive the praise for those choices while he was alive. RIP to a guy I only knew via reputation; a reputation that, from all accounts, he not only deserved but actually exceeded. Edited December 6 by Look at Ray Ray Run 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lip Man 1 Posted December 6 Share Posted December 6 Great column on Bill from Sully at the Tribune: https://www.chicagotribune.com/2024/12/06/chicago-white-sox-bill-melton-nancy-faust/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Mighty Mite Posted December 6 Share Posted December 6 An all time favorite of mine, met him at a golf outing about 33 years ago, great guy, may he rest in peace. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stinky Stanky Posted December 7 Share Posted December 7 On 12/5/2024 at 12:27 PM, CaliSoxFanViaSWside said: Part of my childhood died. RIP Beltin' Bill. There he is with Nancy Faust (with her Sandy Duncan doo) and Wilbur Wood. Photograph the work of Chicago master photographer Victor Skrebneski who was famous for getting society women to take more of their clothes off than they wanted to before a photo shoot. This is in the same spirit. Some great stories in those obits about a great guy. Didn't need to be reminded about what a jerk Harry could be, even though we all know it. RIP buddy. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WhiteSox2023 Posted December 7 Share Posted December 7 1 hour ago, Stinky Stanky said: Photograph the work of Chicago master photographer Victor Skrebneski who was famous for getting society women to take more of their clothes off than they wanted to before a photo shoot. This is in the same spirit. Some great stories in those obits about a great guy. Didn't need to be reminded about what a jerk Harry could be, even though we all know it. RIP buddy. Was going to say… pretty risqué photo there. I also didn’t know what Nancy Faust looked like back in the day… Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lip Man 1 Posted December 11 Share Posted December 11 Spoke with a member of the organization this afternoon talking about the Crochet deal but as a side note, found out that Bill Melton fell and hit his head several months ago and that triggered dementia which led to his passing. He was in a rehab environment for a time but it just kept getting worse. Very sad. Also Hawk isn't doing well either as he was in a rehab facility too. He kept falling down and was dehydrated. The unfortunate human condition. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WhiteSox2023 Posted December 11 Share Posted December 11 (edited) 19 minutes ago, Lip Man 1 said: Spoke with a member of the organization this afternoon talking about the Crochet deal but as a side note, found out that Bill Melton fell and hit his head several months ago and that triggered dementia which led to his passing. He was in a rehab environment for a time but it just kept getting worse. Very sad. Also Hawk isn't doing well either as he was in a rehab facility too. He kept falling down and was dehydrated. The unfortunate human condition. What a shame. I wonder when it happened. I remember when he called into the Sox post-game last season and talked to Garfien, Ozzie, Frank, etc. and he seemed really out of it and not his usual quick, witty self. He sounded tired and out of it. Edited December 11 by WhiteSox2023 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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