ST. LOUIS — Knowing Chris Duncan would have been special. I wish I would have had the opportunity to have a conversation with him or maybe discuss baseball over a bucket of beers.
The former Cardinal slugger and St. Louis radio personality felt like an easy guy to relate to. The man at the end of the bar who knew a lot, had plenty of opinions, but never slighted the people listening. He wasn’t your typical professional athlete turned radio voice: Duncan let everyone inside his cage. Every day.
Today would have been Duncan’s 39th birthday. He passed away last September after a long, courageous battle with cancer. You couldn’t find a sadder day in a St. Louis summer. I was at Uncle Bill’s when I heard the news and suddenly those wonderful pancakes just didn’t taste that good anymore.
But then I reminded myself of something important. I needed a moment to remember that a life isn’t defined by its end, but more about what is given in between the first and last breath. I thought about all the good memories Duncan gave fans and writers.
So today, I am going to help you celebrate Duncan and his legacy with 5 things you can do. They’ll make you chuckle, cry, and reminisce. That’s the way it should be. Let’s go.
5. Crack open a man soda on the deck and put your feet up. Make someone laugh. If you know anything about Duncan or ever listened to him, you’ll know he referred to beers as “man sodas.” Pass a man soda to a friend and tell them about the first time you heard it on the radio. Then, they’ll use the term and tell someone else, and so on. That way, the Dunc-Speak will be spread all around.
4. SWING HARD. Go to the batting cages. If not, go to a nearby park with a baseball bat. Balls are optional. Now find a place that resembles home plate. It could be one of the fields or one you bring yourself. Stand next to it, ready your stance, and swing as hard as you can. Do this over and over again. Duncan was never cheated at the plate. He didn’t know what a half swing was and did nothing halfway with a bat in his hand. Swing long and wide. Look off to right field as the imaginary home run lands in the stands. You’ll get a workout and honor Chris, who always let the big dog eat.
3. Buy a “CD 16 Dunctionary" t-shirt. All the proceeds go to the Chris Duncan Memorial Scholarship fund. The ringspun cotton (the best kind of cotton for t-shirt addicts like myself) has all the famous Duncan sayings on there, including “man sodas” and “boomstick.” The fund grants a scholarship to a graduating high school senior looking to continue their career or pursue a sports broadcasting major. Get a comfy shirt and help the future all in one purchase.
2. Participate in a viral candlelight with Chris’ wife, Amy, tonight at 8:30 pm central standard time. Join Amy in a Zoom video from your home and light a candle for Chris. This will last 30 minutes and you can join right here. Sometimes, it’s the little things such as shining light as bright as Chris did during his life. The great thing about sports is it brings strangers together into a community for even a small period of time. This is a good way to connect with Amy and remember Chris on his birthday.
1. Make a donation to the American Cancer Society. Today is Giving Tuesday, so help another person with cancer find a cure by donating to these renegade scientists, doctors, and medical professionals trying to strike out cancer every day. Every single cent goes into research and testing, the goal being to stop this ungrateful beast from taking more great people. This is a great one to honor Chris and so many others who have left too soon. Any amount helps.
I wish I got a chance to know Chris Duncan, even a little. He was one of those athletes who looked like he could walk off the field at Busch Stadium and onto a softball field at Forest Park without missing a beat. He'd swing hard, smile often, and laugh hard with regular people. That's my guess. While his MLB career was cut short by injury, Duncan did slug .458 and smashed 55 home runs for an .805 OPS. He made a great second career with 101.1 ESPN, giving the kind of analysis that didn't alienate a fan with complex sabermetrics, but a clear-headed look at the game.
He's missed. Hopefully I gave you a few ways to honor him. Maybe even do a few of them at the same time. Crack open a beer, swing a bat, buy a shirt, light a candle, and donate to the ongoing fight against cancer.
