Chet Lemon, a star on the Detroit Tigers’ 1984 championship team, dies at 70

CHICAGO (AP) — Chet Lemon, a three-time All-Star outfielder who helped the Detroit Tigers win the 1984 World Series, has died after a lengthy battle with blood cancer. He was 70.

The Tigers announced his death in a post on X on Thursday.

“The Detroit Tigers join all of baseball in mourning the passing of Chet Lemon,” the team said. “While he was a World Series champion and All-Star on the field, perhaps his biggest impact came off of it. That includes creating the Chet Lemon Foundation and dedicating much of his post-playing career to youth baseball development. Our thoughts are with Chet’s family, friends and all those he coached, mentored and inspired.”

Lemon’s wife, Gigi, told the Detroit Free-Press her husband had gone to sleep on his reclining sofa at their home in Apopka, Florida. “He just wasn’t responsive,” she said.

Lemon batted .273 with 215 homers and 884 RBIs over 16 seasons with Chicago and Detroit from 1975 to 1990. A first-round draft pick by Oakland in 1972, he played his first seven years with the White Sox and made All-Star teams in 1978 and 1979.

Lemon was traded to Detroit following the 1981 season for fellow outfielder Steve Kemp. Three years later, he made his third All-Star team and helped Detroit bring home its first championship since 1968.

Lemon made a memorable catch in Game 3 of the World Series when he raced back and turned around to snare Terry Kennedy’s drive a few steps from the warning track in Tiger Stadium’s notoriously deep center field. The Tigers won that game to go up 2-1 in the series and took the next two to capture the championship.

“Chet was the kindest of men and always had that great smile on his face,” Lance Parrish, an All-Star catcher on the 1984 team, said in a statement. “He was also a fierce competitor on the baseball field and a great teammate. I loved him like a brother.”

In retirement, Lemon coached youth and high school and travel baseball in Florida. He also established the Chet Lemon Foundation, which helps athletes earn scholarships and provides support for people affected by strokes and aphasia.

Lemon had battled health issues for the past three decades. He was diagnosed with polycythemia vera — a type of blood cancer that can lead to blood clots, according to the Mayo Clinic — and suffered a series of strokes that left him unable to walk or talk in recent years.

“I’ll never forget his laughter and infectious smile,” former Tigers pitcher Dan Petry said. “His athleticism on the field always stood out. But he was an even better teammate and friend.”

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